ITB_Ohio_DOF_Forest_Certification_Services_2025.pdf

Ohio Division of Forestry Forest Certification Services

Ordering Division and Address:

Ohio Department of Natural Resources – Division of Forestry 2045 Morse Rd., Building H-1 Columbus, OH 43229

Background:

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Forestry (ODNR-DOF), manages 24 State Forests covering more than 200,000 acres in 21 Ohio counties, mostly in Ohio’s southern region. Since 2010, Ohio’s State Forests have been dual certified to the principles and criteria of the Forest Stewardship Council and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative. The Division of Forestry has a complete forest management certification program. Ohio’s State Forests are managed for multiple uses including sustainable timber production, wildlife habitat, soil and water protection, and recreation. Management of State Forests are guided by management plans and policy documents. The Chief of the Division of Forestry has statutory authority of the management of State Forests.

Objectives:

The purpose of this solicitation is to identify and select a contractor to provide forest certification auditing services and perform a 4th-year surveillance audit consistent with Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) and Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI®) standards.

Scope of Work:

The selected Contractor, upon executing a formal Agreement with ODNR-DOF, shall identify the appropriate Point of Contact (POC) to begin the audit planning process. The POC shall be provided with and review prior years’ certification audit records and other relevant documentation, as needed, to determine the appropriate scope and needs for the 2025 certification audit to meet FSC® and SFI® standards for continued forest certification. This should include, but is not limited to, ensuring the necessary Management Units have been audited and the appropriate Standards are evaluated for a 4th-year surveillance audit. Draft FSC® and SFI® Audit Reports shall be provided to ODNR-DOF within 60 days of the completion of field audits with Final Audit Reports being provided within 30 days of ODNR-DOF’s final review and approval of the Draft Reports.

The successful planning and execution of field-based audits conforming to the appropriate FSC® and SFI® Standards for a 4th-year Surveillance audit along with delivery of Final Audit Reports detailing ODNR_DOF’s compliance and conformance to the principles and criteria from each certifying body shall constitute acceptable performance for the Agreement and permit payment for services.

Estimated Schedule:

[XXX] – Closure Date of Bid Event [45 days following Closure] – Execution of Agreement [46 days following Closure] – ODNR-DOF will contact POC to begin audit planning [46 days to October 13, 2025] – Audit planning October 14-16, 2025 – Field-based Audit; locations to-be-determined December 16, 2025 – Draft Audit Reports provided to ODNR-DOF January 2, 2026 – Draft Audit Reports reviewed and returned by ODNR-DOF February 2, 2026 – Final Audit Reports returned to ODNR-DOF

Roles and Responsibilities:

ODNR-DOF Forestry Certification Coordinator – Will serve as main point of contact between Contractor and its representatives. Responsible for facilitating needs of the Contractor and its Point of Contact, providing audit documentation and site information, coordinating field-based audit logistics, and reviewing Audit Reports.

Contractor – Serves as FSC® and SFI® certifying body. Able to provide the necessary resources to successfully perform the identified auditing needs and provide acceptable auditing reports meeting the standards toward continued FSC® and SFI® Forest Management certification.

Contractor Point of Contact – Will serve as the main point of contact with the Certification Coordinator.

Responsible for assessing audit needs, selecting sites, conducting field audits, and developing Audit Reports.

Bidder Requirements:

1. The successful Contractor shall be an accredited certification body for both Forest Stewardship Council® and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative®, or it may be that the bidder has a designated subcontractor such that both FSC® and SFI® accreditation can be provided. A copy of the appropriate accrediting documents for both FSC® and SFI® shall be provided prior to an Agreement being executed.

Reimbursable Expenses:

The submitted bid should incorporate the total and complete costs associated with providing the deliverables stated in the Scope of Work. This includes, but is not limited to, auditor travel to-and-from the audit sites, overnight lodging, and overhead expenses borne by the bidder.

Subcontracting:

The Contractor may not enter into subcontracts for the work described herein after award without written approval from ODNR-DOF. The Contractor will not need written approval to subcontract for the purchase of commercial goods that are required for satisfactory completion of the Work. All subcontracts will be at the sole expense of the Contractor.

Approval of the use of subcontractors does not mean that ODNR-DOF will pay for them. The Contractor will be solely responsible for payment of its subcontractor and any claims of subcontractors for any failure of the Contractor or any of its other subcontractors to meet the performance schedule or performance specifications for the Project in a timely and professional manner. The Contractor will hold the State harmless for and will indemnify the State against any such claims.

