102BIDDING REQUIREMENTS AND CONDITIONS

New Hampshire Department of Transportation Standard Specifications – 2016

102.01Prequalification of Bidders

In order that the Department may establish the rating or competency of those who propose to become bidders, at least ten days before submitting a proposal, a prospective bidder shall provide the Department with a completed prequalification application and a confidential financial statement, in accordance with th e New Hampshire Code of Administrative Rules Part Tra 401, on a form furnished by the Department. Certification by a public accountant may be required. The statement shall include a complete report of the prospective bidder’s financial assets and liabilities, equipment owned or leased, past and current work history, organizational structure including supervisory personnel, and references. In the event that any prospective Bidder fails to submit a prequalification statement as prescribed above, the Department will refuse to supply such prospective Bidder with a Proposal Form. Bidders shall prequalify at least once a year. A prequalification questionnaire and regulations may be obtained by prospective Bidders from the Department’s Bureau of Finance & Contracts. Prequalification status may be changed during the year upon submission of additional favorable reports or upon evidence of unsatisfactory performance as determined by the Department. Prequalification will establish the bidder’s capacity to submit Proposals on individual projects of a given size or for a particular type of work.

102.02Contents of Proposal Forms

The Proposal Form will state the location and description of the proposed construction, will show the estimate of the various quantities and kinds of work to be performed or materials to be furnished, and will have a schedule of items for which Item B id Prices are invited. The Proposal Form will state the Contract time, the amount of the Proposal Guaranty, and t he date, time, and place of the opening of Proposals. The Proposal will include a statement regarding anti -trust activities, collusion, and restraint of free competitive bidding. The Proposal Form will also include Supplemental Specifications, Special Provisions, Special Attentions and other requirements that are not contained in the Standard Specifications. All papers bound with or attached to the Proposal Form are considered a part thereof and must not be detached or altered when the Proposal is submitted, except for amendments authorized in writing by the Department. The plans, specifications, and other documents referenced in the Proposal Form will be considered a part of the Proposal, whether attached or not. The prospective Bidder will be required to pay the Department the sum stated in the Invitation for Bids for each copy of the Proposal and each set of plans obtained.

102.03Issuance of Proposal Form

The Department reserves the right to disqualify a Bidder as non-responsive or refuse to issue a Proposal Form to a prospective Bidder for any of the following reasons:

statement required under 102.01.

additional work if awarded.

work.

prospective bidder is a party to a joint venture and the joint venture has failed to reimburse the Department for money owed.

Prospective Bidders who have not been prequalified may be furnished a proposal marked as “ Sample Proposal, Not for Bidding Purposes.” Such sample proposals will not be accepted by the Department as a valid Proposal.

102.04Interpretation of Quantities in the Bid Proposal

The quantities appearing in the Bid Proposal are estimates used for the comparison of bids. Payment to the Contractor will be made only for the actual quantities of work performed and accepted or materials furnished in accordance with the Contract. T he

New Hampshire Department of Transportation Standard Specifications – 2016 estimated quantities of work to be performed and materials to be furnished may each be increased, decreased, or eliminated in their entirety in accordance with 104.02, 109.03 and 109.11.

102.05Examination of Plans, Specifications, Special Provisions, Proposal, and Project Site

