RFP 20230125 PRODUCT IMAGE WITH APPENDICES.pdf

i

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR

PRODUCT IMAGES

FOR FINE WINE & GOOD SPIRITS

ISSUING OFFICE

PENNSYLVANIA LIQUOR CONTROL BOARD

BUREAU OF PURCHASING AND CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION

ROOM 312, NORTHWEST OFFICE BUILDING

HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA 17124

RFP NUMBER: 20230125

DATE OF ISSUANCE

September 5, 2023 ii

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR

PRODUCT IMAGES

FOR FINE WINE & GOOD SPIRITS

RFP# 20230125

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CALENDAR OF EVENTS iv

Part I—GENERAL INFORMATION 1

Part II—CRITERIA FOR SELECTION 11

Part III—TECHNICAL SUBMITTAL 15

Part IV – COST SUBMITTAL 21

Part V – CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS 23 iii

APPENDICES

APPENDIX A, PROPOSAL COVER SHEET

APPENDIX B, CORPORATE SIGNATORY DELEGATION AUTHROIZATION

APPENDIX C, DIVERSE AND DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS QUALIFICATION

INFORMATION

APPENDIX D, COST SUBMITTAL TEMPLATE

APPENDIX E, TRADE SECRET CONFIDENTIAL PROPRIETARY INFORMATION

NOTICE FORM

APPENDIX F, PROJECT REFERENCES

APPENDIX G, WORKER PROTECTION AND INVESTMENT CERTIFICATION

APPENDIX H, SAMPLE SUPPLIER INVOICE

APPENDIX I, PLCB REQUIRED PRODUCT IMAGE SPECIFICATIONS

APPENDIX J, IMAGE NAMING CONVENTIONS

iv

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

The Commonwealth will make every effort to adhere to the following schedule:

Activity Responsibility Date

Questions pertaining to this RFP can be submitted as they arise via email to Issuing Officer Betsy Novelli at enovelli@pa.gov from the date of issuance up to, and including, this date and time.

Potential Offerors

All questions must be submitted by

10:00AM ET

on 09/18/2023

Answers to questions from Potential Offerors will be posted on an ongoing basis to the Department of General Services eMarketplace website at http://www.emarketplace.state.pa.us/Search.aspx with final posting no later than this date.

Issuing Office

All answers will be provided by 4:00PM ET on

09/25/2023

Please monitor website for all communications regarding the RFP.

Potential

Regularly until proposal due date.

Proposal must be electronically submitted via upload into a designated OneDrive folder for which access will be granted by contacting the Issuing Officer.

Proposals must be received at

PLCB by

10:00AM ET

on 10/10/2023 mailto:enovelli@pa.gov http://www.emarketplace.state.pa.us/Search.aspx

PART I

GENERAL INFORMATION

I-1. Purpose. This request for proposals (RFP) provides to those interested in submitting proposals for the subject procurement (“Offerors”) sufficient information to enable them to prepare and submit proposals for the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board’s (“PLCB”) consideration on behalf of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (“Commonwealth”) to satisfy a need for Product Images for Fine Wine & Good Spirits (“Project”). This RFP contains instructions governing the requested proposals, including the requirements for the information and material to be included; a description of the service to be provided;

requirements which Offerors must meet to be eligible for consideration; general evaluation criteria; and other requirements specific to this RFP.

I-2. Issuing Office. The PLCB (“Issuing Office”) has issued this RFP on behalf of the

Commonwealth. The sole point of contact in the Commonwealth for this RFP shall be Betsy Novelli, Purchasing and Contracting Administration Division, Room 312 Northwest Office Building, Harrisburg, PA 17124, enovelli@pa.gov, who is the Issuing Officer for this RFP. Please refer all inquiries to the Issuing Officer.

I-3. Overview of Project. The PLCB is the Commonwealth’s wholesaler and primary retailer of wine and spirits and the agency responsible for regulatory control of beverage alcohol in Pennsylvania. As such, the PLCB seeks a third-party vendor to supply high-resolution digital images of multiple views of wines, spirits and accessories (“Products”). Such images must have clear enough visibility for viewers to read product labels and will be displayed online and in marketing materials including print media, social media and email marketing.

For every image provided, the selected Offeror shall, and by virtue of signing the contract resulting from this RFP, does, grant PLCB an irrevocable, global, royalty-free, perpetual right to use and display, reproduce, distribute copies, perform and to create derivative works (including but not limited to the right to edit, and modify by re-sizing) of each image and any other work products produced under the contract resulting from the solicitation, and to permit others to exercise these rights under PLCB’s supervision. These rights shall survive the termination of the Contract.

In support of the Project, the PLCB will provide a list of Products for which it seeks images, identifying each angle/view PLCB requires for each Product.

Products will be photographed at agreed upon intervals and the PLCB will provide a sample unit of each Product to be photographed. Space will be provided for photo shoots at the PLCB e-commerce fulfillment center located at East Greenville Business Center, 668 Gravel Pike, Suite 500 East Greenville, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, as well as at one or more Fine Wine & Good Spirits store locations.

mailto:enovelli@pa.gov

In recent years, the PLCB has acquired as many as 500 and as few as 100 new Products in a single month, averaging 250 Products per month.

