RFP No C024 Auditing Services for Phase 1 of the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority

Transcription

1 Questions and Answers RFP No C024 Auditing Services for Phase 1 of the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Notice: Questions may have been edited for clarity and relevance. 1. Attachment 03, Federal Requirements Addendum lists certifications for the purchase of steel and buses. Are they necessary certifications? Answer: If the Federal Requirement Certifications are applicable to the services rendered, please complete. If the certifications are not applicable enter NA in the space provided. 2. Is this a fixed price contract or some form of labor hour contract, e.g. T&M? Answer: The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (Airports Authority) contemplates award of a firm fixed price contract resulting from this solicitation. 3. The spreadsheet provided appears to want labor rates times labor hours by category, how will I determine enough detail in the scope of the audit to provide the number of hours by each category? Answer: Allocations may be adjusted between labor categories after developing the detailed audit plan as long as the total fixed price remains constant. Offerors must use their best professional judgment and ensure that the total price is sufficient. 4. Section IV, Representations and Certifications, Item 01.F requests the names of the principals of our firm. Considering the significant number of partners in our firm, is it sufficient to indicate the total number of partners within the firm and include only the names of the partners that will be directly serving the Airports Authority? Answer: Yes. 5. Section VI, Special Provisions, Item 01.E requires that firms certify that "local revenues" exceed $15 million to satisfy the minimum responsibility standards. While our firm has more than 2,000 employees and over $400 million in revenues, we don't currently have an office in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area, thus our "local revenues" do not meet the minimum requirement of $15 million. Does this "local revenue" provision preclude our firm from an opportunity to win this contract? Answer: The Office of Audit has determined that it is advantageous to hire a firm with a substantial local presence. Page 1 of 5

2 6. Why is the firm s local revenue and overall number of CPAs important for auditing a construction project? Answer: The Office of Audit has determined that it is advantageous to hire a firm with a substantial local presence. This project requires that the selected firm: Has sufficient size and capabilities to ensure that this work can be performed by an experienced and capable audit team following Yellow Book standards; Will proceed on schedule; and Will produce a high quality report for a broad range of users. Offerors who meet these requirements may include engineers, and other construction auditing experts who are not certified public accountants in the proposed team. 7. Why is Section VI, Special Provisions included in the solicitation, since they have very little to do with a firm s ability to perform the requested services? Answer: See answer to question Can a holder of a construction claims contract for the Metrorail office with the Airports Authority submit on this as a subcontractor and maintain independence? Answer: Please see the list of contractors and subcontractors listed under question 9 and also please review the Yellow Book standards for independence to support your decision on auditor independence. 9. While we are working to identify the parties for the purposes of a conflict check for independence purposes, given the number of parties involved in this project, and that some of these parties may not be readily identifiable to the proposers, please identify the parties that the Airports Authority believes the proposers should be independent from impairment of independence for the purposes of the performance audit? Answer: DTP is made up of Bechtel and The Washington Group. The PMSS group is led by Jacobs Engineering with about 20 subs. Booz Allen and Hamilton Inc. Chaves and Associates Commonwealth Consultants of Virginia Inc. Diversified Property Services Inc. Golder Associates Inc. Haley and Aldrich Inc. Hatch Mott Macdonald Llc Keville Enterprises Inc. Kimley Horn and Associates, Inc. Lea and Elliott Inc. Mercado Consulting Inc. McKissack and McKissack of Washington, Inc. Nxl Construction Services Inc. Quinn Consulting Services Inc. Randolph Richardson Associates Stellar Services, Inc. STV Inc. David Volkert and Associates Inc. Page 2 of 5

3 Vtx Vertical Warner Construction Consultants, Inc. 10. Section VII, Contract Provisions, Liability Insurance, 15D Environmental Impairment Liability Given that the scope of services outlined in the solicitation and that the firms proposing to provide the scope of services are professional services firms and not construction contractors, will the Airports Authority consider eliminating the requirement that the contractor provide this insurance coverage during the contract period? 11. Section VII, Contract Provisions, 33B & C Inspection of Services Please clarify the acceptable inspection system and records of all inspection work performed by the contractor. We believe this is targeted more to construction or facilities maintenance work, rather than a performance audit and may not be applicable to a professional services firm such as those proposing on this scope of services? 12. Section VIII, Exhibit A Please confirm if this is a required or optional form to be submitted with the Representation Package for this solicitation? 13. Attachment 02, Evaluation Criteria Will the Airports Authority provide the weighting, percentage, or ratio of each of the evaluation criteria to the total? Answer: No. The evaluation criteria are listed in descending order of importance. 14. Attachment 02, Evaluation Criteria 02 Proposal Submission Requirements A. Submission Instructions Envelope 3: Technical Proposal Are resumes part of the 50 page limit or can these be included as exhibits? Answer: Resumes may be included as exhibits. 15. Attachment 02, Evaluation Criteria 02 Proposal Submission B Format Instructions for Technical Proposal Preparation Section 1 Staff Qualifications Please clarify the information the Airports Authority is requesting regarding continuing professional education over the past two years? Answer: All classes, seminars or other meetings that are approved for continuing professional education credits by NASBA/AICPA. 16. How should exceptions to the RFP terms and conditions be made? Is a separate attachment to the proposal acceptable? Answer: The Question and Answer period allows consideration and incorporation of modifications prior to proposal submittals in the form of Amendments. Terms and Conditions of the Solicitation/Contract are not negotiable in any material way. Refer to Amendment to solicitation 001. Page 3 of 5

