Bartow_Lighting_Controls.pdf

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City of Bartow, FL

Request For Proposal

Bartow Lighting Controls Project ID: RFP 26-20

RELEASE DATE: July 7, 2026

RESPONSE DEADLINE: August 12, 2026, 2:00 pm

Please refer to the project timeline in this document for all important deadlines.

#RFP 26-20

Title: Bartow Lighting Controls

Table Of Contents

1. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION

2. RFP INFORMATION

3. SCOPE OF WORK

4. SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS AND CONTENTS

5. EVALUATION PROCESS

6. SUBMITTAL EVALUATION & SCORING

7. EVALUATION CRITERIA

8. CONDITIONS AND TERMS OF PROPOSALS

9. PRICING TABLE

10. VENDOR SUBMITTAL FORMS

SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION

1.1. Purpose of Solicitation

The City of Bartow seeks proposals to supply networked streetlight control nodes and a cloud-based management system, including communications, training, support, and integration services, for phased deployment of approximately 3,500 lighting control devices citywide.

1.2. City Background Information

The Bartow Lighting Controls project represents a new initiative by the City of Bartow to modernize and standardize its street and area lighting infrastructure. The intent of this project is to deploy a networked lighting control system that will enable the City to remotely monitor, operate, and maintain approximately 3,500 luminaires across the service territory. By introducing advanced control nodes and a centralized cloud-based management system, the City aims to improve operational efficiency, reduce maintenance costs, enhance outage response capabilities, support future smart-city applications, and ensure more reliable lighting service for residents and businesses. This RFP therefore seeks qualified contractors to furnish the hardware, software, communications services, training, and support necessary to implement this phased, city-wide modernization effort.

SECTION 2: RFP INFORMATION

2.1. RFP Schedule

RFP Solicitation Issued: July 7, 2026

Question Submission Deadline: August 4, 2026, 4:00pm

Proposals Due: August 12, 2026, 2:00pm

1st Evaluation Committee Meeting – to review selection process:

August 27, 2026, 9:00am

City Hall Commissioner Chambers, 450 N. Wilson

Ave., Bartow, FL 33830.

2nd Evaluation Committee Meeting – to shortlist: September 10, 2026, 9:00am

City Hall Commissioner Chambers, 450 N. Wilson

Ave., Bartow, FL 33830.

3rd Evaluation Committee Meeting – to interview shortlisted firms, if applicable :

September 15, 2026, 9:00am

City Commission Award – Tentative: September 22, 2026

2.2. RFP Process

In accordance with F.S 287.057 and more fully explained in this RFP, an award, if made, shall be made to the best overall proposer(s) whose proposal is most advantageous to the City, taking into consideration the evaluation factors set forth in this RFP. The City shall not use any other factors or criteria in the evaluation of the proposals received. The Evaluation Committee empaneled for this solicitation will review the qualifications of all submitting proposers as part of the selection process. The City reserves the rights to:

(a) determine, at its sole discretion, whether a Proposal satisfactorily meets the criteria established in this RFP; and (b) seek clarification from any firm(s) submitting a statement of qualifications/Proposal.

Responses specified shall be furnished in accordance with the terms and conditions of the RFP solicitation, the specifications, addenda issued by the City of Bartow if any, and all other documents prepared for this procurement submittal. A form W-9 should be attached to each Proposer’s response when returned by the responding vendor. Payment under any resulting contract will be rendered to the name of the firm appearing on the Proposer’s form W-9.

The City of Bartow reserves the right to reject any and all proposals, to waive informalities, to re-advertise, and to enter into a contract or series of contracts determined to be in its best interest, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the solicitation.

2.3. Vendor Qualifications

Vendors shall be in the business of providing networked lighting control systems, including lighting control nodes, cloud-hosted central management platforms, wireless communications services, and related implementation, training, and support, as described in the Scope of Work. Each firm submitting a Proposal must possess sufficient financial resources, technical capability, equipment, personnel, and organizational capacity to ensure they can satisfactorily perform the services if awarded a contract.

Proposers must demonstrate that they, or the principals assigned to the City’s project, have successfully delivered projects of similar size, complexity, and technology, specifically involving ANSI C136.41-compliant lighting control nodes, wireless communications infrastructure, and SaaS-based central management systems. Proposers must also demonstrate the managerial and financial ability to successfully perform and support the full range of work described in this RFP.

Proposers must satisfy all of the qualification requirements listed below. Failure to do so will result in the Proposal being deemed non-responsive:

• Relevant Experience: Proposer shall demonstrate experience furnishing, supporting, and maintaining large-scale networked lighting control systems or similar utility-grade remote monitoring and control systems.

• Financial, Technical, and Organizational Capacity:

Before awarding a contract, the City reserves the right to require any Proposer to submit evidence of financial stability, technical capability, past performance, staffing, and resources as the City may deem necessary. The City may consider any such evidence when determining whether an award is in the City’s best interest.