I-4. Type of Contract. It is proposed that if the Issuing Office enters into a contract as a result of this RFP, it will be a unit-price per Product contract containing the Contract Terms and Conditions as shown in Part V. The Issuing Office, in its sole discretion, may undertake negotiations with Offerors whose proposals, in the judgment of the Issuing Office, show them to be qualified, responsible and capable of performing the Project.

I-5. Rejection of Proposals. The Issuing Office reserves the right, in its sole and complete discretion, to reject any proposal received as a result of this RFP.

I-6. Incurring Costs. The Issuing Office is not liable for any costs the Offeror incurs in preparation and submission of its proposal, in participating in the RFP process or in anticipation of award of the contract.

I-7. Questions & Answers. If an Offeror has any questions regarding this RFP, the Offeror must submit the questions by email (with the subject line “RFP 20230125 Question”) to the Issuing Officer named in Part I-2 of this RFP. If the Offeror has questions, they may be submitted as they arise via email, but no later than the date indicated on the Calendar of Events. The Issuing Officer shall post the answers to the questions to eMarketplace at http://www.emarketplace.state.pa.us/Search.aspx by the deadline stated on the Calendar of Events.

All questions and responses as posted to eMarketplace are considered as an addendum to, and part of, this RFP in accordance with RFP Part I-10. Each Offeror shall be responsible to monitor eMarketplace for new or revised RFP information. The Issuing Office shall not be bound by any verbal information nor shall it be bound by any written information that is not either contained within the RFP or formally issued as an addendum by the Issuing Office. The Issuing Office does not consider questions to be a protest of the specifications or of the solicitation. The required protest process for Commonwealth procurements is described in Part I-24.

I-8. Addenda to the RFP. If the Issuing Office deems it necessary to revise any part of this

RFP before the proposal response date, the Issuing Office will post an addendum to eMarketplace at http://www.emarketplace.state.pa.us/Search.aspx. It is the Offeror’s responsibility to periodically check eMarketplace for any new information or addenda to the RFP. Answers to the questions asked during the Questions & Answers period also will be posted to eMarketplace as addenda to the RFP.

I-9. Response Date. To be considered for selection, electronic proposal submissions as described in Part I-10 must arrive at the Issuing Office on or before the time and date specified in the RFP Calendar of Events. The Issuing Office will not accept paper copies, or electronic copies other than those authorized in Part I-10(A). The Issuing Office will reject any late proposals.

I-10. Proposal Requirements.

A. Proposal Submission: To be considered, Offerors must contact the Issuing Officer identified in Part I-2 to be granted access to a OneDrive folder that will be created for the submission of proposals to this RFP. Access can only be granted to a single designated email address. After being granted access to the OneDrive folder, the Offeror must upload a single electronic copy of the Technical Submittal and the Cost Submittal using the format provided in Part I-10(B). The electronic files must be in Microsoft Office or Microsoft-Office-compatible format and any spreadsheets must be in Microsoft Excel. The Offerors may not lock or protect any cells or tabs.

The Offeror shall make no other distribution of its proposal to any other Offeror or Commonwealth official or Commonwealth consultant. Each proposal page should be numbered for ease of reference. An official authorized to bind the Offeror to its provisions must sign the Proposal Cover Sheet (Appendix A) and Corporate Signatory Delegation Authorization Form (Appendix B), if needed. See also Part

II-1(B).

For this RFP, the proposal must remain valid until a contract is fully executed. If the Issuing Office selects the Offeror’s proposal for award, the contents of the selected Offeror’s proposal will become, except to the extent the contents are changed through Best and Final Offers or negotiations, contractual obligations.

Each Offeror submitting a proposal specifically waives any right to withdraw or modify it, except that the Offeror may withdraw its proposal by written notice received at the Issuing Officer’s email address prior to the exact hour and date specified for proposal receipt.

B. Proposal Format: Offerors must submit their proposals in the format, including heading descriptions, outlined below. To be considered, the proposal must respond to all proposal requirements. DO NOT IMBED LINKS TO DOCUMENTS OR WEBSITES WITHIN A TECHNICAL SUBMITTAL; rather, all information to be considered by the Evaluation Committee must be set forth in narrative fashion, including as appendices to the Technical Submittal as may be necessary.

Offerors should provide any other information thought to be relevant, but not applicable to the enumerated categories, as an appendix to the Proposal. All cost data relating to this proposal should be kept separate from and not included in the Technical Submittal.

Offerors should not reiterate technical information in the cost submittal. Each electronic proposal shall consist of the following separate electronic files:

1. Technical Submittal, in response to Part III, including the following complete, signed Appendices:

a. Appendix A, Proposal Cover Sheet

b. Appendix B, Corporate Signatory Delegation Authorization Form (if applicable)

c. Appendix E, Trade Secret, Confidential, Proprietary Information Notice Form (if applicable)

d. Appendix G, Worker Protection and Investment Form

e. Appendix F, Project References

2. Cost Submittal, in response to RFP Part IV;

The Issuing Office reserves the right to request additional information which, in the Issuing Office’s opinion, is necessary to assure that the Offeror’s competence, number of qualified employees, business organization, and financial resources are adequate to perform according to the RFP.

