ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

TO:

Vancouver City Council

FROM:

General Manager of Engineering Services

SUBJECT:

Award of Design and Construction Management Contract for a new precast plant at 900/1100 East Kent

 

RECOMMENDATION

A. THAT subject to recommendations B and C below, Council authorize and approve a contract with Westmar Consultants Inc. for:

B. THAT the Director of Legal Services be authorized to execute and deliver the contract on behalf of Council once the contract is in a form which is satisfactory to the General Manager of Engineering Services and the Director of Legal Services.

C. THAT no legal rights are hereby created and none shall arise unless and until the contract is approved as to from by the General Manager of Engineering Services and the Director of Legal Services and has been executed and delivered by the Director of Legal Services.

GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS

The General Manager of Engineering Services recommends approval of the foregoing

COUNCIL POLICY

Council must approve consulting contracts that exceed $30,000.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this report is to seek Council approval to award a design and construction management contract to Westmar Consultants Inc. for the new precast plant to be located at 900 East Kent Ave.

BACKGROUND

· The new precast facility will replace the existing precast facility at Cambie yards and will provide ready mix concrete and precast products for engineering crews.

· On June 13th, 2002 Council approved $1,705,000 (including land and construction costs) in funding for relocation of the existing precast facility from Cambie Yard to 900/1100 East Kent Ave based on a positive business case analysis for the new facility. (Report RTS#02426)

· On June 13th, 2002 Council approved purchase of land (at $399,000) from the Property Endowment Fund at 900/1100 East Kent Ave for a batch and ready mix precast facility. (Report RTS#2659)

· A public process has been used to select a consultant for this project. Following a public call for expressions of interest, 3 companies were selected to respond to a detailed request for proposals. Proposals were received from the following companies:
· Westmar Consultants Inc.
· Omicron Consulting Group
· Earthech

Following an in depth evaluation of these proposals including reference checks and interviews with the three proponents, staff are recommending award to Westmar Consultants Inc.

DISCUSSION

Proposal Evaluation
Proposals were evaluated by the committee based on demonstrated ability, qualifications and experience of the team and key individuals, past projects of similar scope, references, and best value to the City based on quality, service and price. Based on a review of the proposals, interviews and references, the General Manager of Engineering Services recommends Westmar Consultants Inc. for this project.

Westmar has assembled a team of professionals with expertise in all areas required for this project. The project manager assigned to the team comes with strong references and recent experience on a number of industrial projects and concrete batch plants. Team members have been involved with a range of projects including new batch plants and renovations for Lafarge, Glacier Northwest and Stoneway Concrete. Westmar's experience and knowledge will provide good value to the City on this project.

Scope of Work
The scope of work under this contract will include:
· User interviews to identify and summarise building, site and equipment requirements,
· Conceptual planning, site layout and cost estimating,
· Detailed design of the building and site,
· Procurement of concrete batching equipment,
· Tendering and administration of construction contracts.
· Site development of the adjacent abandoned autos parking lot
Westmar has proposed an upset fee for the above scope of $257,000 plus applicable taxes.

General project services cover items such as site safety, general labour, temporary facilities, office, vehicle, equipment, security, survey, insurance, site clean-up and disbursements. Further work by Westmar and specialty sub-consultants will be retained as required such as geo-technical, environmental, energy efficiency, material testing and inspection. General project services will not exceed $140,000 plus applicable taxes.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

Cost of the design and the construction management will not exceed $257,000 plus applicable taxes. General project services will be at cost plus administration not to exceed $140,000 plus applicable taxes. Financing for the above work was previously approved through loans from the Capital Financing Fund. These loans will be repaid from plant operating revenues.

SUSTAINABILITY

The new precast facility will incorporate a number of sustainable features:
· A number of important sustainable features will be incorporated into the project including use of recycled materials, reduction in energy and water use and improvements to end user occupant comfort.
· During initial programming and conceptual design, the project team will assess whether obtaining a LEED certified rating is achievable for this project.
· Concrete batching at the facility will use high fly-ash concentrations to reduce the amount of cement required.
· The new facility will be located in close proximity to the existing asphalt plant, aggregate handling facility and rubble operation. Trucking and hauling distances for operations crews will be reduced.
· All process and storm water from the facility will be collected and treated to reduce suspended solids and high alkalinity.

CONCLUSION

Staff have conducted a public proposal call and thorough proposal evaluation for the design and construction management of the new precast facility. Westmar Consultants Inc. is recommended as the design consultant for this project based on past experience, expertise and ability.

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© 2002 City of Vancouver