5-01. RFP General Information.doc

I. General Overview and Instructions

This Request for Proposals (“RFP”) is intended to provide interested offerors with sufficient basic information to submit proposals meeting minimum requirements. It is not intended to limit a proposal's content or exclude any relevant or essential data.

This solicitation is issued in accordance with the State of Utah Procurement Code, Utah Code Annotated (UCA) Chapter 63G-6a, and applicable Rules found in the Utah Administrative Code (UAC). If any provision of this solicitation conflicts with the UCA or UAC, the UCA or UAC will take precedence.

NOTICE: In this solicitation, if an item is defined through use of a trade name, brand name, or a manufacturer and/or model number, it is intended that the words, “or equivalent” apply; and invites the submission of equivalent products by the Offerors.

CANCELLATION OF PROCUREMENT

The Utah Department of Transportation (the State) reserves the right to cancel this solicitation at any time and not award a contract if such action is determined in writing to be in the best interest of the State (UCA §63G-6a-709).

FUTURE PROCUREMENTS

UDOT reserves the right to reopen this solicitation or create a new solicitation if it determines there may be more need for the procurement item than when the original solicitation was issued. Should a re-solicitation occur, previously awarded contracts will remain active, and all new contracts will be structured to terminate on the same date as the initial awards.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Questions MUST be submitted through the online bidding system during the designated Question and Answer period. Questions submitted through any other channel will not be answered. Answers disseminated by the State through the online bidding system may modify the specifications or requirements of this solicitation and will constitute an addendum to this solicitation.

Questions or notifications to the State of any ambiguity, inconsistency, excessively restrictive requirement, or errors in this solicitation MUST be submitted as a question during the Q&A period.

Issues with the solicitation that have not been previously addressed within the Q&A period of the procurement are not allowed to be addressed within a proposal and may result in the Offeror’s proposal being considered non-responsive.

It is the responsibility of the Offeror to submit their proposal as required by this solicitation, including any requirements contained in an answered question and/or addenda.

Exceptions to the scope of work or other content of the Solicitation not previously addressed within the Q&A period of the procurement may result in the Offeror’s proposal being considered non-responsive.

ADDENDA

Any modification to this procurement will be made by addendum issued by the State. Addenda to this solicitation may be made for the purpose of making changes to the scope of work, the schedule, the qualification requirements, the criteria, the weighting, or other requirements of this solicitation.

Authorized and properly issued addenda shall constitute the official and binding position of the State. Any response to this solicitation which has as its basis any communications or information received from sources other than this solicitation, or related addenda, may be considered non-responsive and be rejected at the sole discretion of the State.

The State accepts no responsibility for a prospective Offeror not receiving solicitation documents and/or revisions to the solicitation. It is the responsibility of the prospective Offeror to monitor the bidding system to obtain addenda or other information relating to the solicitation.

RESTRICTIONS ON COMMUNICATIONS

From the issue date of this solicitation until an award is published, Offerors are prohibited from communications regarding this solicitation with staff, evaluation committee members, or other associated individuals EXCEPT the UDOT procurement officers overseeing this solicitation. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in disqualification.

PROPOSAL SUBMISSION

All materials submitted become the property of the State. Materials may be evaluated by anyone designated by the state as part of the proposal evaluation committee. Materials submitted may be returned only at the State's option.

Proposals must be received by the due date and time (“deadline”). Proposals received after the deadline will be late and ineligible for consideration.

Electronic submission instructions: When submitting a proposal electronically through the online bidding system, please allow sufficient time to complete the online forms and to upload proposal documents. The solicitation will end at the deadline. If an Offeror is in the middle of uploading a proposal when the deadline arrives, the system will stop the upload process and the proposal will not be accepted by the bidding system, and the attempted submission will be considered late and ineligible for consideration.

Electronic proposals may require uploading of electronic attachments. The online bidding system will accept a wide variety of document types as attachments. However, the State is unable to view certain documents. Therefore, DO NOT submit documents that are embedded (zip files), or encrypted. All documents must be uploaded in the bidding system as separate files (system limit for file size is 50 MB).