The Issuing Office may make investigations as deemed necessary to determine the ability of the Offeror to perform the Project, and the Offeror shall furnish to the Issuing Office all requested information and data. The Issuing Office reserves the right to reject any proposal if the evidence submitted by, or investigation of, such Offeror fails to satisfy the Issuing Office that such Offeror is properly qualified to carry out the obligations of the RFP and to complete the Services as specified.

I-11. Economy of Preparation. Offerors should prepare proposals simply and economically, providing a straightforward, concise description of the Offeror’s ability to meet the requirements of the RFP.

I-12. Alternate Proposals. The Issuing Office has identified the basic approach to meeting its requirements, allowing Offerors to be creative and propose their best solution to meeting these requirements. The Issuing Office will not accept alternate proposals.

I-13. Discussions for Clarification. Offerors may be required to make an oral or written clarification of their proposals to the Issuing Office to ensure thorough mutual understanding and responsiveness to the solicitation requirements. The Issuing Office will initiate requests for clarification. Clarifications may occur at any stage of the evaluation and selection process prior to contract execution.

I-14. Prime Contractor Responsibilities. The selected Offeror will be solely responsible for all services offered in its proposal whether it produces them itself or by subcontract. Further, the Issuing Office will consider the selected Offeror to be the sole point of contact with regard to all contractual matters.

I-15. Proposal Contents.

A. Confidential Information. The Commonwealth is not requesting, and does not require, confidential proprietary information or trade secrets to be included as part of Offerors’ submissions in order to evaluate proposals submitted in response to this

RFP. Accordingly, except as provided herein, Offerors should not label proposal submissions as confidential or proprietary or trade secret protected. Any Offeror who determines that it must divulge such information as part of its proposal must submit the signed written statement described in Part 1-15(C) below and must additionally provide a redacted version of its proposal, which removes only the confidential proprietary information and trade secrets, for required public disclosure purposes.

B. Commonwealth Use. All material submitted with the proposal shall be considered the property of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Commonwealth has the right to use any or all ideas not protected by intellectual property rights that are presented in any proposal regardless of whether the proposal becomes part of a contract. Notwithstanding any Offeror copyright designations contained in proposals, the Commonwealth shall have the right to make copies and distribute proposals internally and to comply with public record or other disclosure requirements under the provisions of any Commonwealth or United States statute or regulation, or rule or order of any court of competent jurisdiction.

C. Public Disclosure. After the award of a contract pursuant to this RFP, all proposal submissions are subject to disclosure in response to a request for public records made under the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know-Law, 65 P.S. § 67.101, et seq. If a proposal submission contains confidential proprietary information or trade secrets, a signed written statement to this effect must be provided with the submission in accordance with 65 P.S. § 67.707(b) so that PLCB may be made aware that notice to you is required and an evaluation is to be made under 65 P.S. § 67.708(b)(11) for exemption from public records requests. Refer to Appendix E of the RFP for a Trade Secret Confidential Proprietary Information Notice Form that may be utilized as the signed written statement, if applicable. If financial capability information is submitted in response to Part III of this RFP, such financial capability information is exempt from public records disclosure under 65 P.S. § 67.708(b)(26).

I-16. Best and Final Offers (BAFO).

A. While not required, the Issuing Office reserves the right to conduct discussions with Offerors for the purpose of obtaining “best and final offers.” To obtain best and final offers from Offerors, the Issuing Office may do one or more of the following, in any combination and order:

1. Request revised proposals; and

2. Enter into pre-selection negotiations.

B. The following Offerors will not be invited by the Issuing Office to submit a Best and

Final Offer:

1. Those Offerors which the Issuing Office has determined to be not responsible or whose proposals the Issuing Office has determined to be not responsive.

2. Those Offerors which the Issuing Office has determined in accordance with Part

II-5 from the submitted and gathered financial and other information, do not possess the financial capability, experience, or qualifications to assure good faith performance of the contract.

3. Those Offerors whose score for their technical submittal of the proposal is less than

75% of the total amount of technical points allotted to the technical criterion.

The Issuing Office may further limit participation in the best and final offers process to those remaining responsible offerors which the Issuing Office has, within its discretion, determined to be within the top competitive range of responsive proposals.

C. The Evaluation Criteria found in Part II-4, shall also be used to evaluate the Best and

Final offers.

D. Price reductions offered through any online auction shall have no effect upon the Offeror’s Technical Submittal.

I-17. News Releases. Offerors shall not issue news releases, Internet postings, advertisements or any other public communications pertaining to this RFP without prior written approval of the Issuing Office, and then only in coordination with the Issuing Office. Post-award public communications regarding the Contract and Project may only be issued by the awarded Offeror with the approval of, and in coordination with, the PLCB Communications Office.

