Tier 1 Final ITB 11 05 12 Bidders Instructions.pdf

Instructions For

Tier 1

Small Business Bidders

DEPARTMENT OF GENERAL SERVICES

HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA

EDITION OF 2012

Small Business Tier 1 November 5, 2012 i

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SECTION

A.1 FAMILIARITY WITH WORK TO BE PERFORMED

A.2 INTERPRETATION

A.3 SUBMISSION OF BIDS

A.4 SIGNING THE BID

A.5 STATE OF INCORPORATION

A.6 INSTRUCTIONS FOR NON-COLLUSION AFFIDAVIT

A.7 TIMELY DELIVERY OF BIDS IN CLEARLY MARKED ENVELOPE

A.8 COLLUSIVE BIDS WILL BE REJECTED

A.9 WITHDRAWAL OF BIDS PRIOR TO BID OPENING

A.10 BID OPENING PROCEDURE

A.11 REJECTION OF BIDS

A.12 WITHDRAWAL OF BIDS AFTER BID OPENING

A.13 BID PROTEST PROCEDURE

A.14 ISSUANCE OF WORK ORDER

A.15 REFUSAL TO ACCEPT CONSTITUES DEFAULT

A.16 ASSIGNMENT OF ANTITRUST CLAIMS

A.17 PRODUCT DISCRIMINATION

A.18 CONTRACT PARAGRAPHS

FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH ANY SECTION OF THESE

INSTRUCTIONS WILL RESULT IN THE REJECTION OF THE BID

AS NOT RESPONSIVE.

A.1: FAMILIARITY WITH WORK TO BE PERFORMED. The Tier 1 Small Business is responsible for being familiar with the Work and being able to self-perform 100% of the scope of work, with employees on its payroll, under the project. The Work to be performed is described in the Notice to Bidders for the Small Business Project.

After the issuance of a Work Order for the project, the Tier 1 Small Business may not submit any claim alleging insufficient data, incorrectly assumed conditions, or misunderstanding with regard to matters for which no such clarification was sought during the bidding phase of the Project, as described further in the General Conditions of the Contract.

A.2: INTERPRETATION. Requests for Interpretation during the bid stage shall be made in writing to the Funding Agency contact person identified in the Notice to Bidders. Only Requests for Interpretation that are received at least two (2) business days prior to the date fixed for the opening of bids will be considered by the Funding Agency for a response.

NO ORAL INTERPRETATION WILL BE GIVEN TO ANY TIER 1 SMALL

BUSINESS REGARDING THE MEANING OF THE CONTRACT DOCUMENTS.

ANY VERBAL DISCUSSIONS BETWEEN A TIER 1 SMALL BUSINESS AND

ANY REPRESENTATIVE OF THE FUNDING AGENCY ARE NOT BINDING

AND SHALL NOT BECOME PART OF THE WORK ORDER OR CONTRACT.

Every answer to an RFI will be in the form of a written bulletin issued by the Funding Agency, who will forward all bulletins to all Tier 1 Small Businesses bidding the Project. All bulletins become a part of the Notice to Bidders, and all Tier 1 Small Businesses are bound by all bulletins.

A.3: SUBMISSION OF BIDS. All bids are to be submitted to the Funding Agency using the Tier 1 Small Business bid form. Changing the form will constitute an alternative bid, which will be rejected as non-responsive. The Tier 1 Small Business should make a copy of the bid packet for their use. All entries on the bid must be in ink or typewritten, in preferably blue ink to indicate an original writing.

A.4: SIGNING THE BID. The Tier 1 Small Business must sign the bid correctly as described in the bid documents. If the bid is submitted by a corporation, the bid should be signed by the President or Vice President and any one of the following officers of the Corporation: the Secretary, Assistant Secretary, Treasurer, or Assistant Treasurer. If not signed by the specified officers, the signing individual must be authorized to sign by the corporation's board of directors.

A.5: STATE OF INCORPORATION. If the Tier 1 Small Business is incorporated in a state other than Pennsylvania, the Tier 1 Small Business must state whether the corporation is registered to do business in Pennsylvania. If the Tier 1 Small Business operates under an assumed or fictitious name, the Tier 1 Small Business must state whether such name has been registered in Pennsylvania. No Work Order will be awarded to a Tier 1 Small Business which is a foreign corporation or which is operating under a fictitious or assumed name unless the Tier 1 Small Business has complied with, or agreed to comply with, the registration requirements under the Laws of Pennsylvania.

A.6: INSTRUCTIONS FOR NON-COLLUSION AFFIDAVIT.

(1) The Non-collusion Affidavit is material to any contract awarded pursuant to this proposal. DGS requires Non-collusion Affidavits to be submitted with bids in accordance with §4507 of the Commonwealth Procurement Code, 62 Pa.C.S. §4507.