• Record of Performance: Proposer shall have no record of judgments, pending lawsuits against the City, or criminal activities involving moral turpitude, and shall not have any undisclosed conflicts of interest.

• Satisfactory Contract History: Neither the Proposer nor any principal, officer, or owner of the firm shall be in arrears or in default on any contract with the City. Proposers shall not have failed to perform satisfactorily on any previous City contract.

• Compliance with Additional Requirements: If requested by the City, Proposer must furnish information or documentation necessary to verify responsibility, including references for similar projects, product certification (such as ANSI C136.41 compliance), cybersecurity documentation, or proof of insurance and bonding capacity.

2.4. Licensure Requirements

• To do business with the City of Bartow, businesses based within the City limits of the City of Bartow shall furnish a copy of the most recent City of Bartow Business/Occupational License in which can be obtained from https://www.cityofbartow.net/departments-services/city-clerk-public-records/business-tax-receipt-occupational-licenses-applications-payments.

• For businesses based outside the City limits of the City of Bartow but are based in Polk County or those businesses based outside Polk County shall furnish a copy of the most recent Polk County Business/Occupational License in which may be obtained from https://www.polktaxes.com/services/local-business-taxes/.

• Vendor should also be licensed to perform the type of work stated in this solicitation. Indicate registration, license numbers or certificate numbers for the business or professions which are the subject of this Bid. Please attach certificate of competency and/or state registration.

Proposals received from a company not holding the proper license shall be deemed non-responsible and not considered for award. The proposal will not be evaluated by the Technical Evaluation Panel.

2.5. Vendor Eligibility

The City desires to contract with a qualified and experienced company on this project. Responding companies must have documented experience for similar projects.

2.6. Bond Requirements

Bonds: The Bid Bond and Public Construction or Performance Bond & Payment Bond shall be executed by a surety authorized to do business in the State of Florida and as named in the current list of “Companies Holding Certificates of Authority as Acceptable

Sureties on Federal Bonds and as Acceptable Reinsuring Companies” as published in Circular 570 (amended) by the Audit Staff, Bureau of Government Financial Operations, U.S. Treasury Department and A.M. Best rated A VIII or better. All bonds signed by an agent must be accompanied by a certified copy of authority to act and indicate that they are licensed to do business in the State of

Florida.

Bid Bond: A Bid Bond is required to be submitted with all construction bids in excess of $150,000.00 in an amount not exceed five percent (5%) of the preliminary estimate of the cost of the work (amount bid). Unsuccessful bidders will be entitled to return of surety.

https://www.cityofbartow.net/departments-services/city-clerk-public-records/business-tax-receipt-occupational-licenses-applications-payments https://www.cityofbartow.net/departments-services/city-clerk-public-records/business-tax-receipt-occupational-licenses-applications-payments https://www.polktaxes.com/services/local-business-taxes/

A successful bidder may forfeit any surety required upon failure on their part to enter into a contract within the specified time after the award. See Section §337.17, of the Florida Statutes.

Performance Bond & Payment Bond: A Public Construction or Performance and Payment Bond will be required on all construction contracts when the price exceeds $250,000. A surety bond shall be required of the successful bidder in an amount equal to the awarded contract price and, if called out in the contract, the allowance amount; and shall be submitted to Procurement along with the executed contract documents as outlined under section 11.0, Approval of Contract.

The City may choose, in its discretion and applicable only to multiyear maintenance contracts, to allow for incremental annual contract bonds that cumulatively total the full, awarded, multiyear contract price. See Section §337.18, of the Florida Statutes.

2.7. Legal Requirements

Federal, State, County, and local laws ordinances, rules and regulations that in any manner affect the item(s) covered herein apply.

Lack of knowledge by the Respondent will in no way be cause for relief from responsibility.

2.8. Selection

It is the intent of the City to enter into an Agreement with the top ranked firm(s) following the negotiation of services to be render.

The final Agreement will require approval by the City Manager or City Commission at one of their regular meetings.

2.9. Award

The City intends to award to one (1) or more firms; however, the City reserves the right to award as the City deems in its best interest.

The City of Bartow also reserves the right to reject any or all Responses or any part of any Response, to waive any informality in any

Response, or to re-advertise for all or any part of the work contemplated.

2.10. Term of Agreement

The term of the Agreement shall align with the subscription term or negotiated contract term, unless terminated sooner.

• It is the intention of the City that the firm’s personnel proposed for the contract will be available for the contract term. In the event the Contractor wishes to substitute personnel, he shall propose personnel of equal or higher qualifications, and all replacement personnel are subject to City approval. In the event substitute personnel are not satisfactory to the City and the matter cannot be resolved to the satisfaction of the City, the City reserves the right to cancel the Contract for cause.

• Firm agrees and understands that the contract shall not be construed as an exclusive arrangement and further agrees that the

City may, at any time, secure similar or identical services from another vendor at the City’s sole option.

• Performance Period shall commence upon execution of the Agreement between the City and issuance of a Purchase Order to the successful firm.

