Volume 41 - Issue 40 - October 6, 2022

State of Kansas

Department of Transportation

Notice to Consulting Firms

The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) is seeking a number of qualified consulting firms or teams of firms to perform professional services as described below. Interested consultants must email a proposal to KDOT.DesignContracts@ks.gov by 12:00 p.m. (CDT) October 26, 2022, to be considered for selection.

Consultant Prequalification

Interested consulting firms must be prequalified by KDOT and demonstrate qualification in one or both of the draft category descriptions in Exhibit A for Pavement Design and Pavement Coring. Firm response will need to indicate and show qualification of each category.

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 Pavement Design Services

This scope of services is for a consultant to enter into an agreement with KDOT to perform pavement designs and write Reports of Pavement Investigation on KDOT projects.

Anticipated Consultant Scope of Pavement Design Services

Perform pavement designs and Write Reports of Pavement Investigation

The consultant is required to complete the following tasks in performing a pavement design and writing a pavement report:

• Gather preliminary information from KDOT.
• Perform pavement investigation using AASHTO 1993 pavement design software or spreadsheet.
• Perform preliminary surfacing recommendations.
• Prepare District Comments memo containing preliminary surfacing recommendations and send to the appropriate district.
• Prepare final surfacing report incorporating comments received from the district.
• Send report to Surfacing Selection Committee.
• Set up Surfacing Selection Committee meeting to select project surfacing.
• Obtain approval of selection from Deputy Secretary/State Transportation Engineer.
• Send results of selection to concrete and asphalt industries.

Background and Scope of Coring Pavement

Pavement Core Sampling. This scope of services is for a consultant to enter into an agreement with KDOT to perform a pavement investigation by obtaining existing pavement cores on KDOT projects.

Anticipated Consultant Scope of Coring Pavement

The consultant is required to have the following equipment at a minimum to successfully perform the required tasks:

• Appropriate PPE equipment (e.g. vest, boots).
• Distance Measurement Instrument (DMI) or equivalent.
• Milwaukee Core Drill or SIMCO Hydraulic Core Drill (Trailer Mounted) or equivalent.
• Dynamic Cone Penetrometer (DCP).
• Measuring wheel.
• Tape measures.
• Tamper (manual hammer to compact Cold HMA mix).
• Shovels.
• Plastic bucket for cold HMA mix.
• Large core bags to place cores in after being cut.
• Tags to label cores after removal from core hole.
• Plastic twist ties to close bags.
• Hoses to hook up water source to core drill.
• Shop vacuum (remove water from core hole).
• PermaPatch or patching material to backfill core holes.
• XX Gauge wire or other tools to assist in removing core from hole (if necessary).
• Minimum of four to six 4¼” diameter x 36” length core barrels.
• Water truck that holds a minimum of 800 gallons or more.
• Digital camera and video camera.

The core drill will need water to run properly. The consultant can fill up the water tank for the core drill at the nearest KDOT Sub-Area shop prior to beginning the coring operation.

Core Locations

The first task is to develop a core location spreadsheet. At a minimum, the core location spreadsheet should contain the following information:

• Core Number
• County reference post (Milepost).
• State reference post (Milepost).
• Direction (e.g. NB, SB, WB, or EB).
• Distance from existing centerline of lanes in each direction.
• Depth of hole.
• Depth of core.
• Remarks.

For a 2-lane highway mainline pavement, KDOT requires two cores to be cut from the existing pavement per mile. Core locations should be selected randomly and alternate between lanes. For a 4-lane divided highway mainline pavement, KDOT requires two cores to be cut from the existing pavement per mile per side. Two cores should be cut from the existing pavement in both set of lanes over a one-mile length. Core locations should be selected randomly and alternate between driving lane and passing lane to obtain uniform coverage. Core locations may be adjusted to avoid interfering with side road locations and drainage structures.

For shoulders, KDOT requires one core per mile per side to be cut from the existing paved shoulders.

For ramps, KDOT requires three cores to be cut in the traveled way evenly spaced along the ramp.

The second task is to utilize Google Earth or equivalent software to create an overhead map of core locations based on the core location spreadsheet. The locations shown on the overhead will not be exact but should be as close as possible to the actual locations.

Both the core spreadsheet and the overhead map of approximate core locations should be submitted to the supervisor in charge of the traffic control set up a minimum of seven days prior to the proposed field work dates.

Work Zone Limitations

Before determining field work dates, the consultant is required to contact the District Area Engineer to verify the work restrictions outlined below.

