Buried Fiberglass Fuel Tanks

The City of Madison, Wisconsin, issued Request for Bid (RFB) 10090-0-2021-BG for the procurement of buried fiberglass fuel tanks through its Engineering department. The solicitation sought two specific tanks: a 10,000-gallon tank for unleaded and ethanol-blended gasoline, and a 20,000-gallon split tank with 10,000 gallons each for diesel and biodiesel storage. Tanks were required to meet ZCL/Xerxes specifications, including ribbed double wall construction, manufacturers' complete anchoring systems with reinforced precast concrete deadman anchors, Truchek continuous leak detection systems, and a 30-year manufacturer's warranty. Key evaluation criteria included compliance with technical specifications, pricing (FOB Destination Freight Prepaid), shipping costs, and delivery timeline. The bid timeline was structured with questions due by December 17, 2021, answers posted on December 22, 2021, and final bids due December 28, 2021, at 2:00 PM CST. Tank delivery was specified to occur between June 1, 2022, and September 2, 2022.

Local vendors registered with the City received a scoring preference, and contractors employing 15 or more employees or conducting $50,000 or more in annual business with the City were required to file an Affirmative Action Plan. Bidders were required to provide three professional references and maintain Commercial General Liability insurance of at least $1,000,000 per occurrence, Workers' Compensation insurance, and professional liability insurance of $1,000,000 with six-year post-acceptance coverage. The City is tax-exempt and will not pay federal excise or Wisconsin sales taxes. The contract was ultimately awarded to Walt's Petroleum Service Inc for a total of $108,710.00, with shipping costs estimated between $1,800-$4,000 per tank system. Two other bids from Petro-Chemical Systems Inc were rejected due to delivery timeline incompatibility and tank specification non-compliance. Alternate manufacturers' products could be considered if sufficient comparative literature was provided, with the City retaining sole determination of equivalency.