SECURITY GUARD SERVICES RFP PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE (PPC) Questions and Answers Thirty-one questions were submitted during or after the Pre-proposal Conference held on Wednesday, May 21, 2008, at 10:30 a.m. The questions and corresponding answers are provided below, in no particular order: 1. Who is the current contractor for security services? King Security Services. 2. Is the current contract security staff unionized? The current Contractor does not have unionized security guard staff. 3. Is this the same contract that services the One South Van Ness/Bank of America building? No. There is a separate RFP that has been released for security services for the One South Van Ness location. 4. What does confirming the LBE mean, and what form does it take in our response? The SFMTA's Contract Compliance Officer (CCO) assigned to this contract is responsible for verifying that listed firms qualify to be counted as LBEs. Only HRC-certified firms may be used to meet the LBE goals. Usually firms used to meet LBE goals are service providers but qualifying suppliers of goods may also be used. If a prime contractor lists an LBE supplier for LBE subcontracting credit, payments to an HRC-certified supplier will be given a 60% credit if the firm takes possession of the product and assumes risk of its delivery. Otherwise, if the supplier is merely serving as a broker or an agent, only 5% of the purchase price will be credited toward the subcontractor San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency San Francisco Municipal Railway Department of Parking & Traffic One South Van Ness Avenue, Seventh Fl. San Francisco, CA 94103 Tel: 415.701.4500 Fax: 415.701.4430 www.sfmta.com
participation goal. Equipment rental firms will be given a 60% credit for the rental fee of equipment owned by the equipment rental company. The form to be submitted with Proposals to demonstrate compliance with the contract's LBE requirements is the FORM 2A: HRC CONTRACT PARTICIPATION FORM. The prime Contractor, Subcontractor, Vendors, and lower sub-tiers must be listed on this form. Proposers should ensure that the firms that they list for credit toward LBE goals are HRC-certified to qualify as LBE firms. If the listed firms do not qualify for credit toward LBE goals, or if the listed firms do not cumulatively meet the LBE goal, the Proposal may be rejected as non-responsive. 5. What information must be submitted with our proposal in order to be considered responsive to the requirements of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission (HRC)? What are HRC Forms 7, 8, 9 and 10? In order to be considered responsive, the prime contractor must submit the following HRC forms: Form 2A: HRC Contract Participation Form Form 2B: HRC Good Faith Outreach Requirements Form Form 3: HRC Non-Discrimination Affidavit Form 5: HRC Employment Form HRC 12B-101 Form: Submit this form only if the Prime Contractor is not already in compliance with Equal Benefits Requirements Forms 7, 8, 9 and 10 are post-award forms that must be submitted by a Contractor with its invoices for payment. Forms 7, 8, 9 and 10 do not need to be included with Proposals. 6. Since the Observer Program consists of no-uniformed shoppers and not PPO require armed or unarmed uniformed security officers will they be considered for LBE statistics should partner with a local business for those services? No. Any staff used for the observer program must be directly employed as staff of the prime Contactor. A prime Contractor s participation does not count toward the LBE participation goal. The Contractor's own employees would not be counted toward LBE goals. Please note: There are two different Observer s Programs the Observer s Program to fulfill the Americans with Disabilities Act requirements (Section 9G of Appendix A the Scope of Services), and the Cable Car Observer s Program, which is described in Section 9H. Proposers may review the different training Page 2 of 7
requirements for those two programs in Scope of Work Section 8.H.ii.k and Section 8.H.ii.l. 7. Since we must retain current staff, please provide current wage rates? Current wages paid by the Contractor to employees (as of the most recent modification to the current contract in February 2008) are as follows: Armed Revenue Supervisor $18.00 Anti-Graffiti $13.00 Administrative Support $16.00 Armed Officers $16.00 Unarmed Officers $12.00 CC Observer $12.00 ADA Observer $12.00 Special Coverage Unarmed Mar to Aug 2008 $12.00 8. Is the current Observer Program currently in place and operational? The ADA Observers program, as described in Appendix A Scope of Services Section 9G, is in place and operational. The Cable Car Observers Program, as described in Section 9H, will go into effect with the new contract award. 9. Why did the City reject all bids and re-issue the contract solicitation? What happened to the previous Invitation for Bids? Could it happen again to this RFP? SFMTA elected to reject all bids, as it had the right to do pursuant to the terms of the Invitation for Bids. (Contact Proposal No. 07-980, page 2, paragraph (5)). The new solicitation for security guard services was issued as a Request for Proposals instead of as a low-bid contract. Instead of choosing a contractor by price alone, the RFP process will allow consideration of factors listed in RFP Sections III, IV and V. 10. Could we receive a copy of the bid tabulation from the last time this was bid out? Pursuant to Section 67.24(e)(1) of the San Francisco Sunshine Ordinance (S.F. Admin. Code sec. 67.24(e)(1)), the SFMTA declines to disclose the information you have requested. Section 67.24(e)(1) states in part: "Contracts, contractors' bids, responses to requests for proposals and all other records of communications between the department and persons or firms seeking Page 3 of 7
