RFQ 0919 Engineering Services

1 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects FAIRFIELD COUNTY Procurement Office 250 N. Walnut St., Winnsboro, SC 29180 Phone 803-635-1415 Fax 803-635-5969 Cathy Washington, Director of Procurement REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR ARCHITECT, ENGINEER & CONSULTANT SERVICES FOR SMALL CONSTRUCTION/MAINTENANCE PROJECTS RFQ: 0919 Engineer Services DATE: August 25, 2023 DUE DATE/TIME: September 19 , 2023 at 11:00AM EST RFP SUBMISSION: One (1) original, three (3) copies, and one (1) digital copy Cathy Washington Fairfield County Administration Building, Conference Room, 2nd Floor 250 N. Walnut St., Winnsboro, SC 29180 MAILING ADDRESS: Fairfield County Procurement Office P.O. Drawer 60 Winnsboro, SC 29180 CONTACT: Questions must be in writing and received by 2:00 P.M., September 12, 2023 Email Address: cathy.washington@fairfield.sc.gov Fairfield County is soliciting firms to submit proposals with the requirements of

this solicitation which are contained herein. All prospective offerors are encouraged to attend. In order for your proposal to be considered, it must be submitted to the Purchasing Office no later than the date and time as listed above, at which time respondents to this request will be recorded in the presence of one or more witnesses. Statements received by the Purchasing Office after the time specified will be returned to the offeror unopened. The statements must be signed by an official authorized to bind the Offeror, and shall contain a statement to the effect that the proposal is firm for a period of at least 90 days from the closing date for submission of proposals. Proposals must be submitted in a sealed opaque envelope/container showing the above proposal number, opening date, and title. mailto:cathy.washington@fairfield.sc.gov 2 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS Request for Qualifications for Architect, Engineer and Consultant Services for Small Construction Projects Fairfield County is soliciting request for qualifications for architects, engineers and consultants interested in providing professional services in connection with small construction projects. Total professional fees for these types of projects will be Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000) or less. Individuals and firms properly registered in the State of South Carolina are encouraged to submit their qualifications for consideration. All submittals (see Part VI, Submission Requirements), received in response to this Request for Qualifications will be reviewed by a County Evaluation Committee. Those individuals and firms deemed to be properly qualified will be placed on a listing for future project design or consulting opportunities. This solicitation does not commit Fairfield County to award any contracts, to pay any costs incurred in the preparation of a response to this Request for Qualifications, or to contract for any services. The County reserves the right to reject any or all submittals received as a result of this solicitation, or to cancel in part or in its entirety this Request for Qualifications, if it is in the best interest of the County to do so. This Request for Qualifications a r e d u e S e p t e m b e r 1 9 , 2 0 2 3 a t 1 1 : 0 0 a m E S T . Those qualified/accepted will have to update their W-9’s and COI’s for each submittal. Once qualified, the qualification is good for three years from the date that they are notified and may be renew if in good standing. 3 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects PART I GENERAL INFORMATION 1. All responses to this Request For Qualifications will be considered as specified herein or attached hereto under the terms and conditions of this Request For Qualifications. 2. Submittals must be made in the official name of the firm or individual under which business is conducted (showing official business address) and must be signed in ink by a person duly authorized to legally bind the person, partnership, company, or corporation submitting the response to this Request For Qualifications. 3. Offerors are to include all applicable requested information and are encouraged to include any additional information they wish to be considered. 4. One clearly identified original must be electronically submitted to the P r o c u r e m e n t D e p a r t m e n t . The qualification statements/proposals must be signed by an official authorized to bind the Offeror, and it shall contain a statement to the effect that the proposal is firm for a period of at least 90 days from the closing date for submission of qualification statements/proposals. In order to do business with the Fairfield County, vendors must s u b m i t v e n d o r i n f o r m a t i o n f o r m w i t h y o u r q u a l i f i c a t i o n s t a t e m e n t s . The County may reject any quotes, bids, proposals and qualifications submitted by businesses that are not registered. Registering also allows businesses to identify the type of goods and services they provide so that they may receive email notifications regarding relevant solicitations out for bid. 5. Questions: Email any questions you may have to Ca th y W ash in gt on , Di r ec to r o f P rocur emen t , a t ca t h y. wash in gton@ fa i r f i e ld . s c . gov . 