I-18. Restriction of Contact. From the issue date of this RFP until the Issuing Office selects a proposal for contract negotiations, the Issuing Officer is the sole point of contact concerning this RFP. Any violation of this condition may be cause for the Issuing Office to reject the offending Offeror’s proposal. If the Issuing Office later discovers that the Offeror has engaged in any violations of this condition, the Issuing Office may reject the offending Offeror’s proposal or rescind its contract award. Offerors must agree not to distribute any part of their proposals beyond the Issuing Office. An Offeror who shares information contained in its proposal with other Commonwealth personnel and/or competing Offeror personnel may be disqualified.

I-19. Performance Assumptions. Offerors shall provide all services, supplies, facilities, and other support necessary to complete the identified work. The selected Offeror will have direct access to key decision makers and other personnel throughout the PLCB during the course of this engagement.

I-20. Term of Contract. The term of the contract will commence on the Effective Date and will end after three years from the Effective Date. The Issuing Office may renew the Contract, in any monthly or annual increment(s) up to an additional (two) two-year periods after the initial three-year period, upon written notice to the selected Offeror and in the Issuing Office’s sole discretion. The Issuing Office will fix the Effective Date after the contract has been fully executed by the selected Offeror and by the Commonwealth and all approvals required by Commonwealth contracting procedures have been obtained. The selected Offeror shall not start the performance of any work prior to the Effective Date of the contract and the Commonwealth shall not be liable to pay the selected Offeror for any service or work performed or expenses incurred before the Effective Date of the contract.

I-21. Offeror’s Representations and Authorizations. By submitting its proposal, each Offeror understands, represents, and acknowledges that:

A. Offeror and any proposed subcontractor are currently in compliance with and will maintain compliance with the State Adverse Interest Act (71 P.S. 776.1-776.8), and specifically affirms that neither has made, under separate contract with the Issuing Office, any recommendations to the PLCB concerning the need for the services described in its proposal or the specifications for the services described in this RFP.

B. Offeror has not disclosed and will not disclose any details about its proposal or about its participation as an Offeror or potential Offeror in this RFP to any other firm or individual who is also an Offeror or potential Offeror, nor to any employee or agent of the Commonwealth. This obligation ceases only upon release by the Issuing Office of a Notice of Award of a fully approved and executed contract.

C. Offeror is not on the current list of persons engaged in investment activities in Iran, which list is created by the Pennsylvania Department of General Services pursuant to Section 3503 of the Procurement Code, and that Offeror is eligible to contract with the Commonwealth under Sections 3501-3506 of the Procurement Code. Alternatively, such Offeror may demonstrate that it has received an exception from the certification requirement for this solicitation pursuant to Section 3503(e) of the Procurement Code.

D. All of the Offeror’s information and representations in the proposal are material and important, and the Issuing Office may rely upon the contents of the proposal in awarding the contract(s). The Commonwealth shall treat any misstatement, omission or misrepresentation as fraudulent concealment of the true facts relating to the Proposal submission, punishable pursuant to 18 Pa. C.S. § 4904 (unsworn falsification to authorities).

E. The Offeror has arrived at the price(s) and amounts in its proposal independently and without consultation, communication, or agreement with any other Offeror or potential offeror.

F. The Offeror has not disclosed the price(s), the amount of the proposal, nor the approximate price(s) or amount(s) of its proposal to any other firm or person who is an Offeror or potential offeror for this RFP, nor to any employees or agents of the Commonwealth, and the Offeror shall not disclose any of these items except to the Issuing Office prior to the release by the Issuing Office of a Notice of Award of a fully approved and executed contract.

G. The Offeror has not attempted, nor will it attempt, to induce any firm or person to refrain from submitting a proposal on this contract, or to submit a proposal higher than this proposal, or to submit any intentionally high or noncompetitive proposal or other form of complementary proposal.

H. The Offeror makes its proposal in good faith and not pursuant to any agreement or discussion with, or inducement from, any firm or person to submit a complementary or other noncompetitive proposal.

I. To the best knowledge of the person(s) signing the proposal for the Offeror, the Offeror, its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers, directors, and employees are not currently under investigation by any governmental agency and have not in the last four years been convicted or found liable for any act prohibited by State or Federal law in any jurisdiction, involving conspiracy or collusion with respect to bidding or proposing on any public contract, except as the Offeror has disclosed in its proposal.

J. To the best of the knowledge of the person(s) signing the proposal for the Offeror and except as the Offeror has otherwise disclosed in its proposal, the Offeror has no outstanding, delinquent obligations to the Commonwealth including, but not limited to, any state tax liability not being contested on appeal or other obligation of the Offeror that is owed to the Commonwealth.

K. The Offeror is not currently under suspension or debarment by the Commonwealth, any other state or the federal government, and if the Offeror cannot so certify, then it shall submit along with its proposal a written explanation of why it cannot make such certification.

L. Each Offeror, by submitting its proposal, authorizes Commonwealth agencies to release to the Commonwealth information concerning the Offeror's Pennsylvania taxes, unemployment compensation and workers’ compensation liabilities.

M. By submitting its proposal, including the Worker Protection and Investment

Certification, the Offeror certifies that it is currently compliant with applicable Commonwealth of Pennsylvania labor and workforce safety laws.

N. Until the selected Offeror receives a fully executed and approved written contract from the Issuing Office, there is no legal and valid contract, in law or in equity, and the Offeror shall not begin to perform.

