Purchasing Department 4400 University Drive, MS 3C1, Fairfax, VA 22030 Phone: 703.993.2580; http://fiscal.gmu.edu/purchasing/

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

GMU-KS0601-26

ISSUE DATE: June 04, 2026

TITLE: Snow Removal Services

PRIMARY PROCUREMENT OFFICER: Chris Mullins, Senior Buyer SECONDARY PROCUREMENT OFFICER: Katherine Sirotin, Director, Major Purchases

QUESTIONS/INQUIRIES: Submit all inquiries through George Mason’s Bonfire Portal, no later than 4:00 PM Eastern Time (ET) on June 18, 2026.

All questions must be submitted through George Mason’s Bonfire portal. Only submit one question per entry. Do not include your name or the name of your firm/company in the Question Subject/Title or the Question Description. For assistance with technical questions related to Bonfire, contact Support@GoBonfire.com or visit Bonfire’s Help Forum. Responses to questions will be posted to George Mason’s Bonfire portal and by 5:00 PM ET on June 26, 2026.

OPTIONAL PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE & SITE VISITS: An Optional pre-proposal conference and site visits at the Fairfax and Manassas (SciTech) campuses will be held on June 15th and 16th. See Section XVI. Item I for dates, schedule, and other information.

PROPOSAL DUE DATE AND TIME: July 07, 2026 @ 2:00 PM ET. ATTENTION: PROPOSALS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED VIA EMAIL, MAIL, THROUGH eVA OR IN PERSON. SEE SECTION XII.A.1 FOR DETAILS ON ELECTRONIC PROPOSAL SUBMISSION.

IMPORTANT! All communication with Offerors will take place in Bonfire, to include negotiations. George Mason can only message individuals at your organization that have interacted in Bonfire for this specific RFP. Please ensure the appropriate person to handle negotiations and other RFP communication has individually logged into the system and either downloaded documents, submitted your proposal or asked a question.

In Compliance With This Request For Proposal And To All The Conditions Imposed Therein And Hereby Incorporated By Reference, The Undersigned Offers And Agrees To Furnish The Goods/Services In Accordance With The Attached Signed Proposal Or As Mutually Agreed Upon By Subsequent Negotiations.

Name and Address of Firm:

Legal Name: Date:

DBA:

Address:

By:

Signature

FEI/FIN No. Name:

Fax No. Title:

Email: Telephone No.

SWaM Certified: Yes: No: (See Section VII. SWaM CERTIFICATION for complete details).

SWaM Certification Number:

Check the box next to the option that applies to your proposal submission. See section IV. Final Contract for additional information.

☐ Option 1: Full Acceptance:

1. We have reviewed George Mason’s Standard Contract and all related documents.

2. We have no proposed changes.

3. We understand that if we are advanced to negotiations, no contract exceptions, redlines, vendor documents, or additional terms will be considered, unless proposed by George Mason.

☐ Option 2: Proposed Exceptions and/or Additional Documents Submitted:

1. We have reviewed George Mason’s Standard Contract and all related documents.

2. We have included a list of proposed exceptions and/or redlined contract documents with our proposal.

3. We understand that if we are advanced to negotiations, no additional contract exceptions, redlines, vendor documents, or additional terms will be considered beyond what has been submitted with our proposal, unless proposed by George Mason https://gmu.bonfirehub.com/ mailto:Support@GoBonfire.com https://customer.eunasolutions.com/public/s/knowledge-base/bonfire-hub

This public body does not discriminate against faith-based organizations in accordance with the Governing Rules, § 36 or against a Bidder/Offeror because of race, religion, color, sex, national origin, age, disability, or any other prohibited by state law relating to discrimination in employment.

OFFEROR PROPOSAL SUBMISSION CHECKLIST

Offerors responding to this RFP should use this checklist to ensure all requested documents are completed and submitted with their proposal.

□ RFP Cover Page, accurately filled in and signed with checked off box confirming your proposal contains any exceptions to George Mason’s Standard Contract and all terms and conditions or subsequent Statements of Work that could apply over the life of any resulting contract.

□ All addenda, if any were issued and a signature line is included.

□ Attachment A - Small Business Subcontracting Plan. This is a requirement for all Offerors.

□ Exceptions (if any) to George Mason’s Standard Contract.

□ Any Statements of Work or supplemental document(s) George Mason may be required to sign or that could potentially be incorporated into a final contract or apply during the term of a resulting contract.

□ Any agreement that George Mason would be required to sign with a third party.

□ State your payment preference as required in Bonfire. Only select one payment option.

□ If your proposal contains proprietary information, you must submit a second copy in accordance with Section XII.A.1.

General Requirements and Section XII.A.2.d. that outlines the specific submission format.

□ Complete and upload Attachment E – Pricing Schedule in the requested format, as required in Bonfire.