(2) The Non-collusion Affidavit must be executed by the member, officer or employee of the Tier 1 Small Business who makes the final decision on prices and the amount quoted in the proposal.

(3) Bid rigging and other efforts to restrain competition, and the making of false sworn statements in connection with the submission of proposals are unlawful and may be subject to criminal prosecution.

The person who signs the affidavit should examine it carefully before signing and assure himself or herself that each statement is true and accurate, making diligent inquiry, as necessary, of all other persons employed by or associated with the Proposer with responsibilities for the preparation, approval or submission of the proposal.

(4) The term “complementary bid” as used in the affidavit has the meaning commonly associated with that term in the bidding process, and includes the knowing submission of bids higher than the bid of another firm, any intentionally high or noncompetitive bid, and any other form of bid submitted for the purpose of giving a false appearance of competition.

(5) Failure to submit an affidavit with the bid in compliance with these instructions may result in disqualification of the bid.

A.7: TIMELY DELIVERY OF BIDS IN CLEARLY MARKED

ENVELOPE. The Tier 1 Small Business must submit the bid to the Funding Agency at the place and time set forth in the Notice to Bidders (or modified by bulletin) regardless of the method of delivery. All bids received after the time set for the bid opening will be rejected as non-responsive and will not be considered for award of a Work Order. Each bid shall be enclosed in a sealed envelope and marked plainly on the outside with the contract number, bid opening date and time. If the bid envelope is to be enclosed in another envelope for the purpose of express-type delivery, the exterior envelope shall be clearly marked as a bid and the contract number, bid opening date and time shall be shown on the exterior envelope.

A.8: COLLUSIVE BIDS WILL BE REJECTED. The bids of any Tier 1 Small Business or Tier 1 Small Businesses who engage in collusive bidding will be rejected. Submission of collusive bids will result in a Tier 1 Small Business being rejected as not responsible for subsequent projects. Nothing in this Section prevents a Tier 1 Small

Business from superseding a bid by submitting a subsequent bid, delivered prior to bid opening, which expressly revokes the previous bid.

A.9: WITHDRAWAL OF A BID PRIOR TO BID OPENING.

(1) Withdrawal before bid date or time - A Bid may be withdrawn by written notice or in person by a Tier 1 Small Business or its authorized representative (if their identity is established by photographic identification and proof of authorization, preferably on Tier 1 Small Business letterhead) and a receipt for the bid is signed prior to the exact hour and date set for the opening of bids.

(2) Modification of Bid Already Submitted - If, before the time of the bid opening, a Tier 1 Small Business wishes to modify a bid already delivered, the Tier 1 Small Business or its authorized representative (if their identity is made known through photographic identification and proof of authorization) may request that the Funding Agency return the bid, but only if the Tier 1 Small Business/representative signs a receipt for the bid before the exact hour and date set for the opening of bids.

A.10: BID OPENING PROCEDURE. Bids will be kept sealed until all bids are opened and read aloud publicly in the presence of one or more witnesses at the time and place designated in the Notice to Bidders for the Tier 1 Small Business Project. In case of any discrepancy between the Tier 1 Small Business’s words and numbers, the written words are the bid price. No photocopies of the apparent low Tier 1 Small Business’s bid will be made at the bid opening. The amount of each bid, together with the name of each Tier 1 Small Business will be recorded in a bid tab.

A.11: REJECTION OF BIDS. The Funding Agency reserves the right to reject any or all bids or parts thereof. A bid may be rejected if it shows any omission, alterations of form, additions or deductions not called for, conditional or uninvited alternate bids, or irregularities of any kind. The Funding Agency may reject the bid of any Tier 1 Small Business failing to meet the requirements of these Instructions to Tier 1 Small Businesses or any other requirements of Tier 1 Small Businesses set forth in the Notice to Bidders. The Funding Agency reserves the right, however, to waive technical defects or irregularities on bids.

A.12: WITHDRAWAL OF BIDS AFTER BID OPENING. Within three (3) days after the opening of the bids, but before award, a Tier 1 Small Business may request permission to withdraw its bid if it submits a request, in writing, to the contact person for the Funding Agency identified in the Notice to Bidders. With the request for withdrawal, the Tier 1 Small Business must submit evidence that the reason for withdrawal is a clerical mistake as opposed to a judgment mistake and was actually due to an unintentional arithmetical error or an unintentional omission of a substantial quantity of work, labor, material or services made directly in the compilation of its bid. Repeated requests to withdraw bids will be reviewed by the Funding Agency to determine if the Tier 1 Small Business is knowingly submitting invalid bids.

A.13: BID PROTEST PROCEDURE. The Commonwealth Procurement Code (62 P.C. §1711.1, as amended) governs the protest procedure, which is summarized below.