6. Any Qualifications Statements received after the scheduled deadline will be immediately disqualified and returned to the submitting contractor. Qualification statements should be limited to 30 pages (do not count tabs or table of content). PART II BACKGROUND a. Purpose: Fairfield County, hereinafter referred to as the “County”, is requesting qualification submittals from individuals or firms interested in providing architectural, engineering, or consultant services for small construction projects where the estimated professional fees are expected not-to-exceed Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000) per project. Individuals or firms must be properly registered to provide these services in the State of South Carolina. All submittals will be reviewed by a County Evaluation Committee and those deemed qualified will be placed on a listing arranged according to discipline or area of expertise mailto:cathy.washington@fairfield.sc.gov 4 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects for future project consideration. Fairfield County strongly encourages the participation of local, small and minority businesses in its procurement activities. b. Types of Projects: The County is responsible for providing a wide variety of public facilities and services. Projects envisioned under this Request For Qualifications range from new construction to facility renovations and are funded under the County’s Capital Improvement Program. Previous experience providing design or consulting services for public projects is required. c. Professional Disciplines and Areas of Expertise: The County desires to receive qualification submittals from individuals or firms capable of providing professional services in one or more of the following areas: - Architectural & Facility Planning - Interior Design & Space Planning - Civil Engineering - Mechanical Engineering - Electrical Engineering - Plumbing/Fire Protection Engineering - Structural Engineering - Landscape Architecture/Planners - Land Surveyors - Asbestos Abatement/Hazardous Materials Consulting - Environmental/Indoor Air Quality Consulting - Soils & Geologic Consulting - Design/Build PART III SCOPE OF WORK 1. Anticipated Services: The type of services required will depend upon the nature of each specific project. Services needed may include any or all of the following: - Schematic design to include functional and space programming - Design development to include project presentations - Project cost estimating - Assistance in obtaining required permits - Preparation of construction documents, plans and specifications with professional seals and signatures - Coordination and approval of utility connection designs with local utility providers - Assistance with the preparation of bid packages and contract documents - Assistance with bid evaluation and contract award recommendations - Providing contract administration support during construction activities - Conducting substantial completion inspections and project closeout - Providing Design/build capability, turn-key 2. Project Selection Criteria: From the established listing, an individual or firm will be chosen 5 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects for a specific project based upon, but not limited to: - The nature of the project - Their respective qualifications and demonstrated competence - Their capability to produce the required service within a reasonable time - Past performance - Ability to meet project budget requirements - Proximity of the professional service provider to the project must score at least 75 points for consideration 3. Term of Qualification: If your company is selected as a contractor, your qualifications are good for an annual term. It is the County's intent to update and review the qualifications of the listing annually. At the discretion of Fairfield County, contractors may be added and deleted from the qualification list. 4. Pre-Qualification Selection Criteria: Contractors selected for participation on the County's qualified contractor’s listing will be based on the following evaluation factors: a. Past performance and related experience in the contractors field of expertise (0-10 points) b. Ability of personnel and company size (0-10 points). c. Contractor's location (within 60 miles of Fairfield County) (0-20 points). d. Recent, current, and projected workloads of the contractor (0-10 points.) e. Minimum of five (5) years’ experience as a licensed contractor in the field that the contractor will be performing the service. Contractor must show proof of experience (0- 20 points). f. Ability to perform the work or service in a timely manner (0-20 points). g. Provides current proof of contractor’s license and the ability to meet the required insurance requirements (0-10 points). h. Total maximum score is 100 points. 5. The County's intent is to qualify as many contractors as possible who meet the qualification requirements in order to promote competition between contractors for each project. At a minimum, Contractors must receive a minimum score of 75 points from the criteria above. When awarding a contract to a pre-qualified contractor, the County will follow the small purchasing policies and procedures for goods and services under $50,000. Offerors desiring to be pre-qualified must provide all the information requested in this RFQ. A submission that is incomplete, unsigned, or does not contain the required supplemental material may result in disqualification of the Offeror or sub-contractor Offeror. PART IV CONTRACTUAL REQUIREMENTS 1. PROJECT CONTRACTS: Contracts will be negotiated separately for each project on a “firm fixed fee” basis. The County’s standard contract for architect, engineer and consultant services for small construction projects will be used. The contract will include a detailed 6 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects scope and schedule for providing the professional services. 