3-RFP V2 Proposal Submittal Instructions ACT.pdf

Agency for Community Transit RFP Volume 2 of 6

Proposal Submittal Instructions Page 1 of 3

PROPOSAL SUBMITTAL INSTRUCTIONS

The Owner requires that proposals be submitted electronically via the Bonfire portal at mct-act.bonfirehub.com.

Proposals will be time and date stamped by the Bonfire portal. Proposals submitted in any manner other than through the Bonfire portal will not be accepted.

As a condition of proposal responsiveness, the following completed forms and requested information are required by the proposal deadline. Failure to submit a complete proposal, including all required forms, certifications, acknowledgements, and attachments, may result in the proposal being deemed non-responsive.

The following forms and information must be UPLOADED TO THE BONFIRE PORTAL by the proposal deadline and must be in PDF or EXCEL format. Proposer must use the Owner’s supplied forms when instructed to do so.

A) Transmittal Letter. At a minimum, the transmittal letter must contain the following:

1) The letter should be addressed to SJ Morrison, Executive Director, prepared on the proposer’s letterhead.

2) The name, phone number, and email address of the individual(s) empowered to negotiate with the

Owner and bind the firm into any contract resulting from this RFP.

3) Any exceptions to this RFP, including sample contract terms, must be clearly identified in this letter. Proposers are cautioned to limit exceptions, conditions and limitations to the provisions of this RFP, as they may be determined to be so fundamental as to cause rejection of the proposal for not responding to the requirements of the RFP.

4) A statement to the effect that the proposal shall remain valid for a period of not less than 120 days from the proposal deadline.

5) Signature of a person authorized to bind the Proposer to the terms of the proposal.

6) An introduction to the company and executive summary of the proposal.

B) Technical Response. The proposer’s technical response should be organized as follows with no pricing information:

1) Project Approach. In a concise and clearly organized manner, the Proposer shall address all

Scope of Work (SOW) requirements and describe how the proposed EAM solution and services meet or exceed those requirements.

The response shall address the Proposer’s approach, system capabilities, implementation methodology, and operational support, including but not limited to the following:

a) Description of the proposed Enterprise Asset Management system architecture, including cloud/SaaS or on-premises deployment options.

b) Overview of asset lifecycle management capabilities, including asset creation, maintenance, inspection, renewal, and retirement.

c) Description of preventive and predictive maintenance functionality, including scheduling, triggers, and condition-based maintenance.

d) Work order management capabilities, including mobile functionality and field operations support.

e) Parts, inventory, and materials management features, including integration with purchasing and finance systems.

f) Asset performance tracking, reliability analytics, and reporting capabilities.

g) Integration capabilities with third-party systems (e.g., ERP, finance, HR, fuel management, AVL, telematics, GIS, or other transit systems).

h) Data migration approach, including tools, validation, and support for legacy systems.

i) Cybersecurity, system availability, disaster recovery, and business continuity features.

j) Description of system configurability versus customization.

https://mct-act.bonfirehub.com/

Proposal Submittal Instructions Page 2 of 3

k) Product roadmap and approach to system upgrades, enhancements, and regulatory or industry-driven changes.

l) Demonstration of system usability and navigation (e.g., link to an online demo, recorded walkthrough/video, product tour webpage, and/or a temporary sandbox environment).

m) Implementation, testing, training, and transition approach, including how the 9-month go-live timeline will be achieved, Project Management Plan elements, testing phases (unit, integration, stress, SAT), Training Plan (including train-the-trainer and sandbox), hardware provisioning (barcode scanners, barcode printers, spares), and risk-minimized transition from current system.

n) Confirmation of ability to deliver all listed project deliverables.

o) Proposer is encouraged to describe any additional capabilities or value-added services that may enhance the project.

2) Staffing/Project Manager. Describe your firm’s resources and capabilities. Subcontracting is not permitted. All assigned personnel must be independent from the Owner. Identify and include biographies for specific key personnel assigned, their roles in relation to the work required, and special qualifications they bring to the project such as certifications, licenses, achievements, etc.