• The City makes no guarantee or promise as to the number of available projects or that the firm will perform any project for the City during the life of the basic agreement.

2.11. Insurance Requirements

Successful Proposer shall, at a minimum, provide, pay for, and maintain in force at all times during the term of this Contract the following insurances:

Commercial Liability Insurance

Firm shall maintain commercial general liability (CGL) insurance with a limit of not less than $1,000,000 each occurrence. If such

CGL insurance contains a general aggregate limit, it shall apply separately to this location/project in the amount of $1,000,000.

Products and completed operations aggregate shall be $1,000,000. CGL insurance shall be written on an occurrence form and shall include bodily injury and property damage liability for premises, operations, independent vendors, products and completed operations, contractual liability, broad form property damage and property damage resulting from explosion, collapse or underground (x,c,u) exposures, personal injury and advertising injury. Fire damage liability shall be included at $100,000.

Commercial Business Automobile Liability

Business Automobile Liability shall be provided with minimum limits of One Million Dollars ($1,000,000.00) per occurrence, combined single limit for Bodily Injury Liability and Property Damage Liability. Coverage must be afforded on a form no more restrictive than the latest edition of the Business Automobile Liability policy, without restrictive endorsements, as filed by the

Insurance Services Office, and must include:

o Owned Vehicles, if applicable.

o Hired and Non-Owned Vehicles, if applicable.

o Employers' Non-Ownership, if applicable.

Workers Compensation Insurance

(a) Such insurance shall be no more restrictive than that provided by the Standard Workers’ Compensation Policy, as filed for use in

Florida by the National Council of Compensation Insurance, without restrictive endorsements. In addition to coverage for the Florida

Workers’ Act, where appropriate, coverage is to be included for the Federal Employer’s Liability Act and any other applicable Federal or State law. The policy must be endorsed to provide the Owner with thirty (30) days’ notice of cancellation. The minimum amount of coverage (inclusive of any amount provided by an umbrella or excess policy) shall be:

(i) Part One: “Statutory”

(ii) Part Two: $1,000,000 Each Accident

$1,000,000 Disease-Policy Limit

2.12. General Provisions of Insurance

1. Such policy or policies shall be without any deductible amount unless otherwise noted in any ensuing Contract and shall be issued by approved companies authorized to do business in the State of Florida, and having agents upon whom service of process may be made in Polk County, Florida. Consultant shall pay all deductible amounts, if any. Consultant shall specifically protect the City and the Bartow City Commission by naming the City and the Bartow City Commission as additional insureds under the Commercial

Liability Policy as well as on any Excess Liability Policy coverage.

2. Consultant shall furnish to the City a Certificate of Insurance or endorsements evidencing the insurance coverage specified herein within fifteen (15) calendar days after notification of award of any ensuing Contract. The required Certificates of Insurance shall name the types of policies provided, refer specifically to that Contract, and state that such insurance is as required by Contract. Consultant’s failure to provide to City the Certificates of Insurance or endorsements evidencing the insurance coverage within fifteen (15) calendar days shall provide the basis for Contract termination. The Certificates are to be signed by a person authorized by that insurer to bind coverage on its behalf and coverage shall be obtained with a carrier having an AM Best Rating of A-VII or better.

3. Coverage is not to cease and is to remain in force (subject to cancellation notice) until all performance required of consultant is complete. Where commercially feasible, all policies must be endorsed to provide the City with at least thirty (30) days’ notice of expiration, cancellation and/or restriction. If any policy of insurance coverage will expire prior to the completion of the work, a copy of the renewal policy shall be furnished at least thirty (30) days prior to the date of the policy’s expiration.

4. The City reserves the right to review and revise any insurance requirements at the time of renewal or amendment of any ensuing

Contract, including, but not limited to, deductibles, limits, coverage, and endorsements based on insurance market conditions affecting the availability or affordability of coverage, or changes in the scope of services that affect the applicability of coverage. If Consultant uses a sub-consultant, Consultant shall ensure that sub-consultant names City as an additional insured.

2.13. Local Preference

A purchasing preference shall be afforded to local vendors in accordance with the following criteria:

The term BUSA vendor mean any business whose commercial activities have been regularly transacted from a physical location within the boundaries of the City of Bartow Utility Service Area (BUSA) for a period of at least six months, including the date of quote or bid award.

A local vendor preference shall not be afforded in any quote or bid award where it is precluded by law, administrative rule, policy, regulation, or related funding agreement.

2.14. Vendor Preference

A purchasing preference shall be afforded to Veteran Business Enterprises (VBE), and Women/Minority Business Enterprises

(W/MBE) in accordance with the following criteria:

1. The term “Veteran-Owned Business Enterprise (VBE)” means any business having at least fifty-one (51%) ownership by a veteran owner who must have been honorably discharged from service and must independently control management and daily business operations. Must hold the professional license for the business, if applicable.