2. S.C. LAW CLAUSE: Upon award of a contract under this bid, the person, partnership, association, or corporation to whom the award is made must comply with the laws of South Carolina which require such person or entity to be authorized and/or licensed to do business in this State. Notwithstanding the fact that applicable statutes may exempt or exclude the successful bidder from requirements that it be authorized and/or licensed to do business in this State, by submission of this signed bid, the bidder agrees to subject itself to the jurisdiction and process of the courts of the State of South Carolina as to all matters and disputes arising or to arise under the contract and the performance thereof, including any questions as to the liability for taxes, licenses, or fees levied by the State. 3. OFFEROR’S QUALIFICATIONS: Offeror must furnish satisfactory evidence of their ability to furnish projects or services in accordance with the terms and conditions of this Request for Qualifications. The Di rec to r of Procurement reserves the right to make the final determination as to the offeror’s ability to provide the services requested herein before entering into any contract. 4. OFFEROR RESPONSIBILITY: Each offeror shall fully acquaint himself with conditions relating to the scope and restrictions attending the execution of the work under the conditions of this Request for Qualifications. It is expected that this will sometimes require on-site observation. The failure or omission of an offeror to acquaint himself with existing conditions shall in no way relieve him of any obligation with respect to this Request for Qualifications or to the contract. 5. AFFIRMATIVE ACTION: The offeror will take affirmative action in complying with all Federal and State requirements concerning fair employment and employment of the handicapped and concerning the treatment of all employees, without regard or discrimination by reason of race, religion, sex, national origin, or physical handicap. 6. PRIME VENDOR RESPONSIBILITIES: The offeror will be required to assume sole responsibility for the complete effort as required by this Request for Qualifications. The County will consider the offeror the sole point of contact with regard to contractual matters. 7. SUBCONTRACTING: If any part of the work covered by this Request for Qualifications is to be subcontracted, the offeror shall identify the subcontracting organization and the contractual arrangements made with same. All subcontractors must be approved by the County, or when applicable, a political subdivision within the County with the County’s concurrence. The successful offeror will also furnish the corporate or company name and the names of the officers of any subcontractor engaged by the vendor. The County reserves the right to reject any or all subcontractors and require substitution of a firm qualified to participate in the work as specified herein. 8. OWNERSHIP OF MATERIAL: Ownership of all data, material and documentation originated and prepared for the County pursuant to any contract shall belong exclusively to the County. 9. ADDITIONAL ELIGIBILITY: Other Fairfield County Public Procurement units shall, at their 7 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects option, be eligible for use of any contracts awarded pursuant to this Invitation. 10. INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS: Prior to commencing work hereunder, Contractor, at its expense, shall furnish insurance certificate showing the certificate holder as Fairfield County Council, P.O. Drawer 60, Winnsboro, SC 29180, Attention: Director of Procurement and with a special notation naming Fairfield County Council as an Additional Insured on the general liability coverages. If not otherwise specified, the minimum coverage shall be as follows: Workers’ Compensation Insurance - Contractor shall have and maintain, during the life of this contract, Worker’s Compensation Insurance for its employees connected to the work/delivery, in accordance with the Statutes of the State of South Carolina and any applicable laws. Commercial General Liability Insurance - Contractor shall have and maintain, during the life of this contract, Commercial General Liability Insurance. Said Commercial General Liability Policy shall contain Contractual Liability and Products/Completed Operations Liability subject to the following minimum limits: BODILY INJURY of at least $1,000,000 PER PERSON, $1,000,000 PER OCCURRENCE; PROPERTY DAMAGE of at least $1,000,000 PER OCCURRENCE; or BODILY INJURY/PROPERTY DAMAGE of at least $1,000,000 COMBINED SINGLE LIMIT. Comprehensive Automobile Liability Insurance - The Contractor shall have and maintain, during the life of this contract, Comprehensive Automobile Liability, including non-owned and hired vehicle, of at least $1,000,000 PER PERSON, $1,000,000 PER OCCURRENCE; PROPERTY DAMAGE of at least $1,000,000 PER OCCURRENCE, or BODILY INJURY/PROPERTY DAMAGE of at least $1,000,000 COMBINED SINGLE LIMIT. The required insurance policy at the time of issue must be written by a company licensed to do business in the State of South Carolina and be acceptable to the County. The Contractor shall not cause any insurance to be canceled or permit any insurance to lapse. If any of the policies required hereunder shall be canceled or non-renewed, it shall be replaced with no coverage gap and a current certificate of insurance will be provided immediately thereafter. Certificates of Insurance shall contain transcript from the proper office of the insurer, the location, and the operations to which the insurance applies, and the expiration date. The information described above sets forth minimum amounts and coverages and is not to be construed in any way as a limitation on the Contractor’s liability. 