Pre-Qualification Program Announcement

CHECK ALL WORK TYPES INCLUDED IN THIS PROJECT

PRE-QUALIFICATION ANNOUNCEMENT

Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT)

Mega Project Bridge Painting Administration

Project Description:

The purpose of this solicitation is to provide a Project Engineer and field inspectors to assist State staff with full and partial bridge painting on 40 bridges on the I-35 Mega Project in the Duluth. The Project Engineer and Field personnel will assist State personnel with paint inspection. The Successful Responder’s staff personnel will work under the direct supervision of the State’s Project Manager.

The Successful Responder’s Project Engineer and field inspectors will assure that the project is completed in conformance with the plans, specifications and contract provisions.

All services will be performed in accordance with the established standard procedures and practices of Mn/DOT. Prior to furnishing any services, the Successful Responder must be familiar with Mn/DOT standard procedures and practices as set in Mn/DOT Construction specifications, plans and documents and with informal procedures and practices for construction and engineering used by Mn/DOT.

During the time that the Successful Responder’s Project Engineer and Field Inspectors are under the direction of State Project Manager, they will comply with State work policies which will be provided. These include policies on appropriate use of technology, no-smoking policy and safety policies.

This work will involve working adjacent to a painting contractor in lift vehicles and at extreme heights. The Successful Responder is advised that some of the bridges contain a lead based paint. State will provide all required safety equipment and testing necessary for working around lead paint.

It is anticipated that the work schedule will include 12+ hour days, 6 day a week for the period from May to September.

State will furnish to Successful Responder, all equipment and forms necessary to carry out assigned duties.

Successful Responder will provide a clearly identifiable vehicle for each person the project. The vehicles will have the necessary warning lights to be within the work zone and be able to safely carry concrete cylinders, density equipment, or any other equipment or materials.

Successful Responder will provide the following personal protective equipment: Vest (meeting ANSII standard), hard hat and steel toed boots.

Successful Responder will furnish and maintain cellular phones for all Successful Responder field personnel assigned to the project. A list of these phone numbers will be available to the construction contractor and State Project Manager and contacts.

Successful Responder’s staff must have a working knowledge of the current Mn/DOT Specifications book, and must possess all the knowledge, skills and abilities required as necessary for performing the duties of the position they will perform. Successful Responder will ensure that Mn/DOT’s current practices, policies and procedures are met throughout the course of the project.

Emphasis in selection will be based on the years of experience in with bridge painting projects and the ability to work independently. Additional emphasis will be placed on experience inspecting and/or administering partial painting contracts and a demonstrated understanding of paint system compatibility with respect to partial painting projects and the constructability issues relating thereto.

No changes in Successful Responder’s Project Engineer will be permitted without the written permission of the State’s Project Manager.

If any person’s performance has been determined to be unsatisfactory by the State’s Project Manager, they will be immediately removed from the project.

Selection Criteria:

Representatives of the Mn/DOT will evaluate all Letters of Interest received by the deadline. In some instances, an interview may be part of the evaluation process. A 100-point scale will be used to create the final evaluation recommendation. The factors and weighting on which Letters of Interest will be judged are:

Expressed understanding of project objective and capability to meet project schedule 10%

Qualification and Experience of personnel working on the project 70%

Qualifications and Experience of company 20%

Note: Responders must complete the “Location of Service Disclosure and Certification Form” and submit it along with their Letter of Interest.

Interested Responders:

In order to submit a Letter of Interest, responders must be pre-qualified at the time this Announcement is made available. This project has its own “Official Pre-Qualified Consultant List” that indicates the responders that are eligible to submit for this specific project.

Submit five copies of the Letter of Interest to:

Minnesota Department of Transportation

Roberta Dwyer, Contract Administrator

Minnesota Department of Transportation

1123 Mesaba Ave.

Duluth, MN 55811

All responses must be received no later 2:00 p.m. Central Standard Time on Thursday, January 27, 2011, as time stamped by the receptionist in District One.

Questions

Pre-qualified prospective responders who have any questions regarding this request for Letter of Interest must submit questions by e-mail to:

Roberta Dwyer

All questions and answers will be posted on Mn/DOT’s Consultant Services Web Page at http://www.dot.state.mn.us/consult/index.html under the Professional/Technical Notices Section. All pre-qualified responders are responsible for checking the web page for any addendums to this Announcement and any questions that have been answered.

Questions regarding this Announcement must be received by Mn/DOT no later than 2:00 p.m. Central Standard Time on Monday, January 24, 2011.

Mn/DOT anticipates posting answers to all questions received by 2:00 p.m. Central Standard Time on Tuesday, January 25, 2011.

