00 Request for Proposals (RFP) Main Document - #24-25-31 - Underground Locating _ Field Marking Services.docx

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP)

Underground Locating and Field Marking Services

RFP# 24-25-31

PROCUREMENT TIMELINE:

The City has developed the above list of key events. All key dates are subject to change at the City’s discretion.

PROCUREMENT CONTACT:

Michael Noffsinger, Contracts Manager City of Santa Clara – Purchasing Division 1500 Warburton Avenue Santa Clara, CA 95050 Email: MNoffsinger@SantaClaraCA.gov

RFP #24-25-31 – Underground Locating and Marking Services Page 1 of 2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF ATTACHMENTS

The table below provides a list of additional attachments that together form the entire Request for Proposals package.

The following must be completed and returned with the proposal:

(Proposer shall note any exceptions to the terms and conditions of the Exemplar Agreement. If no exceptions, submit first page of the Exemplar Agreement with “No Exceptions.”)

INTRODUCTION

The City of Santa Clara (“City”) is soliciting proposals from qualified firms (hereinafter “Proposer”) to provide underground locating and field marking services for Silicon Valley Power (“SVP”), the Electric Utility of the City of Santa Clara (“City”).

SVP owns, operates, and maintains 279 miles of underground distribution lines and 70 miles of underground fiber optic lines. During January 2024 through June 2024, SVP marked 5,684 excavation location request tickets from USA North 811 for its electric utility and 6,324 excavation location request tickets for its fiber optic utility. SVP averages 947 electric utility excavation location request tickets and 1,054 fiber optic utility excavation location request tickets every month.

This Request for Proposals (RFP) is for SVP to establish one contract with a qualified contractor to be readily available to provide the services described in this RFP and the Scope of Services in Attachment A. During the contract period, the successful Contractor shall be available for any Services needed by SVP. The Contractor should have a flexible organization capable of performing multiple assignments simultaneously for emergency and non-emergency work.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

The Proposer must meet the following minimum qualifications. Proposals that fail to meet the minimum qualifications in this section will be considered non-responsive and disqualified from further consideration.

Proposer must have 5 years’ experience performing locating and field marking services on behalf of electric utilities.

Proposer (including any subcontractors) must be registered with the Department of Industrial Relations prior to submitting its proposal, pursuant to California Labor Code Section 1725.5. Include a copy of the DIR registration with the DIR number with your proposal.

SCOPE OF SERVICES

A detailed Scope of Services is provided in Attachment A.

TERM OF THE AGREEMENT

The initial term of the agreement will be (5) five years. The City reserves the right to exercise one (1) additional one-year option, for a total of six (6) years.

HOW TO OBTAIN THIS RFP

This RFP may be downloaded from the Bidnet Direct e-Procurement system located at https://www.bidnetdirect.com/california/cityofsantaclara. Follow the “Vendor Registration” link to register for this online service.

All addenda and notices related to this procurement will be posted by the City on Bidnet Direct. In the event that this RFP is obtained through any means other than Bidnet Direct, the City will not be responsible for the completeness, accuracy, or timeliness of the final RFP document.

PROCEDURE FOR SUBMITTING QUESTIONS AND INQUIRIES

Questions pertaining to this RFP should be submitted via Bidnet Direct. Please submit all questions by the deadline indicated on the cover page. The City will provide a written response to all pertinent questions in the form of an Addendum. Questions answered on Bidnet Direct shall be considered addenda to the RFP.

OBJECTIONS

Any objections as to the structure, content or distribution of this RFP must be submitted in writing to the Procurement Contact by the deadline indicated on the cover page. Objections must be as specific as possible, and identify the RFP section number and title, as well as a description and rationale for the objection.

DELIVERY OF PROPOSALS

Your proposal must be received by the due date and time listed in Bidnet Direct. Proposers should familiarize themselves with Bidnet Direct and allow adequate time to upload their proposals. Submittals that are initiated prior to the deadline but not completed by the deadline will not be accepted. The City is not responsible for any late or incomplete submissions due to any technical issues that may be encountered in Bidnet Direct.

