Attachment C - HECO-7A-EB - Instructions to Bidders.pdf

HECO-7A-EB

(Rev. 0 8 /2 1 )

INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS

The Invitation For Bids (IFB) consists of the Notice, this Instructions To Bidders, Invitation for Bid, the Bid Form, the General Conditions of the Construction Contract, the Supplemental General Conditions (if any), the Special Conditions (if any), the Forms to be used, and the Scope of Work as described by the Plans and Specifications, other documents listed in the Specifications, and any addenda which may be issued, all of which request qualified bidders to submit competitive prices or bids for providing the described work on the project.

As used herein, the terms “Bidder” and “Contractor” both shall refer to the Person submitting a bid.

e VA Vendor Registration: The bidder or offeror shall be a registered vendor in eVA. For registration requirements follow this link – https://eva.virginia.gov/register-now.html

1. CONDITIONS AT SITE OR STRUCTURE: Bidders shall visit the site and shall be responsible for ascertaining pertinent local conditions such as location, accessibility, general character of the Site structure or building, and the character and extent of existing conditions, improvements or work within or adjacent to the Site. Claims, as a result of failure to have done so, will not be considered by the Owner. See Section 7 of the General Conditions entitled "Conditions at Site."

2. EXPLANATIONS TO BIDDERS: No oral explanation in regard to the meaning of drawings and specifications will be made and no oral instructions will be given before the award of the Contract.

The Owner shall not be responsible for any conclusions, assumptions or interpretations made by bidders during the preparation of bids that are contrary to the drawings and specifications and their clear intent. Discrepancies, conflicts, errors, omissions or doubts as to the meaning of drawings and specifications shall be communicated in writing to the Architect / Engineer for interpretation.

Bidders must submit questions electronically through Mason’s Construction Management Software Program, Trimble and must submit questions to Mason by the date shown in the Invitation for Bid, to allow sufficient time for an addendum to reach all bidders before the submission of their bids. Guidelines for submitting bidder’s questions can be found by utilizing this link the below https://gmufacilities.bolddesk.com/kb/article/107/view-bid-packages If, however, there are two (2) weeks or less between the first bid advertisement and the time set for receipt of bids, then bidders must submit questions so that they reach Mason by the date shown in the Invitation for Bid. Any interpretation made will be in the form of an addendum to the specifications and/or drawings, which will be forwarded to all bidders, and its receipt shall be acknowledged by the bidder on Bid Forms. If such discrepancies, conflicts, errors, omissions or doubts are reasonably apparent or should have been reasonably apparent to the bidder, and the bidder failed to submit questions to Mason in the time and manner required herein and the Contract is awarded to the bidder, then any claims shall be deemed waived and the bidder shall not be entitled to additional compensation or time, or entitled to sue the Owner based on such discrepancies, conflicts, errors, omissions, or doubts.

3. TIME FOR COMPLETION:

(a) "Time for Completion" shall be designated by the Owner on the Invitation for Bid or other Pre-Bid documents and shall mean the number of consecutive calendar days following the issuance of the Notice to Proceed, which the Contractor has to substantially complete all Work required by https://eva.virginia.gov/register-now.html https://gmufacilities.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/33000234600-e-builder-bidding-portal-information https://gmufacilities.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/33000234600-e-builder-bidding-portal-information the Contract. In some instances, the Time for Completion may be stated in the form of a Contract Completion Date based on a stipulated date of Notice to Proceed.

Unless otherwise specified, the Contractor shall achieve Final Completion within thirty (30) calendar days after the date of Substantial Completion.

(b) When the Notice to Proceed is issued, it will state a Contract Completion Date, which has been set by the Owner based on date of the Notice to Proceed and the Time for Completion.