No other department personnel are allowed to discuss this Announcement, before the Letter of Interest submission deadline. Contact regarding this Announcement with any personnel not listed above could result in disqualification.

Late Letters of Interest will not be considered. Fax and e-mail responses will not be considered. Responses to this Announcement will be open for public review only in accordance with Minnesota Statutes §13.591.

Mn/DOT Not Obligated To Complete Project

This request for Letters of Interest does not obligate Mn/DOT to award a Contract or complete the project, and Mn/DOT reserves the right to cancel the solicitation if it is considered to be in its best interest.

Disposition of Responses

The Letter of Interest will become property of Mn/DOT and will become public record after the evaluation process is completed and the Contract is executed.

Organizational Conflicts of Interest

Responders must complete the attached “Conflict of Interest Checklist and Disclosure Form” and submit it along with the response.

Veteran-Owned Preference

In accordance with Minnesota Statutes §§16C.16 (subdivision 6a) and 16C.19, eligible certified veteran-owned small businesses will receive a 6 percent preference in the evaluation of their proposal.

To be eligible for the preference, a business must have its “principal place of business” in Minnesota and must be certified by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs as either a veteran-owned small business or a service-disabled veteran-owned small business. To claim the preference, the responder must complete the “Veteran-Owned Business Preference” form and submit it with its proposal. Only eligible, certified, veteran-owned/service disabled small businesses that provide the required documentation, per the form, will be given the preference.

Eligible veteran-owned and eligible service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses must be currently certified by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs prior to the solicitation opening date and time to receive the preference.

Information regarding certification by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs may be found at http://www.vetbiz.gov.

Early Retirement Incentive Reemployment Prohibition

Laws of Minnesota 2010, Chapter 337, Subdivision 5, provided an early retirement incentive to some State of Minnesota employees. The law provides that an individual who received an early retirement incentive payment may not be hired as a consultant by any agency or entity that participates in the State Employee Group Insurance Program for a period of three years after termination of service.By submitting a proposal under this RFP, the responder certifies that it will not utilize any former state employee in the performance of a contract who received an retirement incentive payment under Laws of Minnesota 2010, Chapter 337, unless three years have passed from the date of the employee’s separation from state service.

Letter of Interest Format

The Letter of Interest must follow the format below and must not exceed three, single-sided pages, with no smaller than 11 point font. If a responders Letter of Interest exceeds three pages, any pages following the third (regardless of what content those pages include) will be removed from the Letter of Interest (Note: the “Location of Service Disclosure and Certification Form”, the “Conflict of Interest Checklist and Disclosure Form” and the “Immigration Status Certification Form” will not be included as part of the three page limit and only one copy is required):

1.  Responder’s company name, business address, the contact person’s name, telephone number, fax number and e-mail address.

2.  Confirm that the responder, is pre-qualified for the above listed work type.

3.  List the key personnel that would be assigned to the project and an extensive history of their previous experience.

4.  Provide a statement that the proposed individuals will be available for work in Duluth up to 6 days a week from May– September 2011.

5.  Provide a statement that demonstrates responders understanding of project.

6.  Provide any other information, not included in the submitted Pre-Qualification Packet, which would be relevant to this project and assist Mn/DOT in making a selection.

7.  Submit all required forms.

8.  Provide the following statement and signature:

I hereby certify that I am a duly authorized representative of the Company and that the information contained within this Letter of Interest is current, true and correct to the best of my knowledge. I hereby authorize and request any person, agency or firm to furnish any pertinent information requested by the Minnesota Department of Transportation deemed necessary to verify the statements made in this application.

(Signature) (Title) (Date)

STATE OF MINNESOTA

LOCATION OF SERVICE DISCLOSURE AND CERTIFICATION

Check all that apply:

The services to be performed under the anticipated contract as specified in our Letter of Interest will be performed ENTIRELY within the State of Minnesota

The services to be performed under the anticipated contract as specified in our Letter of Interest entail work ENTIRELY within another state within the United States.

The services to be performed under the anticipated contract as specified in our Letter of Interest will be performed in part within Minnesota and in part within another state within the United States.

The services to be performed under the anticipated contract as specified in our Letter of Interest DO involve work outside the United States. Below (or attached) is a description of:

§  The identity of the company (identify if subcontractor) performing services outside the United States;

§  The location where services under the contract will be performed; and

§  The percentage of work (in dollars) as compared to the whole that will be conducted in each identified foreign location.

CERTIFICATION

By signing this statement, I certify that the information provided above is accurate and that the location where services have been indicated to be performed will not change during the course of the contract without prior, written approval from the State of Minnesota.