contracts shall be open to inspection immediately after a contract has been awarded." (Emphasis added.) No contract has been awarded in this instance. Further, to disclose the information you have requested would compromise the integrity of the contracting process. The SFMTA has released a new request for proposals (RFP), and submissions in response to that request would be compromised if the submissions in response to the earlier RFP were made public. 11. What does the oral process/interview consist of? The oral presentation will consist of the following: Proposers will make a presentation during the interview. The time limit for the presentation has not yet been determined, but will be provided to the Proposers upon notification that they have been selected to participate in the oral interview. Proposers will respond to questions submitted by the evaluation panel. Proposers will receive these questions in advance at the time that they are notified that they have been selected to participate in the oral interview. Proposers will answer questions from the panel about their oral presentation. 12. How many patrol vehicles is the Contractor required to provide? The contract requires the Contractor to provide a minimum of two vehicles for security guard use: One is for the mobile field supervisor and one is for the Graffiti Unit. However, during the terms of the contract, depending on SFMTA needs, other vehicles may be required. Terms regarding additional vehicles will be negotiated at the time of need. 13. Is there flexibility on the color of the uniforms, provided SFMTA approved them? Uniform requirements are specified in Appendix A-Scope of Services, Section 5. 14. If contractor provides employees with a Uniform Maintenance Allowance, is this acceptable to meet the cleaning requirement? A Uniform Maintenance Allowance is acceptable in meeting the cleaning requirement, as specified in Appendix A Scope of Services, Section 5A. However, the Contractor will be responsible for ensuring the cleanliness of uniforms worn by all Contractor personnel during the term of this agreement. Page 4 of 7
15. Trainee- First Source Hiring Program: Does the minimum number "to be hired" mean per year or at all times? The participation of trainees is based on the total value of the contract. However, a trainee or trainees can be phased in on the project after 30 days subsequent to Contractor's receipt of notice to proceed from SFMTA, and no later than the one year training commitment or equivalent hours prior to contract completion. 16. Is any of the required training billable to SFMTA? The Contractor is responsible for all training costs. 17. On Scope of Services, one part says extra coverage within 24 hours of request, while another part says within 4 hours. Which is correct? Both are correct, but refer to different circumstances: As explained in Appendix A-Scope of Services, Section 8.B and 8.C, (removal without and removal with cause) the employee must be replaced within 24 hours of SFMTA request. The Contractor shall respond within four hours in the case of a request for emergency guard services, as described in Appendix A-Scope of Services, Sections 1.K and Section 9.E 18. Objections to RFP Terms: Please confirm that these are due no later than May 30, 2008. That is correct. Objections to the RFP terms must by received by 5 p.m. PST on Friday, May 30, 2008. 19. Appendix E, Agreement for Professional Services, Section15.j(3) requires certain fidelity coverage. Our company maintains fidelity insurance, blanket crime coverage including third party fidelity, in the amount of $5 million, which would cover all employees under the SFMTA contract. The deductible is $175,000, for which our company assumes full responsibility. We can provide loss payee status to SFMTA. Would this coverage be sufficient to satisfy the requirements of this section of the agreement? The contractor will be required to maintain the various insurance coverages described in Section 15. Page 5 of 7
20. Are radios provided by SFMTA or by the vendor? Radios are provided by the SFMTA. 21. Do guards that are retained as required by the Displaced Worker Protection Act keep their seniority from the predecessor company or do they start new with the successor company? Please refer to Section VII.G of the RFP for instructions regarding the Displaced Worker Protection Act (DPWA), and Article 33C of the San Francisco Police Code for details of those requirements. 22. Regarding uniforms and equipment, what type of cap is required? Proposers may submit any style of cap, or any other for SFMTA review and approval as part of their uniform design. This is explained in Section 5.B of Appendix A Scope of Services. 23. Is the Contractor required to supply batons, chemical agents, and/or handcuffs? If additional equipment is required during the term of the contract, can the Contractor charge SFMTA for that equipment or the training that it will require? Yes, batons, chemical agent and handcuffs are required, but only for Armed Guards and Supervisors. Contractors may not charge the SFMTA for any type of equipment or training that beyond the rates agreed upon in the contract to be awarded. Reimbursable costs for additional types of equipment would be subject to future negotiation and contract amendment as required. 24. Page 18 of 32 references "Bureau of Collections." This is not what BSIS stands for. Is it an error or a different license? The text from Section 8.F.iii should read Department of Consumer Affairs, Bureau of Security and Investigative Services. 25. Will handheld scanners be provided by SFMTA for vault entrances? Handheld scanners are not currently used for vault entrances, however, the SFMTA will provide them if the procedure changes. Page 6 of 7
26. What is the fine history? Minimum & maximum paid in a year. There is no history of liquidated damages assessed against the contractor under the current contract. The terms of the existing contract are less comprehensive and detailed than the terms of the proposed contract with respect to the ability to assess liquidated damages against the contractor. 27. How many of the 1500 hrs of emergency service are armed vs. unarmed? The SFMTA suggests assuming that all emergency services requests would require response by Armed Guards. Emergency service requests vary by year, depending on needs. Last year, emergency services requests consisted of 80% requests for Armed Guard response and - 20% requests for response by Unarmed Guards. 28. How many on-site random drug tests can we expect to pay for? The Contractor will be responsible for the cost of all random drug tests required under the contract. 29. How many after hours post accident tests have there been in a year? There have been no after hours post accident tests during the current contract. 30. Are cell phones to be provided to guards on-duty and if so must they be two-way? SFMTA does not provide cell phones. Cell phones must be provided by the Contractor, if the Contractor determines they are necessary. SFMTA only provides radios. However, if the Contractor does provide cell phones, SFMTA recommends that they be two-way cell phones. 31. Can the bill come from one of the joint venture partners as long as there are separate invoices for the armed vs. the unarmed & other clearly delineated work items? A joint venture is required to enter into the contract as a single entity. See RFP III.C.4, III.C.7, VI.N.2 for more information about requirements specific to joint ventures. Firms signing a contract as a joint venture must provide invoices to SFMTA from the entity that is the joint venture, not one or the other of the joint venture partners. Page 7 of 7