2. The term “Women/Minority-Owned Business Enterprise (W/MBE)” means any business having at least fifty-one (51%) ownership by women or minority group members who independently control the management and daily business operations. Group members are Women, African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, and Native

Americans. Must hold the professional license for the business, if applicable.

In order for a vendor to be recognized as a VBE or W/MBE by the City the following documentation must be submitted with the vendor’s registration through the City’s e-procurement system and/or such documentation must be submitted with their quote or bid submission:

• Valid Veteran or W/MBE Certification form from one of the following:

• U.S. Small Business Administration

• National Veteran Owned Business Association

• Florida Minority Supplier Development Council

• Women Business Enterprise National Council

• The State of Florida Office of Supplier Diversity

• Florida Department of Transportation

• Other Florida governmental agencies

A Vendor preference shall not be afforded in any quote or bid award where it is precluded by law, administrative rule, policy, regulation or related funding agreement.

This policy in no way supersedes the Local Preference Policy.

SECTION 3: SCOPE OF WORK

3.1. Overview

The City of Bartow ("City") is seeking proposals from qualified Contractors capable of furnishing networked lighting control nodes and an associated cloud-hosted central management system (CMS) for the City's outdoor street and area lighting. The successful

Contractor shall provide hardware, software, communications services, and implementation support that will allow the City of Bartow

Electric Department to remotely monitor, operate, and report on individual luminaires across its service territory.

3.2. Minimum Required Services

Services shall include, but are not limited to, providing and supporting (i) ANSI C136.41-2013 compliant 7-pin twist-lock networked lighting control nodes; (ii) a cloud-hosted CMS platform with web portal and companion mobile application access; (iii) all wireless communications and associated data services between deployed nodes and the CMS; and (iv) installation training, commissioning support, and ongoing technical support during the term of the Agreement. Pole hardware (luminaires, photocell receptacles, surge arrestors, brackets, and wood or concrete poles) and the physical installation of the nodes are excluded from this scope. Pole hardware shall be furnished separately by the City, and physical installation of the nodes on existing and new luminaires shall be performed by the City's contracted installation services provider under a separate agreement administered by the City of Bartow Electric

Department.

3.3. Detailed Scope of Services

A more detailed scope of services to be performed by the Contractor includes, but is not limited to, the following:

• Lighting Control Node Hardware. Each node shall be a self-contained, weatherproof device that mounts to the luminaire by means of an ANSI C 136.41-2013 seven (7) pin twist-lock receptacle. Each node shall be capable of operating, without reconfiguration, on the full range of standard single-phase voltages utilized by the City of Bartow Electric Department for street and area lighting service, including 120, 208, 240, 277, and 480 VAC. Each node shall provide on/off switching and continuous dimming control to the luminaire through the standard signal contacts of the 7-pin receptacle. Each node shall include an integrated photocell for fail-safe dusk-to-dawn operation in the event of communications loss; an integrated GPS receiver for automatic geo-location at installation; and a tilt or impact sensor capable of detecting a downed or damaged pole following storm events. Each node shall be designed for continuous outdoor service in the Central Florida environment, including high humidity, intense solar exposure, and elevated lightning activity, and shall include surge protection appropriate for utility distribution service. Each node shall be listed by a nationally recognized testing laboratory (NR TL) and shall have a minimum design service life of ten (10) years. Installation and removal shall be tool-free by means of the standard twist-lock receptacle.

• Operational Diagnostics. Each node shall report basic operational data to the central management system sufficient to support remote fault detection and lamp-performance monitoring, including but not limited to lamp on/off status, lamp failure indication, and lamp burn hours. The reported data is intended for operational and maintenance purposes only; revenue-class energy metering is not required and is outside the scope of this procurement.

• Communications. Each node shall communicate bidirectionally with the Contractor's central management system over a wireless network. The City's preference is for the Contractor to furnish and maintain all wireless connectivity, including any required data plans or subscriptions, for the term of the Agreement, such that the City is not required to procure, manage, or pay for individual wireless service accounts. Contractors offering alternative connectivity models, including hybrid arrangements or models in which the City elects to provide some or all of the wireless infrastructure, may submit such approaches as alternate proposals for the City's consideration. The Contractor shall identify in its proposal the type of wireless service utilized and shall confirm reliable coverage within the City of Bartow Electric Department•' s service territory. The Contractor shall also disclose, as part of its proposal, the options available to the City at the end of the subscription term, including whether the City may assume the wireless service accounts, migrate the deployed nodes to an alternate connectivity provider, or otherwise retain operational use of the deployed nodes independent of the Contractor's furnished network. The central management system shall be capable of sending control commands to and receiving status, diagnostic, and alarm data from any individual node. All data exchanged between the nodes and the central management system shall be transmitted using industry-standard secure encryption.