O. The Offeror is not currently engaged and will not during the duration of the contract engage, in a boycott of a person or an entity based in or doing business with a jurisdiction which the Commonwealth is not prohibited by Congressional statute from engaging in trade or commerce.

I-22. Notification of Selection.

A. Selection for Contract Negotiations. The Issuing Office will notify all Offerors in writing of the Offeror selected for contract negotiations after the Issuing Office has determined, taking into consideration all of the evaluation factors, the proposal that is the most advantageous to the Issuing Office.

B. Notice of Award of Contract. Offerors whose proposals are not selected will be notified when contract negotiations have been successfully completed and the Issuing Office has received the final negotiated contract fully executed by all required signatories.

I-23. Debriefing Conferences. Within 15 calendar days of notification for contract negotiations as described in Part I-22(A) above, Offerors whose proposals were not selected may request a debriefing. The Issuing Office will schedule the debriefing at a mutually agreeable time. The debriefing will not compare the Offeror with other Offerors, other than the position of the Offeror’s proposal in relation to all other Offeror proposals.

The Issuing Office will not conduct debriefings more than 30 days after notice of selection for contract negotiations has been sent. An Offeror’s exercise of the opportunity to be debriefed does not constitute nor toll the time for filing a protest (See Part I-24 of this

RFP).

I-24. RFP Protest Procedure. The RFP Protest Procedure is on the DGS website at http://www.dgs.pa.gov/Documents/Procurement%20Forms/Handbook/Pt1/Pt%20I%20C h%2058%20Bid%20Protests.pdf. A protest by a party that has not or has not yet submitted a proposal must be filed no later than the proposal submission deadline specified in the Calendar of Events of the RFP. Offerors may file a protest within seven days after the protesting Offeror knew or should have known of the facts giving rise to the protest, but in no event may an Offeror file a protest later than seven days after the issuance date of the Notice of Award. The date of filing is the date of receipt of the protest. A protest must be filed in writing with the Issuing Office, which writing may be transmitted by email to the Issuing Office. To be timely, the protest must be received by 4:00 p.m. on the seventh day.

I-25. Use of Electronic Versions of this RFP. This RFP is being made available by electronic means. If an Offeror electronically accepts the RFP, the Offeror acknowledges and accepts full responsibility to ensure that no changes are made to the RFP. In the event of a conflict between a version of the RFP in the Offeror’s possession and the Issuing Office’s version of the RFP, the Issuing Office’s version shall govern.

I-26. Information Technology Policies.

This RFP is subject to the Information Technology Policies (ITPs) issued by the Office of Administration, Office for Information Technology (OA-OIT). ITPs may be found at http://www.oa.pa.gov/Policies/Pages/itp.aspx.

https://www.dgs.pa.gov/Documents/Procurement%20Forms/Handbook/Pt1/Pt%20I%20Ch%2058%20Bid%20Protests.pdf https://www.dgs.pa.gov/Documents/Procurement%20Forms/Handbook/Pt1/Pt%20I%20Ch%2058%20Bid%20Protests.pdf http://www.oa.pa.gov/Policies/Pages/itp.aspx

All proposals must be submitted on the basis that all ITPs are applicable to this procurement. It is the responsibility of the Offeror to read and be familiar with the ITPs. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the Offeror believes that any ITP is not applicable to this procurement, it must list all such ITPs in its technical response and explain why it believes the ITP is not applicable. The Issuing Office may, in its sole discretion, accept or reject any request that an ITP not be considered to be applicable to the procurement. The Offeror’s failure to list an ITP will result in its waiving its right to do so later, unless the Issuing Office, in its sole discretion, determines that it would be in the best interest of the Commonwealth to waive the pertinent ITP.

PART II

CRITERIA FOR SELECTION

II-1. Mandatory Responsiveness Requirements. To be eligible for selection, a proposal must:

A. Be timely received from an Offeror (see Part I-10); and

B. Be properly signed by the Offeror, in accordance with Commonwealth law. Include a properly signed Appendix A, Proposal Cover Sheet and Appendix B, Corporate Signatory Delegation Authorization or similar supporting documentation as needed.

The following information is offered to assist Offerors in ensuring proposals are properly signed and substantiated, but is not, and may not be construed as, legal advice:

a. If the Offeror is a corporation, Appendix A, Proposal Cover Sheet must be signed by corporation’s president or a vice president and a secretary, assistant secretary, treasurer, or assistant treasurer. If the two above-listed signatures are not provided, then the proposal should include a copy of a document which provides evidence from which the Issuing Office may reasonably infer signature authority (including but not limited to corporate bylaws, or a corporate resolution).

b. When the Offeror is a limited liability company, the Appendix A, Proposal Cover Sheet must be signed by a duly identified member or manager of the LLC. If the LLC is member- managed, a member must sign. If the LLC is manager-managed, a member cannot bind the LLC; a manager must sign.

c. When the Offeror is a general partnership, the Appendix A, Proposal Cover Sheet may be signed by any partner. When the Offeror is a limited partnership, the Appendix A, Proposal Cover Sheet must be signed by a duly identified general partner. Any other signatories must be substantiated with a valid power of attorney signed by a partner or general partner.

d. An entity operating under a fictitious name can be bound only according to the instructions applicable to the type of organization. Indicate the name of the person or entity owning and registering the fictitious name (e.g.; Doe Corporation, d/b/a The Corner Store) so that the authority of the signatories is clear.

