24-047

INVITATION TO BID

METER REPLACEMENT PROJECT

PUBLIC UTILITY DISTRICT NO. 1 of PEND OREILLE COUNTY

Public Utility District No. 1 of Pend Oreille County (the District), is seeking bids for a contractor to assist the District in a Meter Replacement Project.

Purpose

The purpose of the bid is to obtain a contractor to perform meter exchanges/replacements as the District is upgrading all of its electric meters to an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) system.  The project consists of replacing approximately 8,000 single-phase 2S electric meters throughout the District’s service territory in Pend Oreille County. Pend Oreille County is in northeast corner of Washington State, an area of approximately 1,400 square miles and a 2022 population of 13,401.  The District serves approximately 9,000 residential customers and has approximately 9 customers per mile of line.

The work will be performed under the direction of the District’s Director of Customer Services or other designated District personnel.  The work will be done under a written contract in a form acceptable to District.  The District shall be the exclusive judge of all bids and reserves the right to accept or reject any bid proposal based upon its own criteria and sole judgment.

Scope of Work

The selected contractor will be responsible for the removal and installation of single-phase 2S electric meters per District standards.  The contractor is to provide an experienced management team and skilled labor force to facilitate the installation of approximately 8,000 single-phase 2S electric meters and perform the project safely, accurately, on time, within promised budget and with customer satisfaction.  The selected contractor shall provide all labor, supervision, equipment, tools, and materials (vehicles, fuel, PPE, iPad, and meter exchange tools to include voltmeters, socket tension tools, meter pullers, etc.) to perform the meter exchanges and documentation.  The District will supply the meters, rings, and seals. On a recurring basis, the District will supply a list of meters needing exchanged to include the meter number, location, etc., to be grouped by area to maximize drive-time efficiencies. Contractor will be responsible for following the below outlined Meter Exchange Procedure and for scheduling work to be performed after receipt of the list of meters. The proposed work hours are four (4) ten-hour days from Monday to Thursday 6:00am – 4:30pm for field installers. The District will provide specific blackout dates if applicable.

Meter Exchange Procedure

• After crews are dispatched with service orders they are to contact the resident by knocking on the door. If the resident is present, contractor is to inform them of the meter replacement project and complete the meter replacement. If the resident is not present, contractor shall complete the meter replacement and leave a door hanger. If the meter replacement cannot be completed due to customer inconvenience or accessibility issues, the contractor shall provide the customer with information to call to schedule an appointment. Appointments are to be handled by contractor personnel.
• Crews are to verify information obtained from the District and what is found in the field. Any differences in information shall be given to the District to be addressed. Any unsafe issues needing immediate attention shall be reported to the District immediately.
• Before and after pictures of meter and meter socket and surrounding area, meter reads and GPS locations are to be collected at the time of the meter exchange.
• During the meter exchange a report of visual inspections of any safety hazards or wiring concerns shall be noted by crews. These inspections include the meter, meter socket and surrounding area to include socket condition, current diversion detection, grounding issues, or other notable concerns. Line and load voltages on all meter base lugs are to be taken at that time. Hot socket tension tools are used on suspected damaged meter bases.
• Captured data from installers is QA'd by contractor personnel prior to transmission to the District. After verified, data shall be sent to the District in agreed upon format.
• Weekly status reports are to be provided to the District and should include the number of meters installed, inventory, observations, etc.

It is desired by the District to have this project start on or around October 1, 2024 and be completed by September 30, 2025.

All bidding documents can be viewed and/or downloaded through the District’s online contracting portal, ProcureWare, at https://popud.procureware.com.  In order to be eligible to bid and ensure notification of addenda/clarifications, bidders must be registered through ProcureWare.

Bid Requirements

Each bid must be accompanied by the following:

• The completed bid proposal form.
  • Bidders also to furnish a project schedule.
• A bid guarantee in an amount not less than five percent (5%) of the bid amount, made payable to PUD No. 1 of Pend Oreille County.
• Performance and payment bonds will be required with the contract. 

Selected contractor shall be trained in all aspects of metering to include, but not be limited to the following: troubleshooting, safety awareness, wiring accuracy, current diversion, customer service, and the installation of single-phase 2S electric meters.

Selected contractor shall:

1. Possess the necessary qualifications, knowledge, skills, expertise and experience to perform the Services outlined in the Scope of Work to the highest professional standards;
2. comply with all safety, security and quality control procedures established by the contractor, the District and according to WAC/OSHA/NFPA 7OE regulations;
3. comply with all applicable laws, orders, regulations, ordinances, standard, codes and other rules, licenses and permits of all lawful authorities; and
4. where applicable, Contractor shall take all measures in the performance of the Services to minimize disturbance or damage to the environment.

The State of Washington prevailing wage rates are applicable for this contract located in Pend Oreille County.  Bidders are responsible to verify and use the most recent prevailing wage rates.  The applicable prevailing wage rates may be found on the Department of Labor and Industries website.

By bidding on this project, Contractor acknowledges they have reviewed the District’s Safety Plan, which can be found here: https://popud.org/top-links/safety-and-education/safety-plan/.  All contractors must comply with State of Washington and CDC Guidelines with respect to COVID-19.

Bid Submittals

· Bids must be submitted using ProcureWare, the Districts online contracting portal, at popud.procureware.com no later than September 11, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. PST. Submittals received after the above date and time for any reason will not be considered.

· Questions related to this submittal must be submitted by way of ProcureWare no later than September 4, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. PST.  Responses to these questions will be made available to all bidders via ProcureWare.

· Public bid opening will commence on September 11, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. PST.  The public bid opening will be held virtually via Microsoft Teams Meeting.  Join from computer, tablet or smartphone using the below link or dial in at (802) 673-1244  using access Code: 884 845 875#.

https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_YjUwNjExNmUtMjJlMS00YmJhLWE1ZWYtMWU1YjBmMTAzM2Yy%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%226a9881bc-1e97-4806-8532-be90f3b64408%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%2245ce7b33-9839-4493-a965-df6018b66e80%22%7d

Bid Evaluation Criteria

1. Pricing
2. Experience & Qualifications
3. Implementation Methodology

The District reserves the right to cancel this bid at any time, or issue amendments or corrections. The District reserves the right to award this contract, or to not award this contract.  Women’s, minority, and small business enterprises are encouraged to apply. The District is an equal opportunity employer.