S05 Vendor Questions-AE and VA Response.pdf

Requests for Information

Project 549‐21‐210 Correct Site Deficiencies Herzog

Question Reference Answer

Will the owner accept the use of Procore Project Management software as the primary submittal and data tracking tool for this project? SF‐1442

Yes, Procore can be utilized for submittals, data tracking, reporting and other tasks.

As a result of the effect of COVID‐19 throughout the U.S., and the resulting Federal, State and local governments’ responses / requirements of safe distancing and potential advocations of working remotely and/or complete organization closures, please advise how the Government intends to address delays resulting there as it pertains to the current solicitation schedule for this and all future projects. SF‐1442

The Awardee can request period of performance extenions due to supply chain delays.

Can you confirm that bids are to be submitted at 10:00AM CST and opened at 1:00PM is correct? And that bids can be submitted via email and/or in person? SF‐1442

Correct. Bids will be due at 10:00 AM CST and a virtual opening will be offered at 1:00 PM CST that same day.

4 Is this project tax exempt, and will the CO/COR provide the necessary tax exempt certificates SF‐1442 Yes this is tax exempt and the form can be provided.

5 What is the approximate duration between issuing the award and issuing the NTP? SF‐1442

The estimation is 10 calendar days. A contract kick off meeting must occur and bonds must be provided before the NTP can be issued.

For planning the preliminary project schedule, can you please provide an anticipated award date? SF‐1442

Anticipated award date is 1 week after bids are due. However, this solicitaiton is pending funding. Per 1442 pg. 1 blk. 13 d. the

Government is requesting 120 days for Government acceptance.

Can the superintendent have dual role such as SSHO? Is an onsite Quality Control staff member required in addition to a dual role superintendent? SF‐1442 Dual role of site superintendent and SSHO shall be allowed.

How many calendar days should be included in the critical‐path method schedule for owner and A/E review and respond to RFIs? SF‐1442 A/E requires 14 calender days to respond to RFIs

How many calendar days should be included in the critical‐path method schedule for owner and A/E submittal review? SF‐1442 A/E submittal review require 14 calender days

Will the Government provide the project RFP 3‐D REVIT Design model drawings in it's native file format, for the creation of coordination drawings? How long after award can these Revit drawings be provided? SF‐1442

VA has CAD format files which will be provided after the award to the contractor. Files are readily available and can be provided at the kickoff or sooner.

11 Will the owner provide the contract drawings in the native Revit format for use by the GC? SF‐1442

VA has CAD format files which will be provided after the award to the contractor.

12 Will owner require GC’s to develop and submit coordination drawings in Revit? SF‐1442

GC will provide red lines and A/E will provide as builts based on the redlines.

Where will the designated parking & laydown area be for workers accessing the construction site? SF‐1442

There will be laydown area and parking assigned after the award, contractor cannot park in patient or employee parking.

Has the work area been checked for asbestos, lead based materials and/or other hazardous materials? Is there a report available? SF‐1442

There is asbestos survey report available which can be requested. It is contractor`s responsibility to review the report and analyze the affected areas.

Is AISC (American Iron and Steel Certification) required for the structural steel fabrication and/or erection for this project? Will any substitute certification be acceptable? SF‐1442

Refer to specification section of 01‐42‐19 from specification document for list of approved certification bodies.

Can you confirm that the owner will be contracting directly with a third‐party commissioning agent for commissioning the project and that the Contractor is only to include participation/coordination with the Commissioning Agent? SF‐1442

GC is required to include allowance for commissioning of PIV and electricals work. Commissioning agent has to be approved by the manufacturer.

17 If RFI answers elicit a follow‐up question, will an additional RFI submission period be allowed? SF‐1442 Yes

Has the facility Operation & Maintenance team reviewed the Contract Documents for operability to avoid change orders? SF‐1442 VA has made all efforts to avoid any change orders for the project.

Will the owner be providing the civil site SWPPP, NOI, and any associated permitting fees? Has the site already been permitted and fees paid? Is there a requirement for a SWPPP plan to be developed and submitted for this project since the acreage Acreage of the campus area is over

1 AC and possibly 5 AC? CS‐102

Contractor shall take full responsibility for any required permitting, including required fees. All permitting efforts and costs shall be provided by the contractor at no additional cost to the Government.

