Pre Bid Meeting Minutes.pdf

Solicitation GS-01P-10-BZ-C-0014

PRE-BID CONFERENCE MEETING MINUTES

St. Albans Federal Building First Floor Space Alteration

St. Albans, VT February 3, 2010

OPENING

Robert Budlong, the Contract Specialist, opened the meeting with the introduction of the Solicitation Number and Title. The GSA staff introduced themselves, their titles and a brief description of their roles in the project. Asked everyone to make sure that the sign in.

The following GSA personnel were in attendance:

Donna Maffeo GSA Contracting Officer (CO) donna.maffeo@gsa.gov Robert Budlong GSA Contract Specialist robert.budlong@gsa.gov Jack Darling GSA Property Manager jack.darlingr@gsa.gov Wally Rogowicz GSA COTR wally.rogowicz@gsa.gov Alan Bombardier GSA Construction Rep alan.bombardier@gsa.gov

The purpose of this meeting is to gain a better understanding of the Solicitation requirements.

A copy of the meeting minutes and attendance sheet will be published on FedBizOpps on the following day. An amendment will soon follow with some minor changes. All discussions held today do not change the Solicitation. The questions and answers are provided as information only and do not authorize changes to the solicitation. Only changes made by the issuance of an amendment are to be considered in preparing your proposal.

Emphasized that bids go to the Reception Desk on the 11th floor. That information is provided on the Bid cover sheet.

ACCESSING DOCUMENTS

Pre-Bid Conference minutes will be posted to fbo.gov in the next few days.

THE AGREEMENT

I.A PROJECT SUMMARY OF THE WORK

The project is to perform alterations which include, but are not limited to the removal of existing walls, flooring, ceilings, standard and overhead doors, electrical, mechanical and plumbing infrastructure. The demolition will include demolition of the postal catwalk, vault, and an in floor scale. The work will also include installation of new electrical, telecommunications, mechanical, plumbing, sprinkler and fire alarm infrastructure items, interior walls, carpet, electrical and telecommunications systems, replacement of storm windows and the roof replacement. The work will involve protection of historical items including murals in the main lobby of the building.

The building is currently going through a lead and asbestos abatement project so it is not anticipated that any lead or asbestos will be encountered as part of the performance of this contract.

Contractors need to be careful of murals, which are historic.

I.B THE CONTRACT (page 3)

SF-1442, SOLICITATION, OFFER, AND AWARD (see Solicitation volume 2)

Please Note the due at 2:00 PM on 3/2/2010. Faxed bids will not be accepted. The estimated award date is 3/23/2010 and the estimated Notice to Proceed date is 4/7/2010 . The Small Business Standard Size for this procurement is $33.5 million and the NAICS code is 236220.

I.C Period of Performance (page 3)

The Contractor shall commence performance of the Work within 14 calendar days after the Contractor receives the Notice to Proceed (NTP). Substantial completion is 240 days and Contract Completion shall be 60 calendar days after Substantial Completion. Substantial completion is defined page 11 in section III.A.8 of The Agreement.

I.D WORK CONDITIONS/SITE REQUIREMENTS

See page 3 of 30 of The Agreement.

I.E AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVES

See page 4 of 30 of The Agreement.

I.F American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)

Portions of this project will be funded by ARRA Funds, which are Options 1 and 6. There is a possibility that Options 3 and 5 may be funded by ARRA funds as well.

II Contract Prices

See Page 6 of 30 of the agreement. Contract prices shall include all costs necessary to complete the work. FAR 52.236-3 Site Investigations and Conditions Affecting the Work (APR

84) will be included by reference.

III TERMS AND CONDITIONS

III.A.1 Commencement, Prosecution and Completion of Work

The Contractor shall commence performance of the Work within 14 calendar days after the Contractor receives the Notice to Proceed (NTP). The Contractor shall not commence the Work until the Contracting Officer has issued NTP. The Contractor shall diligently prosecute the Work so as to achieve Substantial Completion, as defined in III.A.8(a), of the Work within the time specified in Paragraph I.C of the Agreement

III.A.2 Contractor Responsibility

For the purposes of FAR 52.219-14, the Contractor shall perform at least fifteen percent of the Work.

See page 7 to 30 of The Agreement for further information.

III.A.3 Contractor Management of Personnel

See page 8 of 30 of The Agreement.

III.A.4 CPM Project Schedule

The Contractor shall use a Critical Path Method ("CPM") Project Schedule to plan, coordinate, and perform the Work. See page 8 of 30 of The Agreement for further detail and compliance.

III.A.5 Extensions of Time.

Time extensions will be considered on a case by case basis in accordance with FAR 52.211-13, Time Extensions (SEP 00) and as supplemented in the contract. See page 10 of 30 of The Agreement for further details.

