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QUESTION: We do not have any technicians that currently have all the required certifications listed, but I feel are certainly experienced enough to complete the work in a manner KTC is looking for. If we commit to making sure that the technicians proposed do get the necessary certification before work starts (if awarded of course), would that be acceptable to the Cabinet? ANSWER: KYTC training will be required and consultant inspectors are required to achieve the minimum requirements that all state inspectors now have. NICET training will not apply. The consultant's response to announcement must include a list of inspectors and their current level of training. If any qualification is expired, please list it anyway along with the date it expired. QUESTION: 1. There are 3 regions listed and it states that 3 number one consultants will be selected. Will that be one for each region? If so, will there be any cross-over of consultants between regions? ANSWER: Although consultants have been selected for more than one region in past selections, this is not anticipated with this selection due to the reduced number of regions from 5 to 3. We expect one consultant firm selected per region, however, it is possible one firm could be selected for one, two or even all three regions. Technicians for a particular region will only come from the consultant firm selected for that region. QUESTION: 2. There is a note: No firm engaged with QC/QA work with a contractor doing business with KYTC may supply inspection services for KYTC. This is a very broad note. Does it apply to non-KYTC work? In private industry, it is common for a contractor to engage a QC company for his project. We do a lot of this type work all over the state. For example, we are working on the Lexington Airport project with a Lexington-based roadway contractor. Does that cause any conflict with this note. The first paragraph of this page also supports this note. ANSWER: Providing QC/QA services to a contractor doing non-KYTC work is not considered a conflict. QUESTION: 3. How about Design Build projects? In some of them, QC/QA is part of the project. Some of these already let will be ongoing for a couple of more years. ANSWER: If a consultant is performing QC work for a KYTC project of any type in a particular region, then that consultant will not be considered for selection in that region. The selected consultant firm will not be allowed to provide QC services for a contractor on any KYTC project of any type in the region for which they were selected. QUESTION: 4. There is a paragraph that implies that if a consultant has the construction inspection services for Region 3, as a example, then they could supply QC/QA services to a contractor in other parts of the state. The issues we raised in our question 1 come into play here. If we had region 3, where a major contractor will be doing some large projects, could we then do QC/QQ work for them in Region 1 or 2 where they also do a lot of work? ANSWER: Yes, the selected consultant firm will be allowed to provide QC services for a contractor on KYTC projects not in the region for which they were selected. QUESTION: 5. Will Joint-ventures or subcontracts be allowed? ANSWER: No. Firms should respond as one firm without joint-ventures, teaming or subconsultant. All inspectors provided for the selected region must be employees of the selected firm. QUESTION: 6. Page 2 implies that KYTC will supply the nuclear density meters. How will liability issues be handled? For example, the consultant employee in involved in an accident on the way to the project and the meter gets smashed open, exposing the radiation source. There are issues involving property damage, employee exposure, and general public safety issues involving the regulatory agencies. Will all other inspection equipment be provided or we will have to furnish some equipment? ANSWER: KYTC's liability applies to the density meter while the consultant is responsible for the inspector. Further, the inspector reports directly to the Resident Engineer who will deal with any regulatory agencies. As for other inspection equipment, the consultant per Page 2 and 1 st paragraph under “Special Instructions” is responsible for the vehicle with safety light, personal protection equipment, and various manuals. The Cabinet will supply all other equipment. QUESTION: 7. There are a list of qualifications for the individual inspectors, and a statement that the individual must have these before reporting to work. Most of these classes are taught by the department, and are scheduled for the winter months. There are time limits on how long these certificates are good for. We have been aggressively training our employees in NICET and similar nation types of certifications more widely accepted than the KYTC specific training. We have had not had the need for KYTC specific certifications lately and have put our training resources into the other programs instead of attending the KYTC specific schools that are not recognized anywhere else. It is not cheap to send someone to a multi-day training class. Many of our inspectors have had these certificates in the past, but they have expired now. There is a statement that responses should include a list of inspectors with the qualifications. We will send our people to the next available class, but those classes will not be taught until later in the winter. In the past, when a contractor's technician quit for example, experience and other qualifications were used to qualify a replacement until the next scheduled class. Will any consideration be given for scheduling the training classes? ANSWER: KYTC training will be required and consultant inspectors are required to achieve the minimum requirements that all state inspectors now have. NICET training will not apply. The consultant's response to announcement must include a list of inspectors and their current level of training. If any qualification is expired, please list it anyway along with the date it expired. QUESTION: 8. The inspection fee refers to up to 3 levels of inspector, with variable rates for each level. Where are these levels defined? If we only define 1 or 2 levels of inspectors, and are allowed to define what abilities those levels include, then how do you compare that against another consultant who uses 3 levels? ANSWER: The levels are not defined due to the fact that different consultants have different organizational make ups. It is left up to you to define those levels and will be used by the Cabinet, not so much in the consultant selection process, but in the selection by the District manager of inspectors based upon the needs of a particular project. The consultant response to announcement may propose rates for up to 3 levels of inspectors, plus a licensed land surveyor and a SuperPave technician. Current contract rates for 2007-2009 contact agreements. Region 1 – Districts 1, 2 & 3 Region 2 - District 4 & 5 Region 3 - District 6 & 9 Region 4 & 5 - Districts 7, 8, 10, 11 & 12 Contract usage paid to date through June 16, 2008. Region 1 (Districts 1, 2 & 3) - $ 110,165.00
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The above Q & A
section is dealing with the 2009-02 Project Listing |