• Central Management System. The Contractor shall provide a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) central management system accessible to authorized City personnel via standard web browsers and a companion mobile application supporting both iOS and Android platforms. The CMS shall provide a map-based graphical interface displaying every deployed node geo-located on aerial or satellite imagery, with color-coded status indicators ( energized, off, dimmed, fault, no-communication). The

CMS shall support individual and group control of nodes, including on/off switching and continuous dim-level adjustment from zero (0) to one hundred (100) percent. Astronomical clock-based scheduling shall be provided, with the ability to define overrides for holidays, special events, and temporary lighting plans. Configurable alarms shall be available for, at a minimum, lamp failure, lamp cycling, day-bum, communication loss, tilt or impact, over- and under-voltage conditions, and node tamper or unauthorized removal. Outage and exception notifications shall be deliverable by email and SMS to user-defined distribution lists.

• Asset Management and Reporting. The CMS shall maintain a complete inventory record for each deployed node including pole identifier, GPS coordinates, installation date, fixture wattage, lamp type, and circuit or feeder assignment. Operational reporting shall be available by individual light point, by group, and system-wide, including bum hours, fault history, and lamp performance trends. The CMS shall provide exportable reports in CSV and PDF formats and shall retain a minimum of five (5) years of operational history accessible online. The Contractor shall provide a documented application programming interface (API) or equivalent web service to support integration with the City's geographic information system (Esri ArcGIS

Pro I ArcGIS Enterprise), customer information system, and outage management workflows. Native support for import and export of standard geographic data formats (shapefile, KML, file geodatabase, or GeoJSON) shall be included.

• Cybersecurity and User Administration. The CMS shall provide role-based access control with, at minimum, separate roles for view-only, operator, and administrator users. Individual named user accounts (no shared credentials) shall be supported, with configurable password complexity, session timeout, and multi-factor authentication. A complete audit log of user actions, including command issuance, schedule changes, and account activity, shall be retained for the term of the Agreement. The Contractor shall document its cybersecurity posture as part of its proposal.

• Installation, Training, and Support. Physical installation of the nodes will be performed by the City's contracted installation services provider. The Contractor shall provide hands-on installation training for the City's installation services provider and any City personnel designated by the Electric Department, including safe twist-lock installation procedures, identification of node fault indications, and basic field troubleshooting. The Contractor shall coordinate with the

City's installation services provider during the initial deployment phase as reasonably necessary to support commissioning, including remote support to verify node provisioning, GPS lock, and CMS reporting. The Contractor s~all provide CMS administrator and end-user training, in person or virtual, for engineering, operations, and customer service personnel. The

Contractor shall provide telephone and email technical support during normal business hours at minimum, with a documented incident response process for outages affecting the CMS or a material portion of the deployed node population.

The Contractor shall furnish a standard Service Level Agreement (SLA) covering CMS uptime, support response times, and escalation procedures.

• Warranty. The Contractor shall provide a written warranty against defects in materials and workmanship for the supplied nodes for a minimum period of ten (10) years from the date of installation, consistent with prevailing industry practice for utility-grade networked lighting controls. Warranty coverage shall include replacement nodes shipped to the City at no additional cost. Field labor for replacement is not required to be included.

• Pricing. Pricing for hardware, recurring software and connectivity, implementation services, and optional items shall be submitted by the Contractor within the pricing table.

In the event of a supply chain disruption or other circumstance that would prevent the Contractor from meeting its committed lead times above, the Contractor shall provide the City with written notice as soon as practicable and shall propose a recovery plan. The

City reserves the right to issue the initial purchase order in the lower portion of the two hundred to three hundred (200-300) node range, or to split the initial order into two or more shipments, in order to maintain the December 31, 2026 installation target.

SECTION 4: SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS AND CONTENTS

To be considered for award, a proposal must be received and accepted through the City’s e-procurement system; OpenGov or in the

Purchasing Department no later than the due date and time established within the solicitation. Submittals shall not contain information in excess of that requested, should be concise and should specifically address the issues of this RFP.

Submittal of proposals or responses via email is not acceptable.

4.1. For ALL Proposals Submitted

The submittal should be prepared simply and economically, providing a straightforward, concise description of the proposer's ability to fulfill the requirements of this Request for Proposals and should not exceed the necessary pages required in respond to information requested.

Unnecessarily elaborate brochures or other presentations beyond those sufficient to present a complete and effective submittal to this solicitation are not desired and may be construed as an indication of the proposer’s lack of cost consciousness. Elaborate artwork, expensive visual aids, and other presentation aids are neither necessary nor desired, unless specifically requested.

4.2. Format of Response

To provide a degree of consistency in review of the written proposals, firms are requested to prepare their proposals in the standard format specified in this section.

4.2.1 Title Page

The proposer should identify the RFP subject, name and title of contact person, address, telephone number, fax number, email address, and date of submission.

4.2.2 Cover Letter

The Cover letter should not be more than two (2) pages long and should include, at a minimum, the following:

• A brief statement of the Proposer’s understanding of the required services.

• A positive commitment to perform the services on a consistent and timely basis.

• Names and contact information for the person(s) authorized to represent the Proposer.

