Request For Qualifications For Architectural Services For Brookwood School District No. 167

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR
ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES FOR
BROOKWOOD SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 167

 

Introduction

The Board of Education of Brookwood School District No. 167 (“Board”) is soliciting Statements of Qualifications from qualified firms to provide comprehensive architectural services to assist the Board in health life safety reviews and facility planning for its current schools. The firm selected shall have the primary responsibility as the architect of record.

This RFQ is not an Invitation for Bid.  Responses will be evaluated on the basis of the relative merits of the qualifications. There will be no public opening and reading of responses.

RFQ Submission

RFQ’s are due by Wednesday, January 6, 2016 at 4:00 p.m. local time without exceptions.

Please submit 16 bound responses to the address below and one digital response via the email below.

Dr. Valorie Moore, Superintendent
Brookwood School District 167
201 East Glenwood Dyer-Road
Glenwood, Illinois 60425
(708) 758-5190
vmoore@brookwood167.org

Bound responses must be enclosed in a sealed envelope (or other sealed container) and marked “Request for Qualifications – Architect of Record for Brookwood School District No. 167.” The package should also list the respondent’s name, address, phone number and contact name.

Submittals should be prepared as standard 8-1/2 x 11 letter size and limited to 35 pages, exclusive of required attachments. Adherence to the maximum page criterion is critical; each page side with criteria information will be counted toward the maximum number of pages. Front and back covers, table of contents pages, and tabbed divider pages will not be counted if they do not contain submittal information.

 

Schedule

The following is the proposed schedule for the selection of firm(s) to provide architectural services:

January 12, 2016 Committee to review RFQ submissions of architects
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.

January 13, 2016–Committee to review RFQ submissions of architects
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

January 25, 2016 6:00 p.m. Special Board of Education Meeting to consider responses from architectural candidates.

January 29, 2016 Successful short-listed and unsuccessful firms’ notifications sent out.

Brookwood Board of Education Interviews with short-listed firms –
Special Board of Education Meeting February 1, 2016 at 6:00 p.m.

Architect Candidate 1 Interview 6:00 p.m. – 6:45 p.m.
Architect Candidate 2 Interview 7:00 p.m. – 7:45 p.m.
Architect Candidate 3 Interview 8:00 p.m. – 8:45 p.m.

9:00 p.m. Closed Session Board of Education

Contract negotiations February 4, 2016 through March 1, 2016
Proposed Board action on architectural agreement at special Board of Education Meeting
March 14, 2016 at 6:00 p.m.

Respondents’ Inquiries and Addenda

Any questions or concerns regarding this RFQ shall be directed in writing only to:

Dr. Valorie Moore
Superintendent
Brookwood School District 167
201 East Glenwood-Dyer Road
Glenwood, Illinois 60425
vmoore@brookwood167.org

Any responses to questions, or changes in this RFQ, shall be issued in writing as an addendum. Respondents must acknowledge addenda received as part of their submissions.

Oral and other interpretations or clarification will be without legal effect.

School District Background

Brookwood School District No. 167 is located in Glenwood, Illinois. The district serves 1,221 students for the Glenwood, Lynwood, Chicago Heights and Lansing areas. The school district has four schools with a 95% student attendance rate and aspires to become a Blue Ribbon School District.

General Information, Notifications, and Purpose

1. Respondents are advised to review all sections of this RFQ carefully, and to follow instructions completely, as failure to make a complete submission as described elsewhere herein may result in rejection of the submittal. Qualifications which depart from or materially alter the terms, requirements, or scope of work defined by this Request will be rejected.
2. Joint venture and/or cooperative professional teams will not be considered.
3. All respondents must identify subconsultants (e.g.: Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing, Structural, etc.) it will utilize to provide services. Subconsultants must provide the same information required of architectural candidates.

General Terms and Conditions

1. All costs associated with developing or submitting a qualifications statement in response to this Request, or to provide oral or written clarification of its content shall be borne by the respondent. The Board assumes no responsibility for these costs. This RFQ does not commit the Board to pay any costs incurred in preparation or submission of a response or in anticipation of a contract.
2. This RFQ does not commit the Board to enter into a contract. The Board reserves the right to award one, more than one, or no contract(s) in response to this RFQ. The Board reserves the right to waive informalities and irregularities in the submissions of qualifications received. The Board also reserves the right to terminate this RFQ, and reissue a subsequent solicitation, and/or remedy technical errors in the RFQ process.
3. The Contract, if awarded, will be awarded to the respondent(s) whose submittal(s) is deemed most advantageous to the Board, as determined by the selection committee, upon approval of the Board, taking into consideration qualifications, ability of professional personnel, past record and experience, performance data on file, willingness to meet time requirements, location, workload of firm, and such other qualifications based factors as the Board may determine in writing are applicable
4. The Board reserves the right to contact any respondent for clarification, interviews or to negotiate if such is deemed desirable by the Board.
5. The purpose of this Request for Qualifications is to identify an experienced architectural firm to provide services to the Board.
6. Requests for site visits and introductory meetings will not be allowed.
7. All respondents are prohibited from making any contact with district personnel, any individual Board of Education member, Superintendent or any other administrator or employee of the district with regard to the RFQ, other than in the manner and to the person(s) designated herein. The Board reserves the right to disqualify any respondent found to have violated the prohibitions in this paragraph.