The Bidder is expected to examine carefully the proposed Project Site and Proposal Form before submitting a Proposal. The bidder is responsible for all site conditions that should have b een discovered had a reasonable site investigation been performed. The submission of a Proposal will be considered conclusive evidence that the bidder is satisfied with the conditions to be encountered in performing the requirements of the proposed Contract. It will be assumed that the Bidder has also investigated and is satisfied with the sources of supply for all materials. Whenever boring logs or other records of subsurface investigations obtained by the Department are available for a Bid der’s inspection, it is understood that these records have been obtained with reasonable care and recorded in good faith. The information is made available to bidders so all may have access to the identical subsurface information available to the Department and is not intended as a substitute for the personal investigations, interpretations, and judgment of the bidders. Boring logs and other subsurface investigation records are available for inspection at the office of the Department’s Bureau of Materials & Research, prior to the bid opening by appointment with 72 hours advance notice. Copies of these records are also available during the bidding period at the office of the Associated General Contractors of New Hampshire, Inc., Bow, New Hampshire. There is no warranty or guarantee, either expressed or implied, that the conditions indicated by such investigations or records are representative of those conditions existing throughout such areas, or any part thereof, or that unforeseen conditions wil l not occur, or that materials other than, or in proportions different from those indicated, will not be encountered. The word “ rock” or the word “ ledge” or the symbol for rock or ledge wherever used on the Plans shall be interpreted to mean only that rock may exist at the indicated elevations. The Department will not be bound by any statement or representation concerning conditions or description of work unless they are included in the Contract. Oral explanations or instructions given before the award of the Contr act by Department employees or agents will not be binding. Any request for explanation of the meaning or interpretation of the Proposal Form shall be submitted at least five (5) days before the hour and date set for the bid opening to allow a reply to reac h all bidders before submission of their Proposal. Interpretations or explanations made by the Department in response to such requests will be issued as an Addendum to the Proposal Form. All revisions or corrections to the proposal will be made by a writ ten Addendum posted on the Department’s Website or sent by either certified mail or telefacsimile to prospective bidders. All Addenda shall be acknowledged by a signed telefacsimile to the Department.

102.06Familiarity with Laws

The Bidder is required to have made itself familiar with all Federal and State laws and all local by -laws, ordinances, and regulations which in any manner affect those engaged or employed to perform the work or affect the materials or equipment used in the Contract or affect the conduct of the work, and no plea of ignorance or misunderstanding will be considered. If the B idder shall discover any provision in the Contract which is in conflict with any such law, b y-law, ordinance, or regulation, the Engineer shall be informed forthwith in writing.

102.07Preparation of Proposal

The bidder shall submit the Proposal on either the paper forms provided by the Department, on previousl y approved, substantially identical, forms generated by computer software, or electronically utilizing the Department’s secure vault serv ice. Bidders are expected to submit unit prices in dollars and cents. Unit prices extending more than two digits after the decimal will be rounded to the nearest whole cent. When rounding is required, $.005 or more will be shown as the next higher cent. When an item in the proposal contains a choice to be made by the bidder, the bidder shall indicate the choice in accordance with the specifications for that particular item. The Proposal submitted must be signed by the individual, by one or more members of the partnership, by one or more members or officers of each firm representing a joint venture, by one or more officers of a corporation, or by an agent of the Contractor legally qualified and acceptable to the Department. If the bid is made by an individual, the individual’s name and post office address must be shown; by a partnership, the name and post office address of each partnership member must be shown; as a joint venture, the name and post office address of each member or officer of the firms represented by the joint venture must be shown; by a corporation, the name of the corporation and its business address must be shown, together with the name of the state in which it is incorporated, and the names, titles, and business addresses of the president, secretary, and treasurer.

quantity is given and shall also show the products of the respective unit prices and quantities in figures in the column provided. The total amount of t he Proposal is to be obtained by adding the amounts of the several items. All the words and figures shall be in ink or typed. If a unit bid price already entered by the bidder on the Proposal is to be

New Hampshire Department of Transportation Standard Specifications – 2016 altered, it should be crossed out in ink, the new uni t bid price entered above or below it and initialed by the bidder, also in ink. In case of discrepancy between the prices in words and those in figures, the prices in words shall govern. All Department Addenda to the Proposal must be acknowledged by the Bidder on the bid envelope supplied by the Department for the submitted bid documents. The Proposal submitted must be signed in ink.

For the purpose of this provision, affixing a digital ID to the Proposal shall be the equivalent of signing before a notary public and placing in force the Debarment and Non-Collusion Affidavit certification on file with the Department. By submitting an electronic Proposal, the bidder certifies that it has read, understands, accepts, acknowledges, and agrees t o comply with all statements, conditions, and specifications in the electronic submittal, including acknowledgement of all Addenda.

102.08Irregular Proposals

Proposals will be considered irregular and may be rejected as non-responsive for any of the following reasons:

the Proposal incomplete, indefinite, or ambiguous as to its meaning.

to an award. This does not exclude a Proposal limiting the maximum gross amount of awards acceptable to any one bidder at any one bid letting, provided that selection of awards is made by the Department.

items.