□ Provide a representative example of your firm’s invoice for a snow removal event and, if available, a sample Snow Removal/Ice Management Event Summary (or equivalent) based off the sample invoice and event summary in Attachment C.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

GMUKS0601-26

SECTION DESCRIPTION PAGE

I. PURPOSE 5

II. PURCHASING MANUAL/GOVERNING RULES 5

III. COMMUNICATION 5

IV. FINAL CONTRACT 5

V. ADDITIONAL USERS 5

VI. eVA BUSINESS-TO-GOVERNMENT VENDOR REGISTRATION 6

VII. SWaM CERTIFICATION 6

VIII. SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTING PLAN 6

IX. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE 6

X. BACKGROUND 6

XI. STATEMENT OF NEEDS 7

XII. PROPOSAL PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS 8

XIII. INITIAL EVALUATION CRITERIA AND SUBSEQUENT AWARD 12

XIV. CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION 13

XV. PAYMENT TERMS/METHOD OF PAYMENT 13

XVI. SOLICITATION TERMS AND CONDITIONS 13

XVII. RFP SCHEDULE 15

ATTACHMENT A SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTING PLAN 16

ATTACHMENT B STANDARD CONTRACT 18

ATTACHMENT C SAMPLE INVOICE & EVENT SUMMARY FORMAT 29

ATTACHMENT D LOCATIONS FOR SNOW REMOVAL SERVICES 31

ATTACHMENT E PRICING SCHEDULE 32

ATTACHMENT F HISTORICAL “SNOW REMOVAL CLIENT PRICING AGREEMENTS” PDF

ATTACHMENT G SNOW REMOVAL AREA MAPS PDF

I. PURPOSE: The purpose of this Request for Proposal (RFP) is to solicit proposals to establish a contract/s through competitive negotiations with one or more qualified vendors to provide Snow Removal Services for various facilities/campuses for the Facilities Department of George Mason University. George Mason University (herein after referred to as “George Mason,” “Mason,” or “University”) is a public institution of higher education and agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The University’s preference is to award to multiple offerors based on campus/site but we reserve the right to award to only one offeror/one contract if it is determined to be the in the best interest of the University and at our sole and absolute discretion.

II. PURCHASING MANUAL/GOVERNING RULES: This solicitation and any resulting contract shall be subject to the provisions of the Commonwealth of Virginia Purchasing Manual for Institutions of Higher Education and their Vendor's, and any revisions thereto, and the Governing Rules, which are hereby incorporated into this contract in their entirety. A copy of both documents is available for review at: https://vascupp.org

III. COMMUNICATION: Communications regarding the Request for Proposals shall be formal from the date of issuance until a contract has been awarded. Unless otherwise instructed offerors are to communicate with only the Procurement Officers listed on the cover page. Offerors are not to communicate with any other employees of George Mason.

IV. FINAL CONTRACT: ATTACHMENT B to this solicitation is George Mason’s standard two-party contract. It is the intent of this solicitation to base the final contractual documents off of George Mason’s standard two-party contract and George Mason’s General Terms and Conditions as outlined in Attachment B – Standard Contract. Any exceptions to our standard contract and General Terms and Conditions must be denoted in your RFP response. Other documents may be incorporated into the final contract, either by way of attachment or by reference, but in all cases this contract document and George Mason’s General Terms and Conditions shall jointly take precedence over all other documents and will govern the terms and conditions of the contract.

As a public institution of higher education and agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia, George Mason cannot agree to any of the following terms in any documents:

A. An express or implied waiver of sovereign immunity.

B. An agreement to indemnify, defend or hold harmless any entity.

C. An agreement to maintain insurance.

D. An agreement providing for binding arbitration.

E. An agreement providing for the payment of attorneys' fees, costs of collection, or liquidated damages.

F. Waiver of jury trial.

G. Choice of law or venue other than the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Contracts will only be issued to the FEI/FIN Number and Firm listed on the signed cover page submitted in your RFP response.

Joint proposals will not be accepted.

Note: The Offeror must include any and all terms and conditions, additional documents, and/or statements of work that could potentially be incorporated into a final contract or apply during the term of a resulting contract. As outlined in Attachment B – Standard Contract, Statements of Work (“SOW”) for specific engagements may only include the work to be performed during scope of the specific engagement. Additional terms and conditions will not be accepted on any SOW submitted during the course of the contract. All SOW’s must be on a form approved by George Mason prior to the start of the contract.

In addition to the above note, the Offeror must submit with their proposal any agreement that George Mason would be required to sign with a third party.

V. ADDITIONAL USERS: It is the intent of this solicitation and resulting contract(s) to allow for cooperative procurement.

Accordingly, any public body, public or private health or educational institutions, or affiliated corporations may access any resulting contract if authorized by the contractor.

Participation in this cooperative procurement is strictly voluntary. If authorized by the Contractor(s), the resultant contract(s) will be extended to the entities indicated above to purchase goods and services in accordance with contract terms. As a separate contractual relationship, the participating entity will place its own orders directly with the Contractor(s) and shall fully and independently administer its use of the contract(s) to include contractual disputes, invoicing and payments without direct administration from the University. No modification of this contract or execution of a separate agreement is required to participate; however, the participating entity and the Contractor may modify the terms and conditions of the contract to accommodate specific governing laws, regulations, policies, and business goals required by the participating entity. Any such modification will apply solely between the participating entity and the contractor.

https://vascupp.org/

The University may require the Contractor provide semi-annual usage reports for all entities accessing the contract. The University shall not be held liable for any costs or damages incurred by any other participating entity as a result of any authorization by the Contractor to extend the contract. It is understood and agreed that the University is not responsible for the acts or omissions of any entity and will not be considered in default of the contract no matter the circumstances.