4.2.3 Table of Contents

The table of contents should include a clear and complete identification by section and page number of the materials submitted.

4.2.4 Evaluation Criteria (Each Tab Shall be Clearly Identified within the Proposal submitted)

• Tab 1 – Executive Summary

• Tab 2 – Organizational Resources

• Tab 3 – Experience and Expertise

• Tab 4 – Approach to Project

• Tab 5 – W/MBE & Veteran Business Utilization

• Tab 6 – Local Utilization

• Tab 7 – Performance Survey

• Tab 8 – Financial Viability, User Experience, Accessibility, and Payment Mechanisms

4.3. Communications and Inquiries

To ensure fair consideration for all prospective firms, the City prohibits communication associated with this RFP to or with any department, bureau or employee during the submission process until award of an agreement. Additionally, the City prohibits communications initiated by a prospective firm to any City official or employee evaluating or considering the submission prior to the time a decision has been made. Except for communications with the designated point of contact, if a firm initiates communication of any form regarding this solicitation with the City, that act may be grounds for disqualifying the proposer from the consideration for the

RFP.

All communications are to be directed to the Procurement Office contact.

The City’s contact may discuss a submission directly with the responsible proposer to get clarification and assure a full understanding of, and responsiveness to the solicitation requirements. All proposers shall be accorded fair and equal treatment with respect to any opportunity for discussion and revision of proposals and such revisions may be permitted after submission for the purpose of obtaining best and final offers. In conducting such discussions, there shall be no disclosure of any information derived from proposals submitted by competing proposers except as may be required by the Florida Public Records Law, Chapter 119, Florida Statutes.

4.4. Incurred Expenses

The City is not responsible for any expenses which firms, persons, interested parties, or proposers may incur in evaluating, preparing, and submitting proposals called for in this solicitation.

4.5. Interviews

The City reserves the right to conduct personal interviews with any or all Proposers or their key team members and to require that presentations be made by any or all Proposers prior to selection. The City will not be liable for any costs incurred by a Proposer in connection with an interview or presentation (i.e., travel, accommodations, etc.).

SECTION 5: EVALUATION PROCESS

5.1. Evaluation Committee

An Evaluation Committee consisting of five (5) members assembled by the City will review and evaluate each proposal. Proposals will be evaluated to determine those that best meet the needs of the City. The proposals will be evaluated on both qualifications and the technical merits of the firm. Proposals will be evaluated in accordance with the rating system listed in this RFP.

5.2. Rating System

The Evaluation Committee will rate all proposals utilizing the Weighted Rating System shown below in Section 6. The average of the

Total Weighted Ratings assigned by the Evaluation Committee members will be used to rank proposals for short list purposes.

5.3. Evaluation Committee Process

The Evaluation Committee will evaluate proposals as follows;

• 1st Evaluation Committee Meeting will be held as the initial meeting with the committee members to discuss the proposal review and scoring process to ensure each member has a clear understanding of the scoring process and how points will be assigned.

• 2nd Evaluation Committee Meeting will be held to score & shortlist proposals received.

• 3rd Evaluation Committee Meeting when deemed necessary by the committee, will be held to conduct interviews at a minimum with the three (3) highest-scoring firms, when applicable, that were shortlisted. Directly following interviews each firm will be ranked.

All meetings are open to the public excluding the interview portion of the 3rd committee meeting. However, after interviews have been conducted the meeting will be opened back up to the public to publicly rank each firm interviewed.

5.4. Submittal Rankings and Contracting Process

The Evaluation Committee will be tasked with the review of the responses to the RFP and will rank the responses in a publicly advertised meeting. The Evaluation Committee shall reduce the number of firms to a short list. In short-listing firms, the Evaluation

Committee shall use the criteria set forth in the RFP and attempt to select the best qualified firms.

Voting members of the Evaluation Committee may discuss the proposals received and the qualifications of each firm further and shall score and rank the firms based upon which firms will best serve the city pursuant to the factors set forth in the RFP. The firms shall be ranked in order of preference based on scores given.

At this time the Evaluation Committee will determine if presentations/ interviews are necessary based on the final scores.

5.5. Presentations/ Interviews

When required by FL Statue and/ or at the sole determination of the City, a proposing firm may be required to make a presentation of its Proposal. At a minimum the Selection Committee shall interview the three (3) highest-ranked Proposers, if applicable. The

Selection Committee members will have an opportunity to inquire about any aspect of the solicitation and the Proposer’s submitted

Proposal. This will provide an opportunity to clarify or elaborate on the Proposal, but will not, in any way, provide an opportunity to change any items in the original Proposal as submitted. If a presentation is determined to be necessary, the City’s single point of contact shall coordinate the presentation and notify the firm of its presentation date and time.

After the presentations, the voting members of the Evaluation Committee may discuss the presentation, proposals received and the qualifications of each firm further and shall rank the firms based upon which firms will best serve the city pursuant to the factors set forth in the RFP. The firms shall be ranked in order of preference.