Files submitted electronically must NOT be password protected or locked in any way.

Cost Proposal submission instructions: Cost Proposals are evaluated independently from the technical proposal, pursuant to the Utah Procurement Code, and as such, must be submitted separately from the technical proposal and as per solicitation requirements. Failure to submit cost or pricing data separately and as directed may result in your proposal being judged as non-responsive and ineligible for contract award.

Sample submission instructions: Offerors may be required to submit product samples to demonstrate whether a procurement item meets the specifications and other requirements set forth in the solicitation.

Samples must be received prior to the solicitation due date and time and must be furnished free of charge unless otherwise stated in the solicitation. Submitted samples will not be subject to return. Samples must be labeled or otherwise identified as specified in the solicitation.

All costs incurred by an Offeror in the preparation and submission of a proposal, including any costs incurred during interviews, oral presentations, and/or product demonstrations are the responsibility of the Offeror and will not be reimbursed.

PROTECTED INFORMATION

Portions of a proposal may be protected by submitting a Claim of Business Confidentiality Form. However, an entire proposal cannot be identified as “PROTECTED”, “CONFIDENTIAL” or “PROPRIETARY”, and if so identified, shall be considered non-responsive unless the Offeror removes the designation.

Pricing may not be classified as confidential or protected and will be considered public information after award of the contract.

Process for Requesting Non-Disclosure: Any Offeror requesting that a record be protected must provide with their proposal the following information:

1. Must provide a completed Claim of Business Confidentiality at the time the information (proposal) is provided to the state, and

2. Must include a concise statement of reasons supporting the claim of business confidentiality (UCA § 63G-2-309(1)).

3. Must submit an electronic “redacted” (excluding protected information) copy of the proposal. Copy must clearly be marked “Redacted Version.”

Redacted Copy: If an Offeror submits a proposal that contains information claimed to be business confidential or protected information, the Offeror MUST submit two separate proposals: one redacted version for public release, with all protected business confidential information either blacked-out or removed, clearly marked as "Redacted Version"; and one non-redacted version for evaluation purposes, clearly marked as "Protected Business Confidential."

Offeror acknowledges that its proposal or redacted copy will be made public upon the State’s receipt of a GRAMA request. The Offeror will not be notified of any GRAMA request made to the State for offeror’s proposal. If the offeror submits a redacted copy, then the State will respond to a GRAMA request for offeror’s proposal with offeror’s redacted copy. However, if the offeror fails to submit a redacted copy, then the State will respond to a GRAMA request with offeror’s proposal, which will result in offeror’s protected/proprietary information, if any, being made public. Contractor acknowledges that notations in the header, footer or watermark of the proposal will not be considered sufficient to constitute a request for non-disclosure of protected/proprietary information.

Failure to comply with the requirements regarding Protected Information releases the State from any obligation or liability arising from the inadvertent release of Offeror information.

CORRECTION OR WITHDRAWAL OF PROPOSAL

Proposals may be modified or withdrawn by written or electronic notice received by the procurement officer prior to the established due date.

A decision to permit the correction or withdrawal of a proposal or the cancellation of an award or a contract shall be supported in a written document, signed by the chief procurement officer or head of a procurement unit with independent procurement authority.

The State reserves the right to waive minor informalities as well as minor deviations. The State also reserves the right to seek clarification on any proposal response.

DISCUSSIONS OR CLARIFICATIONS

Discussions may be held with an Offeror to obtain a more complete understanding of whether the Offeror is responsible, or the Offeror’s submitted proposal is responsive. Following discussions, a proposal may be rejected if it is determined that the Offeror is not responsible, or the proposal is not responsive.

INTERVIEWS AND PRESENTATIONS

Interviews and presentations may be held at the option of the State. The State shall establish a date and time for the interviews or presentations and shall notify eligible Offerors of the procedures. Interviews or presentations shall be limited to those Offerors meeting the minimum requirements specified in the RFP. Interviews and presentations will be at the Offeror's expense.