• Any work requiring a single lane closure on the mainline or any ramp cannot be performed between 5:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. or 3:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
• Any work requiring multiple lanes to be closed or a ramp closure must take place between 7:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m.

Traffic Control

One alternative is for the consultant to subcontract with a contractor to supply traffic control including message boards, signs, delineators, manpower, and vehicles while completing the coring operation.

Another alternative is to contact the KDOT Sub-Area shop supervisor and ask if KDOT could provide traffic control during the core sampling operation. All KDOT traffic control standards, manuals, and policies will apply.

Coring Operation Items

During the coring operation, a video should be made of the core barrel extracting the pavement core. The inside of the core hole should be photographed.

After the core is cut and removed from the core hole, the consultant shall label the core with a tag that contains the following information:

• Project number.
• County reference post (Milepost).
• State Reference post (Milepost).
• Distance from centerline of lanes.
• Core length.
• Hole depth measurement (Top of existing paved surface to bottom of core).

Two tags with the same information will be made.

The following information is required to be noted after the core is extracted from the hole, but before moving to the next core hole location. The information may be noted on the other side of the tag:

• Surface distress nearby.
• Distance of core location to nearest crack recorded to the nearest inch.
• If core location is over a surface distress, provide a description of the surface distress.
• If surface distress nearby or at core location is severe, include video or photographs of the distress.
• Breaks in the core as it came out of the core barrel or after the core was extracted from the core barrel.
• Approximate thickness of base material or soil removed from core hole.

It is recommended to have chalk on hand to mark all pieces of the core starting at the top of the core and working to the bottom. It is required for each piece of core to be labeled.

A photograph of the core should be taken before placing in bag.

One tag containing the core information will be placed inside the bag with the core. The second tag will be placed outside the bag with the twist tie.

Before filling the core hole with patching material, a DCP test for the subgrade should be conducted on every core hole location. The guidelines KDOT uses for depth of the DCP test are as follows:

• If the old plans or historical pavement records indicate a treated subgrade is present, the DCP test should continue until three values in a row are the same or a depth of 18 inches is reached.
• If the old plans or historical pavement records indicate no treated subgrade is present, the DCP test should continue until three values in a row are the same or a depth of 12 inches is reached.
• If the old plans or historical pavement records indicate aggregate base is present, the DCP test should continue until three values in a row are the same or a depth of 18 inches is reached.

The DCP readings can either be recorded on the attached sheet provided by KDOT or can be submitted electronically in Microsoft Word or Excel format.

Deliverables

The deliverables that are required include the following:

• Mainline core samples.
• Shoulder core samples.
• At interchanges, core samples from interchange ramps and ramp shoulders including side roads.
• DCP Test raw data for all core holes in PDF, Microsoft Word, or Microsoft Excel format.
• Notes or other information noted on tags or elsewhere during coring operation in PDF format.
• Video or photographs of surface distresses in PDF format quality.
• Video of core extraction.
• Photograph of cores in PDF format quality.
• Photograph of core holes in PDF format quality.

Therefore, KDOT is seeking to execute on-call agreements with a number of highly qualified firms, one of which may be selected on a task-by-task basis for specific assignment to be detailed in a Task Order/Work Order issued under a four-year term on-call agreement.

Anticipated Schedule and Key Dates for both On-Call Pavement Design Services and Coring Pavement Services

1. Proposals are due by or before 12:00 p.m. (CDT) October 26, 2022.
2. Ranking of proposals is expected to occur on or around October 28, 2022.
3. On-Call agreements negotiated with selected firms will take effect approximately November 30, 2022.

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 count 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. On-Call Pvmt Designs and Coring Pvmt 2022_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.
6. The outline in Table 1 below describes the expected proposal organization and content sections.
7. Table 2 lists the evaluation criteria and associated weights which will be used to make a selection.
8. Contact information for one consultant individual who is capable of answering any questions that may arise from the proposal shall be included in the proposal.
9. Depending on the number of responses received, KDOT may elect to shortlist (based on proposals) and hold in-person interviews prior to final selection (which may be based on both proposal and interview content). If KDOT deems them necessary, interview evaluation criteria will be distributed to shortlisted consultant teams in advance.