11. INDEMNITY: The Offeror hereby agrees to indemnify and save harmless the County, its officers, agents, and employees from and against any and all liability, claims, demands, damages, fines, fees, expenses, penalties, suits, proceedings, actions and cost of actions, including attorney’s fees for trial and on appeal of any kind and nature arising or growing out of or in any way connected with the performance of the Agreement, whether by act of omissions of the 8 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects Offeror, its agents, servants, employees or others, or because of or due to the mere existence of the Agreement between the parties. 12. TERMINATION: Subject to the provisions below, the contract may be terminated by the Director of Procurement providing a thirty (30) day advance notice in writing is given to the Contractor. a. Termination for Convenience. In the event that this contract is terminated or cancelled upon request and for the convenience of the County without the required thirty (30) day advance notice, then the County shall negotiate reasonable termination costs, if applicable. b. Termination for Cause. Termination by the County for cause, default or negligence on the part of the Contractor shall be excluded from the foregoing provisions; termination costs, if any, shall not apply. The thirty (30) day advance notice requirement is waived and the default provision in this bid shall apply. 13. DEFAULT: In case of default, the County reserves the right to purchase any or all items in open market, charging the Contractor with any excessive costs. Should such charges be assessed, no subsequent bids of the defaulting contractor shall be considered until the assessed charge has been satisfied. 14. CERTIFICATION REGARDING DEBARMENT, SUSPENSION, INELIGIBILITY, AND VOLUNTARY EXCLUSION: The contractor certifies, by submission of this qualification statement or acceptance of a contract, that neither it nor its principals is presently debarred, suspended, proposed for debarment, declared ineligible, or voluntarily excluded from participation in this transaction by any State, Federal department, or agency. It further agrees by submitting this qualification statement that it will include this clause without modification in all lower tier transactions, solicitations, proposals, contracts, and subcontracts. Where the bidder/contractor or any lower tier participant is unable to certify to this statement, it shall attach an explanation to this solicitation/bid. State whether or not your company has been involved in any litigation within the past five (5) years arising out of your performance. Circle Yes or No. If you answer yes, explain fully if it has been involved in any litigation involving performance in your Letter of Transmittal to be submitted with your application. 9 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects PART V SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS 1. INTENT TO PERFORM: It is the intent and purpose of Fairfield County that this request permits competition. It shall be the offeror’s responsibility to advise the Purchasing Department if any language, requirements, etc., or any combinations thereof inadvertently restricts or limits the requirements stated in this RFQ to a single source. Such notification must be submitted in writing and must be received by the Purchasing Department not later than ten (10) days prior to the Request For Qualifications opening date. A review of such notifications will be made. 2. PREPARATION OF REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS: 2.1 All Request For Qualifications submittals should be complete and carefully worded and must convey all of the information requested by the County. If significant errors are found in the offeror’s Request For Qualifications submittal, or if it fails to conform to the essential requirements of the Request For Qualifications, the County and the County alone will be the judge as to whether that variance is significant enough to reject the Request For Qualifications submission. 2.2 Request For Qualifications submissions should be prepared simply and economically, providing a straightforward, concise description of offeror’s capabilities to satisfy the requirements of the Request For Qualifications. Emphasis should be on completeness and clarity of content. 2.3 If your Request For Qualifications submission includes any comment over and above the specific information requested in our Request For Qualifications, you are to include this information as a separate appendix to your Request For Qualifications. 3. AMENDMENTS: If it becomes necessary to revise any part of the Request For Qualifications, an amendment will be provided to all offerors who received the original Request For Qualifications. The County shall not be legally bound by an amendment or interpretation that is not in writing. 4. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Offerors requiring additional information may submit their questions in writing to the Director of Procurement. Answers to questions received that should change and/or clarify this solicitation will be provided in writing to all offerors via an amendment. 