itb no. 14-25 single stream recycling collection …...itb no. 14-25. single stream recycling...

ITB# 14-25 ADDENDUM 1

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CHARLES COUNTY GOVERNMENT

Department of Fiscal and Administrative Services Purchasing Division

Telephone: 301-645-0656

March 12, 2014

ITB NO. 14-25

SINGLE STREAM RECYCLING COLLECTION SERVICES

ADDENDUM NUMBER ONE

TO: All Offerors

Please be advised of the following modification(s) & information related to Invitation to Bid 14-25. These modifications, comments, and attachments are hereby made a part of the solicitation documents to the same extent as if bound therein. The due dates for questions and bids remain the same.

I. Changes, Additions, and Modifications to the ITB

A. Changes

1. Part III, Section 1.0 – Definitions (page III-1) Delete the strikethrough text in the paragraph below: “Material Recovery Facility (MRF) – shall mean the facility that the County designates for (a) the acceptance and/or processing and subsequent marketing of the Recyclables and (b) the separation for disposal of any residue from processing Recyclables pursuant to these specifications. Note: Recyclables may be delivered directly to this MRF or to an intermediate acceptance facility for transloading to this MRF.”

2. Part III, Section 3.8.2 – GPS Tracking Equipment (page III-12) Add the following bold, italicized text to item b): “b) Repairs and replacements to GPS equipment must be made within 24 hours of notice by the County. The County shall assume costs for repairs and replacements to GPS equipment except in cases of abuse, neglect, or misuse as determined solely by the Coordinator.”


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3. Part III, Section 3.9 – Personnel (Page III-13) Add the bold, italicized text to item a): “a) The Contractor shall maintain a fully qualified work force throughout the period of this Contract with a sufficient number of workers to perform all required services within the hours indicated in these specifications. If necessary, to fulfill the terms of this Contract, the number of workers performing the contracted services shall be increased to exceed the manpower requirements identified in the bid at no additional cost to the County.”

B. Attachments 1. Attachment A – Pre-Bid Meeting Sign In Sheet

II. Pre-Bid Meeting Notes Introduction • Good morning, and welcome to the pre-bid meeting for ITB 14-25, Single Stream

Recycling Collection Services. • My name is Shanna Reese, and I am the Assistant Chief of Purchasing for Charles

County Government. Also with us today is Mr. Dennis Fleming, of the Department of Public Works, Chief of Environmental Services, and Ms. Frances Sherman, Department of Public Works, Environmental Services Division.

• The intent of this work is to provide bi-weekly curbside collection of recyclables for four (4) service areas containing at total of 38,372 residences throughout Charles County

• The meeting will be conducted in 2 parts. o I will first review selected portions of the Instructions to Bidders within the ITB.

Items not reviewed should not be construed as being less important than those reviewed. No information will be presented that is not already contained within the ITB. I will then ask for any questions pertaining to the Instructions to Bidders.

o The meeting will then be turned over to Mr. Fleming and Ms. Sherman who will discuss technical aspects of the project, and entertain any technical questions.

• If you have not already done so, please sign-in on the attendance roster.

Procurement Discussion / Questions • All solicitation documents may be found on the County Bid Board. • Ensure all required forms and any other information required is complete and in your bid

package. o Bidder’s Experience Form on page I-20 completed as instructed in Section 1.4 –

Bidder’s Experience. o Bid Form on page I-15 as instructed in Section 1.2 – Bid Form.

Form must be completed in its entirety for Service Areas you are bidding on.

Bidders may bid on all Service Areas or any combination thereof, but the Contractor shall service all routes in a given Service Area.

You cannot bid on select collection routes within each Service Area. Please note NA on items you are not bidding on.

o Bidder’s Equipment Inventory List (page I-16) as instructed in Section 1.5 – Bidder’s Equipment Inventory List.

o Addendum Certifications on page I-19. • Submit two (2) unbound original and two (2) copies of your bid. • Questions concerning the procurement process should be directed to me via the contact


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information provided in the ITB. • In accordance with the ITB, all technical questions should be directed to Mr. Fleming, in

writing only, via the contact information provided. • No information obtained from any source other than the Solicitation documents found on

the County Bid Board, or from myself or Mr. Fleming, may be considered to be accurate. • Important dates are identified within the ITB. • Bids must state that they are valid for 120 days from the due date. • There is an aspirational 25% MBE goal for this solicitation. We encourage you to meet

that goal. • This program is subject to the County’s SLBE program. • The base term of the Contract shall be for twenty-four (24) months beginning on July 1,

2014 and shall end June 30, 2016, with an option for three (3) one-year extensions at the sole option of the County.

• Insurance requirements are located on page I-9 of the ITB. • The protest policy may be found on page I-6. • The County may reject any and all bids for any reason it deems necessary, and may waive

any irregularities and/or informalities, and make award in any manner that is in the best interest of the County.

• Award will be to the lowest responsive, responsible bidder, provided it is in the County's best interest to do so. Equipment shall be subject to inspection as described in the solicitation prior to contract award.

• By submitting a bid in response to this solicitation, the bidder certifies that their firm is not debarred, suspended, or otherwise ineligible for participation in government procurement by the federal government, the State of Maryland, or any other state, county, or municipal government.

• Are there any questions pertaining to the procurement process? • I will now turn the meeting over to the Mr. Fleming and Ms. Sherman, who will discuss

technical aspects of the project, and answer any technical questions.

