After hours answering services for faciliity and water departments

The City of Scottsdale is seeking a contractor to provide after-hours answering services for its Water and Facilities Management Departments through Request for Proposal #26RFP011. The primary objective is to establish a professional telephone answering service capable of handling emergency customer situations outside normal business hours, with the Water Department receiving approximately 150 monthly after-hours calls and the Facilities Department receiving about 15 weekly calls. Qualified contractors must provide 24/7 service during specified hours, maintain backup power systems, have business continuity plans, and employ Spanish-speaking call takers on each shift. Key service requirements include 100% live operator response, maximum wait times of 3 minutes, average call times of 2.5 minutes, and comprehensive daily reporting capabilities. The solicitation requires vendors to have a minimum of three consecutive years of experience, with proposals due by September 15, 2025, at 2:00 PM Arizona local time, and questions due by September 5, 2025, at 2:00 PM. Evaluation criteria will focus on key personnel qualifications, project approach, pricing, local knowledge of Scottsdale, and references, with a multi-criteria assessment potentially including presentations by short-listed vendors.

The procurement appears to have no specific set-aside designations for disadvantaged enterprises. The initial contract term is one year with four optional one-year renewal periods, and the current estimated annual contract value is approximately $40,000. Pricing will be structured in a flexible tiered system ranging from 0-400 minutes to 2,001-2,400 minutes, allowing the City to pay only for minutes used each month. Contractors must provide a performance bond equal to 100% of the contract price and be prepared for potential background checks on personnel. The City reserves the right to conduct vendor evaluations and may require references specifically from utility services businesses. Successful vendors must demonstrate geographic familiarity with Scottsdale's service areas and comply with various legal requirements, including E-Verify program participation and immigration law compliance. Contractors may work on other contracts simultaneously but must meet the stringent service requirements outlined in the solicitation.