Hillsborough County sets specs, $470,000 allowance and 10% MBE goal for electrical services ITB

Hillsborough County procurement staff outlined technical specifications, submission rules and participation requirements for an electrical-services Invitation to Bid during a virtual pre-bid meeting, saying all bids must be submitted through the Bonfire portal and the ITB closes March 20, 2025, at 2 p.m. Eastern.

The county emphasized bidder requirements and on-site response expectations, including a three-year contract term, routine work hours from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern and emergency-response staffing: "For emergency services, The contractor must be able to deploy a minimum of 2 electricians and 1 electrical helper with appropriate personnel protective equipment, PPE, and equipment within 2 hours," said Sharon, procurement staff, summarizing the solicitation language.

The solicitation includes a single combined allowance of $470,000 "for third party equipment testing at actual cost, parts and materials, and equipment rental, not otherwise specified in this solicitation, and expedited shipping," Sharon said. Don Hooks, water resources project manager, said the county combined separate allowance lines into one to give the project manager flexibility in allocating funds during projects: "Originally, we were going to do separate items... we combined it all into 1 group of 470,000, and you can kind of disperse it as the project manager needs it." The county said line-item details for equipment are provided in the bid documents, with preferred part numbers listed for items such as an ASCO 300-series transfer switch and specified breaker models, and the county will accept equivalent equipment at its discretion.

Procurement staff said the county will evaluate bidder responsibility and responsiveness and may award by line item, group or overall low bid, whichever is in the county's best interest. "The award will be made to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder meeting the specifications," Sharon said. Bidders are not required to bid every group but must bid every line item within a group they choose.

On subcontracting and minority participation, Diana, economic development special coordinator, said the ITB carries a 10% MBE/DM/DWBE participation goal. "At the time of bid submittal, the MBE 1 form, also known as the subcontractors material suppliers list, will be required to be submitted," Diana said. She said firms certified with other government agencies (for example, the city of Tampa or the state of Florida) may be used to meet the goal provided they are not on the county's graduated, denied or reciprocal list, and that bidders should include scopes of work and supporting documentation; letters of intent may be requested by the county.

Don Hooks reviewed personnel qualifications and testing requirements. Electricians must be licensed journeymen and electronics technicians must be certified by the equipment manufacturer or demonstrate equivalent job-related experience approved by the project manager; contractors must provide licenses, certifications and experience justifications upon request. He said breaker testing will be common in plant work and may be performed by county-approved third-party testers or by contractors who can demonstrate appropriate qualifications.

Procurement details noted in the pre-bid included: mandatory electronic submission via Bonfire (no other formats accepted); a certificate of insurance with specified endorsements approved by the county's risk department; a three-year contract term; and a requirement that electrical design services not be provided "as defined by Florida Statute 287.055 without prior authorization from a project manager," Sharon said. The procurement posting date is listed in the documents as Feb. 10, 2025; the deadline for submitting written questions through Bonfire is March 13, 2025.

The meeting closed with no outstanding technical questions raised to staff; procurement staff reiterated deadlines and the submission process. "If there are no further questions, I will go ahead and close the pre bid meeting for today, and I thank you all for being in attendance," Sharon said.