Representations made by an Offeror during interviews or presentations shall become an addendum to the Offeror's proposal and shall be documented. Representations must be consistent with the Offeror's original proposal and may only be used for purposes of clarifying or filling in gaps in the Offeror's proposal.

BEST AND FINAL OFFER

A Best and Final Offer (BAFO) may be issued if it is determined to be necessary. The Best and Final Offer process is a formal request for offerors to amend specific portions of the technical proposal or cost proposal.

Under the Utah Procurement Code, a Best and Final Offer may be requested if:

(i) no single proposal adequately addresses all the specifications stated in the request for proposals;

(ii) all proposals are unclear or deficient in one or more respects;

(iii) all cost proposals exceed the identified budget or the procurement unit’s available funding; or

(iv) two or more proposals receive an identical evaluation score that is the highest score.

PROPOSAL EVALUATION

All responsive and responsible proposals that have not been disqualified from consideration under the provisions of Part 7 of Utah Code 63G-6a, using the criteria established in this RFP will be evaluated by an evaluation committee in accordance with the Utah Procurement Code, Administrative Rules, policies, and the evaluation criteria set forth in this solicitation.

All proposals shall remain valid for a minimum of 120 calendar days after the Proposal Due Date to allow adequate time for evaluation.

SOLICITATION AWARD IS NOT A CONTRACT

A solicitation award does not constitute a contract. Any award made through the bid system, notifications received from the bid system, email notifications received directly from the procurement unit, documents received by the vendor, or documents posted in the bid system, DO NOT constitute or create a contract. Only a fully executed Purchase Order (PO) or a fully executed contract constitutes a binding contract.

Between the notification of award and the receipt of a fully executed PO or contract, the procurement unit may cancel the award and/or the solicitation in full, or in part, in accordance with UCA 63G-6a-902 and 63G-6a-120.

If awarded, vendor may not begin work, purchase materials, or enter into subcontracts relating to this solicitation until they receive a fully executed PO or contract.

After the evaluation and final scoring of proposals is completed, the State shall award the contract as soon as practicable, provided the solicitation is not canceled without awarding a contract.

QUANTITY ESTIMATES AND NO GUARANTEE OF VOLUME OF PURCHASE

Historical usage may not be representative of forthcoming need, and as such, UDOT does not guarantee to purchase any amount under this contract.

The issuance of a contract under this RFP does not guarantee a minimum or maximum amount of expenditures. UDOT is not obligated to purchase any devices or services from an awarded Offeror. Purchases will be made on an as-needed basis at the Department’s sole discretion.

UDOT reserves the right to perform testing on a limited number of devices from a vendor to assess compatibility and performance before deciding whether to purchase more devices.

PROTEST PROCESS

Offerors are directed to Utah Code Part 16 and Utah Administrative Code Rule R33-16 for available appeal processes.

CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS, EXCEPTIONS, AND NEGOTIATIONS

Any contract resulting from this solicitation will include, but not be limited to the following:

· Scope of Work Specifications, Requirements, and Instructions.

· Any addendums to the solicitation as issued through the bidding system.

· Attachment A- State of Utah Standard Terms and Conditions.

· UDOT Additional Terms and Conditions (if supplied in solicitation) Exceptions and/or additions to the Standard Terms and Conditions are strongly discouraged. Any requested exceptions and/or additions to the Standard Terms and Conditions must be submitted with the proposal. Exceptions and/or additions submitted after the date and time for receipt of proposals will not be considered. Offerors may not submit requests for exceptions and/or additions by reference to a vendor's website or URL.

The State may refuse to negotiate exceptions and/or additions that are determined to be excessive; that are inconsistent with similar contracts of the procurement unit; to warranties, insurance, or indemnification provisions that are necessary to protect the procurement unit after consultation with the Attorney General's Office or other applicable legal counsel; where the solicitation specifically prohibits exceptions and/or additions; or that are not in the best interest of the procurement unit.

