Secondary Digester Systems Upgrades Request for QualificationsCITY OF KALISPELL
REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS
ENGINEERING CONSULTANTS FOR KALISPELL PUBLIC WORKS AWWTP
SECONDARY DIGESTER SYSTEM REPAIR/REPLACMENT PROJECT
1 - GENERAL INFORMATION
1.1 Pursuant to the authority granted to it under MCA 7-5-4301(2)(a)., the City of Kalispell seeks
to procure a qualified professional consulting engineer to perform analysis and design services
for the Kalispell Wastewater Treatment Plant Secondary Digesters System Repair/Replacement
Proj ect.
1.2 The Statement of Qualifications (SOQ) must be received by the City Clerk at 201 First
Avenue East, Kalispell, Montana, by 5:00 p.m. local time, January 11, 2016.
1.3 Questions pertaining to the selection process should be directed to Susie Turner, Public
Works Director, at 406-758-7852 or sturner o kalispell.com and Curtis Konecky, Wastewater
Treatment Plant Manager, at 406-758-5070 or ckonecky@kalispell.com.
1.4 The City of Kalispell shall not be held responsible for any oral instructions. Any changes to
this Request for Qualifications (RFQ) will be in the form of an addendum, which will be
furnished to all registered RFQ holders.
1.5 The City of Kalispell reserves the right to reject any or all SOQs, to waive any informality or
irregularity in any SOQ received, and to be the sole judge of the merits of the respective SOQs
received.
1.6 A pre -submittal conference for the contract will be held at the Kalispell Wastewater
Treatment Plant Conference Room at 2001 Airport Road, Kalispell, MT on January 5, 2016 at
2:00 p.m. City staff will discuss the scope of work, general contract issues, and respond to
questions from the attendees. Because staff will not be available to respond to individual
inquiries regarding the project scope outside of this pre -submittal conference, attendance at this
pre -submittal conference is highly recommended.
1.7 The Service Provider will be selected on the basis of demonstrated competence and
qualification for the type of services required and thereafter the City will negotiate the services
agreement with what it deems to be the most qualified company.
2 - ANTICIPATED SCOPE OF WORK
After being selected, the Professional Service Provider will execute a services agreement with
the City to provide the scope of work set forth below. The Professional Service Provider and the
City shall negotiate the exact scope of practice after selection.
2.1 Background and Existing Digested Systems Replacement
The existing secondary digester lids were constructed in 1984 as part of the plant's Sludge
Maintenance Facilities. The dimension and material consist of two 50 foot diameter concrete
tank with 32 feet side walls, a 3:12 conical bottom, and steel gas collecting/floating lids. The
secondary digesters perform secondary anaerobic digestion. The current mixing system consists
of two 16" Worthington mixing pumps with piping to mix both the primary digester and the
secondary digesters independently. Wasting from the secondary digesters is performed by a 4"
positive displacement pumped through 6" and 4" diameter pipes that deliver secondary digested
solids to the dewatering equipment located in the main building.
In May of 1998, the Digester Rehabilitation Project was undertaken by the City to restore the
rusting interior of the steel floating lids with an elastomeric coating. After many years of
providing metal protection, the existing elastomeric coatings are failing, and current condition of
the lids is unknown. The mixing equipment is in satisfactory working condition, but the current
pumps used for mixing are no longer manufactured and repair parts are hard to find and
expensive. The current digested sludge waste line was installed in 1992. To date, two different
incidents indicate the digested sludge wasting line piping is experiencing galvanic corrosion,
causing holes to form on the outside of the pipe.
2.2 Required Services
The services to be provided for this project shall include, but are not necessarily limited to:
1. Inspect, analyze, and evaluate the structural and mechanical performance of the
secondary digesters including the following: lids, walls, floors, internal piping, hardware
and appurtenances, gas collection piping, associate hardware and appurtenances, flame
arrest/vacuum breaker, and mixing/pumping equipment. Develop alternatives for repairs
and/or replacements.
2. Inspect, analyze, and evaluate the status of existing metal structure and metal protective
coating for the secondary digesters. Develop alternatives for repairs and/or replacements.
3. Inspect, analyze, and evaluate the status of existing digested waste line from the digester
facility to the solids dewatering area. Develop alternatives for repairs and
or/replacements.
4. Prepare a comprehensive report of investigations, findings, alternatives, cost estimates,
and recommendations.
5. Prepare engineering designs, drawings, specifications and construction documents as
required for the repairs and replacements as deemed necessary by the City.
6. Administer bids for repairs and replacements, as required, including such items as
preparations of bid documents, pre -bid meetings, review of bids, and recommendation for
award.
7. Provide construction management for repair and replacement operations including, but
not necessarily limited to a preconstruction meeting, inspection, testing service,
preparation of pay requests and certifications of completed work.
8. Provide follow up inspection(s), as required, such as a two year warranty inspection.
3 - STATEMENT OF QUALIFICATIONS SELECTION CRITERIA
3.1 The Professional Service Provider will be selected through a qualification -based selection
process. Firms interested in providing requested scope of services to the City of Kalispell must
submit a Statement of Qualifications (SOQ) that addresses the following evaluation criteria.
Applicants are encouraged to organize their submissions in such a way as to follow the general
evaluation criteria listed below. Information included within the SOQ may be used to evaluate
your firm as part of any criteria regardless of where that information is found within the SOQ.
Information obtained from the SOQ and from any other relevant source may be used in the
evaluation and selection process.
3.2 Cover Letter (1-page) containing at a minimum: Company name, contact name, address, fax
number, and email address.
