S05-RFI Questions_Amend 4.docx

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS VHA Network Contracting Office 19 Rocky Mountain Acquisition Center 6162 South Willow Drive, Suite 300 Greenwood Village, CO 80111

CONTRACTOR Q&A’s

TITLE OF PROJECT

Q&A No 1: Does the VA intend on using the “optional power conditioning unit” as shown on drawing 4 of 4?

Answer No.1: No, the PowerVAR 3300 UPS will provide conditioned power, I mistakenly said yes to the optional power conditioning unit in the previous RFI’s. Roche will provide the PowerVAR 3300 UPS.

Q&A No 2: For bidding purposes, what is the distance that should be used for length of CAT runs to this equipment?

Answer No.2: This project is for facility utilities only (electrical and plumbing); the IT requirements will be executed by others. The Lab staff includes an IT Specialist who is directing that work.

Q&A No 3: Is there any equipment needed for CAT6 terminations at the rack, or is there a punch-down style patch panel with open spaces for this project?

Answer No.3: This project is for facility utilities only (electrical and plumbing); the IT requirements will be executed by others. The Lab staff includes an IT Specialist who is directing that work.

Q&A No 4: Is there a spec for types/brands of wall plates/jacks for the CAT6?

Answer No.4: This project is for facility utilities only (electrical and plumbing); the IT requirements will be executed by others. The Lab staff includes an IT Specialist who is directing that work.

Q&A No 5: Where is the source of power for existing electrical utilities in the half wall to be demolished?

Answer No.5: Power for the Lab receptacles comes from the distribution panels located in the adjacent corridor Electrical Room # 221L

Q&A No 6: There was talk about possibly leaving the duct where it is at and adding two grills for the existing and adding two more for the new. Will the existing exhaust fan remove enough CFM for adding another two runs?

Answer No.6: We will not be performing any HVAC modifications during this project – if additional exhaust or cooling needs result from the additional heat loads, we will assess this during the Summer and address internally and/or with a separate HVAC project.

Q&A No 7: The two 8” runs that are there now are not moving that high of a volume of air. There is no exhaust for any of the other equipment on the floor. We would suggest that the mechanical engineer take in account of the heat load that is in the space and find out what CFM exhaust fan they would need and what they want for ducting and spacing and number of registers for the exhaust. Can the VA provide heat load calculations?

Answer No.7: We will not be performing any HVAC modifications during this project – if additional exhaust or cooling needs result from the additional heat loads, we will assess this during the Summer and address internally and/or with a separate HVAC project.

Q&A No.8: Bid Schedule calls out Muskogee VAMC please provide updated bid schedule.

Answer No.8: Replacement bid schedule will be attached to the amendment reflecting change to Fort Harrison MT.

Clarification to answers:

Q&A No.9: 15) Please provide ICRA requirements. Will hard barriers be required? Please define ICRA limits. ICRA Provided to Contracting Officer, no hard barrier needed, but close coordination with the VA COR and Lab Manager must be followed to ensure that sensitive Lab equipment gets shut down and/or encapsulated prior to any localized work. This answer calls for no hard barriers but the ASHE ICRA form calls out for Type C Level 4 which includes critical barriers to meet NFPA 241. Will plastic barriers in this area meet the AHRE ICRA and NFPA requirements for this VA? The barrier required for this project needs to be clearly defined to provide accurate pricing.

Answer No.9: The only work that should require a hard barrier will be the core drilling for the plumbing lines; all other work to be performed in close coordination with the VA COR and Lab Personnel to ensure safety of personnel, and protection of the lab equipment. Although Means and Methods are the responsibility of the Contractor, a possible solution to any ICRA questions would be a portable containment setup that extends from floor to ceiling and has negative air capability built in.

Q&A No.10: 26) Please confirm if the work in the lab can be completed during normal business hours. VA prefers that work inside the Lab itself be done after hours and/or weekends to minimize impact and possible danger to the staff; this can be scheduled with the VA COR Lab Manager to ensure Safety & ICRA guidelines are being adhered to. VA COR will have to coordinate with VA Facilities Maintenance team to execute shutdowns (i.e. for the water line installation). Work that occurs in Mechanical or Electrical rooms can be scheduled for M-F normal business time. The answer states that the VA prefers after hours and/or weekend work. What does prefer mean? Does this mean all work in the lab area or just current activities?

Answer No.10: In discussing with the Lab Manager, work will occur during normal business hours but will need close review of daily schedules to coordinate with the VA COR and Lab Personnel to ensure safety of personnel, and protection of the lab equipment.

Q&A No 11: 27) Does the VA have extra flooring to patch any holes from demolition? Will floor patching be acceptable or do we need to replace full sheets? Please define flooring scope. Flooring scope would be to fill in the space under the half wall with similar material; VA COR is checking to see if we have it in stock, if not then it will be acquired by VA COR to fill in that area. Want to confirm that the VA will be providing the additional flooring materials? Will the VA be installing the material? Will the VA be responsible for floor prep? This SOW needs to be clearly defined to provide accurate pricing.

Answer No.11: VA is requesting that the contractor acquire and install rubber flooring in the space where the half-wall will be removed, we checked and do not have extra in attic stock.

Q&A No 12: Drawings call demo and new data on the drawings. But nothing is listed in the SOW. Is the GC or VA responsible for handling all data work?