Your proposal should be submitted in one file. Submitting multiple files may result in a proposal being marked down or disqualified if the City spends excessive time printing and organizing your proposal. If proposer needs to submit multiple files, please name and organize your proposal in the order of the Proposal Content described in Section 10 of this RFP.

The City will accept e-signatures on documents that require a signature.

The proposal must be in Times New Roman, Arial or similar, easily readable font. The size of the font cannot be any smaller than 11 and margins should be 1 inch or wider.

PROPOSAL CONTENT

In order to expedite the evaluation process, each proposal shall be organized and indexed according to the chapters specified below. Proposals that do not follow the specified format outlined below, or fail to provide the required documentation, may receive lower scores, or if found to be non-responsive, be disqualified. In the event of any conflict between any of the proposal documents, resolution thereof shall be in the City’s sole discretion.

Table of Contents Include a table of contents that identifies the page numbers for each of the various Chapters in the proposal. All pages must be consecutively numbered and correspond to the table of contents.

Chapter 1 – Letter of Transmittal Include a transmittal letter identifying the Proposer’s firm and the proposal package being submitted. The letter shall provide the name, title, address, telephone number, and fax number of the individual authorized to contractually bind the firm and be signed by the authorized individual. Also include the name of the contact person for this RFP.

Chapter 2 – Company Profile Provide a brief company profile that identifies the following:

years in business, names previously used, and other company affiliations;

description of any anticipated changes of ownership or control of the company;

mailing address of the Proposer’s principal place of business; mailing address and phone number of the office from which the services will be provided;

registration number with the California Secretary of State and provide a copy of the certificate with your proposal;

DIR Registration Number and include a copy of the registration with your proposal; and other general information that is deemed significant enough to be highlighted.

Address any pending or current litigation related to services provided by your firm, and any terminated contracts within the past five years with an explanation of the reasons for termination.

Chapter 3 – California Public Records Act If you are requesting that section(s) of your submittal be kept confidential, refer to Section 13 – Public Nature of Response Materials for additional instructions on the information that must be included in your proposal.

Chapter 4 – Executive Summary Include an executive summary that demonstrates your understanding of the City’s requirements and that provides a general overview of how your firm will accomplish the requirements of this RFP.

Chapter 5 – Qualifications, Experience and References Provide a detailed narrative demonstrating your expertise and experience to meet the requirements of this RFP.

Discuss your expertise and experience:

Providing locating and field marking services for other electric utilities;

Working with Underground Service Alert of Northern California and Nevada (USA North 811);

Responding to locating and field marking requests and general response times.

Discuss your firm’s process for staying up to date on changes in laws or regulations associated with the scope of services of this RFP.

Identify the person who will serve as the primary point of contact assigned to the City. Identify key individuals including their resumes, including relevant experience, background, and any certifications and licenses they hold, their primary employment location, and any other pertinent information. Additionally, discuss the role that each individual will play in providing the required services. Include an organizational chart. Key personnel will be an important factor considered by the evaluation committee. Changes in key personnel may be cause for rejection of the proposal.

If Proposer anticipates utilizing any subcontractor to perform work under the contract, provide the name of the subcontractor, their license number and DIR registration number (if applicable), a description of the work that the subcontractor will perform, and a description of the subcontractor’s experience in performing the work. Provide the proposed percentage of work to be performed by the subcontractor(s), their location, and similar information required of Contractor as specified in Section 9.6.1 through Section 9.6.2.

Provide three (3) references within the past five (5) years for which your company has provided services similar in size and scope as described in this RFP. Each reference must be for a different client. Use Attachment H (Customer Reference Form) to submit the required customer references. Include in your references a summary of work performed, description of all major tasks and services provided, the total cost, the period over which the work was completed, and a brief statement of your company’s adherence to the schedule and budget.