3) Experience and Qualifications. The Proposer shall describe its experience and past performance providing Enterprise Asset Management software and implementation services comparable in scope and complexity to those described in this solicitation. The Proposer shall describe their capacity and ability to deliver the project on time.

The response shall demonstrate at least five (5) years of experience delivering EAM solutions to public-sector, transportation, not-for-profit or similarly complex asset-intensive organizations. The proposer shall provide references for comparable clients, including organization name, contact person, address, phone number, and email address. Reference contacts must be willing to discuss the Proposer’s performance, system functionality, implementation experience, and ongoing support services.

The Proposer shall also describe in detail how its organization meets each element of the cybersecurity and data protection requirements stated in the Special Conditions document of the Sample Contract.

The Proposer shall describe their ability to maintain and support the system, including both technical capabilities and organizational practices.

C) Proposal Requirements for Evaluation. Using the Owner’s form, the Proposer should review the type of documentation requested for the selected items contained in the technical proposal and provide comments where the proposer has not provided the information in the technical proposal in the requested format(s).

D) Requirement Traceability Matrix. Using the Owner’s form, the Proposer should review all requirements in this matrix an indicate whether the Proposer meets, partially meets, or does not meet the requirement as stated. For any requirement that the Proposer partially or does not meet, the Proposer should describe workarounds or alternatives that address the spirit of the requirement as available. The Proposer should respond to all requirements so that the Owner can conduct a consistent review across proposals.

E) Registration with IDHR. Complete the Owner’s form confirming that, if awarded a contract, the proposer will comply with the provisions of the Illinois Human Rights Act.

Proposal Submittal Instructions Page 3 of 3

F) Price proposal. These instructions are intended to ensure a fair, transparent, and comparable evaluation of all proposals while supporting effective contract formation for the hybrid EAM solution.

1) General requirements:

• All prices must be quoted in United States Dollars (USD) and shall be firm for a minimum of 120 days from the proposal due date.

• Prices shall be all-inclusive and incorporate all applicable taxes, duties, shipping, travel, per diems, materials, other direct or indirect costs, and profit unless explicitly permitted to be itemized separately.

• Proposers shall clearly distinguish between fixed-price and time-and-materials (T&M) elements, consistent with a hybrid contract structure.

• Provide detailed breakdowns, assumptions, and exclusions. Assumptions that materially affect pricing must be explicitly stated.

• Submit the completed Excel file in (.xlsx) format.

• Do not embed additional worksheets, macros, or unprotected formulas.

• Any optional pricing or alternative approaches must be presented in a separate tab clearly labeled “Optional/Alternative Pricing” and must not alter the base pricing structure required for evaluation.

• Failure to provide complete, compliant pricing information may result in the proposal being deemed non-responsive.

2) Fixed-Price Components:

• Provide firm, lump-sum, or unit prices for all proposed deliverables, including, but not limited to, hardware, software licensing/subscription, base implementation services, initial data migration, training, go-live support, and any optional fixed-price add-ons.

• Identify multi-year breakdowns reflecting any renewal or maintenance pricing for the base contract term of 5 year, and renewal options extending to 10 years.

• Fixed prices shall not be subject to adjustment except through formal change orders.

3) Time-and-Material Components:

• Provide fully loaded hourly rates for each labor category/role (regular and overtime, if applicable). Rates must include all overhead, profit, and indirect costs.

• Submit estimated hours and extended costs for representative T&M tasks solely for evaluation purposes; these estimates are non-binding.

• Specify any material markups, travel reimbursement policies, and other reimbursable expenses.

• Provide a proposed Not-to-Exceed (NTE) ceiling for the total T&M portion. This ceiling will form the basis for contract negotiations and risk allocation.

ADDENDA CONFIRMATION

If any addenda to the solicitation have been issued, the proposer will be prompted during proposal submission to acknowledge the receipt of each addenda.

[End of document]