Use of the resulting contract(s) does not preclude any participating entity from using other contracts or competitive processes as needed.

VI. eVA BUSINESS-TO-GOVERNMENT VENDOR REGISTRATION: The eVA Internet electronic procurement solution, website portal www.eVA.virginia.gov, streamlines and automates government purchasing activities in the Commonwealth.

The eVA portal is the gateway for vendors to conduct business with state agencies and public bodies. All vendors desiring to provide goods and/or services to the Commonwealth shall participate in the eVA Internet eProcurement solution by completing the free eVA Vendor Registration. All bidders or offerors agree to self-register in eVA and pay the Vendor Transaction Fees prior to being awarded a contract. Registration instructions and transaction fees may be viewed at: https://eva.virginia.gov/

VII. SWaM CERTIFICATION: Vendor agrees to fully support the Commonwealth of Virginia and George Mason’s efforts related to SWaM goals. Upon contract execution, eligible vendors (as determined by George Mason and the Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity) shall submit all required documents necessary to achieve SWaM certification to the Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity within 90 days. Vendors currently SWaM certified agree to maintain their certification for the duration of the contract and shall submit all required renewal documentation at least 30 days prior to existing SWaM expiration. https://www.sbsd.virginia.gov/

VIII. SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTING PLAN: All potential offerors are required to fill out and submit Attachments A with their proposal.

Note: Invoices shall only be submitted to George Mason by the entity awarded a contract. Subcontractors cannot submit invoices to George Mason under any resulting contract.

IX. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: One (1) year starting November 01, 2026 with four (4) successive one-year renewal options (or as negotiated). Snow removal “season” is anticipated to run November 01 through April 30 of each year.

X. BACKGROUND: George Mason University is a leading public research university committed to advancing knowledge, expanding opportunity, and preparing students to lead in a rapidly changing world. Our work strengthens communities, drives innovation, and contributes to a more just and prosperous society. To achieve our goals at the highest level, we engage with vendors who bring expertise, creativity, and excellence to help George Mason meet our mission. Visit gmu.edu/about for more information about the university.

The information below is provided for historical reference purposes ONLY and is not indicative of future spending or budget.

Please note that the historical contracts are based off of a different scope/requirements and offerors should not utilize those pricing agreements or historical contract information in their offers. Nothing herein shall be construed as a commitment or obligation of minimum spend. Individual engagements will be awarded on an as-needed basis, and forecasts of future tasking/need cannot be provided. Copies of all contracts listed below are available on George Mason’s Contract Portal. See below approximate spend for the previous contract awards:

George Mason University’s incumbent snow removal service provider is Brightview Landscape Services, Inc. under our landscape services contract, GMU-1743-21. George Mason University has opted to split the snow removal services scope out separately from the landscape services scope (which will be competed separately later). We have provided, for historical reference proposes only, copies of the most recent “Annual Snow Service Orders – Client Pricing Agreements” for the 2025- 2026 snow season as Attachment F. Our landscape maintenance contract is available at the link below on VASCUPP:

https://vascupp.org/contracts/landscape-maintenance-services-2

Historical Yearly Spend for Snow Removal Services (Across all sites/campuses):

* These values below, for the last 3 fiscal year periods, are being provided for historical reference purposes only and are not necessarily reflective of future spend, nor do they represent any type of minimum spend or guarantee in the future. Future spend will be highly dependent on actual snow activity/events each fiscal year and the scope/scale of the requests associated with those snow events.

Fiscal Year Total Annual Spend/Fiscal Year

FY26 $918,693.39

FY25 $551,642.83

FY24 $286,078.35

https://eva.virginia.gov/ https://www.sbsd.virginia.gov/ https://gmu.cobblestone.software/public/default.aspx https://vascupp.org/contracts/landscape-maintenance-services-2

XI. STATEMENT OF NEEDS: George Mason University seeks proposals from qualified offerors to establish a term contract(s) for the provision of snow removal services including all labor, personnel, supervision, materials, and equipment necessary to ensure the safety and accessibility of George Mason University sites for students, staff, and the general public by maintaining clear and safe conditions at all designated locations, listed in Attachment D. The resulting contract will establish an “as required” source for responding to snow events at our campuses/facilities. Snow Removal Season is defined as November 1st of each year through April 30th. There is no guarantee of work to be performed on this contract, as it is highly dependent on weather conditions, however a table of historical yearly spend with the incumbent contractor is available in Section X. Background for reference purposes ONLY.

A. General Requirements:

1. The primary objective of the contract is to ensure the safety and accessibility of GMU sites for students, staff, and the general public by maintaining clear and safe conditions at all designated locations, as listed in Attachment D.

2. The secondary objective is to support the timely and uninterrupted operation of all GMU facilities (Reference Attachment D).

3. As the resulting contract(s) will cover multiple campuses/facilities across the Northern Virginia region (Fairfax, Manassas, Front Royal, Woodbridge, Lorton, Chantilly, Arlington), it is imperative that the offeror demonstrate in their proposal their ability to maintain adequate personnel, equipment, materials/supplies to respond to a major snow event that impacts some or all of the facilities listed in Attachment D.