20 Are there certain manufacturers required on this project due to existing systems and facilities? SF‐1442 There are no restrictions to specific manufacturers within this project.

Can the contractor use the existing restroom facilities in the work area or adjacent ones nearby? SF‐1442

Contractor shall provide portable restrooms for crew during construction

Many VA campuses are beginning to address Turbulosis protocols on VA campus projects. Are there any TB required protocols for this campus/project? SF‐1442 No TB protocol is required since this is outside work

23 Will you provide a copy of the site visit attendance and sign‐in sheet in amendment? SF‐1442 The sign in sheet is provided with this amendment.

There are significant long lead times for PEMB buildings and structures due to supply chain and manufacturing issues along with the economy. The POP is 270 calendar days which is 38 weeks and 4 days. We are hearing fabrication and delivery lead times after engineering design and approval by the owner of 20+ weeks. Has the owner taken this into account with the RFP POP?

How can the owner make provisions for long lead times vs. the POP of 270 days? SF‐1442

The required lead time has been taken into account with the required

POP. 20+ weeks of lead time should be enough for a 38 week POP considering the scope of the project.

25 Where is the designated contractor job site trailers and employee parking? SF‐1442

Space is available on the northwest corner of the campus in the overflow parking.

26 Where is the designated contractor area for trash dumpsters? SF‐1442

Space is available on the northwest corner of the campus in the overflow parking.

The Davis Bacon Wage Rate Determination is dated 4/14/2023. Is this the most current DBA wage rate for the project? Will it be updated, if not current, in amendment? SF‐1442

The wage determination included with this solicitation is the current one for DOL. It will be updated at time of award if a new wage determination is issued by DOL.

Civil demo drawing indicates removal of existing concrete safety barriers. Does the government want to keep and store these barriers or remove them from site with contractor waste? CD101

Salvage and storage at the lot southeast of the Herzog campus will be required. (The lot is also owned by the VA.)

Proposed site plan indicates new site fencing just off property line on S. Lancaster Rd next public sidewalk. There appears at the site walk to be numerous interferences with light poles, guy wires, manholes, fire hydrants, and other infrastructure. Has the engineer reviewed these potential interferences and coordinated in the drawings? A fence close to a fire hydrant appears to violate building life and fire safety. Is that an issue addressed by engineer? CS102

No power poles appear to be in line with the proposed fence line. Guy wires are perpendicular to the fence and should not be a problem.

Where conflicts occur with MHs or other infractructure, the chain link fence will need to be adjusted to avoid interferences. The FH along

Lancaster is west of the fence by several feet, but the fence may need to be adjusted for a short distance to maintain 3‐ft clearance from the

FH.

Do any of the new proposed fences just off the property line and public rights of way have to coordinated with the city and need permitting? CS102

Bidders will be required to provide any City permits required for actions conducted in public Right of Way. Permit preparation and associated fees will be provided by the Contractor at no additional cost to the Government.

There are new proposed sidewalks and other site additions in proximity of existing trees that could interfere with the root systems as being to close. Has the engineer taken this into account with routing of sidewalks and other site additions? Are any of these trees considered historical? CS102

Contractor shall avoid damaging tree roots in close proximity to proposed sidewalks and other site additions. There is no evidence that any trees are historical. City of Dallas Tree Ordinances do not apply on

VA property.

Since existing fences and gates are shown to be removed, modified, will the VA Owner provide for security guards and protection during work hours as well as off work hours and weekends? CS102

The only area where existing fencing is being brought down as part of this construction is the NW corner of the facility. The intent is for the contractor to provide temporary fencing/gates behind the existing fencing before demolition to ensure the area stays secure once demolition is conducted.

Additionally, the VA will not be responsible for securing access from inside the site to the Contractor's materials or equipment. The

Contractor will be responsible for any additional temporary fencing required to properly secure materials and equipment in the laydown area.

Detail 1 on perimeter fencing details indicate grounding details attached to fence. Is this required of all chain link fences, security fences, and gates? How often is the fence grounded?