3.3 Qualifications Criteria
3.3.1 General Information
a. Description of company
b. Lead firm's primary and secondary contact information
c. Legal company organization; organization chart with names
d. List of applicable Montana licenses
3.3.2 Relevant Company Experience (30 points)
Describe the firm's experience with similar projects. For each project provide the
following information:
1. Project design and construction costs (include data on change orders as a
percent of the original budget).
2. Key project staff members still with the firm and their project role.
3. Statement of experience with the following:
i. Performance analysis and design of mechanical systems associated
with the rehabilitation of anaerobic sludge digestion facilities.
ii. Performance analysis of concrete and metal structures associated with
the rehabilitation of anaerobic sludge digestion facilities.
iii. Performance analysis, selection, specification, and application of
protective coating for concrete and metal associated with the
rehabilitation of anaerobic sludge digestion facilities.
iv. Rehabilitation design and construction management of anaerobic
sludge digestion facilities including lid repair and/or replacement.
v. Performance analysis and design of mechanical systems associated
with the rehabilitation and or replacement of piping associated with
trenchless technologies.
4. List and briefly describe the professional services the company provides to 3-
5 other jurisdictions and the length of time the services have been provided.
5. A minimum of three referrals and references from other municipalities or
local governments.
3.3.3 Company Qualifications (20 points)
a. Describe the company's history in the industry. Provide resumes of key personnel in
Appendix A.
b. Briefly describe certifications and licensure held by the company in the state of
Montana.
3.3.4 Contract Understanding and Approach (20 points)
a. Describe your understanding of the current needs of the City of Kalispell for the
professional services being requested.
b. Identify and discuss any potential difficult issues your company may face in
providing services for the City of Kalispell.
c. Identify and discuss methods to mitigate these difficulties.
3.3.5 Approach to Contract Management (20 points)
a. Present a brief description of how the firm intends to organize and conduct the
project.
b. Describe your company's approach in initiating and establishing the service that meet
the needs and requirements of the City.
a. A narrative outlining a proposed scope of work that includes description of each task
and work product, and a concise explanation of the firm's approach to accomplishing
the tasks.
b. Describe a proposed time schedule of work with key milestones and product
deliveries.
c. Applicant's capacity and intent to proceed without delay if selected for this contract.
3.3.6 Other Factors (10 points)
a. Current contracts and ability to proceed promptly.
b. Relevant factors impacting the quality and value of service.
c. Firm's record of commitment to budget as demonstrated on past projects.
d. Firm's record of commitment to schedule as demonstrated on past projects.
4 - SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS
4.1 The SOQ shall include a one -page cover letter plus a maximum of fifteen (15) pages to
address the SOQ criteria specified in Section 3 (excluding resumes). Table of Contents and
section divider pages do not count towards the total page count.
4.2 Five copies of the Statement of Qualifications must be submitted to the City Clerk at 201
First Avenue East, Kalispell, Montana, by 5:00 p.m. local time, January 11, 2016.
4.3 Failure to comply with the following criteria may be grounds for disqualifications:
1. Receipt of submittal by the specified cut-off date and time.
2. The number of originals and/or copies of the submittal specified.
3. Adherence to maximum page requirements.
4.4 Adherence to the maximum page criteria is critical; each page side (maximum 8 1/2" x 11")
with criteria information will be counted. Pages that have photos, charts and graphs will be
counted towards the maximum number of pages.
4.5 Faxed materials will not be considered.
5 - SELECTION PROCESS AND SCHEDULE
5.1 A 5-member Project Evaluation Committee will evaluate each Statement of Qualifications
(SOQ) according to the above criteria, as well as past performance evaluations, and select up to
three finalists that will be Short Listed for the contract. The Evaluation Committee will evaluate
the short list and select the top qualified firm. If more information is required to select the top
qualified firm, the short list firms will meet with the Project Evaluation Committee for
interviews. The purpose of the interview will be to expand on the information provided in the
SOQ, not to repeat information already provided. Those firms selected for the Short List will be
provided additional instruction by the City. Those firms not selected for further consideration
will be notified.
5.2 The following tentative schedule has been prepared for this project. Firms interested in this
project must be available on the interview meeting date.
Pre -submittal conference: January 5, 2015 at 2:00 p.m. at the
Kalispell WWTP Conference Room, 2001 Airport Road.
SOQ due: January 11, 2016 at 5:00 p.m.
Firms notified for interview: TBD
Interviews: TBD
5.3 Following the evaluation and, if needed interviews, the Project Evaluation Committee will
determine a ranking for each Short List firm based on the published criteria in 3.3 of this RFQ.
Consideration will be given to both the written Statement of Qualifications and any oral
presentations or interviews. No other factors or criteria will be used in the qualification ranking.
5.4 The highest ranked firm will be recommended to the City Manager and City Council for
contract award.
5.5 Requests for debriefings or selection decisions shall be made in writing to the City. All
information submitted by firms and related Project Evaluation Committee evaluations and
rankings shall be considered confidential until after contract execution and award by the City
Council.
5.6 The City will enter into negotiations with the selected firm and execute a contract upon
completion of negotiations for the professional services for City Council approval. Contract
negotiations will include, but not necessarily be limited to the following elements: scope of
work, project timetable, products of work, and fees. If the City is unsuccessful in negotiating a
contract with the highest ranked team, the City may then negotiate with the second or third
highest ranked team until a contract is executed. If the list of preferred design firms is exhausted
without a contract being awarded, the City may decide to terminate the selection process or re -
advertised.
5.7 The City will not reimburse any cost associated with the preparation, submittal, or
presentation of any Statement of Qualification. Consultant design firms are advised that in
accordance with Montana law, any information submitted may be subject to public inspection.
Firms are further advised that, while the City is constrained by budget for this work, the City
does not consider cost proposals or estimates of fee in its evaluation of qualifications.
Publication Dates: December 6, 2015
January 3, 2016