In a multiple award situation, the State reserves the right to negotiate exceptions and/or additions to terms and conditions in a manner resulting in expeditious resolutions. This process may include beginning negotiations with the Offeror having the least number of exceptions and/or additions and conclude with the Offeror submitting the greatest number of exceptions and/or additions. Contracts may be executed and become effective as negotiations are completed.

Offerors must provide all documents in Microsoft Word format with redline editing. Offerors must also provide the name, contact information, and access to the person(s) that will be directly involved in legal negotiations.

Any mandatorily required acceptance of an Offeror’s terms and conditions may result in the proposal being determined to be non-responsive.

An award resulting from this solicitation is subject to successful contract terms and conditions negotiation (if required). The State, at its sole discretion, will determine when contract terms and conditions negotiations become unproductive and will result in termination of award to that Offeror and the State may move to the next eligible Offeror.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION

Contracts resulting from this solicitation are subject to performance evaluations. Continuous negative performance evaluations and documented feedback from end users may impact a vendor’s ability to participate in future solicitations. Performance evaluations may include end user surveys, performance audits, reports, interviews, or other reasonable methods of performance evaluation. Vendors will be notified of any negative performance evaluations or end user feedback collected.

STABILITY OF VENDOR

The State reserves the right to request financial and other information it deems relevant as necessary to evaluate a vendor’s stability and capability of completing the Scope of Work.

TECHNOLOGY MODIFICATIONS

The awarded contract(s) may be modified as a result of technological upgrades for the procurement item(s). Any modification for upgraded technology must be substantially within the scope of the original procurement or contract, and if both parties agree to the modification, then the contract may be modified, but not extended beyond the term of the original awarded contract except as provided in the Utah Procurement Code.

The awarded contract(s) may be modified for new technology related to the procurement item(s). Any modification for new technology shall not be exercised without: (1) the approval required under Section 63F-1-205 of the Utah Code, (2) the new technology modification has been subject to the review as described in Administrative Rule R33-6-114, and (3) the contracting parties agree to the modification.

II. Solicitation Specifics NOTICE: The electronic bidding system’s Event Number must be referred to on all proposals, correspondence, and documentation relating to this solicitation.

PURPOSE OF REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP)

The purpose of this RFP is to enter into a contract to provide C-V2X and related equipment.

CONTRACT AWARD INTENT

It is anticipated that this solicitation will result in multiple contract awards.

LENGTH OF CONTRACT AND PRICING GUARANTEE

The contract(s) resulting from this solicitation will be for a period of Five (5) years with no renewal options for additional years.

All pricing must be guaranteed for One (1) Year. Following the guarantee period, any request for price adjustment must be for an equal guarantee period and must be made at least 30 days prior to the effective date. Requests for price adjustment must include sufficient documentation supporting the request (ie through Federal commodity indices) and demonstrating a logical mathematical link between the current price and the proposed price.

Price adjustments may occur no more frequently than pricing guarantee period. An "Exception" will be considered if there is a net change in price of five (5) percent or more based on a change in the index(es). If a price adjustment is granted earlier than the price guarantee period, that adjustment must be in effect for a full price guarantee period unless there is a subsequent Exception.

Any adjustment or amendment to the contract will not be effective unless approved by the State. The State will be given the immediate benefit of any decrease in the market, or allowable discount.

In a multiple award situation, any adjustment made by one contractor may result in the necessity of providing the same opportunity to all other contracted vendors to adjust pricing on the same item(s).

III. Scope of Work and Associated Requirements All Scope of Work Requirements MUST be demonstrably met by an Offeror in order for their response to be considered. Any breach of requirements once the Contract has been awarded constitutes breach of Contract by the vendor and the Contract may be terminated immediately.

The Scope of Work is subject to change based on the awarded contract(s).

DETAILED SCOPE OF WORK AND ASSOCIATED REQUIREMENTS

See the document titled- “Scope of Work” IV. Required Proposal Submission Information

PROPOSAL RESPONSE

All offerors must submit proposals that detail their experience and qualifications in the requested areas (each area must be addressed. Do not list “not applicable”).