Chapter 6 – Technical Capability Present a well-articulated work plan that describes the approach and methodology the Proposer intends to use to accomplish the required scope of services. This work plan shall establish that the Proposer understands the objectives and work requirements of this RFP and that the Proposer has the ability to satisfy those objectives and requirements. Include how your company will:

Allocate staffing resources to fulfill the requirements of this RFP;

Mobilize personnel to respond to scheduled calls for service;

Handle emergency requests for service;

Provide the general services outlined in Section 2.1 of Attachment A;

Provide your emergency response plan for locating and field marking services, including staffing plans and response times. Discuss your approach to emergency service calls and onsite requirements as described in Section 2.2 of Attachment A; and Discuss any factors that could increase or decrease the Scope of Services and identify any areas or aspects within the Scope of Services that are of concern to you.

Provide your company’s safety program to ensure that employees are adequately trained and possess the required skills and knowledge to perform their work safely.

Provide your company’s workers’ compensation experience rate and safety statistics (OSHA 300) for calendar years 2021, 2022, and 2023.

Provide your company’s Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) and Experience Modification Rate (EMR) for calendar years 2021, 2022 and 2023. TRIR must be less than 2.0, and EMR must be less than 1.0. Proposer(s) with a higher rate shall provide an explanation. City may accept or reject it at City’s sole discretion.

Provide your incident-per-ticket ratio.

Chapter 7 – Cost/Fee Proposal Proposers shall submit a well-prepared cost/fee proposal so that the City has the information necessary to evaluate the reasonableness of the proposed price. See Attachment E.

Chapter 8 – Proposer Certification Form Submit the Proposer Certification Form signed by an authorized representative.

Chapter 9 - Exemplar Agreement The successful Proposer will be required to enter into an agreement with terms and conditions in substantial conformity with Attachment G.

Proposer shall note any exceptions to the terms and conditions of the Exemplar Agreement. If there are no exceptions, please return the first page of the Exemplar Agreement marked “No Exceptions”. Please note that excessive changes may result in lower proposal scores, or disqualification of proposal.

SELECTION PROCESS AND EVALUATION CRITERIA

Evaluation Criteria

Proposals will be evaluated to determine the proposal that offers the best value to the City. The evaluation will be based upon the following criteria, listed in the order of descending priority. Although some factors are weighted more than others, all are considered necessary, and a proposal must be acceptable in each area to be eligible for award.

Proposal Responsiveness Proposals will be reviewed to determine if all required documentation was included with the proposal submittal.

Proposals that fail to contain the required documents will be disqualified from further consideration.

Proposal Review and Evaluation Technical and cost proposals will be evaluated based on the general criteria and their corresponding weights as outlined in Section 11.1.

The City may seek clarification from any or all Proposers to better understand and evaluate the proposals. This process may not be used as an opportunity to submit missing documentation or to make substantive revisions to the original proposal.

The City reserves the right to rely on information from sources other than the information provided by the Proposers.

Presentations / Oral Interviews (if held) Finalist(s) (proposal(s) determined to have scored in the competitive range) may be invited to present oral presentations for the purpose of introducing key members of the project team and allowing the City to fully understand the Proposer’s ability to meet the evaluation criteria. Finalist(s) will be notified in writing of the date, place, time and format of the interview or presentation.

Oral presentations will not be scored separately. Instead, the City may modify proposal scores and resulting rankings based on the oral presentation.

Proposers are cautioned that oral presentations are optional and at the sole discretion of the City, unless otherwise specified in Section 12.1. Therefore, Proposers should not assume that there would be an additional opportunity to revise their technical proposals after their original submission. Proposers may not request an opportunity for oral presentations.

Best and Final Offer (BAFO) A Best and Final Offer (BAFO) may be held with finalist(s) that have scored in the competitive range if additional information or clarification is necessary to make a final decision. The BAFO may allow Proposers to revise their original technical and/or cost proposals based on information received from the City. The City will send out the request for a BAFO with instructions addressing the areas to be covered and the date and time in which the BAFO is to be submitted. After receipt of the BAFO, scores may be adjusted based on the new information received in the BAFO.

The City will request only one BAFO, unless the Purchasing Officer determines in writing in the procurement file that another BAFO is warranted.

Proposers are cautioned that the BAFO is optional and at the sole discretion of the City. Therefore, Proposers should not assume that there would be an additional opportunity to revise their technical or cost proposals after their original submission. Proposers may not request an opportunity to submit a BAFO.