(c) The Contractor, in preparing and submitting their bid, is required to take into consideration normal weather conditions. Normal weather does not mean statistically average weather, but rather means a range of weather conditions which might be anticipated, (i.e., conditions which are not extremely unusual). Normal weather conditions shall be determined from the public historical records available, including the U.S. Department of Commerce, Local Climatological Data Sheets, Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/Environmental Data and Information Service, National Climatic Center and the National Weather Service. The data sheets to be used shall be for the locality or localities closest to the site of the work. No additional compensation will be paid to the Contractor because of adverse weather conditions; however, an extension of time for abnormal weather will be considered by the Owner as indicated in the General Conditions.

(d) If the Owner designates the public historical climatological records to be used, the bidder shall use those records in computing bids. If the Owner requests each bidder to indicate the records used, each bidder may select the public historical climatological records upon which they will rely in computing his bid. In the latter situation, each bidder shall designate in the space provided which of such climatological data records was used when formulating his bid. A bidder's failure to designate climatological records when submitting a bid shall not disqualify their bid, but shall constitute a waiver of the right to claim any extension of time as the result of abnormal weather.

In either case, the bid submitted and the time of completion shall be presumed to have been based upon normal weather derived from the climatological records used.

4. PREPARATION AND SUBM ISSION OF BIDS:

(a) Bids shall be submitted electronically through Mason’s Construction Management Software Program, Trimble using the Bidding Portal. A signed Bid Form shall be uploaded with the submission to affirm the bid and any issued Addendums and Bonds required by the bid documents. Erasures or other changes in a bid must be explained or noted over the signature of the bidder. Bids containing any conditions, omissions, unexplained erasures, alterations or items not called for in the proposal, or irregularities of any kind, may be rejected by the Owner as being incomplete or non-responsive.

(b) Each bid must give the complete legal name and full business address of the bidder and be signed by the bidder, or the bidder's authorized representative, with his /her usual signature.

Bids by partnerships must be signed in the partnership name by one of the general partners of the partnership or an authorized representative, followed by the designation/title of the person signing, and a list of the partners. Bids by joint ventures must be signed in the joint venture name by one of the joint ventures or an authorized representative of one of the joint ventures, followed by the designation/title of the person signing, and a list of the joint ventures. Bids by corporations must be signed with the legal name of the corporation followed by the name of the state in which it is incorporated and by the signature and title of the person authorized to bind it in this matter. The name of each person signing shall be typed or printed below the signature.

A signature on a bid by a person who identifies his title as "President," "Secretary," "Agent" or other designation without disclosing the principal firm, shall be held to be the bid of the individual signing. When requested by the Owner, satisfactory evidence of the authority of the officer signing on behalf of the corporation shall be furnished. Trade or fictitious names may be referenced by using "t/a _ _ _ ," but bids shall be in the legal name of the person or entity submitting the bid.

(c) If a Contract is for one hundred twenty thousand dollars ($120,000) or more, or if the total value of all construction, removal, repair or improvements undertaken by the bidder within any twelve -month period is seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($750,000) or more, the bidder is required under Title 54.1, Chapter 11, Section 1100, Code of Virginia, as amended, to be licensed in Virginia as a "Class A Contractor." If a Contract is for ten thousand dollars ($10,000) or more, but less than one hundred twenty thousand dollars ($120,000), or if the total value of all construction, removal, repair or improvements undertaken by the bidder within any twelve -month period is one hundred fifty thousand dollars ($150,000) or more, but less than seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($750,000), the bidder is required to be licensed in Virginia as a "Class B Contractor." The bidder shall note on the Invitation for Bid Form containing the bid whichever of the following notations is appropriate and insert his Contractor license/registration number:

Licensed Class A Virginia Contractor No.

or Licensed Class B Virginia Contractor No.

If the bidder is not properly licensed in Virginia at the time the bid is submitted, or if the bidder fails to provide this information on the bid and fails to promptly provide said Contractor license number to the Owner in writing when requested to do so before the opening of bids, he/she shall be deemed to be in violation of Section 54.1-1115 of the Code of Virginia, as amended, and his bid will not be considered.