For ease of evaluation, the submitted proposals must provide a point-by-point response, addressing in detail each area of the evaluation criteria. The criteria are not intended to limit a proposal's content or exclude any relevant or essential data. Offerors are at liberty and are encouraged to expand upon the criteria to demonstrate the Offeror’s capability to provide the State with a solution.

Offerors bear sole responsibility for providing evidence in their response that they are capable of performing the requested Scope of Work.

PROPOSAL FORMAT and RESPONSE REQUIREMENTS Proposals should be concise, straightforward, and prepared simply and economically. Expensive displays, bindings or promotional materials are neither desired nor required. However, there is no intent in these instructions to limit a proposal’s content or to exclude any relevant or essential data.

Proposals should be organized as follows:

1.

Section Title: UDOT Vendor Setup Form.

UDOT’s Vendor Setup Form fully completed and signed by the offeror.

See document titled “Submittal Form- Vendor Setup Form.pdf”.

2.

Section Title: Cover Letter.

Include a one-page cover letter that identifies the name and primary contact information of the person who will be authorized to execute an agreement with the State of Utah on behalf of the Offeror.

3.

Section Title: Business Confidential/Protected Information.

All protected/proprietary information must be indicated by submitting a completed Claim of Business Confidentiality form.

If offeror’s proposal contains protected/proprietary information (please refer to the Protected Information section of this solicitation for additional information) then offeror must also submit a redacted copy of the proposal at the same time as the offeror submits its proposal. The redacted copy of the offeror’s proposal must be submitted in compliance with the other sections of this solicitation.

If there is no protected information, check the “None” box on the submittal form.

Failure to comply with this Section releases the State from any obligation or liability arising from the inadvertent release of Offeror information.

See document titled “Submittal Form- Business Confidentiality- Yes No.doc”.

4.

Section Title: Potential Conflicts of Interest.

Offerors must identify any conflict, or potential conflict of interest, that might arise during the contract.

If no conflicts are identified or expected, write “None” in this section.

See document titled “Submittal Form- Debarment or Suspension, Conflicts, Tax Lien, Responsiveness.docx”.

5.

Section Title: Exceptions and/or Additions to the Standard Terms and Conditions.

Proposed exceptions and/or additions to the Standard Terms and Conditions must be submitted. Offeror must provide all proposed exceptions and/or additions, including an Offeror’s terms and conditions in Microsoft Word redline format. Offerors must also provide the name, contact information, and access to the person(s) that will be directly involved in terms and conditions negotiations.

If there are no exceptions and additions to the Standard Terms and Conditions, check the “No” boxes on the submittal form.

See document titled “Submittal Form- Attachment A- Standard Terms and Conditions- Yes No.docx”.

6. Section Title: Mandatory Minimum Requirements/Qualifications (Pass/Fail Criteria).

Offerors must provide the required evidence and/or documentation/narratives demonstrating compliance with the stated Mandatory Minimum Requirements/Qualifications. An Offeror’s failure to meet any one of the mandatory requirements will result in the proposal being classified as non-responsive and will be rejected under the provisions of the Utah Procurement Code.

Vendors should review the scope of work and/or specifications in the files before submitting their responses to the mandatory minimum requirements.

All of the items described as mandatory minimums are non-negotiable. If it is determined that a response does not meet the mandatory minimum requirements, at any time during the solicitation process, it will be deemed non-responsive and disqualified from further consideration.

Offerors must provide sufficient evidence and/or documentation demonstrating that the offeror is compliant with the Mandatory Minimum Requirements.

See document titled “Submittal Form- UDOT V2X Hardware RFP_Response Sheets.docx”.

7.

Section Title: Detailed Technical Proposal (Scored Criteria).

This section should constitute the major portion of the proposal and must be a concise overview of the Offeror's assessment of the work to be performed, the Offeror’s ability and approach, and the resources necessary to fulfill the requirements. This section should demonstrate the Offeror's understanding of the desired overall performance expectations, deliverables, if any, and outcomes. Clearly indicate any options or alternatives proposed. In any case wherein the Offeror cannot comply with a provision outlined in the “Detailed Scope of Work”, such inability must be stated in response to the applicable requirement. Offerors should reference the Scope of Work in their response.