*A ranking and a report of the Evaluation Committee's analysis shall be provided to the City Commission who shall make the final decision with regard to the firms that should be chosen. The City Commission may approve the rankings as set forth by the Evaluation

Committee or, the City Commissioners may re-rank the applicants based upon the criteria and the report and rankings from the

Evaluation Committee.

The City Commission will authorize the City Manager to negotiate a contract with the highest ranked firm or firms. If the City chooses to issue an award to more than one firm, the City Manager will attempt to negotiate a contract with each selected firm. If the

City Manager is unable to negotiate a satisfactory contract with one or more of the highest ranked firms, the City Manager will terminate negotiations and then negotiate with one or more of the lower-ranked firms and so on in order of preference. This process will be repeated until agreements are reached and formally approved by the City Commission, or until the short-list is exhausted, in which case a new request for proposals shall be undertaken.

The City reserves the right to award multiple contracts for one or more disciplines and to instruct the City Manager to begin negotiations with multiple firms ranked on the short-list.

During the selection process, the City will choose those submissions, in its sole determination, that best meet the City’s need based upon its evaluation of all proposals.

5.6. Rejection of Proposals

The City reserves the right to reject all proposals. In the event the City does so, it shall notify Proposers of its rejection of all proposals in writing.

5.7. Modifications to Proposals

The City reserves the right to request at any time that a Proposer modify its proposal to more fully meet the needs of the City. The

City also reserves the right to negotiate with Proposers any changes it deems necessary and to waive minor irregularities in the bid process.

5.8. Requests for Additional Information

A proposer shall furnish such additional information as the City may reasonably require. The City reserves the right to make investigations of the qualifications of a proposer as it deems appropriate.

SECTION 6: SUBMITTAL EVALUATION & SCORING

Total possible maximum points for any given RFP shall = 100 and based on that logic, establish standards by which points are assigned to proposals have been provided to ensure that evaluators score each proposal with consistency. Each Selection Committee member shall determine which of the following descriptions applies to each of the evaluation criteria:

• EXCELLENT (1.0): Of the highest or finest quality; exceptional; superior; superb; exquisite; peerless. The Proposer provided information for a given criteria that satisfied the requirements and described specifically how and what will be accomplished in such a manner that exhibited an exceptional and superior degree of understanding, skill, and competency, both qualitatively and quantitatively. The facts included in the narrative (including all supporting documentation, diagrams, drawings, charts, and schedules, etc.) demonstrate the Proposer’s ability to perform and deliver far beyond expectation.

• VERY GOOD (0.8): To a high degree; better than or above competent and/or skillful. The Proposer provided information for a given criteria that satisfied the requirements and described specifically how and what will be accomplished in such a manner that exhibited a very high degree of understanding, skill, and competency, both qualitatively and quantitatively. The facts included in the narrative (including all supporting documentation, diagrams, drawings, charts, and schedules, etc.)

demonstrate the Proposer’s ability to perform and deliver beyond expectation.

• GOOD (0.6): Having positive or desirable qualities; competent; skilled; above average. The Proposer provided information for a given criteria that satisfied the requirements and described specifically how and what will be accomplished in such a manner that exhibited a skillful and above-average degree of understanding, skill, and competency, both qualitatively and quantitatively. The facts included in the narrative (including all supporting documentation, diagrams, drawings, charts, and schedules, etc.) demonstrate the Proposer’s ability to perform and deliver at the expected level.

• FAIR (0.4): Average; moderate; mediocre; adequate; sufficient; satisfactory; standard. The Proposer provided information for a given criteria that satisfied the requirements and described sufficiently how and what will be accomplished in a manner that exhibited an adequate and average degree of understanding, skill, and competency, both qualitatively and quantitatively.

The facts included in the narrative (including all supporting documentation, diagrams, drawings, charts, and schedules, etc.)

demonstrate the Proposer’s ability to perform and deliver at a level slightly below expectation.

• POOR (0.2): Inadequate; lacking; inferior in quality; of little or less merit; substandard; marginal. The Proposer provided information for a given criteria that did not satisfy the requirements and described in an inadequate manner how and what will be accomplished. The information provided simply reiterated a requirement, contained inaccurate statements or references, lacked adequate information, or was of inferior quality. The facts included in the narrative (including all supporting documentation, diagrams, drawings, charts, and schedules, etc.) demonstrate the Proposer’s ability to perform and deliver at a substandard and inferior level.

• UNACCEPTABLE (0.0): The Proposer failed to provide any information for a given criteria, provided information that could not be understood, or did not provide the information for a given category as requested. **A zero (0) value typically constitutes no response or an inability of the vendor to meet the criterion. In contrast, the maximum value should constitute a high standard of meeting the criterion. Each intermediate value should be set to cover some intermediate condition.

After a Selection Committee member has determined the description applicable for each evaluation criterion, the total points available for such criterion shall be multiplied by the factor associated with the applicable description to produce the number of points allocated for that evaluation criterion.