(d) The Board for Contractors has interpreted its regulations to mean "a licensed Contractor can bid on a contract which contains work outside his license classification(s) as long as he subcontracts those items for which he is not qualified to perform to licensed contractors with the appropriate License Classification and the work of the second party is incidental to the contract."

Therefore, the Owner may, as a part of determining whether the bidder is "responsible," require the apparent low bidder to submit a listing of his subcontractors along with the license number and classification or specialty of each.

(e) The bidder must also place its Employer Identification Number (SSN or FEIN) in the space provided on the Bid Form.

(f) Every bidder organized as a stock or nonstock corporation, limited liability company, business trust, or limited partnership or registered as a registered limited liability partnership must be authorized to transact business in the Commonwealth as a domestic or foreign business entity if so required by Title 13.1 or Title 50 of the Code of Virginia, as amended, or as otherwise required by law. Any bidder organized or authorized to transact business in the Commonwealth pursuant to Title 13.1 or Title 50 must include in its bid the identification number issued to it by the State Corporation Commission. Any bidder that is not required to be authorized to transact business in the Commonwealth as a foreign business entity under Title 13.1 or Title 50 or as otherwise required by law shall include in its bid or proposal a statement describing why the bidder or offeror is not required to be so authorized. A bidder required to be authorized to transact business in Virginia that fails to provide the required information shall not receive an award unless a waiver of this requirement and of any administrative policies and procedures established to implement Section 2.2-4311.2 of the Code of Virginia, as amended, is granted by the chief executive of the Owner.

If awarded a Contract, the bidder shall not allow its existence to lapse or its certificate of authority or registration to transact business in the Commonwealth, if so required under Title 13.1 or Title 50, to be revoked or cancelled at any time during the term of the Contract. Doing so shall be deemed to be a violation of Section 2.2-4311.2 and the bidder understands and agrees that the Owner may void the Contract if the bidder fails to comply with this provision.

5. BID GUARANTEE:

(a) Any bid (including the Total Base Bid plus all Additive Bid Items) which exceeds five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) unless waived in the bid documents shall be accompanied by a George Mason University Standard Bid Bond, Form HECO-10.2, payable to the Owner as obligee in an amount equal to five percent (5%) of the amount of the bid. A Bid Bond may be required for projects having bids of less than five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) if such requirement is stated in the Notice of Invitation for Bids. The Bid Bond must be issued by a surety company which is legally authorized by the Virginia State Corporation Commission to do surety business in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Such Bid Bond shall guarantee that the bidder will not withdraw his bid during the period of thirty (30) calendar days following the opening of bids; that if his/her bid is accepted, he/she will enter into a formal Contract with the Owner in accordance with the Contract Between Owner and Contractor, Form HECO-9, included as a part of the Bidding Documents; that he/she will submit a properly executed and authorized Standard Performance Bond and Standard Labor and Material Payment Bond on the forms included in the bidding documents; and that in the event of the withdrawal of said bid within said period, or failure to enter into said Contract and give said bonds within ten (10) calendar days after he/she has received notice of acceptance of his/her bid, the bidder shall be liable to the Owner for the difference between the amount specified in said bid and such larger amount for which the Owner may contract with another party to perform the work covered by said bid, up to the amount of the bid guarantee. This amount represents the damage to the Owner on account of the default of the bidder in any particular hereof. See §2.24336 of the Code of Virginia as amended.

(b) See §2.2-4338 of the Code of Virginia for provisions allowing alternative forms of bid security in lieu of a Bid Bond. Forms of Security listed in §2.2-4338.B must be approved prior to submission of a Bid on the Bid Receipt date and time to be acceptable as Bid Security.

(c) The Bid Bonds or other bid security will be returned to all except the three (3) lowest bidders after the formal opening of bids. The remaining Bid Bonds or bid security will be returned to the bidders after the Owner and the accepted bidder have executed the Contract and the Performance Bond and the Payment Bond have been approved by the Owner.