4. The resulting contract(s) will be used to supplement the GMU Facilities Department’s in-house snow removal operations.

5. Offeror shall be on standby when an event is predicted/oncoming and/or the Contract Administrator (CA) requests services. Upon request, the offeror shall provide any snow/ice preparation services (in advance of a snow event) like spreading de-icing/pre-treatment materials on an “as-requested” basis.

Contractor shall provide a “stand-by rate” and “push” rate for these snow events as outlined in Attachment E – Pricing Schedule.

6. Equipment and drivers/operators must report to the specified site within two (2) hours following notification to begin work unless directed otherwise by the Contract Administrator. The time period for hourly rates shall begin when the equipment and driver/operator have arrived at the designated site and are placed into service.

7. GMU reserves the right to determine the number of vehicles and/or equipment to be mobilized for each snow event.

8. Contractor shall provide all labor/personnel, supervision, materials/supplies, and equipment to provide these services.

9. Listed in Attachment G are the areas to be cleared by the Contractor under the resulting contracts. GMU reserves the right to add/delete areas over the course of the contract as needed at the prices negotiated in the contract.

10. At the Fairfax Campus ONLY the contractor will also be responsible, as requested, for clearing the rooftop parking decks. Please refer to Attachment G for the map of the garages to be serviced. The Parking and Transportation department will make these snow removal requests separately, per snow event, and the clearing/services will be billed at the rates listed in Attachment E Pricing Schedule.

11. All quantities are approximate and dependent upon weather conditions, personnel and additional (or fewer) pieces of equipment may be required – there is no guarantee of the amount of work to be performed on this contract.

12. All snow shall be removed and cleared in a manner that does not block drop inlets, drains, hydrants or dumpster access, and that minimizes the occupation of parking spaces when possible. In the event of excessive accumulations, the Contractor may be asked to remove snow from those locations where snow cannot be adequately dispersed. Snow shall be dispersed in a manner that shall not block egress through driveways, parking lots, sidewalks and steps. GMU personnel will inform the Contractor as to appropriate locations to “stock pile” snow (on grass areas adjacent to parking areas, etc.). Extreme care shall be taken to avoid covering or damaging plants, shrubs, trees, sign posts, concrete bumper blocks, chains and fencing with snow and/or equipment.

13. Contractor shall stake curbs and obstacles in the indicated areas by November 01 of each season.

14. Contractor shall provide and apply de-icing materials on an “as-needed” basis to road/drive areas, sidewalks and any other walkway/access pathways to limit ice accumulation on surfaces. De-icing products for areas other than roadways/parking lots (Sidewalks, etc.) must be magnesium chloride based and contain NO urea based products.

15. The Contractor’s personnel shall exercise caution at all times to ensure the safety of persons and property.

Safety provisions shall be strictly observed.

16. The Contractor shall provide sufficient supervision/supervisors during each snow removal shift. The Contractor’s supervisors shall ensure their personnel/equipment operators sign in properly, have the necessary equipment, know their assigned duties, and perform the work as requested by the Contract Administrator or Parking and Transportation.

17. During operations the contractor shall ensure a dedicated site superintendent, manager or supervisor/s will be present in-person/on-site at all times and in sufficient numbers to supervise all areas under contract.

18. George Mason University strongly prefers that contractors can offer a dedicated team of laborers/equipment operators for each site under contract. Please address your staffing capabilities in your response.

19. The Contractor’s personnel shall wear a safety vest/garment during operational times on GMU grounds;

including anytime the driver/operator is out of the vehicle.

20. The Contractor’s personnel must have a valid driver’s license to operate machinery on GMU grounds.

21. The Contractor’s equipment and personnel shall meet all Occupational Safety & Health Administration

(OSHA), Virginia Occupational Safety & Health (VOSH), Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and Virginia State Inspection and Licensing regulations, laws and standards.

22. The Contractor shall be responsible for properly securing all equipment and materials on their vehicles when in transit to, during and returning from a work assignment.

23. The coordination of snow removal shall be confirmed with the Contract Administrator or their delegate.

24. Contractor will be provided specific locations on where to store and stage equipment upon request and will be coordinated through the Contract Administrator and Parking Services at the University. This will be respective to all areas awarded.

25. The Contractor shall be responsible for repairing any damage to GMU property as a result of the actions of the Contractor’s operators, sub-contractors or equipment, immediately upon GMU notification. GMU shall reserve the right to inform the contractor if the damage may be repaired by the contractor or if GMU or another party must make the repairs. In the event GMU or another party must make the repairs, Contractor shall be responsible for full reimbursement cost of the repairs to include labor and materials.

26. GMU will not be responsible for any damage to the Contractor’s vehicles, equipment or tools as a result of work being performed under this contract.

B. Equipment Requirements:

1. GMU reserves the right to add/delete equipment as necessary during the term of this contract.

2. GMU shall not be responsible for loss or damage of Contractor’s Supplies, tools and/or equipment.

3. All equipment shall be equipped with “Back-up Alarms”.

4. Per the current Virginia Work Area Protection Manual (WAPM) each vehicle involved in a moving/mobile operation shall be equipped with at least one (1) rotating amber light or high intensity amber strobe light.

