Pavement quality index consultant

The South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) is seeking a professional consulting firm to review and update the agency's Pavement Quality Index (PQI) formula and methodology through a Request for Proposal (RFP) solicitation. The selected consultant will conduct a comprehensive review of the current PQI formula, including its development history, data collection processes, and application in pavement prioritization. Key deliverables include researching pavement rating methods used by other state departments of transportation, providing recommendations for modifications or replacement of the current formula, and tracking implemented changes. The scope of work is divided into four primary tasks: reviewing the existing PQI formula, comparing methods used by other DOTs, providing recommendations, and tracking and reporting changes from implemented recommendations. SCDOT anticipates completion of the first three tasks within 12 months of contract award, with an additional 6 months for tracking and fine-tuning. The solicitation opened on April 1, 2021, with a proposal deadline of May 6, 2021, at 2:30 p.m., and a pre-proposal conference was scheduled for April 15, 2021, via WebEx. The evaluation criteria will weight the technical proposal at 75 percent and the price proposal at 25 percent.

The solicitation is open to any qualified vendor with expertise in pavement engineering, pavement distress data collection, data processing, pavement condition indices development, statistical modeling, and analysis of large datasets. There is no specific set-aside for minority or disadvantaged businesses, though offerors are required to disclose any minority business participation. The contract will run for three years, from June 11, 2021, through June 10, 2024, with an estimated start date following the notice of award. Pricing must be submitted as a separate document, including total costs for each task, a staffing table with personnel details, hourly rates, and contingency costs. Travel expenses will be reimbursed at rates allowable for South Carolina state employees upon submission of original receipts. Offerors must provide references from up to two customers with similar work completed within the preceding six years. While no specific budget range is explicitly stated, the comprehensive nature of the project and the required expertise suggest a significant investment in improving SCDOT's pavement quality assessment methodology.