(d) If the required Contract and bonds have not been executed within thirty (30) calendar days after the date of the opening of the bids, then the bond or other bid security of any bidder will be returned upon his request, provided he/she has not been notified of the acceptance of his/her bid prior to the date of such request.

6. WITHDRAWAL OR M ODIFICATION OF BIDS: Bids may be withdrawn or modified prior to the deadline stated within the Invitation for Bid. E-mail modifications are not acceptable. The withdrawal or modification may be made by the person signing the bid or by an individual(s) who is authorized by him/her on the face of the bid. Written modifications, electronically submitted in Trimble, must be signed by the person making the modification or withdrawal. The modification must state specifically what is to be modified and by what amount or it must state the item to be modified and what the corrected amount should be. (e.g. “Deduct $25,000 from Part A and from the Total Base Bid Amount”; or “Add $23,456 to the Total Base Bid Amount”; or “Deduct $15,650 from the Additive # 2 amount”. A modification to “Deduct $25,000 from Part A” will only be applied to Part A and not to the Total Base Bid Amount) Unless otherwise specified by the Bidder in the modification, the modification will be applied to the TOTAL BASE BID AM OUNT shown on the Bid Form. (e.g. a modification stating only “Deduct $25,000” which is properly signed will be deducted from the Total Base Bid Amount shown on the Bid Form)

7. RECEIPT OF BIDS:

(a) Bids will be received electronically through Mason’s Construction Management Software Program, Trimble using the Bidding Portal on or before the date and the hour as stipulated in the Invitation for Bid and may be modified by subsequent Addenda.

(b) It is the responsibility of the bidder to assure that his/her bid and any bid modifications are submitted through Mason’s Construction Management Software, Trimble, for receipt of bids by the date and hour (deadline) set forth in receipt of bids. Therefore, it is the bidder’s responsibility to take into account all factors which may impact bid submission and to implement whatever actions are necessary to have the bid submitted prior to the bid receipt deadline. No bids or bid modifications submitted or offered after the date and hour designated for receipt of bids will be accepted or considered.

(c) The Bid Officer is the Owner's representative designated to receive bids at the time and place noted in the Invitation for Bid and to open the bids received at the appointed time.

(d) The official time used for the receipt of responses is determined by Mason’s Construction Management Software, Trimble. The software will not allow for bids to be submitted after the time stated and that no further bids or bid modifications will be accepted. All bids and bid modifications in the possession of the Bid Officer and his or her assistants at the time the announcement is completed are deemed to be timely.

(e) In the event the bid receipt occurs during a period of suspended state business operations, the receipt and opening will be delayed one (1) business day.

8. OPENING OF BIDS:

(a) Bids will be opened at the time and place stated in the Invitation for Bids or as modified by subsequent Addenda, and their contents. The Bid Officer shall decide when the specified time for bid opening has arrived. No responsibility will be attached to any officer or agent for the premature opening of a bid not properly addressed and identified.

(b) The provisions of §2.2-4342 of the Code of Virginia as amended, shall be applicable to the inspections of bids received.

(c) In the event the bid opening occurs during a period of suspended state business operations, the opening will be delayed until the next business day.

9. ERRORS IN BIDS: A bidder may withdraw his/her bid from consideration if the price bid was substantially lower than the other bids due solely to a mistake therein, provided the bid was submitted in good faith, and the mistake was a clerical mistake as opposed to a judgment mistake, and was actually due to an unintentional arithmetic error or an unintentional omission of a quantity of work, labor or material made directly in the compilation of a bid, which unintentional arithmetic error or unintentional omission can be clearly shown by objective evidence drawn from inspection of original work papers, documents and materials used in the preparation of the bid sought to be withdrawn.

If a bid contains both clerical and judgment mistakes, a bidder may withdraw his/her bid from consideration if the price bid would have been substantially lower than the other bids due solely to the clerical mistake, that was an unintentional arithmetic error or an unintentional omission n of a quantity of work, labor or material made directly in the compilation of a bid that shall be clearly shown by objective evidence drawn from inspection of original work papers, documents and materials used in the preparation of the bid sought to be withdrawn.