III.A.6 Interpretations of Specifications and Drawings

FAR 52.236-21, Specifications and Drawings for Construction (FEB 97), and GSAR 552.236- 77, Specifications and Drawings (SEP 99), are supplemented as follows:

Different requirements within the Contract Documents shall be deemed inconsistent only if compliance with both cannot be achieved.

Unless otherwise noted, the drawings shall be interpreted to provide for a complete construction, assembly, or installation of the Work, without regard to the detail with which material components are shown in the drawings.

III.A.7 Submittals

See page 11 of 30 of The Agreement for compliance with this section.

III.A.8 Substantial Completion and Contract Completion

The Work shall be deemed "Substantially Complete" if and only if the Contractor has completed the Work and related Contract obligations in accordance with the Contract Documents, such that the Government may enjoy the intended access, occupancy, possession, and use of the entire Work without impairment due to incomplete or deficient work, and without interference from the Contractor's completion of remaining work or correction of deficiencies in completed work. In no event shall the Work be deemed Substantially Complete if all fire and life safety systems are not tested and accepted by the Authority Having Jurisdiction, where such acceptance is required under the Contract.

III.A.9 Use and possession prior to substantial completion. Finality of contract modifications

See page 12 of 30 of The Agreement for compliance.

III.A.10 Finality of contract Modifications

See page 12 of 30 of The Agreement for further details.

III.A.12 Insurance Requirements

A certificate of insurance must be presented to the Contracting Officer within ten (10) calendar days after award of the contract.

Note: Emphasized that the insurance requirements increased. Please review these requirements on pages 12 through 13 of 30 of The Agreement.

III.A.13 Order of Precedence

Different requirements within this Contract shall be deemed inconsistent only if compliance with both cannot be achieved. In case of inconsistency between Contract Documents, the following order of precedence shall apply:

(1) Construction Contract Clauses (Section III.B of the Agreement)

(2) Other Provisions of the Agreement (Sections I, II, and III.A of the Agreement)

(3) The Statement of Work

(4) The Specifications

(5) The Drawings

(6) Exhibits and Other Attachments

III.A.14 Administrative Matters

Project Meetings. The Contractor shall attend a preconstruction conference and shall participate in regularly scheduled Project meetings.

For contracts funded wholly or in part by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), all invoices for work components or Contract Line Items (CLINs) identified as ARRA-funded must cite the work component or CLIN to enable GSA to meet its reporting obligations under ARRA.

See page 13 of 30 for further details.

III.A.14(e) Security Clearances

Security Clearances. Contractor shall comply with the following requirements pertaining to security clearances.

All personnel performing work under the Contract on the Project site must obtain an Enter on Duty (EOD) determination before they will be granted access to the site.

To obtain an EOD determination, Contractor shall submit for all such personnel fingerprints on Form FD258 and a completed Contractor Information Worksheet (CIW).

In addition, all such personnel who will be on site 6 months or longer must apply for and receive clearance in accordance with Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12).

Information concerning these requirements can be found at:

www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?contentType=GSA_BASIC&contentId=25562&noc=T

Note: The biggest delay in clearances is responding to E-Quip invitations.

Note: Finger Print Cards supplied by GSA are the only ones that can be used as part of the clearance process. They will be issued upon award, so that the successful bidder can initiate the clearance process as soon as possible.

III.A.14(f) Sensitive But Unclassified (SBU) Building Information.

All bidders shall pay special attention to safeguard SBU information and comply with this requirement starting on page 15 of 30 of The Agreement.

On the Cover page, entitled, “The Specifications” there is the following statement:

PROPERTY OF THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT. COPYING, DISSEMINATION, OR

DISTRIBUTION OF THESE DRAWINGS, PLANS, OR SPECIFICATIONS TO

UNAUTHORIZED PERSONS IS PROHIBITED. Do not remove this notice. Properly Destroy Documents when no longer needed.

On each page of the Specifications and Drawings there is the following statement:

PROPERTY OF THE U.S. GOVERNMENT – FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY. Do not remove this notice. Properly Destroy Documents when no longer needed.

III.B.1 Contract Clauses Incorporated By Reference.

Most of the construction contract clauses have been incorporated by reference. Particular attention should be given to the following:

FAR Clause 52.219-14(b)(4) Limitations on Subcontracting reads in part the at least 15% of the work shall be performed by the prime contractor.

Note: A question was asked, that on another contract, on of the contractors had a requirement to perform 25%. It was noted that for specialty trades, then, 25% is the requirement. But for this project, which is a General Construction, then the requirement http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?contentType=GSA_BASIC&contentId=25562&noc=T is 15%.

FAR Clause 52.228-15, Performance and Payment Bonds-Construction upon award are required provide performance and payment bonds for 100% of the contract cost.