Department, or if the form is altered or any part thereof is detached or incomplete.

documentation if required by the Contract.

102.09Proposal Guaranty

A Proposal will not be considered unless accompanied by a guaranty of the character and amount indicated in the proposal and made payable to the “ Treasurer, State of New Hampshire.” If a bid bond is used by the Bidder, it shall be prepared as follows:

Acceptable Sureties on Federal Bonds and as Acceptable Reinsuring Companies”, as published by the United States Department of the Treasury, Fiscal Service, Circular 570.

from the time the bids are opened to correct the irregularities. If such irregularities are not corrected to the satisfaction of the Department, the Proposal will be rejected.

.1 Electronic Proposal. A bidder submitting an electronic Proposal through the Department’s secure vault service

shall submit an electronic corporate surety bid bond. The corporate surety bond shall accompany each electronic Proposal. A bidder must arrange with its bonding agent to obtain an electronic bid bond and bid bond code. The bid bond code shall be submitted with the electronic Proposal.

102.10Delivery of Proposal

addressed to the Department at the address shown on the Invitation for Bids. Sealed Proposals shall be received and deposited in the Bid Box at the location specified prior to the time and date specified in the Invitation for Bids. It shall be the Bidder’s responsibility to ensure the Proposal is deposited as specified. Proposals delivered to the Department by alternate means are submitted at the s ole risk of the Bidder. The Department will not accept

New Hampshire Department of Transportation Standard Specifications – 2016 responsibility for any reason if the Proposal is not deposited in the Bid Box by the specified time and date. Proposals received after the time for opening of bids will be returned to the bidder unopened.

service. When a Proposal is submitted electronically through the secure vault service, the bidder shall “ sign” the Proposal with a digital identification (ID). A bidder submitting an electronic Proposal through the secure vault service is solely responsible for that submission. Claims will not be accepted and bid openings will not be postponed due to default on the part of the b idder in preparing and submitting an electronic Proposal in a timely manner. All other bidding requirements apply to the submission of electronic Proposals.

102.11Withdrawal or Revisions of Proposals

the request for withdrawal or revision is received by the Department in writing before the time set for receipt of proposals.

changed and resubmitted as many times as desired prior to the time set for the opening of Proposals specified in the Invitation for Bids. The latest time-stamped, electronically submitted, Proposal prior to the time set for opening bids will constitute the Proposal. Once the time set for opening of Proposals has passed, a Proposal cannot be withdrawn or revised.

102.12Combination Proposals

If the Department so elects, Proposals may be issued for projects in combination or separately, so that Proposals may be submitted either on the combination or on separate units of the combination. The award of combination Propo sals or separate Proposals will be made to the advantage of the Department. No combination Proposals, other than those specifically set up in the proposals by the Department, will be considered. Separate Contracts will be written for each individual proj ect included in the combination.

102.13Public Opening of Proposals

Invitation for Bids.

accessed, decrypted, printed to paper or otherwise made accessible in readable format at the times pecified in the Invitation to Bids. Apparent total bid amounts will be made immediately available to the public. All bid results confirmed as formal after analysis will be published and posted on the Department’s Website. In the event of technical difficulties in opening electronic bids, the Department may postpone the reading of bids for that contract. All bids for a contract will be opened at the same time and location.

102.14Disqualification of Bidders

Either of the following reasons will be considered sufficient for the disqualification of a bidder and the rejection of a Proposal:

name.

work of the Department until they are reinstated as qualified bidders.

102.15Materials Statement

The successful bidder shall, when requested, furnish a complete statement of the origin or supplier of materials to be used i n the construction of the work, together with samples to be tested for conformance with the Contract provisions.

102.16Non-Collusive Bidding Certification

Every Proposal submitted to the Department shall contain the following statement affirmed by the bidder as true under the penalties of Law. This Certification, on Department forms, shall be signed by the bidders and submitted with the bid documents. Non-Collusive Bidding Certification: By submission of this Proposal, each bidder and each person signing on behalf of any bidder, certifies as to its own organization, under penalty of perjury, that to the best of their knowledge and belief:

agreement with any other bidder or with any competitor for the purpose of restricting competition.