In accordance with §2.2-4330.B(ii) of the Code of Virginia, the bidder must submit to the Owner his/her original work papers, documents and materials used in the preparation of the bid. The bidder shall give notice in writing of his claim of right to withdraw his bid within two (2) calendar days after the conclusion of the bid opening procedure and shall submit original work papers with such notice.

The bids shall be opened at the time designated in the Invitation for Bid, as amended by addendum.

This procedure shall not apply to when the entire bid is required to be submitted on a unit price basis.

Failure of a bidder to submit his/her original work papers, documents and materials used in the preparation of his/her bid on or before the time and date when bid submissions are due as stated within the Invitation for Bid shall constitute a waiver by that bidder of his/her right to withdraw his/her bid due to a mistake.

No bid may be withdrawn under this section when the result would be the awarding of the Contract on another bid of the same bidder or of another bidder in which the ownership of the withdrawing bidder is more than five (5%) percent.

No bidder who is permitted to withdraw a bid shall, for compensation, supply any material or labor to or perform any subcontract or other work agreement for the person or firm to whom the Contract is awarded or otherwise benefit, directly or indirectly, from the performance of the project for which the withdrawn bid was submitted. The person or firm to whom the Contract was awarded and the withdrawing bidder are jointly liable to the Owner in an amount equal to any compensation paid to or for the benefit of the withdrawing bidder without such approval.

If a bid is withdrawn under authority of this section, the lowest remaining bid shall be deemed to be the low bidder on the project.

If the Institution denies the withdrawal of a bid under the provisions of this section, it shall notify the bidder in writing stating the reasons for its decision and award the contract to such bidder at the bid price, provided such bidder is a responsible and responsive bidder.

10. REJECTION OF BIDS: The Owner reserves the right to cancel the Invitation for Bid, to reject any and all bids at its sole discretion when such rejection is in the interest of the Owner, or to reject the bid of any bidder who is determined to be not responsive or not responsible. See §2.2-4319 Code of Virginia, as amended.

11. DETERMINATION OF RESPONSIBILITY: Each bidder shall be prepared, if so requested by the Owner, to present evidence of his/her experience, qualifications and financial ability to carry out the terms of the Contract.

Prior to award of the Contract, an evaluation will be made to determine if the low bidder has the capability, in all respects, to perform fully the Contract requirements and the moral and business integrity and reliability which will assure good faith performance, and who has been prequalified, if required. Factors to be evaluated include, but are not limited to:

(a) sufficient financial ability to perform the Contract as evidenced by the bidder's ability to obtain payment and performance bonds from an acceptable surety;

(b) appropriate experience to perform the Work described in the bid documents;

(c) any judgments entered against the bidder, or any officers, directors, partners or owners for breach of a contract for construction;

(d) any substantial noncompliance with the terms and conditions of prior construction contracts or project orders with a public body without good cause where the substantial noncompliance is documented; or

(e) a conviction of the bidder or any officer, director, partner, project manager, procurement manager, chief financial officer, or owner in the last five (5) years of a crime relating to governmental or nongovernmental construction or contracting;

(f) any current debarment of the contractor, any officer, director or owner, from bidding or contracting by any public body of any state, any state agency, or any agency of the federal government.

The Owner reserves the right to disqualify or refuse to accept the bid of any bidder who has been convicted, or entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, in any federal or state court to any charge involving any unlawful, corrupt or collusive practice involving a public contract whether federal, state, or local, or who has been determined in any judicial proceeding to have violated any antitrust, bid-rigging or collusive practice statute in connection with any public contract, or against whom such formal criminal prosecution or other judicial proceeding has been initiated.

A bidder who, despite being the apparent low bidder, is determined not to be a responsible bidder shall be notified in writing in conformance with the procedures in §2.2-4359 Code of Virginia, as amended.