Table 1: Proposal Content
Section	Description of Intent	Page Limit
Cover Letter		1 Page
Project Approach	Demonstrate adequate capabilities to provide the services efficiently and to a high standard. Include cost-effective and optimized solutions. Include unique qualifications or experience related to the services required.
Approach to Schedule	Describe the ability to accomplish the scope of services within schedule requirements. Include anticipated timelines for mobilization.
Approach to Quality Control	Describe methods or procedures your firm will use to provide all services, reports and other deliverables 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 their ability to dedicate what percent of their time to the project when providing the subject services. If there are changes in key personnel, KDOT should be notified immediately, and the above information should be provided for the new personnel. List work for which you do not have in-house capability and name the firm you propose to subcontract with. If laboratory services are a part of the subcontracted work, include the subcontracted labs AASHTO/AMRL accreditation status.
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 Areas	Describe team’s familiarity with KDOT’s processes and standards. Describe familiarity with geotechnical engineering and geology in Kansas and any special site conditions you might anticipate finding.

Table 2: Evaluation Factors
Evaluation Factor	Weight
Qualifications and experience of project manager and other key project team members proposed for services	10%
Approach and commitment to meet advertised schedule	15%
Past performance history for similar projects/services for KDOT	10%
Understanding of the project area	15%
Availability to respond to the work	15%
The quality and completeness of the response	20%
Demonstrated understanding of nature and scope of project	15%

Contract Terms and Conditions

A standard KDOT on-call agreement for engineering and technical services will be used for professional services projects. 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

On-Call agreements negotiated with the selected firms will take effect approximately November 30, 2022, have a maximum cost of services of six million dollars ($6,000,000) over the life of the agreement, per consultant, and remain effective until such amount is spent associated with the agreement or for a period of four years with the option (at KDOT’s discretion) to add one-year extensions no more than four (4) times.

Questions

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

Questions can be submitted until October 13, 2022; answers will be provided to all prequalified consultants on October 18, 2022.

Exhibit A

Transportation Engineering and Development

Pre-Construction Engineering and Project Management

### Pavement Design

Scope

This service consists of performing rigid and/or flexible pavement design on an as-needed basis, according to guidelines provided by KDOT’s Bureau of Road Design, Pavement Section.

Projects include pavement design for major modification and/or system enhancement updates of statewide or regional transportation roadways. Projects could involve the rehabilitation of an existing pavement, reconstruction of a pavement on an existing alignment, reconstruction of a pavement on an offset alignment, the addition of new lanes to an existing pavement, construction of an entirely new pavement on a new alignment, temporary pavement sections, or any other pavement sections necessary for the project.

The services requested in Form 687 are to be provided to KDOT in the form of a written Report of Pavement Investigation. The proposed pavement design alternates and all items of work included in the service requisition should be addressed in the written report. The structure and content of the Report of Pavement Investigation is discussed in detail in Section 12 of the KDOT Pavement Design Manual.

Qualifications

The consultant must be staffed with a professional engineer licensed in Kansas.

The consultant is required to have engineers or personnel on staff with experience, knowledge, and expertise in both flexible and rigid pavement design. The Pavement Engineer/Designer must design the pavement in accordance with the 1993 AASHTO pavement design procedures and within the parameters established by the Bureau of Road Design.

Exhibit A

Professional-Technical Support Services

Geotechnical and Materials Testing

### Pavement Design Coring

Scope

This service consists of performing pavement coring on an as-needed basis specifically for pavement design projects, according to guidelines provided by KDOT’s Bureau of Materials and Research, Geotechnical Unit as well as KDOT’s Bureau of Road Design, Pavement Section.

Investigations will assist the Pavement Engineer/Designer by identifying and locating pavement cores, both horizontally and vertically, to determine the existing pavement structure conditions and pavement layer depths in order to assist in the development of appropriate pavement treatments or confirm the adequacy of proposed surfacing methods. Cores can be taken in a variety of areas across the roadway limits – these areas may include the existing travel lanes, different locations within the lanes, shoulders (for potential traffic staging or widening), exit and access ramps of highway sections, transverse joints, as well as through different distresses that could be present. Coring services shall be provided at locations that may require either lane closures or no lane closures, as determined by KDOT. Findings will be included in the Report of Pavement Investigation in accordance with the KDOT Pavement Design Manual.

Qualifications

The consultant must be staffed with a professional engineer licensed in Kansas.

Services under this category require that consultant personnel have training, experience, knowledge and expertise in the field of geotechnical engineering. Personnel shall also have knowledge of KDOT policies, procedures and practices. The individuals directly responsible for the projects should be graduate civil engineers and/or geologists, but may be others, if judged to possess necessary skills.

Drilling operations under this category shall be supervised by an individual (a geologist or an engineer) experienced in obtaining pavement coring. The consultant must provide evidence of recent experience in drilling services for highway projects.

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

Doc. No. 050567