For ease of evaluation, the Detailed Technical Proposal Section must be a specific point-by-point response, addressing in detail each of the Technical Evaluation Criteria.

The offeror bears sole responsibility for the items included or not included within their submitted. Each area of the evaluation criteria must be addressed in detail in the response. The criteria are not intended to limit a response's content or exclude any relevant or essential data. Vendors are at liberty and are encouraged to expand upon the criteria to demonstrate the vendor’s capability to provide the State with a solution.

Offerors must provide a detailed narrative demonstrating their capability, capacity, depth of experience, and prior accomplishments.

See document titled “Submittal Form- UDOT V2X Hardware RFP_Response Sheets.docx”.

8. Section Title: Cost Proposal. All costs are to be enumerated in the Cost Proposal Form.

Cost Proposals will be evaluated independently from the Technical Proposal and must be submitted as an independent and separate document (Cost Form) from the Technical Proposal. Inclusion of any cost or pricing data within the Technical Proposal will result in the proposal being judged as non-responsive.

See document titled “Submittal Form- UDOT V2X Hardware RFP_Cost Proposal Sheets.docx”.

NOTICE: Offerors may not change/modify the format of the Price Response Form and must submit pricing in the exact format requested for a fair comparison of pricing among all offerors. Altering the format or conditioning the cost on acceptance of additional/conflicting terms or limitations may result in a finding that your proposal is non-responsive.

V. Proposal Evaluation and Contract Award

PROPOSAL EVALUATION PROCESS

All responses submitted in response to this solicitation will be evaluated in a manner consistent with the Utah Procurement Code, Administrative Rules, policies and the evaluation criteria in this solicitation.

This solicitation will be evaluated under a Multiple Stage process. Offerors must pass each stage in order to move to the next stage in the evaluation process.

Stage 1: Mandatory Requirements Determination of Responsiveness (Pass/Fail) In Stage One of the evaluation process, all proposals timely received will be reviewed for responsiveness to solicitation requirements. Proposals not conforming to solicitation requirements or unable to meet the Mandatory Requirements (Pass/Fail) will not proceed on to Stage 2 Technical Proposal Evaluation.

Stage 2: Detailed Technical Proposal Evaluation

Stage Two will consist of an evaluation committee conducting a detailed Technical Evaluation of each responsive and responsible proposal that has not been previously disqualified or rejected.

Responsive proposals will be evaluated against the Technical Evaluation Criteria. Evaluation committee members will individually score the Technical Evaluation Criteria on a 0-5 basis. The Evaluation Committee will then tally the final scores for the Technical Criteria to arrive at a Consensus Score by an average of the individual scores. The Consensus Score will then be multiplied by the weighting factor assigned to a criteria to arrive at the points earned for that criterion.

Only those Proposals that obtain 60% of the possible Total Technical points will be eligible to proceed on to Stage 3: Cost Proposal Evaluation. Proposals with a score of less than the minimum required technical score will be deemed non-responsive and ineligible for further consideration.

Stage 3: Cost Proposal Evaluation

Stage Three will consist of the Cost Proposal Evaluation of each responsive and responsible proposal that has not been previously disqualified or rejected.

Responsive proposals will be evaluated as follows:

Offerors that have passed the technical evaluation stage will have their Scoring Cost (calculated based on 10 units and 1 SDK) evaluated.

· Competitive Price Range: To be eligible for an award, an Offeror’s Scoring Cost must fall within a Competitive Price Range, defined as being within 300% of the lowest compliant Scoring Cost received for that specific device category.

Stage 4: Determination of Contract Award Multiple Award:

In regards to this solicitation, UDOT has determined to enter into Multiple Contract awards contracts.

UDOT intends to award contracts to all Offerors who meet the 60% technical threshold and fall within the 300% Competitive Price Range for their respective categories.

After the evaluation and final scoring of proposals is completed, the State shall award the contract as soon as practicable, provided the RFP is not canceled in accordance with Utah Procurement Code requirements.

RFP Document