Questions Received as of , 2:30 pm and COMPASS Responses.

Transcription

1 Questions Received as of , 2:30 pm and COMPASS Responses. 1. Applicants expressed concern that the inclusion of a fee schedule in the responses would be used as a factor in the selection process. The fee schedule will not be used as a factor in the selection process. To provide additional confidence in the process, COMPASS has DELETED Item V e (Fee Schedule) from the submission requirements. Fee schedules will need to be provided by successful applicants, after the selection process is complete, for inclusion in the Professional Services Agreement, as described in Section VI. 2. How often has COMPASS engaged in Project Development in the past and who has COMPASS worked with in this capacity? To the best of our knowledge, COMPASS has not contracted for Project Development services in the past. 3. What types of work did COMPASS offer through on-call agreements in the past? How often were consultants engaged after entering on-call agreements? To the best of our knowledge, COMPASS has not awarded on-call agreements in the past.

2 Questions Received as of , 4:30 pm and COMPASS Responses. 1. The RFQ lists two separate deadlines and I want to verify which is correct. Is it April 29 (page 7) or April 30 (page 3 & Website)? The correct deadline is April 30, 1:00 pm. COMPASS has corrected the RFQ document and posted the updated version to its website. 2. My firm is interested in the RFQ, but we may not be able to complete all the elements listed in section IV.b. Could we still participate in the project? Applicants are expected to have the ability to deliver a complete report. If a potential applicant is unable to do so, that applicant would need to partner with another firm(s) in a contractor-sub-consultant structure such that, as a collective applicant team with a designated lead (the contractor), they could provide a complete report. Individual applicants unable to deliver a complete report will not be considered for a contract award.

3 Questions Received as of , 4:30 pm and COMPASS Responses. Yes. 1. Is COMPASS interested in receiving any questions in writing that may come up during the Pre-Submittal Conference meeting on the April 10 th? 2. Roadway Design could include a number of tasks, including pavement design, geometrics, traffic engineering, site geology, geotechnical engineering, ground penetration radar, bridge foundation or retaining wall design, and soils testing. Do you see a need to hire a company to address such tasks? Not directly. The desired product can be described by different organizations as a pre-concept report, 10% design, or project charter. 3. Can an applicant list more than one sub-consultant in its response that performs certain types of tasks; or will each potential sub-consultant have to lobby each applicant to be the sole provider of a certain type of service in the applicant s proposal? It is up to the responding applicant to structure its response in the manner it deems most effective; COMPASS neither recommends nor precludes inclusion of more than one potential sub-consultant for the same type of task. 4. Has COMPASS considered using the ITD Term Agreement list or requesting for a copy of a company s last ITD term agreement application with an addendum covering information COMPASS desires that is not included in the ITD Term Agreement? COMPASS has elected to use its own RFQ document and responses from interested applicants that are specific to the COMPASS RFQ. 5. What is COMPASS consultant budget for Project Development Program and how many projects does COMPASS anticipate in 2015, 2016, 2017? As stated in Section III of the RFQ, the COMPASS Board of Directors has approved $125,000 for FY2015 for this program; funds have not yet been allocated for the program in future years. The total number of projects funded will depend on the type of projects submitted for consideration by

4 COMPASS member agencies and proposed rates submitted by selected consultants. 6. COMPASS s scheduled three working days to review the 35 page applications seems a bit tight to review the many applications they are likely to receive. Thus, is COMPASS prepared to review many responses? Yes, COMPASS is prepared to review all of the responses it receives. 7. If an engineering firm performs work on a COMPASS project, will the engineering firm be precluded from proposing on the project after the project moves beyond the Project Development Program? COMPASS is doing only project development. If any of the projects proceed beyond that, the bidding process will be handled by the member agency and COMPASS does not anticipate being directly involved. 8. Some of the contract language in the sample contract provided may not be insurable or is not standard in the engineering industry. The American Council of Engineering Companies of Idaho (ACEC Idaho) has worked with ITD and several government agencies to standardize the contract language to significantly reduce the contract negotiation time required. Is COMPASS interested in doing something similar? For example, Item 5.1. ii: The insurance types and amounts differ from ITD. Comment: The Umbrella policy shown in the sample contract is different than required by ITD and other government agencies. Many of the midsized and small engineering firms will need to purchase this insurance if it is required. Item 5.2 CONTRACTOR agrees to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless COMPASS...claims... Comment: As written, this item is not covered by the typical engineering professional liability policy. Our industry typically uses different wording to achieve your goal. Item 7.3 Investigation and Analysis: CONTRACTOR shall investigate and gather any and all information necessary for a thorough understanding and successful and professional completion of the Project. Comment: COMPASS will pay a premium by using this wording. Engineering is done in accordance with the standard of care being the care and skill ordinarily practiced under similar circumstances by design professionals providing similar services. Moreover, doing better than the standard of care may be difficult to perform for preliminary projects; especially, when the work will be turned over to others after the Project Development Program.

5 Item 8.4 Warranty. Comment: For preliminary engineering good are not provided (devises of communication such as drawings and reports, yes, goods no). Typically, engineers warranty their work meets the standard of care of engineering in Treasure Valley. At this time, COMPASS does not anticipate adopting the standardized contract language used by ITD. However, COMPASS appreciates the feedback on its contract language, will evaluate the proposed modifications and post an updated sample contract if appropriate. 9. American Council of Engineering Companies-Idaho (ACEC) consists of engineering firms and affiliates you have probably contacted with your RFQ. ACEC currently has liaison committee s with ITD, ACHD, City of Boise, LHTAC, etc. to assist these agencies in defining a general contracts and to develop standard work products, etc. These ACEC committees meet as much as quarterly with ITD, LHTAC, etc. as desired. Would COMPASS be interested in doing this as well? This question is outside the scope of the RFQ and as such, will not be addressed as part of this response.