Request for Qualifications (RFQ)
General Wastewater Engineering Services
For the Fort Fairfield Utilities District
Issued: July 29, 2024
Qualifications statement proposals may be emailed to General Manager, Jonathan Helstrom, ff.utilities@outlook.com, in PDF form, marked "RFQ-General Engineering Services for Wastewater Collection, Conveyance and Treatment", until 2:00 p.m. on August 16, 2024. Any late proposals will not be accepted.
Background
In order to comply with 2 CFR 200, the District is soliciting qualification statement proposals for general wastewater engineering services related to projects which may be funded with local, state, and/or federal sources. The selected firm will work on a variety of projects related to wastewater collection, conveyance, and treatment as needed and directed by the District. Assignments under this contract could have duration periods of a few days to multi-year assignments depending on the services requested by the District and needs of a specific project.
Scope of Work
The successful firm will be able to provide engineering services including but not limited to the following:
- Engineering of wastewater collection, conveyance and treatment including the conceptual design, preliminary design, final design, environmental review, permitting, construction cost estimating, bidding, bid award, construction support and post-construction services.
- Services relating to identification, development, and preparation of federal, state, local, and private grant applications to fund work, and then implemented work funded under those grants, including grants originating with, but not limited to DECD CDBG, NBRC, CDS, CWSRF, ARPA, USDA RD, etc.
- Engineering peer review of plans and documents prepared under contract to the District, or other parties, for various public infrastructure improvement projects.
- Financial rate studies.
- Asset management, condition assessment, planning, design, permitting, and estimating probable construction costs; bid document preparation, bidding assistance, construction management, oversight and inspection (either full-time or part-time as necessary); as-built and operation and maintenance plan preparation for various public infrastructure improvement projects.
- Services to investigate and quantify existing conditions of various public infrastructure, including the preparation of engineering surveys or record plans and preparation of reports to summarize investigations.
Required Submittal
Proposals shall include the following and shall be organized using each of the below elements as section headings:
- Firm Description: Provide a brief description of the firm including firm size and area of specialization, location of nearby office(s) proposed to manage District projects. Firms must have an office with a business address located in Maine.
- Experience: Provide project information on key wastewater and related projects in Maine and with the Fort Fairfield Utilities District. Describe your knowledge of the District and its facilities as they relate to the categories of work above.
- Project Team: Provide names and resumes of key professionals who would be working closely with the District. Each team member's education and experience shall be listed. The primary contact shall be clearly identified, and a description of their relevant previous projects listed. A list of past relevant projects, which proposed staff have played a leading role in developing, shall also be provided.
- Five project references, including client contact name, email and phone number.
*Proposals are limited to ten pages single sided, not including resumes, section dividers and cover letter. Proposals shall not include any mention of price. A PDF of the full submittal package shall be submitted via email to Jonathan Helstrom, ff.utilities@outlook.com
Selection Process
The District will evaluate each proposal individually and in the context of all other proposals. Proposals must be fully responsive to the requirements described in the RFQ, and to any subsequent requests for clarification or additional information made by the District. Proposals must comply with and are subject to all provisions of applicable federal, state, and local laws. Proposals failing to comply with the submission requirements or those unresponsive to any part of this solicitation may be disqualified. Proposals will be evaluated according to the following and their relative importance:
- Responsiveness to submission requirements (10 pts.)
- Firms experience with wastewater projects of comparable size and complexity (25 pts.)
- Qualifications of firm and key team members who will be in close communication with the District (25 pts.)
- Familiarity with Fort Fairfield Utilities District wastewater facilities (30 pts.)
- References (10 pts.)
The District, at its discretion, may select a firm outright or select a finalist(s) for in-person and/or telephone interviews.
The District reserves the right to reject any or all proposals, to waive technical or legal deficiencies, and to accept any proposal that it may deem to be in the best interest of the District.