The Contractor will assume responsibility for all deliverables whether it, a subcontractor, or third-party manufacturer produces them in whole or in part. Further, ODNR-DOF will consider the Contractor to be the sole point of contact with regard to contractual matters, including payment of all charges resulting from the Contract. The Contractor will be fully responsible for any default by a subcontractor, just as if the Contractor itself had defaulted.

If the Contractor uses any subcontractors, each subcontractor must have a written agreement with the Contractor. That written agreement must incorporate the executed Agreement with ODNR-DOF by reference. The greement must also pass through to the subcontractor all provisions of this Contract that would be fully effective only if they bind both the subcontractor and the Contractor. Among such provisions are the limitations on the Contractor's remedies, the insurance requirements, record keeping obligations, and audit rights. Some sections of this Contract may limit the need to pass through their requirements to subcontracts to avoid placing cumbersome obligations on minor subcontractors. This exception is applicable only to sections that expressly provide exclusions for small-dollar subcontracts.

Should the Contractor fail to pass through any provisions of this Contract to one of its subcontractors and the failure damages the State in any way, the Contractor will indemnify the State for the damage.

F.O.B. DESTINATION/PRE-PAID/ALLOWED. The Contractor must provide Deliverables under this Contract F.O.B. Destination/Pre-Paid/Allowed. The place of destination will be specified by the Ordering Agency on the agency’s purchase order or other ordering document. Cost of the freight must be borne and paid by the Contractor unless otherwise stated.

All risk of loss, regardless of the cause, will remain with the Contractor until title to the Deliverable passes to the State. Unless otherwise provided in this Contract, the State will determine whether the Contractor provided each Deliverable required in this Contract and has fully met all work requirements of this Contract. Title to any Deliverables will pass to the State on Acceptance of the Deliverable.

Evaluation. The contract will be awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder as determined by the State.

Contract Award. The contract will be awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder by low lot total. Low lot total will be determined by multiplying the unit cost by the estimated usage listed in the bid and then adding each of the totals together to arrive at a total for all items. Failure to bid all items may result in the bidder being deemed not responsive

Preferences

The State will apply all preferences pursuant to Ohio Administrative Code 123:5-1-06.

Following the initial evaluation and scoring, all Proposals will be considered for preferences. Preferences will be calculated at a rate of five percent (5%) for the first preference and two percent (2%) each for the second and third preferences. The preferences shall be combined and applied as a total percentage of the original Proposal to determine the score for evaluation purposes.

Preferences will only be applied if there is at least one Offeror that does not qualify for that particular preference. For purposes of qualifying for a preference, an Offeror failing to complete the certification for each preference will be deemed as not qualifying for that preference.

(a) For the Buy American preference, if any Offeror offers a product that is not a domestic source end product, the State will add the applicable percentage of the total available points to the total score of each Offeror offering a domestic source end product.

(b) For the Buy Ohio preference, if any Offeror is a Buy Ohio Offeror claiming the preference, the State will add the applicable percentage of the total available points to each Buy Ohio Offeror’s total score.

(c) If claiming the preferences in (a) and (b) based on the product(s) offered, an Offeror is only eligible to receive the preference if the cost of the product(s) offered exceeds 50% of the total offered cost for products and services. A Buy Ohio Offeror is also eligible to receive the Buy Ohio preference based on its significant economic presence in Ohio or a border state.

(d) For the Veteran-Friendly Business preference, the State will add the applicable percentage of the total available points to any certified veteran-friendly business Offeror’s total score.

Bill to information:

Origin-DNR-N18 All invoices must be submitted DIRECTLY to Financial Shared Services (FSS).

There are two options available to submit invoices to FSS:

• EMAIL the invoice to: invoices@ohio.gov

• MAIL the invoice to: Financial Shared Services, PO Box 182880, Columbus, Ohio 43218-2880

In order to process your invoice, please make sure all the required information listed below is on your invoice before submitting it to FSS or they will be returned for not being a proper invoice.

1. Must include the Purchase Order (PO) number assigned. You may shorten it to the last five digits.

2. Supplier full name as it appears on your PO.

3. The Ship to and/or service facility name and full address

4. Unique invoice number

5. Date of service or date work was completed.

6. Complete itemization of services performed, materials or goods supplied and/or labor furnished.

7. Line charge(s). If parts are included, please break out the line charges with product and charges separately.

8. No State of Ohio sales tax

9. Remit to address must match our records for payment

10. This PO is only valid for the goods and/or services received through June 30, 2025.

11. Any goods/services received after June 30, 2025 will require a new PO.

mailto:invoices@ohio.gov

All fields mentioned above are required to count as a correct invoice; failure to provide this information will result in a returned invoice and delayed payment.