Q_A_Log_0003.pdf

Questions Answers

Amendment 001 establishes the period of performance to be 10/1/2025- 4/3/2026 but did not change the Government’s acceptance period from 90 days. Will the Government extend the construction schedule based on the Government’s acceptance date and plus ten days to start construction?

Period of Performance has been revised in amendment 0002 of the solicitation. New PoP is 5/15/2026 through 12/19/2026. All offers shall be valid for 90 days from the offer due date.

Was there a geotechnical report or survey conducted pertinent to this project?

There is geotechnical information included in Section 51 00 00 of the Specifications that provide useful information for an adjacent hillside (along the new 500 kV towers), but no direct geotechnical or soils information was gathered for the Feeders' alignment.

Period of Performance is stated as 10/1/2025 to 4/3/2026. Not to belabor the obvious, but that’s the coldest time of the year. Average temperature in Coulee Town doesn’t get to 50 degrees until mid- to late-March. That’s problematic for the CLSM, which per Specification 31 23 70 must be placed at 50 degrees or greater. Is it possible to push the project to a spring 2026 start?

Period of Performance has been revised in amendment 0002 of the solicitation. New PoP is 5/15/2026 through 12/19/2026

The Government has specified a three conductor, medium voltage cable assembly. Initial feedback from vendors is that this is a 24-week lead time. We can possibly find single conductor MV cable faster than that; would the Government consider a cable substitution?

No, it is the Government's preference to keep with what is specified. The Contract Period of Performance has been extended accordingly.

5 Will all employees working on the construction site be required to have EOD approval as well as background checks?

Please see I.16 DOI-AAAP-0081 Security Requirements: Facility Access Information Technology (Aug 2016) in the solicitation for the answer to this question.

Are there existing quick connect cables in vaults?

No, the Government Lineman showed in Vault E29 that the cables are tape spliced.

This is the same connection type at other vault locations.

7 Do we have photos of the vaults pulling eyes? Photos will be included with Solicitation Amendment(s) 8 Does the solid duct bank extend to the 500 kv swyd? Yes.

How we intend the contractors to tie into the vaults with the 1195 existing feeder?

See Drawing 222-100-61279 "Revision 1"

10 Request ALOT of photos of the ends of the vaults. Photos will be included with Solicitation Amendment(s)

11 Is the new cable 500 kmil? Per section 26 05 13 2.01 C. 2. of the specification, the new cable will be 500 kmil.

12 Request a photo of the rock nob. Photos will be included with Solicitation Amendment(s) 13 Request a photo of the riser pole number 4 at ground level. Photos will be included with Solicitation Amendment(s) 14 Will the Gov't allow the use of dyamite to blast rock? No blasting shall be allowed.

15 Can the government please share the site visit attendee list? Posted in Amendment 0002

The solicitation identifies the Period of Performance as 10/2025 to 04/2026. This seems incorrect as proposals are not due until 9/26/2025.

Additionally, this performance period is not feasible considering material lead times. Can this please be revised to begin in the spring or summer of 2026?

Period of Performance has been revised in amendment 0002 of the solicitation. New PoP is 5/15/2026 through 12/19/2026

Can the government please share the site visit photos as well as drone footage and photos shared at the pre-site visit conference?

Photos will be included with Solicitation Amendment(s)

Can the government please clarify if there are any local licensing or construction license requirements for this project? We have never seen a federal contract that requires a local license and want to make sure this project does not require one.

No local licensing requirements are anticipated.

Proposal due date has been extended per Amendment 0002 to to October

24, 2025 at 1:00 PM MDT.

The solicitation requires a hard-copy submission of proposals. Will the government consider allowing digital submissions via email or an online platform?

No, please follow L.14 WBR 1452.215-81 General Proposal Instructions – Bureau of Reclamation (Mar 2021) as written.

It appears that some of the existing wood poles to receive new coatings have an existing coating system. Please provide more details as to what this coating is and how we should address it with the new coating system to be supplied.