II-2. Technical Nonconforming Proposals. The Mandatory Responsiveness Requirements set forth in Part II-1 above are the only RFP requirements that the PLCB will consider to be non-waivable. The Issuing Office reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to (1) waive any other technical or immaterial nonconformities in an Offeror’s proposal, (2) allow the Offeror to cure the nonconformity, or (3) consider the nonconformity in the scoring of the Offeror’s proposal.

II-3. Evaluation. The Issuing Office has selected a committee of qualified personnel to review and evaluate timely submitted proposals. The Issuing Office will notify in writing of its selection for negotiation the responsible Offeror whose proposal is determined to be the most advantageous to the Commonwealth as determined by the Issuing Office after taking into consideration all of the evaluation factors.

II-4. Evaluation Criteria. The following criteria will be used in evaluating each proposal:

A. Technical: The Issuing Office has established the weight for the Technical criterion for this RFP as 70% of the total points. Evaluation will be based upon the following:

Soundness of Approach, Offeror and Personnel Qualifications, and Diverse and Disadvantaged Business Participation. The final technical scores are determined by giving the maximum number of technical points available to the proposal(s) with the highest raw technical score. Points are then awarded to other proposals on a proportional pro-rated basis.

1. Soundness of Approach. Emphasis here is on the proposed methods and equipment for providing the services described in this RFP. An evaluation of the soundness of approach will consider information such as how the proposed solution meets the requirements of this RFP and how it will integrate into the PLCB’s retail operations. Key factors include, but are not limited to: Planning approach to the Project, approach to communication within the Project, approach to consistency in uniformity in work product, timeliness and workload management.

2. Qualifications. This category refers to the ability of the Offeror to meet all requirements of the RFP, including quality, relevancy, and recency of other projects completed by the Offeror and Offeror’s ability to timely and effectively provide all services requested. The Offeror’s financial ability to undertake a project of this size will also be evaluated in this category. The expected skill set of professional personnel will be evaluated based on experience and education, with particular reference to experience in services similar to that described in this RFP.

3. Diverse and Disadvantaged Business Participation. This category refers to the participation of diverse and disadvantaged businesses (“DDBs”) in the provision of the Services. The PLCB seeks to have DDBs play a more robust role in its regular operations. If an Offeror cannot qualify as a DDB on its own, then the PLCB expects Offerors to seek out DDBs as subcontractors and suppliers for the Services. The PLCB will independently evaluate each Offeror and any proposed subcontractors to determine if DDB qualifications are met. Additionally, the PLCB will evaluate DDB participation based on how that participation will contribute to the overall objectives of this Project. Factors that will be considered include the quality of work being allocated to selected DDBs and the qualification of the proposed DDBs to perform such services. See Appendix C, Diverse and Disadvantaged Business Qualification Information, for qualification information.

B. Cost: The Issuing Office has established the weight for the Cost criterion for this RFP as

30% of the total points. The cost criterion is rated by giving the proposal with the lowest total cost the maximum number of Cost points available. Points are then awarded to other proposals on a proportional pro-rated basis.

C. Worker Protection and Investment Certification

Pursuant to Executive Order 2021-06, Worker Protection and Investment (October 21, 2021), the Commonwealth is responsible for ensuring that every Pennsylvania worker has a safe and healthy work environment and the protections afforded them through labor laws. To that end, contractors and grantees of the Commonwealth must certify that they are in compliance with all applicable Pennsylvania state labor and workforce safety laws. Such certification shall be made through the Worker Protection and Investment Certification Form (Appendix G) and submitted with the Offeror’s proposal.

II-5. Offeror Responsibility. To be responsible, an Offeror must submit a responsive proposal and possess the capability to fully perform the contract requirements in all respects and the integrity and reliability to assure good faith performance of the contract.

In order for an Offeror to be considered responsible for this RFP and therefore eligible for selection for best and final offers or selection for contract negotiations:

A. The total score for the technical submittal of the Offeror’s proposal must be greater than or equal to 75% of the available technical points; and

B. The Offeror’s financial information must demonstrate that the Offeror possesses the financial capability to assure good faith performance of the contract. The Issuing Office will review the Offeror’s previous three financial statements, any additional information received from the Offeror, and any other publicly available financial information concerning the Offeror and assess each Offeror’s financial capacity based on calculating and analyzing various financial ratios, and comparison with industry standards and trends.

An Offeror who fails to demonstrate sufficient financial capability to assure good faith performance of the contract as specified herein may be considered by the Issuing Office, in its sole discretion, for best and final offers or contract negotiation contingent upon such Offeror providing contract performance security for the first contract year cost proposed by the Offeror in a form acceptable to the Issuing Office. Based on the financial condition of the Offeror, the Issuing Office may require a certified or bank (cashier’s) check, letter of credit, or a performance bond conditioned upon the faithful performance of the contract by the Offeror. The required performance security must be issued or executed by a bank or surety company authorized to do business in the Commonwealth. The cost of the required performance security will be the sole responsibility of the Offeror and cannot increase the Offeror’s cost proposal or the contract cost to the Commonwealth.