Answer No.12: This project is for facility utilities only (electrical and plumbing); the IT requirements will be executed by others. The Lab staff includes an IT Specialist who is directing that work. We will want to simply eliminate the half-wall data wiring back to their points of origin in the ceiling.

Q&A No 13: Does the site’s DI water meet the purity, pressure, and flow requirements the equipment is requiring?

Answer No.13: YES - Roche has subcontracted the company General Water Technologies to install RO units, this project is simply to relocate and provide the plumbing line as described in the SOW. In delivering that plumbing system, mass flow rates will exceed those that are temporarily being provided. The plumbing connections to the RO units and the Roche analyzers will be connected by General Water and Roche, not by the Contractor.

Q&A No 14: How close to the equipment is the nearest DI water piping?

Answer No.14: Roche has subcontracted the company General Water Technologies to install RO units, this project is simply to relocate and provide the plumbing line as described in the SOW. In delivering that plumbing system, mass flow rates will exceed those that are temporarily being provided. The plumbing connections to the RO units and the Roche analyzers will be connected by General Water and Roche, not by the Contractor.

Q&A No 15: What pipe material is the existing DI water piping?

Answer No.15: Roche has subcontracted the company General Water Technologies to install RO units, this project is simply to relocate and provide the plumbing line as described in the SOW. In delivering that plumbing system, mass flow rates will exceed those that are temporarily being provided. The plumbing connections to the RO units and the Roche analyzers will be connected by General Water and Roche, not by the Contractor.

Q&A No 16: What type of connections are on the existing DI water piping?

Answer No.16: The project is only to get 1-1/4” up to the lab, install a tee, then reduce each side to ¾”, add ball valves and pressure gauges on each side, and terminate in a ¾” female NPT thread. Copper piping that is soldered should be used – unfortunately the VA prefers to not use Pro-Press or similar.

Q&A No 17: Are we going to be able to simply cut tees into the existing piping for the new lines or are we going to have to completely re-pipe the DI water to maintain the proper recirculation flow?

Answer No.17: The project is only to get 1-1/4” up to the lab, install a tee, then reduce each side to ¾”, add ball valves and pressure gauges on each side, and terminate in a ¾” female NPT thread. Copper piping that is soldered should be used – unfortunately the VA prefers to not use Pro-Press or similar.

Q&A No 18: How long can the existing DI water system be down for?

Answer No.18: The system will be shut down by Roche and General Water when the connections are being made, this will not be operated by the Contractor. General Water will swap the water tubing from the existing to the new ¾” female NPT.

Q&A No 19: Are there going to be any re-certification tests required after the work is completed on the DI water system?

Answer No.19: No

Q&A No 20: Is cast iron DWV piping required for these drains?

Answer No.20: Existing Lab floor and sink drains are the blue chemical resistant PVC. The same material shall be used. Contractor will be required to trace and determine correct tie-in locations to maintain pitch.

Q&A No 21: In previous projects any DWV piping receiving DI water drainage had to be ran in corrosion resistant piping (PVC or POLY) until it connected to a waste stack receiving discharge from regular sanitary fixtures. This diluted the DI water and therefore made it harmless to the piping. Is this going to be the case on this project?

Answer No.21: Existing Lab floor and sink drains are the blue chemical resistant PVC. The same material shall be used. Contractor will be required to trace and determine correct tie-in locations to maintain pitch.

Q&A No 22: Are the floor drains/floor sinks going to be required to have special coatings to prevent corrosion from the DI water discharge? Same reasons as above.

Answer No.22: No – see answer above. Each floor drain/floor sink is required to have a P-Trap, each P-trap is required to have its own vent, and some way to ensure the water seal in the P-trap is always maintained.

Q&A No 23: Where & how are the vents to be routed?

Answer No.23: The Lab has multiple existing floor drains that already have vent connections – Contractor can tie-in to existing.

Q&A No 24: Are trap primers or trap guards going to be required for the drains?

Answer No.24: No, existing floor drains do not have trap primers, so please match existing setup.

Q&A No.25: If trap primers are required, then where is the nearest connection point for the water to feed the trap primer?

Answer No.25: N/A

Q&A No 26: Per III.9.i (revised SOW; addendum 2) “Half-Wall work will also require termination of lab sink drain piping to the floor and installation of a floor drain setup with a rubberized cover that is similar in type to the existing floor drains throughout the Lab”. Per the construction plan document (included as an attachment in the original solicitation), two floor drains are shown (page 1 of 4). Please confirm that only one floor drain is required (per revised SOW).

Answer No.1: The area of the half wall already has a floor drain in place, which is currently being used by a temporary PVC drain line for the new Roche analyzers. The project is only asking to install a similar setup where the sink previously resided at the South end of the half-wall.

Q&A No 27: Per III.9.k (revised SOW; addendum 2) “The lab project will require installation of a Domestic Cold Water supply line, to be supplied from the 1-1/4” piping system located in the ceiling space below the lab; installation to include an isolation valve, piping, floor penetration, and appropriate sealing/anchoring system, 1-1/4” piping up to a tee, reduction to two (2) ¾” supplies with pressure gauges and ¾” female NPT ball valves (brass or stainless steel)” The Roche technical document provided indicate the deionized water is required (see spec sheet, deionized water consumption; page 1/9). Please confirm that deionized water is not required, and that contractor is to stub up domestic cold water as specified in the SOW.

Answer No.2: DI treatment units are already in place via a Vendor that is working in conjunction with Roche. This project is only to deliver Domestic CW as described in the SOW.