What are the requirements? Grounding is not shown on the electrical site plan. Is there an existing grounding system on site? CS502

Contractor should assume grounding rods are required at each fixed gate post and at each corner post. More specific grounding information will be provided as a specification by the Designer of

Record.

Can you confirm that the existing gate motors are not to be used with new fences? And all new motors and wiring? CS504 All proposed gate motors and wiring to be new.

The erosion control details do not address existing oil and oil separation mechanisms. Projects of this size with paving, equipment, vehicles, etc. often leave oil and/or pollutants in runoff to city drainage structures. There are no oil separators shown on site or addressed. Has the engineer taken this account in the design? What are the contract requirements, if any, for oil containments in existing pavement areas during construction? CG502

Per Spec 01 57 19 ‐ Temporary Environmental Controls, Item 1.5.C, the contractor shall "Keep construction activities under surveillance, management, and control to avoid pollution of surface and ground waters and sewer systems."

Shall the contractor be required to clean streets, walks, and pavements daily of mud and dust?

What are those requirements? CG502

Yes, the contractor required to clean streets, walks, and pavements daily of mud and dust. Contractor will be subject to City of Dallas requirements in public ROW.

General note on CG502 states erosion construction entrance & exit details (CG501) and wheel cleaning system details (CG502 & CG503) will not be required unless contractor use onsite grass areas or onsite dirt areas for staging or storing material. The use on any onsite staging and/or storage areas must be approved by the COR. Where is the proposed staging area in paved area where the requirements of this note can be met? It seems like there will be areas of grass and dirt where equipment and/or material will be stored, staged, or temporarily located. CG502

Space is available on the northwest corner of the campus in the overflow parking.

Has the metal canopy system foundations/drilled piers been designed in anticipation of meeting local and building codes, wind, seismic, soils, etc. for the new canopy? S501 Yes

Is the contractor required to provide canopy PEMB design, engineering, and certified stamp for design in bid? S501 Yes

Will the owner provide the basis of design, engineering foundation loads during bid phase in order to provide an accurate proposal for canopy design that will meet the RFP foundation drawing design? S501

Because the final loads are provided as part of the delegated design for the PEMB, the Government does not provide basis of design loads.

That information must come from the Contractor's Engineer of

Record.

41 What manufacturer for PEMB is the basis of design with the RFP Canopy drawings? S501

Federal Government does not provide manufacturer names and models to prevent sole sourcing. Bidder is responsible for identifying qualified PEMB manufacturer who can provide a structure compliant with the requirements provided in the contract documents

42 Can the owner provide the soils report used for the canopy dilled pier design? S501

Final geotechnical report is provided; however, this does not deobligate the contractor to provide any necessary design or test piles as required within the contract documents.

Is the owner/VA providing a professional engineer from a geotechnical soils engineer/material testing firm required on site during installation of the drilled piers operation for testing and reporting? S501

No, contractor shall be responsible for providing professional engineering services for this task.

Notes on the drilled piers note add/deduct pricing for final length. The basis of estimate/bid is based on dimension noted on the drawing. Are unit prices to included in the proposal for added or deducted actual lengths? It also notes that add price is equal to deduct price. Can you confirm the requirements for adding and deducting from the final pier lengths? Will the owner provide professional engineer for final depth verification? S501

Yes, the pricing is for added or dedcuted actual lengths. The

Contractor shall provide a Professional Engineer for final depth verification.

Dilled pier detail 3/S501 notes that columns, base plates, and anchor bolts to be designed by

PEMB EOR. Can you confirm this is reference to the canopy columns, base plates, and Abs and not the concrete pier foundation? S501 These are just for steel, not concrete

Detail 7/AS501 shows wood decking and an underlayment for the metal PEMB canopy. Other details just indicate pre‐finished metal roof deck, but no wood. Can you confirm that this canopy does not required wood decking? Only Pre‐finished metal. AS301 No wood decking is required.

Detail 7/AS501 also indicated standing seam roof where other details show pre‐finished metal roof. Is this a standing seam roof or a screw down panel roof? AS301 There will be no standing seam, only screw‐down roof panels.