5. ORAL PRESENTATION/DISCUSSIONS: Any offeror or all offerors may be requested to make an oral presentation of their Request For Qualifications submission to the County after the Request For Qualifications opening. Discussions may be conducted with responsible offerors, who are determined to be reasonably susceptible of being selected 10 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects for award for the purpose of clarification to assure full understanding of and responsiveness to the solicitation requirement. Offerors shall be accorded fair and equal treatment with respect to any opportunity for discussions and revision of Request For Qualifications submittals, and such revisions may be permitted after submissions and prior to award, for the purpose of obtaining best and final offers. The purpose of these presentations/discussions will be to: a. Determine in greater detail such offeror’s qualifications. b. Explore with the offeror the scope and nature of the project, the offeror’s proposed method of performance, and the relative utility of alternative methods of approach. c. Determine that the offeror will make available the necessary personnel and facilities to perform within the required time. d. Agree upon fair and reasonable compensation, taking into account the estimated value of the required services/equipment, the scope and complexity of proposed project, and nature of such services/equipment. 6. FUNDING: The offeror shall agree that funds expended for the purposes of any contact must be appropriated by the County Council for each fiscal year included within the contract period. Therefore, the contract shall automatically terminate without penalty or termination costs if such funds are not appropriated. In the event that funds are not appropriated for the contract, the offeror shall not prohibit or otherwise limit the County’s right to pursue and contract for alternate solutions and remedies, as deemed necessary by the County for the conduct of its affairs. The requirements stated in this paragraph shall apply to any amendment or the execution of any option to extend the contract. 7. AWARD: Any contract awarded as a result of this request shall be awarded to the offeror whose qualifications are determined to be most advantageous to the County, taking into consideration price and the evaluation factors set forth herein; however, the right is reserved to reject any and all Request For Qualifications submittals received, and in all cases the County will be the sole judge as to whether an offeror’s Request For Qualifications submission has or has not satisfactorily met the requirements of this RFQ. 8. PUBLIC ACCESS TO PROCUREMENT INFORMATION: Commercial or financial information obtained in response to this RFQ, which is privileged and confidential, will not be disclosed. Such privileged and confidential information includes information which, if disclosed, might cause harm to the competitive position of the offeror supplying the information. All offerors, therefore, must visibly mark as “Confidential” each part of their Request For Qualifications submittal, which they consider to contain proprietary information. 9. DEVIATIONS: Any deviations from the requirements of this RFQ must be listed separately and identified as such in the table of contents. 10. GRATUITIES: It shall be unethical for any person to offer, or give, or agree to give 11 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects any County employee or former County employee; or for any County employee or former County employee to solicit, demand, accept, or agree to accept from another person a gratuity or an offer of employment in connection with any decision, approval, disapproval, recommendation, or preparation of any part of a program requirement or a purchase request, influencing the content of any specification or procurement standard, rendering of advice, investigation, auditing, or in any other advisory capacity in any proceeding or application, request for ruling, determination, claim or controversy, or other particular matter pertaining to any program requirement, or a contract or subcontract, or to any solicitation or Request For Qualifications therefore. 11. KICKBACKS: It shall be unethical for any payment, gratuity, or offer of employment to be made by or on behalf of a subcontractor under a contract to the prime vendor or higher tier subcontractor, or any person associated therewith, as an inducement for the award of a subcontractor order. PART VI SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS To enable a uniform review process, information required to be furnished in response to this Request For Qualifications must be organized in the following manner: 1. Letter of Transmittal - limit to five printed pages. 1.1 Identify the disciplines or areas of expertise for which you wish to be considered for future project work. Include all applicable South Carolina professional registrations. 1.2 Briefly state your firm’s ability to provide the required services in a timely manner. 1.3 Briefly describe any unique qualifications of your firm. 1.4 Give the names of the persons who will be authorized to make representations for your firm, their titles, addresses, email addresses and telephone numbers. 1.5 State whether or not your firm has been involved in any litigation within the past five (5) years arising out of your performance. Explain fully if it has been involved in any litigation. 1.6 Indicate the number and dates of any amendments that you have received. 2. Provide a fully completed and signed Federal Standard Forms (SF) 330. Project experience should emphasize work done in the public sector. 3. List any exceptions to this Request For Qualifications. 12 RFQ 0919 Engineering Services for Small Projects RFQ SUBMITTAL ADDRESS: Address to: Cathy Washington Director of Procurement Fairfield County Purchasing PO Drawer 60 Winnsboro, SC 29180 Email: cathy.washington@fairfield.sc.gov Phone: 803-635-1415 Physical address: Cathy Washington Director of Procurement Fairfield County Purchasing 250 N. Walnut Street Winnsboro, SC 29180 mailto:cathy.washington@fairfield.sc.gov