12. AWARD OF CONTRACT:

(a) Basis for Contract Award: The Contract, if awarded, will be awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder, if any, provided his/her bid is reasonable and it is in the best interest of the Owner to accept it and subject to the Owner's right to reject any and all bids and to waive informality in the bids and in the bidding. The Bid Form contains a multi-part Base Bid and may contain Additive Bid Items. Determination of the lowest responsible bidder, if any, will be based on the Total Base Bid Amount entered in the Trimble system including any properly submitted bid modifications plus as many Additive Bid Items taken in sequence as the Owner in its discretion chooses to Award. Where the sum of the values entered in the multiple parts do not agree with the Total Base Bid amount, the Total Base Bid amount entered in the Trimble system, including any properly submitted bid modifications, shall take precedence. In the event that the Total Base Bid from the lowest responsible bidder exceeds available funds,t he Owner may negotiate the Total Base Bid amount with the apparent low bidder to obtain a Contract price within available funds, pursuant to §2.2-4318 Code of Virginia, as amended, and Section 12(c) herein.

(b) Informalities: The Owner reserves the right to waive any informality in the bids when such waiver is in the interest of the Owner.

(c) Negotiation with Lowest Responsible Bidder: If award of a Contract to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder is precluded because of limitations on available funds, under the provisions of §2.2-4318 Code of Virginia, the Owner reserves the right to negotiate the Total Base Bid amount with the lowest responsive, responsible bidder to obtain a Contract price within the available funds. This may involve changes in either the features or scope of the work include in the Base Bid. Such negotiations with the apparent low bidder may include reducing the quantity, quality, or other cost saving mechanisms involving items in the Total Base Bid. Negotiations for Additive Bid Items are excluded. The Owner shall notify the lowest responsive and responsible bidder that such a situation exists and the Owner and bidder shall then conduct t heir negotiations in person, by mail, by telephone or by any means they find convenient. If an acceptable Contract can be negotiated, the changes to the Invitation for Bid documents agreed upon in the negotiations shall be summarized in a "Post Bid Modification" and included in the Contract. If an acceptable Contract cannot be negotiated, the Owner shall terminate negotiations and reject all bids.

(a) Notice of Intent to Award or Notice of Award: The Notice of Award or the Notice of Intent to Award will be posted at the Agency’s standard location for posting notices as shown on the “Notice of Invitation to Bid”. In addition, the Agency may also post such notice on the Agency’s Website and/or the DEB central electronic procurement Website. Any bidder or offeror who desires to protest the award or decision to award a Contract shall submit the protest in writing to the public body no later than ten (10) calendar days after the posting of the Notice of Award or Notice of Intent to Award, whichever comes first (§2.2-4360 of the Code of Virginia).

13. CONTRACT SECURITY: For Contracts which exceed five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00), the Standard Performance Bond (Form HECO-10) and the Standard Labor and Material Payment Bond (Form HECO-10.1) shall be required, as specified in the Invitation for Bid documents. See the General Conditions and §2.2-4437 and §2.2-4338 of the Code of Virginia, as amended.

14. CERTIFICATION: The bidder, by his/her signature on the Bid Form, certifies that neither his/her organization nor any of its officers, directors, partners or owners is currently barred from bidding on contracts by any Agency of the Commonwealth of Virginia, or any public body or agency of another state, or any agency of the federal government. See the statement "Disqualification of Contractors" in the Bid Form.

15. ETHICS IN PUBLIC CONTRACTING: The provisions, requirements and prohibitions as contained in §2.2-4367 of the Code of Virginia, as amended, pertaining to bidders, offerors, contractors, and subcontractors are applicable to this project.

16. BUILDING PERMITS: Because this is a Project of the Commonwealth of Virginia, codes or zoning ordinances of local political subdivisions do not apply. However, the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code shall apply to the Work and shall be administered by the Building Official for State-owned Buildings. The Building Permit will be obtained and paid for by the Owner. All other permits, local license fees, business fees, taxes, or similar assessments imposed by the appropriate political subdivision shall be obtained and paid for by the Contractor. See Section 25 of the General Conditions for utility connection fees and services.