In the event this general description conflicts with the statute, the statutory language controls.

a) Who may file – Any Tier 1 Small Business Bidder or prospective Tier 1 Small Business Bidder who is aggrieved in connection with the bid or the award of a contract resulting from the bid may file a protest.

i. Prospective Tier 1 Small Business Bidder – is an entity that:

1. is self-certified with a DGS SB Construction identification number showing certification as a Tier 1 Small Business; and

2. is qualified through the ITQ for Tier 1 Small Businesses;

and

3. has agreed to perform work in the County noted in the Notice to Bidders; and

4. has not submitted a bid in response to the Notice to Bidders.

ii. Tier 1 Small Business Bidder – is an entity that:

1. is self-certified with a DGS SB Construction identification number showing certification as a Tier 1 Small Business; and

2. is qualified through the ITQ for Tier 1 Small Businesses;

and

3. has agreed to perform work in the County noted in the Notice to Bidders; and

4. has submitted a bid in response to the Notice to Tier 1 Small Businesses.

b) Time limits

i. If a protest is filed by a prospective Tier 1 Small Business bidder, a protest must be filed, in writing, with the Funding Agency prior to the bid date and time described in the Notice to Bidder for Tier 1 Small Businesses.

ii. If a protest is filed by a Tier 1 Small Business Bidder, the protest must be filed, in writing, with the Issuing Office within seven (7) days after the protesting Tier 1 Small Business knew or should have known of the facts giving rise to the protest except in no event may a protest be filed later than 7 days after the Notice of Award is posted on the Funding Agency’s website.

iii. Filed – shall be defined as the date upon which the Issuing Office receives the written protest.

c) The Funding Agency may cancel an invitation for bids or may reject all bids at any time prior to the time a contract is executed by all parties when it is in the best interests of the Commonwealth. A Tier 1 Small Business may not submit a protest relating to cancellation of the bid or rejection of all bids.

d) The full text of the Bid Protest Procedure can be found at 62 Pa.C.S §1711.1 et seq.

A.14: ISSUANCE OF WORK ORDER. If the Funding Agency issues a work order, it will be issued to the lowest responsible Tier 1 Small Business within ten (10) days from the Bid Opening Date. This 10-day period may be extended by written consent of the lowest responsible Tier 1 Small Business.

A.15: REFUSAL TO ACCEPT CONSTITUTES DEFAULT. Failure or refusal of the successful Tier 1 Small Business to accept the Work Order and/or furnish the required insurance certificates within the 10-day time period may be viewed as a default of Contract.

A.16: ASSIGNMENT OF ANTITRUST CLAIMS. The Tier 1 Small Business and the Commonwealth recognize that, in actual economic practice, overcharges by the Tier 1 Small Business's suppliers, resulting from the violations of State or Federal antitrust laws, are, in fact, borne by the Commonwealth. As part of the consideration for the award of this contract, and, intending to be legally bound, the Tier 1 Small Business assigns to the Commonwealth all right, title and interest in, and to, any claims contractor now has, or may hereafter acquire, under State or Federal antitrust laws relating to the goods or services, which are the subject of this contract.

A.17: PRODUCT DISCRIMINATION

A. Reciprocal Limitation Act.

1. Background Requirements of the Act. The Act (62 Pa.C.S. (2010 Sup.) §

107) requires the Department:

i. In the award of contracts, exceeding $10,000, for the erection, construction, alteration, improvement or repair of any building or other public work, or the purchase or lease of any goods, supplies, equipment, printing or materials, to give resident Bidders a preference against a nonresident Bidder from any state that gives or requires a preference to Bidders from that state. The amount of the preference shall be equal to the amount of the preference applied by the state of the nonresident Bidder. A resident Bidder is a person, partnership or corporation or other business entity authorized to transact business in Pennsylvania and having a bona fide establishment for transacting business within Pennsylvania at which it was transacting business on the date when bids for the public contract were first solicited.

ii. In the erection, construction, alteration, improvement or repair of any public building or other public work, and in all purchases of goods, supplies, equipment, printing or materials, not to specify, use or purchase any goods, supplies, equipment, printing or materials which are produced, manufactured, mined, grown or performed in any state that prohibits the specification for, use, or purchase of such items in or on its public building or other works, when such items are not produced, manufactured, mined, grown or performed in such state.

2. List of Discriminating States.

i. States which apply preference favoring in-state Bidders and the amount of such preference, (that may affect this contract), as found by the Department.

STATE PREFERENCE

Arizona 5% (construction materials from Arizona resident dealers only)

Montana 3%

New Jersey For supply procurements or construction projects restricted to DGS Certified Small Businesses, New Jersey bidders shall be excluded from award even if they themselves are DGS Certified Small Businesses.

West Virginia 2.5% for construction, repair or improvements of any buildings

Wyoming 5%

ii. States which prohibit the use of out-of-state goods, supplies, equipment, materials or printing and the prohibition (that may effect this contract), as found by the Department.