AWARD OF CONTRACT

Notice of Intent to Award The Purchasing Contact will issue a Notice of Intent to Award to all Proposers. The recommendation for award will be based on the overall highest ranked proposer in accordance with Section 11.1. above. Should the City, in its sole discretion, determine that a secondary award is required, award will be to the second highest ranked proposer, and so forth.

Post-Notice of Intent to Award Attachment Submittals Intended awardee(s) are required to submit the following information and documents by the specified time below, unless the City grants an extension in its sole discretion. Failure to provide the documents within the time frame may result in withdrawal of the recommendation of award, and award will be made to the next highest ranked Proposer.

Certificate of Insurance (insurance requirements outlined under Attachment C within ten (10) calendar days after the Notice of Intended Award.

Execution of Contract The recommendation of award and agreement shall not be binding or valid with the City unless and until it is approved by the City Council, if so required, and executed by authorized representatives of the City and of the successful Proposer.

PUBLIC NATURE OF RESPONSE MATERIALS

All materials submitted in response to this solicitation become the exclusive property of the City of Santa Clara. At such time as the City awards a contract, all materials received in response to this solicitation become a matter of public record and shall be regarded as public records. If you must include confidential or proprietary information that you believe is exempt from disclosure, you must (a) clearly mark the specific information as “Confidential,” “Trade Secret,” or “Proprietary”; (b) state the specific provision in the Public Records Act that provides the exemption; and (c) provide the factual basis for claiming the exemption in each specific instance. In addition, you must separately provide a redacted version of your response materials.

The City shall not in any way be liable or responsible for the disclosure of any such proposal or portions thereof, if they are not plainly marked as “Confidential,” “Trade Secret,” or “Proprietary,” or if disclosure, in the City’s sole discretion, is required under the California Public Records Act as addressed below. Any proposal which contains language purporting to render all or significant portions of the proposal “Confidential,” “Trade Secret,” or “Proprietary” may be regarded as non-responsive.

Although the California Public Records Act recognizes that certain confidential trade secret information may be protected from disclosure, the City of Santa Clara may determine, in its sole discretion, that the information that a Proposer submits is not a trade secret. If a request is made for information marked “Confidential,” “Trade Secret,” or “Proprietary,” the City shall provide the Proposer who submitted the information notice of the request. Proposer shall immediately notify City whether Proposer will seek protection from disclosure by a court of competent jurisdiction. Any such action will be at the Proposer's sole expense. If, after receiving the foregoing notice from the City, Proposer takes no action or is not responsive as determined by the City, the City will disclose Proposer’s information without any liability or further duty of protecting the information.

PROTESTS

If an unsuccessful Proposer wants to dispute the award recommendation, the protest must be submitted in writing to the contact listed below no later than ten (10) calendar days after the publication of the Notice of Intended Award. The protest must provide a detailed explanation of the grounds for the protest, the factual basis for the protest, and include all supporting information. Protests will not be considered for disputes of proposal requirements and specifications, which must be addressed in accordance with Objections Section above. Failure to submit a timely written protest to the contact listed below will bar consideration of the protest.

The address for submitting protests is:

1500 Warburton Avenue Finance Department - Purchasing Division Santa Clara, CA 95050 Attention: Purchasing Officer

COLLUSION

By submitting a proposal, each Proposer represents and warrants that its proposal is genuine and made in the interest of or on behalf of any person named therein; that the Proposer has not directly induced or solicited any other person to submit a sham proposal or any other person to refrain from submitting a proposal; and that the Proposer has not in any manner sought collusion to secure any improper advantage over any other person submitting a proposal.

GROUNDS FOR DISQUALIFICATION

All Proposers are expected to have read and understand Attachment B, Procurement and Contract Process Integrity and Conflict of Interest. Factors, such as, but not limited to, any of the following, may disqualify a proposal without further consideration:

Evidence of collusion, directly or indirectly, among Proposers in regard to the amount, terms or conditions of this proposal.

Any attempt to improperly influence any member of the evaluation team.

Existence of any lawsuit, unresolved contractual claim or dispute between Proposer and the City.