III.B.1(d) ARRA Requirements

The Contractor shall comply with all ARRA requirements contained in the contract. There are special reporting requirements and invoicing requirements for the treatment of ARRA funds.

Note: Recovery Act reports will be made to www.federalreporting.gov.

III.B.2 Clauses Incorporated By Full Test

See page 22 of 30 of The Agreement about these clauses.

III.B.3 Additional Clauses

There are additional clauses incorporated by reference. These are contained on page 26 of 30 of The Agreement.

Note: These clauses are of the same force as if they were incorporated in full text.

III.B.4 Sub-Contract Requirements

The Contractor is advised that many FAR, GSAR and other Agreement clauses are required to be flowed down to subcontracts. Clauses containing flow down requirements include, but may not be limited to, those listed below. The Contractor is responsible for ensuring that all necessary flow-down clauses are included in all subcontracts.

THE SOLICITATION

STANDARD FORM 1442, SOLICITATION, OFFER AND AWARD

Supplies/Services Schedule

Provide only unit prices on bid sheet. Do not total line items and don’t provide a total price. Do not qualify bids. Do not provide additional items. Leave Block 17 on the SF 1442 blank.

I.A The Solicitation and Contract

This Solicitation is set-aside for Small Business under the Small Business Competitiveness Demonstration Program in accordance with FAR 19.10. This Solicitation sets forth requirements for bids for a Contract to construct the Project described in the attached Agreement. Bid conforming to the Solicitation requirements will be evaluated in accordance with the Method of Award set forth herein. The Government will award the Contract to the selected Offeror, subject to the conditions set forth herein.

The Solicitation shall not be part of the Contract. An Offeror’s bid shall not be part of the Contract except to the extent expressly incorporated therein by the Contracting Officer.

http://www.federalreporting.gov/

The Offeror's proposal submitted in response to this Solicitation shall constitute a firm offer. No contract shall be formed unless and until the Contracting Officer has countersigned the SF 1442 submitted by an Offeror, and delivered to the Contractor a copy of the SF 1442 with original signatures together with the Agreement reflecting the Offeror's proposed prices.

I.B List of Solicitation Documents

The Solicitation Documents are comprised of:

The Solicitation Offeror Representations and Certifications Form (C301) GSA Form 527, Contractor Qualifications and Financial Information Standard Form (SF) 1442 – Solicitation Offer and Award The Agreement and all Attachments to the Agreement Contractor Responsibility Questionnaire

I.C Authorized Representatives

Authorized Representatives for this Solicitation are Robert Budlong and Donna Maffeo. See page 7 of 18 of The Solicitation for details.

I.E Estimated Range

The estimated price range for the Project is between $1 Million and $5 Million .

I.F FAR 52.228-1. Bid Guarantee (SEP 96)

A bid bond is required for this solicitation and must be submitted on the correct form for acceptance. Failure to submit a Bid Bond will result in a rejection of the bid.

I.H Receipt of Bids

Bids must be received no later than 2:00 pm on March 2, 2010 to the following address:

10 Causeway Street, 11th Floor Boson, MA 02222-1077 ATTN: Bid Custodian

Bids sent by commercial package delivery and hand delivery shall be deemed received as of the date and time of delivery to the office designated for receipt of bids.

II.A Bid Contents

Bids shall consist of the following documents, completed and executed in accordance with this Solicitation:

II.A.1. Standard Form 1442 with Amendments on Standard Forms 30 II.A.3. Representations and Certifications (C301)

II.A.4. Bid Guarantee, using Standard Form 24 II.A.5. GSA Form 527 – Contractor’s Qualification and Financial Information II.A.7. Contractor Responsibility Questionnaire

II.B Price Bid

Contents: The Price Bid shall consist of the SF 1442 and the Agreement, with prices and/or rates indicated for each price element shown on the pricing form, per the schedule, page 3 of the SF 1442. The SF 1442 must be fully executed by the Bidder.

Qualifications, Exclusions and Conditions: If the Bidder communicates in its proposal any qualifications, exclusions, or conditions to the proposed prices not provided for in the Contract Documents, the Contracting Officer may reject the bid and exclude the Bidder from further discussions.

Prompt Payment Discount: Indicate in Block 13 of the SF 1442 any offered prompt payment discount. Offerors are cautioned against indicating terms requiring payment of proposed prices sooner than the time required in the Contract, as such terms shall be deemed exceptions to the requirements of the Contract.

II.D Other Information to be Submitted with Bid

Representations and Certifications:

Qualifications of Bidders :

- GSA Form 527 – Contractor’s Qualifications and Financial Information.

- Contractor Responsibility Questionnaire.