STATE PREFERENCE

Georgia Forest products only

Indiana Coal

New Mexico Construction

3. Calculations of Preference.

i. In calculating the preference, the amount of a bid submitted by a Pennsylvania Small Business Bidder shall be reduced by the percentage preference which would be given to a nonresident Small Business Bidder by its state of residence. Similarly, the amount of a bid offering Pennsylvania goods, supplies, equipment, materials and printing shall be reduced by the percentage preference which would be given to another Bidder by the state where the goods, supplies, equipment, materials or printing are produced, manufactured, mined, grown or performed.

B. Trade Practices Act.

In accordance with the Trade Practices Act (71 P.S. §773.101 et seq.) the Contractor shall not use, or permit to be used, in the Work any aluminum or steel products made in a foreign country that discriminates against aluminum or steel products manufactured in Pennsylvania. The countries of Brazil, South Korea, Spain, and Argentina have been found to discriminate against certain products manufactured in Pennsylvania. Therefore, the purchase or use of those countries' products, as listed below, is not permitted for a project. Penalties for violation of this paragraph may be found in the Trade Practices Act. Penalties include becoming ineligible for award of any Public Works contracts for a period of three years.

1. Brazil: Welded carbon steel pipes and tubes; carbon steel wire rod; tool steel; certain stainless steel products, including hot-rolled stainless steel bar; stainless steel wire rod and cold-formed stainless steel bar; pre-stressed concrete steel wire strand; hot-rolled carbon steel plate in coil; hot-rolled carbon steel sheet and cold-rolled carbon steel sheet.

2. Spain: Certain stainless steel products, including stainless steel wire rod, hot-rolled stainless steel bars and cold-formed stainless steel bars; pre-stressed concrete steel wire strand; certain steel products including hot-rolled steel plate, cold-rolled carbon steel plate, carbon steel structural shapes, galvanized carbon steel sheet; hot-rolled carbon steel bars and cold-formed carbon steel bars.

3. South Korea: Welded carbon steel pipes and tubes; hot-rolled carbon steel plate and hot-rolled carbon steel sheet and galvanized steel sheet.

4. Argentina: Carbon steel wire rod and cold-rolled carbon steel sheet.

C. Steel Products Procurement Act.

In accordance with the Steel Products Procurement Act of March 3, 1978, P.L.

6 as amended (73 P.S. §1881 et seq.), only steel products as defined in the Act shall be used or supplied in the performance of the contract or any subcontracts thereunder.

In the performance of the Contract the Contractor, subcontractors, materialmen or suppliers shall use only: 1) steel products, rolled, formed, shaped, drawn, extruded, forged, cast, fabricated, or otherwise similarly processed by a combination of two or more of such operations, from steel made in the United States by the open hearth, basic oxygen, electric furnace, bessemer or other steel making process; and 2) cast iron products made in the United States.

The Contractor shall certify that all steel and cast iron products to be used or supplied in the performance of the Contract comply with this Act. No payment will be made to the Contractor for steel and cast iron products until such certification has been received.

This section shall not apply in any case where the Deputy Secretary for Public Works of the Department, in writing, determines that steel and/or cast iron products as herein described are not produced in the United States in sufficient quantities to meet the Contract needs.

The Department shall not provide for, or make any payments to any person who has not complied with the Act. Any such payments made by the Department to anyone that should not have been made as a result of the Act, shall be recoverable directly from the contractor, subcontractor, manufacturer or supplier that did not comply with the Act.

In addition to the withholding of payments, any person who willfully violates any of the provisions of the Act shall be prohibited from submitting any bids to any public agency for a period of five (5) years from the date of the determination that a violation has occurred. In the event the person who violates the provisions of the Act is a subcontractor, manufacturer or supplier, such person shall be prohibited from performing any work or supplying any materials to a public agency for a period of five (5) years from the date of the determination that a violation has occurred.

The Contractor shall include the provisions of the Steel Products Procurement Act in every subcontract and supply contract, so that the provisions of the Act shall be binding upon each subcontractor and supplier.

Where trade names, catalog numbers and manufacturers of material or equipment are specified, they are mentioned therein for the purpose of establishing a standard of quality, performance and appearance, and for establishing a standard of competitive bidding. The use of this descriptive information will not relieve the contractor from compliance with all aspects of the Act.

A.18: CONTRACT PARAGRAPHS. The Tier 1 Small Business acknowledges by submitting a bid that they have read and are familiar with the provisions/Exhibits in the Tier 1 Small Business contract setting forth detailed descriptions regarding Product Discrimination, American with Disabilities Act, Non-Discrimination/Sexual Harassment, Contractor Integrity, Contractor Responsibility, and Environmental Statements.