17. UTILIZATION OF SMALL BUSINESSES: It is the policy of George Mason University to maximize the participation of small, women, and minority owned businesses (SWaM), as certified by the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity (SBSD). The participation of these businesses directly and through partnerships, joint ventures, subcontracts and other contractual opportunities may be encouraged by stating the requirements (if applicable) on the Invitation for Bids. The Invitation for Bid will state whether or not the contractor will be required to submit the dgs-30-361_04-15_small-business-report-format-pilot. The small business procurement plan is the bidder’s proposed percentage of participation by small businesses in the overall total base bid amount.

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If the bidder is a SBSD certified small business, the proposed percentage of small business participation shall be entered as 100%. A bidder may enter a proposed percentage of small business participation of 0% and be considered responsive unless the Bid Form states the Owner’s required percentage of small business participation, in which case the bidder shall enter a percentage equal to or greater than the Owner’s required small business participation percentage in order to be considered responsive.

18. BID DOCUMENTS: Bid Documents are the property of the Owner and no paper sets will be made available for bidders. A deposit is not required for downloading of electronic construction documents through Mason’s Construction Management Software, Trimble.

19. GENERAL CONDITIONS: The General Conditions of the Construction Contract, CO-7, are incorporated in the bid documents. If the General Conditions are incorporated by reference, the bidder may obtain a copy of the current edition of the General Conditions of the Construction Contract, CO-7 at no cost from the DEB Forms Center (https://dgs.virginia.gov/engineering-and-buildings/documents-and-forms/deb).

20. PREBID CONFERENCE: See the Invitation for Bid for requirements for a Pre-Bid Conference / Pre- Bid Meeting and whether such conference is mandatory or optional.

21. INSPECTION OF BID DOCUMENTS: Copies of the Invitation for Bids documents including Plans and Specifications and the General Conditions of the Construction Contract, CO-7, current edition, will be available for download within Mason’s Construction Management Software, e-Builder.

22. DRUG-FREE WORKPLACE REQUIRED: Bidders are reminded that §2.2-4312 of the Code of Virginia requires that the during the performance of the Project Order resulting from this solicitation, the contractor agrees to (i) provide a drug-free workplace for the contractor's employees; (ii) post in conspicuous places, available to employees and applicants for employment, a statement notifying employees that the unlawful manufacture, sale, distribution, dispensation, possession, or use of a controlled substance or marijuana is prohibited in the contractor's workplace and specifying the actions that will be taken against employees for violations of such prohibition; (iii) state in all solicitations or advertisements for employees placed by or on behalf of the contractor that the contractor maintains a drug-free workplace; and (iv) include the provisions of the foregoing clauses in every subcontract or purchase order of over $10,000, so that the provisions will be binding upon each subcontractor or vendor. For the purposes of this section, "drug-free workplace" means a site for the performance of work done in connection with a specific Project Order awarded to a contractor in accordance with this solicitation, the employees of whom are prohibited from engaging in the unlawful manufacture, sale, distribution, dispensation, possession or use of any controlled substance or marijuana during the performance of the Project Order.

Paragraphs which have been added or revised since prior edition are identified with a line to the right of the paragraph.

NOTE: These HECO-7A-EB, Instructions to Bidders, have been created specifically for the use of George Mason University. These Instructions to Bidders have significant legal implications and shall not be altered or modified. Nothing in the HECO -7A- EB, Instructions to Bidders, shall be amended or deleted or its intent changed, except by an approved and properly issued ‘Supplemental Instruction to Bidders’. George Mason University makes no representation as to their suitability for any other purpose.

https://dgs.virginia.gov/search/documents-and-forms/?filter=DEB https://dgs.virginia.gov/search/documents-and-forms/?filter=DEB