The exiting pole wraps shall be removed and turned over to the Government, to a location at the Town of Coulee Dam's maintenance yard (driveway off of Station

41+50)

22 The last splice in the new 15kv cable runs are called out in Vault E31, from there to the new/existing stub location at City Hall is approximately 6100 feed long, this is too far for a sing piece of cable, please define which vaults will have splices.

Agree; 6100 feet is too long for a single piece of cable. Splices are required in some existing vaults as indicated on drawings. Splices are not necessarily needed at each new vault. Contractor shall determine where splices are needed within new vaults for each feeder by demonstrating that jamming, cable pulling tension, and sidewall pressure does not exceed 75% of manufacturer limits, and cable lengths are within reasonable lengths for cable spools delivered to the site.

It was mentioned at the pre-site visit conference that amendments were forthcoming with design changes. We will need more time to review the updates, as well as review the Q&A responses. Please consider extending the proposal’s due date by two weeks.

For previous projects, can we submit major subcontractor experience if we provide a letter of commitment from said subcontractors? And will such experience be rated less favorably than experience from the prime offeror?

No, please follow L.14 WBR 1452.215-81 General Proposal Instructions – Bureau of Reclamation (Mar 2021) as written.

24 What amount is required for the bid guarantee? Is it 20%? 0.2

For Factor 3 – Past Performance, is it acceptable to provide CPARs in lieu of PPQ’s?

No as government already has access to CPAR records

If we have received PPQ’s from past customers for other proposals, is it acceptable to use those in this proposal? They would be on different PPQ forms than what is provided in this solicitation, however we would explain how the project is relevant to this solicitation.

No, please follow L.14 WBR 1452.215-81 General Proposal Instructions – Bureau of Reclamation (Mar 2021) as written.

Will the existing hydrants be made available for contractor use? If so, will we need a separate permit/water meter?

Use of Government hydrant water may be available upon request.

To the extent of knowledge available, are there existing, or potentially culturally sensitive areas that we should be accounting for?

The site has been walked for cultural/archaeoligical review and there are no known sensitive areas involved. However, in the event that an unidentifiable item or potential artifact is encountered, the Government will require further inspection of at the time and location, if an occurrence.

29 Is there a preferred method for the placement of flowable fill in some of the more extreme sloped areas, or will that be left to the contractors discretion?

CLSM method of placement in the steep slope areas will be left to contractor’s means and methods and in accordance with specification Section 31 23 70. Note that the specification clause 2.05.F.1 allows a stiffer mix to be used on the steep slopes and therefore the mix design submittal should identify both a typical mix design and a steep slope mix design.

Are there any provisions or anticipated provisions for working near the energized overhead power lines?

Per RSHS 1.10-6, Reclamation requires equipment operations to comply with OSHA 1926 (1408), where clearance within the existing 11.95 kV overhead lines shall be

10 ft, clearances within the existing 115kV overhead lines shall be a minimum of 15 ft and clearance within 500 kV lines to be a minimum of 25 ft. In the event of work encroaching within these distances, the Government shall help examine the relative safety risks involved and/or coordinate a temporary outage for the Contractor while they trench through any such overhead power line areas.

31 Are we able to build an access road?

No new ground disturbance is allowed, other than light grading on existing gravel parking, dirt road, or previously disturbed areas.

32 Will we need to use a vac truck at any point in this job for any reason?

Because "costs for repair of installations damaged by the Contractor's operations are the Contractor's responsibility," the use of a vacuum truck is encouraged, but not required. Please see updated Specification Section 01 56 10 Protection of Existing Installations.

Identify and designate a suitable location for the storage of diesel fuel tanks to support equipment operations, as well as an appropriate placement for the job trailer

The staging area located on Drawing 222-100-61283 is an acceptable location.

When is the fire danger/ warning removed from site? Water truck required onsite while working?

The fire danger status for the project area is a seasonal status, that varies from year to year. If and when fire risk is a condition encountered, then the Contractor will need to incorporate a best practices approach and safety plan; area wetting and consistent dust control are good examples. Contractor may work with the Government's fire department for guidance for such safety plan in order to maintain and continue work through any hazardous or severe dry weather conditons.