4 17. Will negotiation of contract terms and conditions be permitted after selection of a contractor but prior to contract award? Answer: See answer to question Will Environmental Impairment Insurance be required for this contract? 19. What is an "Unintentional Errors/Omissions Endorsement?" Our professional liability insurance policy covers errors and omissions that result from wrongful acts, but there is no specific endorsement. Please provide further explanation regarding this insurance requirement? Answer: Certain contracts for services involve the unique skills of professionals. Protection against liability arising out of a professional error or omission (sometimes called malpractice) requires a type of insurance generally called professional liability insurance. 20. Is the Federal Government assistance associated with this audit requirement funded under 49 U.S.C 5307, 5309, 5311 or 23 U.S.C. 103(e)(4)? Answer: This project is financed in part with assistance provided by the Federal Transit Administration ( FTA ) and acknowledges that a condition to such assistance is the application of certain federal laws, regulations and ordinances to the contract and contractor ( Federal Requirements ). Contractor will comply with all Federal requirements in effect as of the effective date of the contract. 21. Do the days within the audit schedule reflect business days (Monday through Friday)? Answer: The days within the audit schedule reflect calendar days. 22. Section VI, Special Provisions, subsection F.: This section states subcontractors shall comply with standards A through D of the minimum responsibility standards of this section. Are these requirements applicable to non audit subcontractors? Answer: No. However, the prime must be prepared to express a conclusion or opinion on the audit results. 23. Section VII, Contract Provisions, 15. Liability Insurance, subsection D.: As a professional services firm will be required to obtain Environmental Impairment Liability insurance? Answer: Refer to Amendment to solicitation Section VII, Contract Provisions: It appears several of the terms in the Contract Provisions section of the RFP do not pertain to professional services, but rather to the construction industry. Will these terms be negotiable and will the final contract reflect customary professional services terms and conditions? Answer: See answer to question Can you clarify the anticipated start date for the performance audit project? Answer: We anticipate the contract will be awarded and commence in September Page 4 of 5

5 26. Can an organization chart relevant to the Airports Authority management structure of Phase 1 be provided? Answer: No. An organization chart relevant to the Airports Authority management structure is not relevant for proposal submission. All relevant points of contact will be provided at contract award. 27. What is the current amount and number of executed, pending, and outstanding change orders on the project? Answer: There are 91 executed change orders valued at $31,253,634 and 33 pending change orders valued at $52,352, Is a Construction Change Directive, CCD, or other similar approach currently in use on the project, whereby CCD s are incorporated in to Change Orders? Answer: The proposed changes are initially called Task Directives. The Airports Authority uses an approach similar to the construction change directive. With its task directive contracts, the Airports Authority has a unilateral right to direct changes within the general scope of the contract. A contracting officer may issue a unilateral change authorization through a signed change notice requiring the contractor to commence specified work on a time and materials basis and to submit a proposal within 30 days requesting an equitable adjustment. To initiate a change, the COTR prepares a change authorization and a change notice. Both documents are forwarded to the contracting officer for approval processing. The change authorization provides an initial estimated cost (Order of Magnitude Estimate) and a technical assessment of the work to be performed. Information in the change authorization is not shared with the contractor. Only the change notice is sent to the contractor. Upon receiving the change notice, the contractor is required to submit a proposal within 30 days. 29. Will assistance be needed relative to auditing the costs associated with and submitted as part of any approved Change Orders? If so, should this be included in our pricing? Answer: The selected firm will not be required to conduct indirect cost audits for prime and subcontractors. The selected firm may need to determine if some form of price or cost analysis should have been performed in connection with the issuance of approved change orders and to determine whether the cost and pricing data in the file is sufficient to support the cost included. 30. Does the Airports Authority have a budget set aside for the engagement? If so, can you disclose the amount? Answer: The published estimated dollar value on our website is up to $400, Page 5 of 5