Vehicle hazard warning lights can be used as a supplement on GMU grounds.

5. Contractor’s equipment shall be maintained and in good working order, and compliant with Virginia State Inspection and Licensing requirements, laws and standards.

6. Contractor shall be responsible for materials (chains, sand, tools, etc..) that ensure functionality of vehicles in relation to the given weather.

7. Contractor shall be responsible for properly securing equipment and materials on their vehicles at all times.

8. The Contractor shall obtain approval for any proposed substituted equipment prior to placing that equipment in operation.

9. The University requires that offerors have specialized equipment with Polycutting Edge or Rubber Cutting

Edges as we have sites that have concrete pavers and steel edged equipment cannot be used otherwise it will damage the pavers. Any damages made by contractor equipment or personnel will be the contractor’s responsibility, at their own cost, to restore. Mapping will indicate where those special areas are located.

C. Pricing/Invoicing:

1. Offeror shall provide pricing as outlined in Attachment E – Pricing Schedule and submit through Bonfire as part of their offer.

2. Instructions, requirements and definitions for pricing are outlined in Attachment E.

3. Hourly rates per equipment shall include operator fees (see pricing schedule).

4. Offeror shall provide a push (operational) rate and standby rate for their personnel and equipment as outlined in Attachment E.

5. Offeror shall provide a sample invoice, as part of their response, outlining the fees/costs associated with a typical snow service response to a snow event. If your firm offers a snow removal/ice management event summary (in conjunction with the invoice) please provide a sample of that document as well. A sample/example is provided in Attachment C.

6. Payment shall not be authorized to contractor until sufficient invoice breakdown (See Sample Invoice Attachment C) is completed; no additional fees will be authorized for administrative purposes.

7. All labor rates submitted by the offeror must be all-inclusive, reflecting the total cost of providing the service. This includes, but is not limited to, wages, transportation, administrative expenses, and any applicable overhead. GMU will only compensate for labor hours during which work is actively performed on-site. Time spent traveling to, from, or between job sites is not billable under this contract.

XII. PROPOSAL PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

A. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS:

1. RFP Response: In order to be considered, Offerors must submit a complete response to George Mason's Purchasing Office prior to the due date and time stated in this RFP. Offerors are required to submit one (1) signed copy of the entire proposal including all attachments and proprietary information. If the proposal contains proprietary information, then submit two (2) proposals must be submitted; one (1) with proprietary information included and one (1) with proprietary information removed (see 2.d. below for details on how to submit a redacted proposal). The Offeror shall make no other distribution of the proposals.

At the conclusion of the RFP process proposals with proprietary information removed (redacted versions) shall be provided to requestors in accordance with Virginia’s Freedom of Information Act. Offerors will not be notified of the release of this information.

An Offeror may not request any of the following be proprietary and/or confidential in their proposal:

a. Pricing or any calculation used to determine pricing;

b. A notation or footer on the bottom of every page with “proprietary and confidential;”

c. Entire contents of company history or executive summary;

d. A case study, social media post, or billboard already available to the public;

e. Name of company or firm listed as a reference;

f. Any resulting Statement of Work (SOW), Order Form, or Invoice.

ELECTRONIC PROPOSAL SUBMISSION: ATTENTION: PROPOSALS WILL NOT BE

ACCEPTED VIA EMAIL, MAIL, THROUGH eVA, OR IN PERSON. George Mason will only accept electronic proposal submissions via Bonfire for this Request for Proposals.

The following shall apply:

a. You must register with Bonfire and submit your proposal, and it must be received prior to the submission deadline, by submitting through the online Bonfire portal at https://gmu.bonfirehub.com.

b. The Offeror must ensure the proposals are uploaded and submitted through Bonfire sufficiently in advance of the proposal deadline. Plan Ahead: It is the Offeror’s responsibility to ensure that electronic proposal submissions have sufficient time to make its way through Bonfire’s submission portal. George Mason recommends you submit your proposal the day prior to the due date.

c. Submissions by other methods will not be accepted. Minimum system requirements: Microsoft

Edge, Google Chrome, Safari, or Mozilla Firefox. JavaScript and browser cookies must be enabled.

d. Offerors should contact Bonfire at support@gobonfire.com for technical questions related to submission or visit Bonfire's Help Forum.

e. Submission materials should be prepared in the file formats listed under Requested Information for this opportunity in the Bonfire Portal. The maximum upload file size is 1000 MB. Documents should not be embedded within uploaded files, as the embedded files will not be accessible or evaluated.

f. All solicitation schedules are subject to change.

g. Go to George Mason’s Bonfire Portal for all updates and schedule changes.

https://gmu.bonfirehub.com

h. All communication with Offerors will take place in Bonfire, to include negotiations. George Mason can only message Offerors that have interacted with this specific RFP. Please ensure the appropriate person to handle negotiations and other RFP notifications has submitted the Offerors proposal in Bonfire.