For example, a Selection Committee member classifies the “Experience and Expertise” criterion (which shall be worth 25 points for the purpose of this example) as “Very Good” (which is a description factor multiplier of 0.8). The points that Selection Committee member allocated for that evaluation criterion would be 20, calculated as follows:

• 25 available points x 1.0 applicable description factor multiplier = 25 points (Excellent)

• 25 available points x 0.8 applicable description factor multiplier = 20 points (Very Good)

• 25 available points x 0.6 applicable description factor multiplier = 15 points (Good)

• 25 available points x 0.4 applicable description factor multiplier = 10 points (Fair)

• 25 available points x 0.2 applicable description factor multiplier = 5 points (Poor)

• 25 available points x 0.0 applicable description factor multiplier = 0 points (Unacceptable)

A Selection Committee member’s total score for each Proposal shall equal the sum of the total points allocated for each evaluation criteria set forth in Section 7.

When all Selection Committee members have completed their proposal evaluations, the individual Selection Committee member’s total scores for each Proposal will be added together to produce a final score for each Proposal.

Procurement will confirm the calculations for the final score for each Proposal. Then, Procurement shall publish a rank-ordered listing of the Proposals to the Selection Committee with the Proposal receiving the highest point as the highest-ranked Proposal.

SECTION 7: EVALUATION CRITERIA

No. Evaluation Criteria Scoring Method Weight (Points)

1. Tab 1 - Executive Summary

Executive Summary

• The purpose of the Executive

Summary is to provide an overview of the Proposer’s qualifications to perform the scope of services.

• Introduction letter describing your company, experience, number of years in business, licenses and/or applicable certifications, contact name, company address, phone number and email address of the contact person who can sign on behalf of your entity and will be assigned as the main contact for the resulting agreement. (One page, single or double sided)

• Provide documentation showing proper incorporation by the Secretary of State.

• All forms listed under Section 8:

Forms.

0-5 Points 5 (4.5% of Total)

2. Tab 2 - Organization Resources

• As part of the evaluation process, the

City has the responsibility of taking into account the size and complexity of the project/tasks and be assured that the firm/team has the organizational and financial resources required to successfully deliver this project/task. Please describe your operational stability as reflected in a certified financial statement or other certified statement, corporate financial resources, and insurance limits.

• Describe the firm’s current and future projected workload. Describe specifically the firm’s daily ability to handle each aspect of the scope of services described herein. (Limit response to two (2) pages maximum)

• Provide a list of all public agencies that have chosen to cancel or not renew lighting-control, smart-lighting, or other comparable networked-technology contracts with your firm during the last five (5) years.

3. Tab 3 - Experience and Expertise

• Describe your understanding of the objectives, purpose, and scope of this project, and your approach to completing the project successfully.

Please include a description of your proposed implementation approach, project coordination plan, and any methods used to ensure schedule adherence, cost control, and system reliability.

• Provide a list of all communities or public agencies where the Proposer has furnished, supported, or maintained networked lighting control systems, smart-lighting systems, or comparable remote monitoring and control technology during the last three (3) years. For each community or agency, include the following:

o Name of the organization that contracted with your firm o Name and phone number of the primary contact o Whether the contract was exclusive or non-exclusive o Number of lighting control nodes or devices deployed o Time period of installation or service o Examples of system-level reporting or performance summaries (sample reports may be provided)

• Provide a list of your company’s three (3) most recent projects that demonstrate experience with the scope of services outlined. For each project, provide:

o Description of the project o Final cost of effort o Completion dates (if applicable) o Name of client

0-5 Points 35 (31.8% of Total) o Experience with implementation, coordination, and system integration o Reference information (one current contact name and title with telephone number and e-mail address)

• Identify the key members of the team and provide resumes (limited to one page per employee) of the individuals who will perform required tasks under the Proposal. All discipline and area leads shall be licensed in the

State of Florida. Resumes shall include professional credentials and experience of the firm’s key members who will complete required tasks.

Identify the proposed Project

Manager who will have primary contact with the City for all work associated with this Agreement. For each team member, provide:

o Title o Area of specialty o Office location assigned for the previous two years (if recently reassigned, provide explanation and timing) o Total years of experience o Years with firm o Specific involvement/role in the projects listed above

• Include an organizational chart.

• If available, identify subcontractors and the specific requirements of this

RFP for which each proposed subcontractor will perform services.

4. Tab 4 - Approach to Project

Approach to Project

• Describe your understanding of the objectives, purpose, and scope of this project, and your approach to completing the project successfully.

Please include a description of your proposed implementation strategy, deployment plan, coordination with

City staff, and methods to ensure reliable performance throughout the project.

• Proposers shall present, within a table in their proposal, their ability to meet the City’s anticipated order schedule and required delivery lead times, including any identified supply-chain risks or constraints. The table shall address the following phases:

o Phase 1 Deployment (200–300

Nodes):

• Delivery timing for…