Evidence of incorrect information submitted as part of the proposal.

Evidence of Proposer’s inability to successfully complete the responsibilities and obligations of the proposal.

Proposer’s default under any previous agreement with the City.

NON-CONFORMING PROPOSAL

A proposal shall be prepared and submitted in accordance with the provisions of these RFP instructions and specifications. Any alteration, omission, addition, variance, or limitation of, from or to a proposal may be sufficient grounds for non-acceptance of the proposal, at the sole discretion of the City.

GRATUITIES

No person shall offer, give or agree to give any City employee any gratuity, discount or offer of employment in connection with the award of contract by the City. No City employee shall solicit, demand, accept or agree to accept from any other person a gratuity, discount or offer of employment in connection with a City contract.

PROPOSAL PREPARATION COSTS

All costs associated with responding to this request are to be borne by the Proposer.

NON-DISCRIMINATION

It is the City’s policy that the selected firm shall not discriminate, in any way, against any person on the basis of race, sex, color, religion, religious creed, national origin, ancestry, age, gender, marital status, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender expression, gender identity, military and veteran status, or ethnic background, in violation of federal, state or local law, in connection with or related to the performance of City of Santa Clara contracts.

RIGHTS OF THE CITY OF SANTA CLARA

This RFP does not commit the City to enter into a contract, nor does it obligate the City to pay for any costs incurred in preparation and submission of proposals or in anticipation of a contract. The City reserves the right to:

Accept an offer in full, or in part, or to reject all offers.

Issue subsequent Requests for Proposals.

Postpone opening proposals for any reason.

Remedy errors in the Request for Proposals process.

Approve or disapprove the use of particular subconsultants.

Negotiate with any, all or none of the Proposers.

Accept other than the lowest offer.

Waive informalities and irregularities in the proposals.

Enter into an agreement with another Proposer in the event the originally selected Proposer defaults or fails to execute an agreement with the City.

PREVAILING WAGE REQUIREMENTS

The City has determined that the services described in this solicitation constitute a “Public Work”, and are subject to the payment of not less than prevailing wages under California Labor Code Section 1770 et seq. The Director of the Department of Industrial Relations has ascertained the general prevailing rate of per diem wages and the rates for overtime and holiday work in the locality in which the services are to be performed for each craft, classification or type of worker needed to perform the services under the contract. Copies are on file with and available upon request from the Office of the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors or at https://www.dir.ca.gov/OPRL/DPreWageDetermination.htm.

This project is subject to compliance monitoring and enforcement by the Department of Industrial Relations. Further information and requirements can be found at https://www.dir.ca.gov/public-works/Contractors.html.

The Proposer (including any subcontractors) shall register with the Department of Industrial Relations prior to submitting its proposal, pursuant to California Labor Code Section 1725.5.

No contractor or subcontractor may perform work on the project unless registered with the Department of Industrial relations pursuant to Labor Code section 1725.5. Contractor represents and warrants that it is registered with the Department of Industrial Relations. Contractor shall maintain its registration with the Department of Industrial Relations throughout the course of the project. Contractor is responsible for verifying that each Subcontractor, including any Subcontractor not listed on the proposal for the project, is registered with the Department of Industrial Relations at the time the Subcontractor performs work on the project. If any Subcontractor is not registered at the time the Subcontractor is to commence work, Contractor shall require the Subcontractor to register and may not permit the Subcontractor to commence work until the Subcontractor’s registration is complete.

Failure to meet the requirements stated above in this section by the time allotted may result in withdrawal of the award and award to the next lowest proposer.

INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS

The selected Proposer(s), at Proposer’s sole cost and expense and for the full term of the Agreement or any extension thereof, shall obtain and maintain, at a minimum, all of the insurance requirements outlined in Attachment C.

other public agency purchases It is intended that any other public agency be permitted to purchase under the terms submitted in response to this procurement. Any participating public agency shall accept sole responsibility for the placing of orders, arranging for delivery and/or services, and making payments to the Contractor. The City of Santa Clara will not be liable or responsible for any obligations, including but not limited to financial responsibility, in connection with participation by other public agencies.

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