General Description of Scope of Services

1. The selected architectural firm will become part of a project team consisting of members of the School District and community stakeholders to perform services as requested.
2. The design team may be requested to:
   1. Attend meetings with School District administrative staff as necessary.
   2. Attend Board meetings as requested.
   3. Develop preliminary drafts of the project program project team review and comment.
   4. Consult with the Board on budgetary and funding matters.
   5. Consult with the Board on Project scheduling considerations. Consult with the Board on general concepts of the project scope of work and project needs.
   6. Provide the Board and Superintendent with weekly updates of progress towards projection design, challenges, and completion.
3. The firm’s services shall conform to the Illinois State School Code and be in accordance with all federal, state and local laws, codes, ordinances, and regulations.
4. The firm must ensure that it provides a live scan finger print check on a state and federal level background check on its employees working in schools.

Proposal Content

Statement of Interest –
Provide a signed statement of qualifications with the name and address of the respondent, expressing interest and capability to perform the work.

Firm Description – Provide the following:

• Firm name, address, web address, telephone and fax numbers
• Contact person (provide direct phone number and e-mail)
• Number of years in business under current name
• Confirm distance from the office to be working on the project to the Brookwood School District
• Type of organization
• Disciplines offered in-house
• Special areas of practice
• Staffing information (number or architects, interior designers, engineers, etc.)
• List any previous names of firm and years of business under each name
• In the case of a multiple office firm, provide general information on the firm (locations, staffing, etc.) but also provide detailed information on the office that will be serving the Board (key personnel, project experience, etc.). The office designated to serve the Board must be the office to perform the work in the event that the project is awarded to that firm.
• The short-listed firms will be requested to provide a copy of the firm’s financial statement. Respondent must provide a copy of a certificate of insurance indicating the current levels of professional liability and general liability insurance coverages carried by the firm. Minimum coverages are as follows:

General Liability [$1,000,000/$2,000,000]
Automotive Liability [$1,000,000]
Professional Liability [$2,000,000/$2,000,000]

• List any litigation within the last 7 years, arising out of any design work for any school district. Include in your description the name(s) of the plaintiff(s), the amount of the claim, the type of action (breach of contract, negligence, etc.), a brief summary of the allegations and the current status or disposition of the case.
• List if your firm (under current or previous names) has been terminated within the last 7 years from a project by a school district and, if so, for what reason. If so, list the name and contact information for the school district.

 Firm Experience and Capabilities –

• Provide a list of all school district clients for which you have provided services for in the last 10 years. Include project description (whether the project involved planning, new construction, additions or renovations), the type of architectural, engineering, other services and delivery method that you provided, as well as the client contact information.
• Please highlight your experience in performing work such as middle school construction projects designs from start to finish.
• Samples of work that demonstrate experience middle school environments are required.
• Firms should also demonstrate expertise in maximizing construction budgets, experience in the design of general educational spaces as well as the design of types of specialties school spaces such as 21^st Century school instructional spaces, such as libraries, cafetoriums, multi-purpose rooms, science classrooms, STEM Labs, athletic fields, and broad-based technology areas.
• If your submittal includes affiliated firms or multi-disciplinary departments (e.g., mechanical, roofing, electrical or structural engineering), please identify them and provide similar information for them as outlined below.

Firm Workload –

• Provide a list of all projects for which your firm is currently under contract as an architectural firm.
• Provide the percentage that educational projects made up of your total project work load in the last twelve months.

Key Personnel & Experience –

• Provide a simple organizational chart identifying key members of the firm, including consultants.
• Provide resumes of project designers, managers, key staff [and consultants] relevant to the requirements of this RFQ, including their work experience, education, affiliations and awards. Resumes should not include project pictures or general firm information. Particular reference should be made to the firm’s construction administration/observation personnel.
• If any staffing changes should occur between the submission of qualifications and the award of a contract, the architect must notify the client in writing. Unapproved staffing changes may result in a rejection of qualifications.
• List honors and awards received

Project Approach – Provide a brief discussion of the following:

• The methodology that your firm would use in conducting Health, Life, and Safety work, developing a facility plan or completing a project from inception to owner acceptance. This should include strategies for collaboration, communication and community building. If your methodology utilizes any specialized software packages and computerized systems, please provide an adequate description and summary of capabilities.
• Describe your experience in using BIM architectural technology.
• The firm’s ability / experience to work in the Brookwood School District No. 167 region. In your response, describe how your firm plans to respond when the Board has immediate needs that require on-site attention.
• Your approach to project scheduling and cost estimating within the environment of the educational sector. Provide a sample of what that would look like.
• The process your firm utilizes to investigate bidders to insure that they are qualified and equipped to satisfactorily complete a project.

References –

• Provide a minimum of six references for architectural services performed on educational facilities in Illinois in the last five 7 years.

Contract Negotiations –

• List the person or firm that will negotiate the contract between your firm and the Board. Also, list the last 5 school district contracts you have negotiated and provide the date the contract was awarded and the date the contract was approved by the Board of Education.

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