Insulation and Heat Trace Services

The City of Austin, Texas is requesting proposals for insulation and heat trace services at utility facilities operated by Austin Energy, with proposals due August 6, 2026. The scope encompasses inspection, repair, and installation of heat tracing systems for freeze protection on boiler and Heat Recovery Steam Generator process equipment lines at multiple facilities including Decker Creek Power Station, Sand Hill Energy Center, and District Cooling Plants, with removal and replacement of insulation as required. Offerors may bid on combined insulation and heat tracing services, insulation services only, or heat trace services only.

Optional local business and small business preferences are available, providing up to 10 points each for proposals valued between $50,000 and $499,999, and 6 points each for proposals between $500,000 and $50 million.

Offeror staff must demonstrate a minimum of seven years of experience in insulation work on utility boiler and HRSG systems and seven years in designing, repairing, and installing industrial utility freeze protection systems. Work will be awarded on a per-project basis with individual scopes of work presented for competitive quotes; pricing is established either on a time-and-materials not-to-exceed basis or firm fixed-price basis as designated by Austin Energy's Project Manager. Offerors must submit pricing using a provided pricing sheet specifying labor rates, contractor markups, tools and equipment rental markups, and materials and supplies markups. The highest-priced competitive offer receives maximum points, with remaining points distributed pro-rata.

The initial contract term is 12 months, with options for Austin Energy to extend for up to four additional 12-month periods at its sole discretion. Contractors must provide performance and payment bonds equal to 100% of the project amount within 14 calendar days of award notification. Evaluation criteria are technical plan (25 points), offeror experience (25 points), personnel (15 points), and price (15 points). All offers are valid for 180 calendar days following the RFP closing date. Contractors must comply with living wage requirements, wage theft ordinances, and minority and women-owned business enterprise procurement program provisions if applicable.