Who will be responsible for locates on the existing water line and existing conduit duct bank? Will we be required to excavate with a vac truck?

For this Contract, the Contractor is responsible for acquiring the services of a utility locate vendor; the Government and Town should not be relied upon to provide underground locate services.

Per Spec section 26 05 13 part 2.01section C item 3: Number of conductors in cable- 3 plus one ground. Are we able to install (3) single conductors with a ground wire?

The government is willing to consider the installation of multiple individual cables as a substitute to the specified multi-conductor cable. However, the contractor would need to pay for all additional costs associated with the substitution such as increased conduit size (if required based on approved calculations provided by contractor). In addition, the contractor would need to demonstrate with approved calculations that the ampacity of the feeders would not be negatively affected, and demonstrate that jamming, cable pulling tension, and sidewall pressure does not exceed 75% of manufacturer limits.

If a multiconductor cable is required the current lead-time from suppliers is 40+ weeks and is special order. Single conductor lead-time is 30 weeks if quantity is not available.

The government is willing to consider the installation of multiple individual cables as a substitute to the specified multi-conductor cable. However, the contractor would need to pay for all additional costs associated with the substitution such as increased conduit size (if required based on approved calculations provided by contractor). In addition, the contractor would need to demonstrate with approved calculations that the ampacity of the feeders would not be negatively affected, and demonstrate that jamming, cable pulling tension, and sidewall pressure does not exceed 75% of manufacturer limits.

The spec does not call out Reclosure mounting height, or the control cabinet mounting height, The reclosure shall be mounted 4’-0” below the phase conductors, if there is not

What height do you need the reclosure mounted?

What is the standard for the reclosure controller mounting height for the BOR?

The 500mcm 15kv cable has a 47 week lead time to ship from the manufacturer after approved submittals, we respectfully request the construction deration be extended 52 weeks

This question will have similar answer as question #37. Also, please see Answer #16.

During the pre-bid walk, the on-site electrician said the existing 15kv cable to be removed is 750mcm, can you confirm the size of the existing cable?

Existing cable to be removed is 15kv, 750 mcm cable, installed in the early 1970's.

To what height above finished grade is the intumescent paint required to be applied to the utility poles?

10 Feet, see updated Spec Section 09 91 10

What type of conduit does the BOR want to be used at the riser locations as the work transitions from underground to above ground?

Risers shall be Schedule 80 PVC.

During the walk at the last vault, it was relayed to attendees by the in-house crew foreman that the conductor was 750MCM vs what is called out by the drawings and specs 500MCM. Can we get a clarification on the needed conductor size

Existing Feeders are 750 mcm, and were oversized when originally constructed. Per section 26 05 13 2.01 C. 2. of the specification, the new cable will be 500 kmil.

44 Would blasting be allowed in the areas where rock is present? No blasting will be allowed on the project.

Are there additional vaults in the current system from the last vault visited to riser poles?

Vaults E27 and E28 continue past Vault E29 for the existing feeders (then are direct bury beyond that location), but per the Design Drawings, the new Feeders will follow a new and different alignment from Vault E29.

Beyond last vault visited can we assumed the conductors are direct buried and would be abandoned in place after cutover

Yes

Will there be splices required at every vault or based on pulling needs

Splices are required in some existing vaults as indicated on drawings. Splices are not necessarily needed at each new vault. Contractor shall determine where splices are needed within new vaults for each feeder by demonstrating that jamming, cable pulling tension, and sidewall pressure does not exceed 75% of manufacturer limits, and cable lengths are within reasonable lengths for cable spools delivered to the site.

At vaults with splices are they in-line splices or T-bodies or junctions?

Still waiting for Government vault photos (might wait until next Amendment)

Is it suggested that the civil team have a water buffalo or water truck on site during excavation for fire control?

The Government cannot anticipate what would be best in terms of equipment for dust control or fire prevention for any particular Contractor's construction approach or specific work activities, so cannot advise in answering this question.

38 enough room then mount just below the neutral conductor. The reclosure controller shall be mounted 6’-6” above finish grade.