2. Proposal Presentation:

mailto:support@gobonfire.com https://customer.eunasolutions.com/public/s/knowledge-base/bonfire-hub

a. Proposals shall be signed by an authorized representative of the Offeror. All information requested must be submitted. Failure to submit all information requested may result in your proposal being scored low.

b. Proposals should be prepared simply and economically, providing a straightforward, concise description of capabilities to satisfy the requirement of the RFP. Emphasis should be on completeness and clarity of content.

c. Proposals should be organized in the order in which the requirements are presented in the RFP. All pages of the proposal should be numbered. Each paragraph in the proposal should reference the paragraph number corresponding section of the RFP. It is also helpful to cite the paragraph number, sub letter and repeat the text of the requirement as it appears in the RFP. The proposal should contain a table of contents which cross references the RFP requirements. Information which the Offeror desires to present that does not fall within any of the requirement of the RFP should be inserted at the appropriate place or be attached at the end of the proposal and designated as additional material.

A WORD version of this RFP will be provided upon request.

d. Except as provided, once an award is announced, all proposals submitted in response to this RFP will be open to inspection by any citizen, or interested person, firm or corporation, in accordance with the Virginia Freedom of Information Act. Trade secrets or proprietary information submitted by a firm prior to or as part of its proposal will not be subject to public disclosure under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act only under the following circumstances: (1) the appropriate information is clearly identified by some distinct method such as highlighting or underlining; (2) only the specific words, figures, or paragraphs that constitute trade secrets or proprietary information are identified; and (3) a summary page is supplied immediately following the proposal title page that includes (a) the information to be protected, (b) the section(s)/page number(s) where this information is found in the proposal, and (c) a statement why protection is necessary for each section listed. A statement simply noting “trade secret” is not a sufficient reason for redaction. The firm must also provide a separate attachment of the proposal with the trade secrets and/or proprietary information redacted. If all of these requirements are not met, then the firm’s entire proposal will be available for public inspection.

IMPORTANT: A firm may not request that its entire proposal be treated as a trade secret or proprietary information, nor may a firm request that its pricing/fees be treated as a trade secret or proprietary information, or otherwise be deemed confidential. If after given a reasonable time, the Offeror refuses to withdraw the aforementioned designation, the proposal will be rejected.

3. Oral Presentation: Offerors who submit a proposal in response to this RFP may be required to give an oral presentation/demonstration of their proposal/product to George Mason. This will provide an opportunity for the Offeror to clarify or elaborate on their proposal. Performance during oral presentations may affect the final award decision. If required, oral presentations will be scheduled at the appropriate time.

George Mason will expect that the person or persons who will be working on the project to make the presentation so experience of the Offeror’s staff can be evaluated prior to making selection. Oral presentations are an option of George Mason and may or may not be conducted; therefore, it is imperative all proposals should be complete.

B. SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS: Proposals should be as thorough and detailed as possible to allow George Mason to properly evaluate the Offeror’s capabilities and approach toward providing the required services. Offerors should submit the following items as a complete proposal. Proposals should be 11-point or larger and should not exceed 60 pages in length, including the procedural information, executive summary, and resumes. Please note that you DO NOT need to include the entire RFP document as part of your response/offer. Return only the forms that are listed in Section 1. Below.

1. Procedural information:

a. Return signed cover page and all addenda, if any, signed and completed as required.

b. Return Attachment A - Small Business Subcontracting Plan.

c. Return Attachment F – Pricing Schedule.

d. Provide a sample invoice on your firm’s letterhead outlining the fees/costs associated with a typical snow service response to a snow event. If your firm offers a snow removal/ice management event summary (in conjunction with the invoice) please provide a sample of that document as well. A sample/example is provided in Attachment C.

e. Exceptions (if any) to George Mason’s two-party contract, Attachment B. It is recommended/preferred if you take exception that you redline and return our Attachment B with your suggested changes and/or commentary to expedite the contract review/negotiation process.

f. Any SOW or supplemental document George Mason may be required to sign or accept. See section IV. Final Contract

g. State your payment preference as required in Bonfire. (See section XV.)

h. Answer the below questions with your proposal submission through Bonfire, as required.

o Are you and/or your subcontractor currently involved in litigation with any party?

o Please list any investigation or action from any state, local, federal or other regulatory body

(OSHA, IRS, DOL, etc.) related to your firm or any subcontractor in the last three years.

o Please list all lawsuits that involved your firm or any subcontractor in the last three years.

o In the past ten (10) years has your firm’s name changed? If so, please provide a reason for the change.

2. Executive Summary: Submit an executive summary at the beginning of the proposal response not to exceed 2 pages.

3. Qualifications and Experience: Describe your experience, qualifications and success in providing the services described in the Statement of Needs to include the following:

a. Background and brief history of your company.

b. Names, qualifications and experience of key personnel to be assigned to work with George Mason.

c. Provide a detailed description of your firm’s personnel and equipment resources sufficient to ensure timely, safe and uninterrupted snow and ice removal services for the University.

i. Personnel Resources: This should include but is not limited to the number and types of personnel proposed to perform the services (supervisors, equipment operators, laborers, etc.), the availability of personnel during peak snow events including nights, weekends, holidays, and multiple consecutive storms. And identification of whether personnel are direct employees of the offeror or subcontractors/other third party arrangements. Specifically address your capabilities to have dedicated, in-person, site superintendents/managers to sufficiently cover all areas awarded under contract and if you are able to offer a dedicated team of laborers/equipment operators to GMU for each site awarded under contract (strongly preferred).