New Hampshire Department of Transportation Standard Specifications – 2016

will not knowingly be disclosed by the bidder, directly or indirectly, to any other bidder or competitor prior to opening of Proposals.

submit or not to submit a proposal for the purpose of restricting competition.

whether directly or indirectly, entered into any agreement, participated in any collusion, or otherwise taken any action to restrain free competitive bidding in connection with this Proposal.

with the statements in the certification above.

prospective customers of proposed or pending publication of new or revised price lists for such item, or (3) has sold the same items to other customers at the same prices being bid, does not constitute a disclosure within the meaning of part 1 of the certification above.

New Hampshire Department of Transportation Standard Specifications – 2016

103.01Consideration of Proposals

After Proposals are opened and read, they will be compared on the basis of summation of the products of the quantities and the Item Bid Prices unless otherwise defined in the Proposal Form. The results of the comparisons will be available to the p ublic. If a discrepancy exists between the total shown in the bid and that obtained by adding the products of the quantities of items and the Item Bid Prices, the latter shall govern. The Department reserves the right to reject any or all Proposals, waive techni calities, correct minor discrepancies, or advertise for new Proposals if, in the judgment of the Commissioner, the best interests of the State will be promoted thereby.

103.02Award of Contract

Within 60 calendar days after the opening of Proposals, if a Contract is to be awarded, the award will be made to the prequalified bidder who submits the lowest priced responsive Proposal. The successful bidder will be notified by letter mailed to the address shown on the Proposal of the acceptance of the Proposal pending Governor and Council approval. If the Contract is not awarded by the Department and approved by the Governor and Council within 60 days after the opening of Proposals, the bidder has the right to withdraw the bid without penalty.

103.03Cancellation of Award

The Department may cancel the award of any Contract before execution without incurring any liabili ty.

103.04Return of Proposal Guaranty

Proposal Guaranties, of all except those of the two lowest bidders, will be returned within seven (7) days following the opening of the Proposals. Irregular Proposals will have the Proposal Guaranties returned upon determination of the irregularity. The retained Proposal Guaranties of the two lowest bidders will be returned within ten days following the approval by the Governor and Council of the aw ard of the Contract. A Bidder will not be released from its bidding obligations because of errors in the preparation of the Proposal without forfeiting the Proposal Guaranty.

103.05Contract Bond

Unless specifically waived in the Proposal, upon execution of the Contract, the successful bidder shall furnish the Department a surety bond or bonds equal to the sum of the Contract amount. If a bond is used, it shall meet the following requirements:

Authority as Acceptable Sureties on Federal Bonds and as Acceptable Reinsuring Companies, ” as published by the United States Department of the Treasury, Fiscal Service, Circular 570. The Bonds shall guarantee the execution, faithful performance, and completion of the work to be done under the Contract, and payment in full of all bills and accounts for materials and labor used in the work. In the event the surety or bonding company fails or becomes financially i nsolvent, the Contractor shall file a new bond(s) in the amount designated by the Department, within 30 calendar days of such failure or insolven cy.

103.06Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program Requirements

The Department is required to set an overall annual goal for DBE participation in Federal -aid projects. In order to fulfill that goal, Bidders during the bidding stage and the low Bidder after the opening of bids are encouraged to demonstrate best efforts to utilize minority Subcontractors by soliciting bids from DBEs. These measures to obtain participation are known as race- neutral. Race-neutral DBE participation occurs when a DBE receives a prime Contract through customary competitive procurement procedures, is awarded a subcontract on a prime Contract that does not carry a DBE Contract goal, or even if there is a DBE Contract goal, wins a subcontract from a prime Contractor that did not consider its DBE status in making the award (e.g. prime Contractor that uses a strict low bid system to award subcontracts). The Department will use Contract goals as a race -conscious means of meeting any portion of the overall goal not achieved by use of race-neutral means. A DBE is defined as a business t hat is owned and controlled by one or more socially and economically disadvantaged person(s). For the purpose of this definition:

the United States and who is a Woman, Black, Hispanic, Portuguese, Native American, Asian American, or a member of another group, or an individual found to be disadvantaged by the Small Business Administration pursuant to Section 3 of the Small Business Act.