REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: BRIAN BARR, Director
General Services Department
BY: ROBIN O’MALLEY, Facilities Manager
General Services Department, Facilities Management Division
DEBBIE BERNARD, Project Manager
General Services Department, Facilities Management Division
SUBJECT
Title
Actions pertaining to the award of multiple general building and HVAC Job Order Contracting construction contracts for one year plus two one-year optional extensions not to exceed an annual aggregate total of $2,000,000 each (Bid File 12303112) (Citywide):
1. Adopt finding of a Categorical Exemption pursuant to Section 15301(d) Existing Facilities of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines.
2. Award Job Order Contracting contracts with Quincon, Inc., Exbon Development, Inc., Better Enterprises, Inc., Durham Construction Company, Inc., Puma Construction Company, Inc., Heritage General, Newton Construction & Management, Inc., Strategic Mechanical, Inc. and ACCO Engineered Systems, Inc.
3. Authorize the General Services Director or designee to sign all related documents.
Body
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends Council approve actions pertaining to the award of multiple general building and HVAC Job Order Contracting (JOC) construction contracts for one year plus two one-year optional extensions not to exceed an annual aggregate total of $2,000,000 each:
1. Adopt finding of a Categorical Exemption pursuant to Section 15301(d) Existing Facilities of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines.
2. Award Job Order Contracting contracts with Quincon, Inc., Exbon Development, Inc., Better Enterprises, Inc., Durham Construction Company, Inc., Puma Construction Company, Inc., Heritage General, Newton Construction & Management, Inc., Strategic Mechanical, Inc. and ACCO Engineered Systems, Inc.
3. Authorize the General Services Director or designee to sign all related documents.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The General Services Department, Facilities Management Division has been using the JOC Program, as offered by The Gordian Group, successfully since 2009. The JOC Program enables the Facilities Management Division to provide prompt, responsive building maintenance or construction services to City Departments at competitive “local market” pricing. The JOC Program provides competitively bid fixed-unit pricing for construction tasks from local contractors which can be quickly accessed by Facilities Management to perform needed building repairs, maintenance, or alterations, or other installation and construction services. Provided to the bidders is an extensive unit price catalog of construction tasks, pricing, and associated technical specifications that contain approximately 120,000 individual items of typical construction and maintenance. General Services rebids the construction contracts every few years.
BACKGROUND
On December 17, 2009, August 20, 2015, and again on September 24, 2020, Council approved a five-year contract with The Gordian Group, Inc., allowing Facilities Management to utilize the JOC Program for smaller building maintenance projects. Facilities Management works diligently each year to complete budgeted building maintenance and renovation projects as well as be responsive to the various approved unbudgeted facility service requests received from City Departments throughout the year. The proposed JOC Program will assist Facilities Management to provide quality work, competitive costs, and improved responsiveness in completing small to medium-sized construction projects involving building maintenance and renovations.
The JOC Program will allow for Facilities Management to utilize the contractors for projects such as remodels, replacement of HVAC units, and other maintenance needs. Under the JOC Program, each Contractor is guaranteed the opportunity to perform at least $25,000 worth of projects per year the first year of the contract and up to an aggregate total of $2,000,000 per year; however, they are not guaranteed the upper limit.
The City’s Project Labor Agreement (PLA) is applicable to projects with an engineer’s estimate in excess of $1,000,000. The PLA further states this threshold is applied to each job order, rather than to the job order contract aggregate maximum. Under this contract, no single job order shall be issued in excess this threshold. In the event General Services is responsible for a project estimated in excess of $1,000,000, the project shall be competitively bid in accordance with the FMC through the Purchasing Division with PLA requirements.
Competitive bids were solicited on July 10, 2023 in the Business Journal, distributed to four building exchanges and posted on the City’s website. The JOC specification was distributed to 16 prospective bidders. When submitting a bid on the JOC Program, the Contractors are agreeing to the unit cost per item in the catalog of construction tasks. The contractors also submitted an adjustment factor for both normal working hours and overtime hours. These adjustment factors are where the contractors’ mobilization, permitting costs, and overhead/profit reside.
On August 8, 2023, staff received ten bids from nine separate bidders. Seven of the bids are for the general construction contracts and three of the bids are for the HVAC construction contracts.
The bid solicitation included language stating the city was interested in awarding seven total contracts: five for general building and two for HVAC construction services. The bid resulted in a close competitive range from all nine qualified contractors. As a result, General Services Department is requesting approval to award contracts to all nine bidders providing additional options and capacity for Facilities Management to complete building repairs, maintenance, and construction services.
The Contract has been reviewed and approved as to form by the City Attorney’s Office.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
Staff has determined that a Categorical Exemption is appropriate, based on Class 1 Section 15301(d) of the CEQA Guidelines, which exempts restoration or rehabilitation of deteriorated or damaged structures, facilities, or mechanical equipment to meet current standards of public health and safety. Furthermore, staff has determined that none of the exceptions to Categorical Exemptions set forth in the CEQA Guidelines, Section 15300.2 apply to this project. Staff recommends that Council, based upon its own independent judgment, adopt a finding of Categorical Exemption per Staff determination, pursuant to Section 15301(d), Class 1 of the CEQA Guidelines for the work intended under the JOC Program. No new facilities will be built under this program, only facility rehabilitation projects will be using the JOC Program.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
Local preference was not implemented as staff is requesting to award to all bidders. However, Exbon Development, Better Enterprise, Puma Construction, Heritage General, Strategic Mechanical, and ACCO Engineered Systems are local to the city of Fresno.
FISCAL IMPACT
The contracts will be funded through appropriations for specific projects and budgeted maintenance activities which were included in the adopted FY2024 budget.
Attachments:
Bid Evaluation
Standard Contract