ii. Equipment Resources: A list and description of all equipment proposed for use in performing the services, including but not limited to plow trucks, skid steers, loaders, salt spreaders, sidewalk and entryway equipment, and any other specialized snow removal equipment.

iii. Material/Supplies Resources: A list and description of the types of materials/supplies for use in performing the services including but not limited to bulk rock salt, ice-melt, stakes, etc. Outline your buying strategy and relationships with suppliers to ensure a steady/un-interrupted supply of these materials to sufficiently cover snow events and if you participate in any bulk/volume buying strategies to ensure the University is receiving the best possible pricing for these materials/supplies.

iv. Subcontracted Resources (if applicable): Identify any subcontractors or third-party providers supplying personnel or equipment. A description of your contractual controls, coordination and backup plans related to subcontracted resources.

d. Describe your firm’s personnels’ experience with snow removal services, preferably with institutions of higher education or clients similar in size and scope to George Mason University and your experience working to support public venues that operate independently from normal University academic schedules (i.e. Eagle Bank Arena, CVPA (Concert & Performing Arts), and the Aquatic Center as some examples for consideration). The University’s academic facilities may be closed however the independent facilities like the Eagle Bank Arena, CVPA, and Aquatic Center may continue to have events and activities even during times of closure for the rest of the campus.

e. Describe your firm’s personnels’ experience with snow removal in parking lots with vehicles parked in the lots and where there is on-going student/staff activity (people walking, biking, driving, etc.)

while the snow event is ongoing.

f. Describe experience with and access to the equipment suggested/necessary to perform snow removal services. Outline your inventory and access to equipment directly owned by your firm and/or your resources for subcontracting/leasing additional equipment.

g. Propose any additional equipment (not listed in the pricing schedule) that may be necessary to provide snow removal services.

h. No fewer than three (3) references that demonstrate the Offeror’s qualifications, preferably from other comparable higher education institutions your company is/has provided services with and that are similar in size and scope to that which has been described herein. Include a contact name, contact title, phone number, and email for each reference and indicate the length of service.

4. Specific Plan (Methodology): Explain your specific plans for providing the proposed services outlined in the Statement of Needs including:

a. Your approach/methodology to providing the services described herein.

b. Provide your safety and operation plan tailored specifically to address the complexities of providing snow removal services on active campuses/facilities the size and scope of George Mason University.

c. Outline your customer service capabilities including if you will provide GMU with a dedicated phone number, support person/project manager, dedicated customer service representative, etc. to ensure GMU’s needs are immediately addressed. If you have minimum response times, call-back requirements, or other guarantees or restrictions please outline those in your offer.

d. Reliability and Contingency Planning: outline your contingency plans to address personnel shortages, equipment failures or simultaneous/heavy snow events across all of Mason’s campuses/facilities. This should include an explanation of how the offeror ensures priority responses and service continuity for GMU during severe weather conditions/events.

5. Transition Plan: Provide your transition plan to ensure you can immediately, effectively, take over snow removal services starting November 01, 2026 (anticipated contract start date). GMU tentatively anticipates having this contract awarded on or before October 01, 2026 giving the contractor roughly 30 days to transition into providing these services. If additional transition time is necessary (longer than 30 days) the offeror must outline the minimum amount of time necessary to transition into providing these services.

6. Proposed Pricing: Provide rates for all labor, materials/equipment and services described herein and as outlined in Attachment E Pricing Schedule. Instructions and definitions are laid out in the attachment. Any additional fees not specifically contemplated in this RFP must be included in your proposal and pricing schedule. George Mason will not accept undisclosed fees that are added to invoices.

Time spent traveling to or between sites is not billable.

Rates must include travel-related expenses if contractor is traveling within a 50-mile radius of George Mason's Fairfax campus. If the contractor is traveling from outside a 50-mile radius of the Fairfax Campus, travel can only be invoiced on a reimbursement basis in accordance with George Mason's polices, http://fiscal.gmu.edu/travel/, and GSA per diem rates. Additional hourly rates for travel will not be considered.

Provide a sample invoice for your services. George Mason has provided an example invoice as Attachment C – Sample Invoice Format showing an acceptable breakdown for an example project for the services requested herein. At a minimum, contractors are required to provide a breakdown of the hours worked, the rate, all fees, and the total per engagement/project or per day for these services.

XIII. INITIAL EVALUATION CRITERIA AND SUBSEQUENT AWARD:

A. INITIAL EVALUATION CRITERIA: Proposals shall be initially evaluated and ranked using the following criteria:

Description of Criteria Maximum Point Value

1. Qualifications and experience of offeror in providing the goods/services 25

2. Specific plans or methodology to be used to provide the services 25

3. Transition Plan 20

4. Price Offered 20

5. Offeror is certified with Virginia SBSD at the proposal due date & time. 10

Total Points Available: 100

B. AWARD: Following the initial scoring by the evaluation committee, at least two or more top ranked offerors may be contacted for oral presentations/demonstrations or advanced directly to the negotiations stage. If oral presentations are conducted George Mason will then determine, in its sole discretion, which offerors will advance to the negotiations phase. Negotiations shall then be conducted with each of the offerors so selected. Price shall be considered, but need not be the sole determining factor. After negotiations have been conducted with each offeror so selected, George Mason shall select the offeror which, in its sole discretion has made the best proposal, and shall award the contract to that offeror. When the terms and conditions of multiple awards are so provided in the Request for Proposal, awards may be made to more than one offeror. Should George Mason determine in writing and in its sole discretion that only one offeror has made the best proposal, a contract may be negotiated and awarded to that offeror. George Mason is not required to furnish a statement of the reasons why a particular proposal was not deemed to be the most advantageous (Governing Rules §49.D.).

