Volume 42 - Issue 7 - February 16, 2023

State of Kansas

Department of Transportation

Notice to Consulting Firms

The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) is seeking a qualified consulting firm(s) to perform professional services for the project(s) described in Table 1 below. Interested consultants must email a proposal to KDOT.DesignContracts@ks.gov by 12:00 p.m. Central Time March 1, 2023, to be considered for selection.

Consultant Prequalification

Interested consulting firms must be prequalified by KDOT or otherwise demonstrate qualification in category(s):

• 163 – Congestion Management/ITS
• 231-Traffic Control Analysis and Design

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. 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.

Table 1: Background and Scope of Project
Project Number	Background and Scope of Project
EN-4603-24	The Kansas Department of Transportation, Bureau of Intelligent Transportation Systems Unit is seeking 2 or more part-time embedded engineers (PE or EIT) to assist and fulfill its mission of completing ITS construction projects and integrating new devices, maintaining standards and specifications, and planning for future construction and other Bureau duties. These positions would work a 20 to 24-hour work week on average and can be supported on a task specific basis by other qualified individuals at their firm when needed. Although hours may be increased by mutual agreement depending on workload, and the majority of work time may be completed from a remote/home office location. KDOT may request that the embedded engineer work from KDOT headquarters in Topeka, KS one or more day(s) a week depending on work tasks and embedded engineer location/availability.

Table 2: Project Summary
Project Number	Type
EN-4603-24	The Secretary has ITS Engineering work requiring engineering, design, and other technical services; however, the Secretary’s engineering and technical forces will be unable to perform all the services within the desired completion date. The best alternative is to hire a qualified firm to perform the services. This Request for Proposals is asking for part-time Embedded Engineers (PE or EIT) for the Kansas Department of Transportation, Bureau of Intelligent Transportation System Unit (ITS).

Anticipated Consultant Scope

1. The embedded engineers must be able to perform tasks and produce deliverables as described. This person will have the primary responsibility of assisting the State ITS Engineer with existing design and construction projects including plan review, inspection, oversight of system integration, coordination with internal KDOT staff to develop construction contract documents, and maintenance of ITS standards and specifications. Services may consist of planning, design, plan review, inspection, staff meetings review of project submittals, estimating, use of KDOT ATMS applications, and other duties as assigned.
2. The minimum experience level required is that of a recent engineering graduate supervised at their firm by a licensed PE. Some training will be provided. However, more experienced engineers and licensed engineers are desirable.
3. The embedded engineers must exhibit excellent verbal and written communication skills and have interest or experience in ITS, electronics or communications systems, or construction. The Consultant represents that persons performing services have the education, training, and experience necessary to perform the services this agreement requires in an accurate and timely manner. The Consultant has a valid Certificate of Authorization from, and individual employees are licensed by, the Kansas Board of Technical Professions as required by Kansas law. The consultant represents that all personnel utilized in performance of Services have appropriate qualifications and certifications to perform Services.
4. Some travel for KDOT training or field visits may be required. Phone, computer, routine office supplies, and cubicle or meeting room will be supplied if working at KDOT offices.

Anticipated Schedule and Key Dates

1. Proposals are due by or before: 12:00 p.m. (Central Time) March 1, 2023.
2. Ranking of proposals is expected to occur on or around March 22, 2023.
3. Depending on the number of responses received, KDOT may elect to shortlist (based on proposals) to no more than 3-5 firms 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 evaluations criteria will be distributed to shortlisted consultant firm in advance. Invitations to short listed firms for Interviews anticipated around March 29, 2023.
4. The consultant will furnish the services for up to a 2-year period with three optional additional 1-year periods.
5. The initial term of this work is from July 2023 through June 2025.
6. Anticipated Start Date: First of July 2023.
7. Negotiations with the most highly ranked firm are expected to begin on or around April 12, 2023.
8. An executed agreement is anticipated around May 10, 2023.

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. “EN-4603-24, KDOT Embedded ITS Engineers. 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 3 below describes the expected proposal organization and content sections.
7. Table 4 lists the evaluation criteria and associated weights which will be used to make a selection.

Table 3: Proposal Content
Section	Description of Intent	Page Limit
Cover Letter		1 Page
Project Approach	Demonstrate a unique approach to accomplish the plan and to a high standard. Include cost-effective and optimized solutions to address the anticipated improvements. Include unique qualifications or experience related to the plan approach.
Approach to Schedule	Describe the approach to accomplish the scope 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 drawings, reports and other 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 you propose to subcontract with.
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 identified special site conditions.

Table 4: Evaluation Factors
Evaluation Factor	Weight
The quality and completeness of the response	10%
Past performance history for similar project/services for the project partner	25%
Qualifications and experience of individual proposed for services	25%
Project approach	10%
Familiarity of ITS	15%
Demonstrated understanding of nature of tasks	15%

Contract Terms and Conditions

A standard KDOT 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”)

Questions

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

Questions can be submitted until February 15, 2023; answers will be provided to all prequalified consultants on February 21, 2023.

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

Doc. No. 050876