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Publications iconKansas Register

Volume 41 - Issue 30 - July 28, 2022

State of Kansas

Department of Transportation

Notice to Consulting Firms

The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) is seeking a qualified consulting firm or team of firms to perform professional services for the projects described below. Interested consultants must email a proposal to KDOT.DesignContracts@ks.gov by 12:00 p.m. (CDT) August 10, 2022, to be considered for selection.

Consultant Prequalification

Interested consulting firms must be prequalified by KDOT or otherwise demonstrate qualification in category 322 Bridge Inspection.

If a firm is not currently prequalified by KDOT, a proposal may still be submitted. Firms not prequalified must also provide documentation that demonstrates the firm is qualified for each specified category listed in this notice for the project. Firms must use the KDOT prequalification form to provide this documentation. KDOT 1050 Prequalification Category Definitions (Blue Book) can be found at http://www.ksdot.org/descons.asp. Consultants may create a team to meet the prequalification requirements. All firms doing business with KDOT must be registered and in good standing under the laws of the State of Kansas at the time of contracting and must comply with applicable state and federal laws, rules, and regulations.

Background and Scope of Project

The Kansas Department of Transportation is seeking a consultant to provide statewide bridge inspection services consisting of required Fracture Critical Member inspections and ultrasonic inspections of Pin and Hanger connections, all on the local system, starting with the inspections due in 2023 (work associated with these projects may begin in 2022). Due to the unique nature of these inspections, as well as the need at times to use specialized access equipment, these independent programs are offered by KDOT to the local bridge owners as a method to economically share the costs of equipment and for the economic benefits of bundling inspections. As such, KDOT intents to select one (1) prime service provider for both programs.

Inspections are to be performed in accordance with the latest published edition of the KDOT Bureau of Local Projects Local Bridge Inspection Manual, Local Fracture Critical Member Inspection Scope of Services; and the Local Pin and Hanger Inspection Scope of Services (available at https://kart.ksdot.org).

Table 1: Project Summary
Project Number Scope Location and Typical Structure Age
C-4864-03 Ultrasonic inspections of Pin and Hanger connections Statewide;
1980’s structures
KA-4089-03 Fracture Critical Member bridge inspection Statewide;
Early 2000’s structures

Anticipated Consultant Scope

KDOT anticipates the following to be included in the consultant’s scope:

  • Provide an estimate of cost for work to be performed each year to be approved prior to commencing inspections (NOT with response to this Request for Proposals). Information including historical participation and locations can be requested via email to KDOT.DesignContracts@ks.gov, no later than the question deadline listed below.
  • Note: These files are potentially useful for conceptual planning efforts during proposal development but should not be considered final documents.
  • Inspect Pin and Hanger connections on local system bridges. Pin and Hanger inspections are required on 12-, 24-, or 48-month cycles (dependent on several variables). KDOT anticipates eight (8) on 12-month interval; seven (7) on 24-month interval; and twenty-one (21) on 48-month interval over the life of this agreement.
  • Provide Fracture Critical Member inspections on bridges requested by individual owners to KDOT-Bureau of Local Projects. Fracture Critical Member inspections are required on 1- or 2-year cycles. KDOT anticipates about 40-50 annually over the life of this agreement.
  • Provide a final cost-per-bridge for each inspection performed at the end of each program year.
  • Input inspection data into the KDOT-BLP Bridge Inspection Portal.
  • Provide PDFs of the Draft Inspection Reports to the KDOT Program Manager for review and approval.
  • Upload PDFs of the Final Inspection Reports into the Bridge Inspection Portal and provide them to the KDOT Program Manager for distribution to the bridge owners.

Anticipated Schedule and Key Dates

  1. Proposals are due by or before 12:00 p.m. (CDT) August 10, 2022
  2. An executed agreement is anticipated on or before October 1, 2022
  3. The program fiscal years for this project are FY23 to FY27

Instructions for Proposal

  1. No cost or pricing information shall be submitted with the proposal. Proposals including cost or pricing information will be considered non-responsive and withdrawn from further consideration.
  2. The consultant’s proposal must not exceed 4 pages total (including any cover letter, index, etc.). All pages shall be standard letter size (8.5” x 11”). Any page larger than standard letter size will be counted as two or more pages depending on size.
  3. A single PDF (2MB maximum size) of the proposal including all attachments must be emailed to KDOT.DesignContracts@ks.gov by the proposal due date and time.
  4. The subject line of the email and the PDF file name must read:
    1. “C-4864-03_KA-4089-03–PH_FCM BR Insp 23-27_FIRM NAME”
  5. The proposal must be accompanied by Special Attachments No. 8 (“Tax Clearance Certificate”) and No. 10 (“Policy Regarding Sexual Harassment”). If you need a Tax Clearance Certificate, you can request one at https://www.ksrevenue.gov/taxclearance.html. Allow 2-3 business days for processing. Both attachments are required for every firm involved in a multi-consultant team.
  6. The outline in Table 2 below describes the expected proposal organization and content sections.
  7. Table 3 lists the evaluation criteria and associated weights which will be used to make a selection.

Table 2: Proposal Content
Section Description of Intent
Cover Letter 1 page
Project Approach Demonstrate a unique approach to execute the inspection effort efficiently and to a high standard. Include cost-effective and optimized solutions to accomplish the anticipated efforts. Include unique qualifications or experience related to the project approach.
Approach to Schedule Describe the approach to accomplish the scope of services within the schedule requirements. Include anticipated key milestone dates and availability of staff.
Approach to Quality Control Describe methods or procedures your firm will use to provide all services with professional quality and technical accuracy.
Qualifications and Experience For key personnel to be assigned to the project provide names, office location, qualifications, education, training, and expertise. Identify their area(s) of responsibility and percent of their time dedicated to the project. List work for which you do not have in-house capability and name the firm(s) with which you propose to subcontract.
Past Performance Describe team’s past performance with respect to ability to meet project schedules; quality of work; and ability to control costs on similar transportation projects, especially those performed for KDOT. Include three references and contact information.
Familiarity with KDOT and Project Area Describe team’s familiarity with KDOT’s design process and standards. Describe familiarity with the project area and any anticipated special site conditions.

Table 3: Evaluation Factors
Evaluation Factor Weight
Qualifications and experience of project manager and other key project team members proposed for services 25%
Past performance history for similar projects/services for KDOT 15%
Demonstrated understanding of nature and scope of project 20%
The quality and completeness of the response 15%
Project approach 10%
Unique qualifications 10%
Approach and commitment to meet advertised schedule 5%

Contract Terms and Conditions

KDOT anticipates establishing a year-by-year program agreement for engineering and technical services for the scope described above. The following special attachments will need to be provided by the selected consultant and all subconsultants with the signed work order following negotiations and will become attachments to the contract.

  • Special Attachment No. 8 (“Tax Clearance Certificate”)
  • Special Attachment No. 10 (“Policy Regarding Sexual Harassment”)

Special Contract Conditions

One consultant will be selected and can bring a subconsultant(s) if they choose. An agreement will be negotiated with the selected firm. KDOT intends for this agreement to have a 4-year term with work orders being initiated annually to cover the work required for each type of inspection in that year.

Questions

All questions regarding this Request for Proposals shall be emailed to KDOT.DesignContracts@ks.gov.

Questions can be submitted until July 28, 2022; answers will be provided to all prequalified consultants on August 3, 2022.

Marcia Turner, P.E., Contracts Manager
Division of Engineering and Design

Doc. No. 050353