Further, the Issuing Office will award a contract only to an Offeror determined to be responsible in accordance with the most current version of Commonwealth Management Directive 215.9, Contractor Responsibility Program.

II-6. Final Ranking and Award.

A. After any best and final offer process conducted, the Issuing Office will combine the evaluation committee’s final technical scores and the final cost scores, in accordance with the relative weights assigned to these areas as set forth in this Part.

B. The Issuing Office will rank responsible offerors according to the total overall score assigned to each, in descending order.

C. The Issuing Office must select for contract negotiations the responsive and responsible offeror with the highest overall score.

D. The Issuing Office has the discretion to reject all proposals or cancel the request for proposals at any time prior to the time a contract is fully executed when it is in the best interests of the Commonwealth. The reasons for the rejection or cancellation shall be made part of the contract file.

PART III

TECHNICAL SUBMITTAL

III-1. Statement of the Project. State in succinct terms your understanding of the project presented, or the service required by this RFP.

III-2. Qualifications.

A. Company Overview. Describe your organization, including but not limited to when and where it was formed, and provide an organizational chart.

B. Prior Experience. Provide three detailed examples of work similar in nature and scope to the services outlined in this RFP (providing digital images to retailers on a large scale) performed within the last three years. Describe how the process of taking product images, editing images, and uploading/associating images with Product details functioned with other vendors or retailers. Experience shown should be work done by individuals who would be assigned to this Project as well as that of your company.

Relevant work experience must be identified using Appendix F and include the following:

1. Project Name

2. Scope and Size of Project

3. Start and End Dates

4. Client Name and contact information, including phone and email, for reference purposes.

C. Personnel. Identity the staffers, photographers and editors to be assigned to the Project. Show where these personnel will be physically located during the time they are supporting the Project. Please include each employee’s name and, through a resume or similar document, the employee’s education and experience in image sourcing/provision, photography and/or editing for retail. Indicate the responsibilities each individual will have supporting the Project and how long each has been with your company.

D. Substitutions: The PLCB must approve or disapprove all staffing substitutions and changes. Once approved professionals are assigned to the Project, the selected Offeror may not re-assign this asset to another project without prior written consent from the PLCB. The PLCB has the right to require replacement of any personnel in the event of unacceptable performance of the work.

Any planned staffing substitutions must be submitted to the PLCB ten business days (two weeks) prior to the vacation or substitution. The PLCB must not incur any delays due to knowledge transfer to new Offeror personnel resulting from staffing substitutions or replacement. It is the selected Offeror’s responsibility to train replacement staff.

E. Subcontractors: Provide a subcontracting plan for any and all subcontractors, including DDB subcontractors, who will contribute to the performance of the Services described in this RFP. The selected Offeror is prohibited from subcontracting or outsourcing any part of the Services without the express written approval from the PLCB. Unless otherwise notified by the PLCB during contract negotiations, upon award of the contract resulting from this RFP, subcontractors included in the proposal submission are deemed approved. For each entity/role included in your subcontracting plan provide:

1. Name of subcontractor and a company overview. This should include ownership structure and number of employees.

2. The specific work, supplies or services the subcontractor will perform;

location for work performed; how the work, supplies or services relate to the Contract; and the specific timeframe during the term when the work, supplies or services will be provided or performed.

3. Prior experience working with the subcontractor and/or subcontractor’s qualifications for performing the intended function, including resumes (if appropriate and available).

4. The fixed percentage commitment that subcontractor will receive based on the final negotiated cost for the initial term of the prime contract.

5. Number of employees by job category to provide Services.

6. Evidence to show that the business is or could be qualified as a DDB in accordance with Appendix C, if applicable.

F. Suppliers: Identify any suppliers that will be used to contribute to your provision of the Services described in this RFP that may qualify as a DDB in accordance with Appendix C. Please provide all relevant information for the PLCB to determine such qualification.

III-3. Training. If appropriate, identify any training recommended for or required of PLCB personnel to be able to transfer/upload images from your system(s) to PLCB systems.

Include a summary of the training, delivery method(s), frequencies/durations, facilitators and training materials to be provided.

III-4. Financial Capability. Describe your company’s financial stability and economic capability to perform the contract requirements. Provide your company’s financial statements (audited, if available) for the past three fiscal years including the company’s Balance Sheet and Income Statement or Profit/Loss Statements. Also include a Dun & Bradstreet comprehensive report, if available. If your company is a publicly traded company, please provide a link to your financial records on your company website in lieu of providing hardcopies. The Commonwealth reserves the right to request additional information it deems necessary to evaluate an Offeror’s financial capability.

Your failure or refusal to provide adequately informative financial information despite the protections of the Pennsylvania Right to Know Law may adversely impact the evaluation committee’s technical score and/or Issuing Officer’s determination of your financial responsibility. Specific documents as identified herein are recommended;

alternative materials may be offered to substantiate financial capability. Where the specifically identified documents exist, however, their submission is expected as part of your proposal.