III.A. General Provisions

Availability of Funds

Requests for Clarification or Interpretation:

Notice to Small Business Firms: A program for the purpose of assisting qualified small business concerns in obtaining certain bid, payment, or performance bonds that are otherwise not obtainable is available through the Small Business Administration (SBA) (www.sba.gov).

For information concerning SBA's surety bond guarantee assistance, contact your SBA District Office.

Small Business Competitiveness Demonstration Program:

Information Concerning the Disclosure of Bid Results:

Affirmative Procurement Program: GSA has implemented an Affirmative Procurement Program (APP) intended to maximize the use of recovered materials, environmentally preferable, and bio-based products.

Notice Concerning Preparation of Bids: Bidders are cautioned to carefully read the entire Solicitation and the Agreement to be included in the Contract contemplated.

Vendor Past Performance System:

Safeguarding Documents Designated as Sensitive But Unclassified:

III.B.1 FAR Instructions to Bidders

See page 12 of 18 of The Solicitation.

III.B.2. FAR 52.211-1. Availability of Specifications Listed in the GSA Index of Federal Specifications, Standards and Commercial Item Descriptions, FPMR Part 101-29. (AUG 98).

See page 13 of 18 of The Solicitation.

III.B.3. FAR 52.211-3. Availability of Specifications Not Listed in the GSA Index of Federal Specifications, Standards and Commercial Item Descriptions (JUN 88). See page 13 of 18 of The Solicitation.

III.B.4. FAR 52.216-1. Type of Contract. (APR 84)

The Government contemplates award of a Firm-Fixed-Price contract resulting from this solicitation.

III.B.5. FAR 52.222-5. Davis-Bacon Act—Secondary Site of the Work. (JUL 05)

The published Wage Decision has been updated recently and will have to be issued by amendment.

III.B.6. FAR 52.222-23. Notice of Requirement for Affirmative Action to Ensure Equal Employment Opportunity for Construction (FEB 1999)

See page 15 of 18 of The Solicitation for this requirement.

III.B.7. FAR 52.233-2. Service of Protest (SEP 06)

See Page 15 of 18 of The Solicitation for Service of Protest.

III.B.8. FAR 52.252-1. Solicitation Provisions Incorporated by Reference (FEB 98)

See provisions incorporated by reference starting on page 15 of 18 of The Solicitation.

IV.D. American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

IV.D.1. This Contract is funded in whole or in part by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).

IV.D.2. The extent of ARRA coverage is set forth in Paragraph I.F. of the Agreement.

V. Method of Award

V.A Evaluation of Bids

The Government will award a contract resulting from this Solicitation to the lowest, responsive, responsible Bidder whose bid is conforming to the Solicitation.

V.B Determination of Responsibility

V.B.1. In order to be considered responsible, a Bidder must demonstrate that it meets the requirements of FAR 9.104-1. The Contracting Officer's determination of a Bidder's responsibility or non-responsibility may be based upon any information obtained by the Contracting Officer, and is independent of the evaluation of bids set forth herein.

V.F Total Evaluated Price

Total Evaluated Price shall be calculated using the prices indicated in the Price Proposal, using the following formula:

The sum of the Base Bid and all Options.

AMENDMENTS

If there are any Amendments, they will be posted on FedBizOpps as soon as available.

WORKING HOURS

Page 01010-3 1.5.A.2 Working Hours:

The normal working hours for this contract shall be from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, unless otherwise authorized by the Contracting Officer.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Questions and Answers will be a separate document, if not required to become part of the Amendment.

Question: What about lead and asbestos.

Response: The lead and asbestos is about to be abated and we don’t anticipate that there will be any lead or asbestos containing material in the area.

Question: What about staging.

Response: The back parking lot will be available, with the exception of two spaces.

Outside spaces, starting July of this year, will be charged by the city at the rate of $60 per month or $100 per year.

Question: What condition will the floor be after the abatement?

Response: It will be down to the concrete deck after the tile is removed.

Question: What about security and access to the area?

Response: Contractors will have to check in and out every day. Contractors will have to get there clearances done prior to commencing the work. It is very important to be proactive and responsive to ensure that clearances are completed in a timely fashion.

GSA has a team that will be persistent about following up on completion of that.

Contractors must use the GSA Fingerprint cards. They will be issued once the contract is awarded.

Note: Advance Metering will be put into the scope.

Note: The parking deck has a weight limit of 20,000 lbs. So, no vehicles of a gross weight of 20,000 may go onto the parking deck.

Note: After hours work is anticipated for utility shut downs.

Note:

CLOSING

Please remember that nothing stated here today would bind the government unless it is incorporated into the solicitation by a written amendment.

All questions should be sent to Robert Budlong via e-mail to robert.budlong@gsa.gov.

Thank you all for coming. If you have not already done so, please make sure that you sign-in.

A list of attendees will be included in the posted meeting minutes.