XIV. CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION: Upon award of the contract, George Mason shall designate, in writing, the name of the

Contract Administrator who shall work with the contractor in formulating mutually acceptable plans and standards for the operations of this service. The Contract Administrator shall use all powers under the contract to enforce its faithful performance.

The Contract Administrator shall determine the amount, quality and acceptability of work and shall decide all other questions in connection with the work. All direction and order from George Mason shall be transmitted through the Contract Administrator, or their designee(s) however, the Contract Administrator shall have no authority to approve changes which shall alter the concept or scope of the work or change the basis for compensation to the contractor.

XV. PAYMENT TERMS / METHOD OF PAYMENT:

PLEASE NOTE: THE VENDOR MUST REFERENCE THE PURCHASE ORDER NUMBER ON ALL INVOICES SUBMITTED

FOR PAYMENT.

Option #1- Payment to be mailed in 10 days-George Mason will make payment to the vendor under 2%/10 Net 30 payment terms. Invoices should be submitted via email to the designated Accounts Payable email address which is acctpay@gmu.edu.

The 10-day payment period begins the first business day after receipt of proper invoice or receipt of goods, whichever occurs last. A paper check will be mailed on or before the 10th day.

Option #2- To be paid in 20 days. The vendor may opt to be paid through our Virtual Payables credit card program. The vendor shall submit an invoice and will be paid via credit card on the 20th day from receipt of a valid invoice. The vendor will incur standard credit card interchange fees through their processor. All invoices should be sent to:

George Mason University Accounts Payable Department 4400 University Drive, Mailstop 3C1 Fairfax, VA 22030 Voice: 703.993.2580 | Fax: 703.993.2589 e-mail: AcctPay@gmu.edu

Option#3- Net 30 Payment Terms. Vendor will enroll in Paymode-X where all payments will be made electronically to the vendor’s bank account. To sign up for electronic payments, please contact the Paymode-X Enrollment Team at 1-800-331- 0974 or email enrollment@paymode-x.com. The enrollment team can assist you with any questions about the enrollment process and setting up the membership.

Please state your payment preference in your proposal response.

XVI. SOLICITATION TERMS AND CONDITIONS:

A. ANNOUNCEMENT OF AWARD: Upon the award or the announcement of the decision to award a contract over

$200,000, as a result of this solicitation, George Mason will publicly post such notice on the DGS/DPS eVA web site (https://eva.virginia.gov/) for a minimum of 10 days.

B. BEST AND FINAL OFFER (BAFO): At the conclusion of negotiations, the offeror(s) may be asked to submit in writing, a best and final offer (BAFO). After the BAFO is submitted, no further negotiations shall be conducted with the offeror(s).

C. CONFLICT OF INTEREST: By submitting a proposal, the contractor warrants that they have fully complied with the

Virginia Conflict of Interest Act; furthermore, certifying that they are not currently an employee of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

mailto:acctpay@gmu.edu mailto:AcctPay@gmu.edu mailto:enrollment@paymode-x.com

D. DEBARMENT STATUS: By submitting a proposal, offerors certify that they are not currently debarred by the Commonwealth of Virginia from submitting bids or proposals on contracts for the type of goods and/or services covered by this solicitation, nor are they an agent of any person or entity that is currently so debarred.

E. ETHICS IN PUBLIC CONTRACTING: By submitting a proposal, offerors certify that their proposal is made without collusion or fraud and that they have not offered or received any kickbacks or inducements from any other offeror, supplier, manufacturer or subcontractor in connection with their proposal, and that they have not conferred on any public employee having official responsibility for this procurement transaction any payment, loan, subscription, advance, deposit of money, services or anything of more than nominal value, present or promised, unless consideration of substantially equal or greater value was exchanged.

F. LATE PROPOSALS: To be considered for selection, proposals must be received in George Mason’s Bonfire Portal by the designated date and hour. The official time used in the receipt of proposals is the proposal due date and hour in George Mason’s Bonfire Portal. Proposals submitted after the due date and time has expired will not be accepted nor considered. George Mason is not responsible for any delays related to Bonfire’s website or vendor registration process.

It is the responsibility of the offeror to ensure that their proposal is submitted by the designated date and hour.

G. MANDATORY USE OF GEORGE MASON FORM AND TERMS AND CONDITIONS: Failure to submit a proposal on the official George Mason form provided for that purpose may be a cause for rejection of the proposal.

Modification of or additions to the General Terms and Conditions of this solicitation may be cause for rejection of the proposal; however, George Mason reserves the right to decide, on a case-by-case basis, in its sole discretion, whether to reject such a…