III-5. Work Plan. Describe in narrative form your technical plan for accomplishing the work using the task descriptions as your reference point. Modifications of the task descriptions are permitted; however, reasons for changes should be fully explained. If more than one approach is apparent, comment on why you chose this approach.

TASKS

A. Digital Image Provision. On a monthly basis, the PLCB will supply to the Selected

Offeror a list of Products requiring images. The Selected Offeror will be expected to provide images for an average of 250 Products per month, up to as many as 500 Products in one month. The PLCB will not require services in the months of November and December.

1. The selected Offeror will be responsible for all photography, lighting and editing equipment, tools and software required in support of the Project.

2. In support of photography needs, the PLCB provides space at its e-commerce fulfillment center (East Greenville Business Center, 668 Gravel Road, East Greenville, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania) for product photo shoots to be scheduled during regular business hours.

3. In addition, image needs for specific Products not stocked at the e-commerce fulfillment center may require travel to a Fine Wine & Good Spirits store for photography up to twice per year. The Selected Offeror will be eligible for travel and subsistence costs according to Commonwealth travel policies. Travel from their residence to a temporary worksite will be reimbursed either from their primary address or the e-commerce fulfillment center, whichever distance is shorter. Commonwealth Travel Policy (pa.gov) and Commonwealth Travel Policy Manual (pa.gov).

4. The PLCB will make all products available at the e-commerce fulfillment center or other PLCB location. Under no circumstances will the PLCB ship or otherwise make products available to any other photography facility or site.

5. The selected Offeror is responsible for associating each image to specific Product metadata and providing the high-resolution images electronically to the

PLCB.

https://www.oa.pa.gov/Policies/md/Documents/230-10.pdf https://www.oa.pa.gov/Policies/Documents/m230-1.pdf

6. All images must meet PLCB specifications for quality and size (see Appendix I), must abide by PLCB naming conventions (see Appendix J) and must include the following metadata:

i. PLCB Item Number (will be provided by PLCB)

ii. UPC (if available)

iii. Vintage

iv. Proof (for spirits)

v. Bottle size

vi. Orientation (“front,” “back,” “side,” or “other,” depending on the shot)

The PLCB reserves the right to revise product image specifications (Appendix I) for quality, size and naming conventions and will discuss such revisions with the Selected Offeror in advance of implementing them.

In response to this RFP:

• Provide sample images meeting PLCB specifications and naming conventions for the following:

− A bottle of red wine − A clear bottle of clear spirits − An accessory − A package combining a spirit with some sort of value-added product like glassware

• Describe how you will ensure brands will have consistent image quality across Products.

• Propose a plan for image provision, including required photography and editing, to the PLCB based on the information above. Detail how images will be provided once products have been photographed and edited. The Selected Offeror must be able to provide all images 30 days after receiving an assignment from the PLCB.

• Detail the processes and systems (applications, software, etc.) to be used to facilitate transfer of images to the PLCB.

B. Resolution of Image Discrepancies. In cases where the PLCB finds images to be incorrectly associated with products, or image quality unacceptable, the selected Offeror will be responsible for resolving such discrepancies by correcting erroneous associations, providing correct images or other means, in accordance with Part III-9 herein.

In response to this RFP: Describe your plan to minimize image errors and manage discrepancy resolution.

III-6. Requirements.

A. Disaster Recovery. Selected Offeror is responsible for maintaining backup storage or archiving all of the images provided to the PLCB and providing additional copies of images already provided to the PLCB upon request and at no additional cost beyond the original per-Product cost. Provide a brief explanation of the backup storage process you intend to employ.

B. Emergency Preparedness. The selected Offeror(s) must be able to provide the services under the resulting Contract in a way that permits the PLCB’s operations to continue in the context of an emergency or disaster, including a pandemic.

III-7. Reports and Project Control. The selected Offeror shall submit reports, receipts, forms, and/or controls as the PLCB shall require.

A. Status Report. A monthly progress report detailing Products for which digital images have been provided to the PLCB, Products for which digital images have yet to be provided, Products unable to be photographed due to unavailability from the PLCB and estimated timeframes for future digital image provision. This report should relate to the work plan the Offeror developed in its proposal, as amended or approved by the PLCB.

B. Problem Identification Report. An as-required report, identifying problem areas.

The report should describe the problem and its impact on the overall Project and on each affected task. It should list possible courses of action with advantages and disadvantages of each and include Offeror recommendations with supporting rationale.

III-8. Objections and Additions to Standard Contract Terms and Conditions. The Offeror will identify which, if any, of the terms and conditions (contained in Part V) it would like to negotiate and what additional terms and conditions the Offeror would like to add to the standard contract terms and conditions. The Offeror’s failure to make a submission under this paragraph will result in its waiving its right to do so later, but the Issuing Office may consider late objections and requests for additions if to do so, in the Issuing Office’s sole discretion, would be in the best interest of the Commonwealth.

The Issuing Office may, in its sole discretion, accept or reject any requested changes to the standard contract terms and conditions.