The drawings indicate electrical work and grounding, however, there isn't an electrical spec section included in the RFP specs. Can electrical specs be provided that will cover all the various electrical scopes of work to be encountered withy the site, including grounding, conduit, card readers, security, wiring. breakers, circuits, trenching, duct bank, etc. in amendment? Electrical

Required electrical details or specs will be provided by the Designer of

Record to the evantual awarded bidder.

There is a good amount of scope for metals on the project including railing, bollards, etc.

However, there isn't a metals or steel spec included in the RFP. Can metal specs be provided in an amendment? Metals

All necessary information related to misc. metal elements (e.g. , handrails or bollards) has been provided in the contract documents already.

There are details and references on site to sealants and caulking in drawings and specs.

However, there isn't a spec for sealants and caulking. Can a spec be provided in an amendment? Sealants

The intent is that all relevant information related to sealants has been provided in the contract documents already.

Page 6 note J notes a construction fence must be provided prior to start of work. Since this project is civil and fences are in place where they will be modified and added to, is a temporary construction fence necessary? Can that be waived? 01 00 00

The only area where existing fencing is being brought down as part of this construction is the NW corner of the facility. The intent is for the contractor to provide temporary fencing/gates behind the existing fencing before demolition to ensure the area stays secure once demolition is conducted.

Additionally, the VA will not be responsible for securing access from inside the site to the Contractor's materials or equipment. The

Contractor will be responsible for any additional temporary fencing required to properly secure materials and equipment in the laydown area.

Page 8 note O. Is a traffic plan with the city municipality required to be provided, submitted, and approved? Is this a requirement? 01 00 00

Contractor will be conducting work alongside a City of Dallas street which may require temporary lane closure or some level of traffic protection. Contractor shall be responsible for providing traffic plans as required for any City of Dallas permit for work impacting public rights of way. Development of the traffic plan, and any associated costs and fees, shall be the responsibility of the Contractor at no additional cost to the Government.

Professional surveyor is noted as required per 01 00 00 paragraph 1.12. Is this for all layout for the project? There isn't a spec for surveying. Is there a final as‐built, certified, professional surveyor stamped drawing required for fencing and new / modified infrastructure of this project? Survey

Yes, per paragraph 1.12, a registered professional surveyor is required for layout work, and layout work is described in paragraph 1.13.

Requirements for as‐built drawings are discussed in paragraph 1.14.

Can the contractor use existing power and electricity for temporary power and power to job/storage trailers at no cost to the contractor for this project? Electrical No electricity will be provided by VA

Can the contractor use existing water services for temporary construction at no cost to the contractor for this project? Water No water will be provided by VA

56 Does the new PEMB canopy have or need power or lighting? That’s not shown on drawings. Electrical Neither power or lighting are required for the canopy

57 Is the PEMB canopy required to be grounded? If so, what are the requirements? Electrical Grounding is not required for the canopy

What type of 2 year warranty is required for the PEMB canopy? Is there a water tightness requirement, even though its an outdoor open sided structure? PEMB

Section 13 34 19, Part 1.10.B states that this is a warranty against any material and manufacturing defects.

59 Are there any waterproofing requirements for the PEMB foundations and slabs? Waterproofing

No waterproofing requirements for PEMB foundations and slabs, howerver, joint filler is specified on Pier Cap Detail and Drilled Pier

Foundation detailon drawing S501.

3.2 Foundation piers note requirement for pile load tests and witness requirements. Can the drill pier installed at site be load tested and be allowed to remain after successful testing? Or is there a requirement for a separate drill pier to be tested on site that is for testing purposes only? 01 45 29

No objections to the test pier being used as a structural pier for the final design, so long as approved by the Professional Engineer responsible for the final delegated design for the structure

There are some secure fence areas that have restricted access with gates and fences. How will the contractor go about getting daily access in secure areas? Will there be requirements for escorts or permitting to work in these areas? secure areas

Contractor will be provided access to the area where the work needs to be performed

On the west side of the building, primarily where the sidewalk will be reworked. What are the mitigation requirements for erosion and runoff control?

See erosion control plan (CG112) and erosion control detail sheets

(CG502‐CG510)

On the west side of the building, primarily where the sidewalk will be reworked. What precautions or efforts should be made to prevent tree/root damage?

Tree/root protection details will be developed by the Engineer of

Record and provided as an addendum.