Procurement Questions Question 1 • Question: Does this solicitation require a bid bond based on the total value bid? • Response: Yes, the bid bond should be 2.5 percent of the total bid for all Service Areas.

Technical Discussion • This ITB is for existing work. • The ITB assumes that routes are best serviced by 2 collection vehicles. • Some of the routes are smaller than others. This assumes expansion after commencement

of Contract(s). • Yard waste is not included in this ITB, but release of the Yard Waste ITB is estimated to

be around 3/14/2014. Please continue to watch the bid board for that solicitation.

Technical Questions

Question 2 • Question: If the scope of work in the four areas being serviced changes – volume

increases – will there be an opportunity to increase the per unit charge? • Response: No, there can be no increase in the per unit charge based on volume

increases. Only CPI increases are included in this ITB, see Part I, Section 2.2 - Pricing Adjustments for Extension Years (Page I-6). Please note Part III, Section 3.0.b


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(page III-3, “there is no limit to the amount of Recyclables that a resident may place at the curb for collection.”

Question 3 • Question: Is there a restriction on where you can take the recycling for disposal? • Response: Yes, the County will dictate where recycling is taken. The County’s decision

on what Material Recovery Facility (MRF) is utilized will be based on the County’s reimbursement contract with the MRF. The County will use the MRF that is in the best interest of the County, but as indicated in Part III, Section 3.5 (page III-8), the MRF shall be no further than 35 miles from the intersection of Rt. 5 and Rt. 301 in Waldorf, Maryland.

Question 4 • Question: Who is responsible for overflow? • Response: The hauler will be responsible for picking up all overflows. See Part III,

Section 3.0.b (page III-3), “If the Recycling Collection Cart is full, resident is allowed to place recyclable overflow in clear or Transparent Plastic Bag(s) or inside a second recycling cart, flatten cardboard is acceptable unbundled. Once the Recyclables are placed at the curb they become County property.” Also see Part III, Section 3.3.2.c (page III-6), “Overflow of recycling will be allowed to be packaged in clear plastic bags, cardboard boxes, and paper bags. The County will strongly encourage citizens to place overflow on top of the recycling cart, but such placement is not mandatory for collection.”

Question 5 • Question: Who is providing GPS and who is responsible for service/replacement? • Response: The County will be providing the GPS units and will be responsible for

servicing these units. See Item I.2 – Changes above, which addresses repair and replacement.

Question 6 • Question: Who will monitor GPS units and will contractors have access to monitoring? • Response: The County will monitor the GPS and contractors will not have access to

this monitoring.

Question 7 • Question: Who is your GPS system with? • Response: GPS system is with Verizon Traxxis.

Question 8 • Question: Who is providing the carts and will they be 65 and 95? • Response: The County will be providing the carts. The County has currently provided

Charles County residents with the 95-gallon carts; however, we would like to leave the option open for offering 65-gallon carts to townhome communities. Please see Part III, Section 3.3.2 (page III-6), “In some occasions, residents will be allowed an


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exception to the use of the 95 gallon recycling cart. Townhouse communities with limited storage, will be allowed to utilize 65 gallon carts.”

Question 9 • Question: Why does the County specify a 35 mile radius for delivery of materials? • Response: The 35 mile radius puts Bidders on an even basis for bidding purposes. By

including a radius it limits the haulers obligation to transport the recyclables a further distance. Additionally, the County has a separate contract for processing of materials and the County designates this facility.

Question 10 • Question: What it the County’s current MRF? • Response: Waste Management – Recycles America in Capitol Heights, MD.

Question 11 • Question: Can you note exceptions on your contract? • Response: No. Bids must be submitted without exceptions. If a bidder notes exceptions

in the ITB, they shall submit a request for clarification or correction as specified in Part I, Section 1.12 of the ITB.

Question 12 • Question: How will the marketing and public awareness program work? • Response: The County will work with the selected vendor(s) to promote the program. It

is in the general interest of the contractor to promote the program through the actions of their employees as well as providing information to our residents.

Question 13 • Question: How many times was the current contractor fined under the current contract? • Response: Fines in the original ITB for this work are irrelevant to the current ITB.

Instead of including these fines in your pricing, it would be best to include the costs to ensure the hauler is staffed and equipped sufficiently so to not be assessed any fines. The intent of the fines is not to be punitive, but to ensure that corrective actions can be taken by the County if performance of the contract ever becomes unsatisfactory.

Question 14 • Question: Was the current contract done through an ITB? • Response: Yes.

Conclusion • Thank you for attending, and good luck. Copies of the attendance roster will be posted

on the County Bid Board. An addendum will be posted containing all of the questions from this meeting, as well as any others received.

• Please ensure you sign the attendance roster before you leave, if you have not already done so.


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III. Written Questions Received through 03/10/2014

Question 15 • Question: How much of the rfp is a set aside for slbe haulers • Response: There is no SLBE set aside. The SLBE Program allows registered SLBE

firms to receive up to a five percent (5%) preference over the lowest non-SLBE bid price; but there is no provision for set asides.

Question 16 • Question: Southern MD Recycling does not have any office or sun office or 25% of their

work force who live in Charles County, due we need to still out the SLBE? In order to bid this project due we need to be a SLBE?

• Response: You do not need to be a County SLBE firm to bid on this work.


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ATTACHMENT A


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