REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: SCOTT L. MOZIER, PE, Director
Public Works Department
BY: BRIAN E. RUSSELL, Assistant Director
Public Works Department, Streets, Landscape, and Graffiti Divisions
MARK A. RIVAS, Senior Management Analyst
Public Works Department, Streets, Landscape, and Graffiti Divisions
SUBJECT
Title
Award a requirements contract to ACCO Engineered Systems, Inc. for one year with four optional one-year extensions in the amount up to $165,900.00 per year to provide annual backflow assembly testing and certification for various facilities and parks (Bid File 12301639) (City Wide)
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the City Council award a requirements contract in the amount up to $165,900.00 plus 20% contingency per year for one-year with the option for four, one-year extensions to ACCO Engineered Systems, Inc. of Pasadena, California as the best value for annual backflow assembly testing and certification and to authorize the Public Works Director or designee to sign the contract on the City’s behalf.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Landscape Division of Public Works is seeking a requirements contract to procure annual backflow assembly testing and certification for various City facilities and parks. A backflow assembly is a device that is connected to the potable water service and protects the City’s water source from the possibility of contaminated water back flowing into the City’s public water system. California Administrative Code Title 17, sections 7583 through 7605 and Chapter 6, Article 8 of the Fresno Municipal Code requires that they are tested annually. This contract will test approximately 1800 backflow assemblies annually that serve various City landscape irrigation systems throughout the City. Once the backflow device is tested, the City is required by the State to document that all backflow prevention assemblies are tested and in proper functioning condition. The Landscape Maintenance Division coordinates with the Department of Public Utilities Water Division to ensure that this certification is done correctly and in adherence to State and Local code.
BACKGROUND
On May 26th, 2023, the City posted a new RFP on PlanetBids for qualified vendors to bid on annual backflow assembly testing and certification services at various City facilities and parks. Following the receipt of seven bids on June 20th, 2023, an evaluation committee was formed which was comprised of the Landscape Division’s Public Works Manager, Landscape Superintendent and Senior Management Analyst as well as a Facility Manager representing Airports, an Operations Manager representing DPU’s Wastewater Division, a Reclamation Coordinator representing DPU’s Water Division, and the Procurement Specialist assigned to the project. The goal of the committee was to thoroughly review each proposal in order to recommend the best value to Council. As part of the review, the committee members evaluated the proposers on 1) cost as shown on the proposal form, 2) ability to meet the stated service requirements, 3) past performance and experience based on references, and 4) conformance to the terms and conditions of the RFP. In addition to the established criteria, the committee also reviewed references and information collected from follow-up questionnaires requested of the four finalists.
The committee met twice over the course of three weeks to evaluate bids submitted by seven separate contractors. All seven contractors submitted bids deemed to be complete by Purchasing. The bids were competitive in many respects, however, after lengthy discussion, the committee decided to narrow down the field to the four bidders with cost proposals within Division estimates. The remaining bidders were then subjected to additional research and analysis, which included subsequent contractor questionnaires and reference checks. During this process, one of the four finalists removed themselves from consideration stating lack of sufficient resources due to unforeseen personal commitments. Following the additional due diligence and evaluation of the remaining three contractors, the committee unanimously voted to recommend the proposal from ACCO Engineered Systems Inc. (ACCO) based on the following two key factors:
• Reference Strength - ACCO received strong recommendations from the references they supplied. This was in stark contrast to the other finalists.
• Price - While they did not submit the lowest bid, the fact that they submitted the second lowest remaining bid coupled with their superior reference check, made ACCO the clear choice.
These areas represented what were ultimately the key differentiators between the three remaining finalists and drove the committee to determine that ACCO’s proposal presented the least amount of risk for the City and represented the best value.
The City Attorney Office has reviewed and approved to form.
Staff recommends that the City Council award a requirements contract in the amount up to $165,900.00 plus 20% contingency per year for one-year with the option for four, one-year extensions to ACCO Engineered Systems, Inc. of Pasadena, California as the best value for annual backflow assembly testing and certification and to authorize the Public Works Director or designee to sign the contract on the City’s behalf.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
Pursuant to California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Section 15378, awarding of this contract is not a project for the purposes of CEQA.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
Local Preference does not pertain to RFPs.
FISCAL IMPACT
Appropriations for annual backflow assembly testing and certification consist of Community Sanitation and General Fund.
Attachments:
Bid Evaluation
Committee Evaluation Report - Pricing Comparison