DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS
THE DESIGN PROCESS 1.05
1.05 BIDDING PHASE
The PM coordinates the advertisement after the final review documents are approved. The PM sets the advertising
date and makes arrangements for the printing of Bid Documents.
The University shall distribute plans thru the USA Purchasing Department.
As directed, reviewed, and approved by the PM, the Design Professional must prepare addenda for distribution by
the University related to document interpretation which is then incorporated in the contract for construction.
Addenda re issued prior to the bid opening and are part of the contract documents.
Addenda items shall be approved by the PM before issuing. The Design Professional shall help prepare and the
University shall distribute addenda directly to plan holders. The list of plan holders is maintained by the University.
Addenda should be issued at least seven (7) calendar days before the bid date. If addenda must be issued six (6)
calendar days or less before the bid date either the bid date is extended or the Design Professional must verify each
plan holder has a copy of the addenda at least 48 hours before the bid opening.
The PM, assisted by the Design Professional, shall hold a pre-bid meeting. The Design Professional shall describe
the project including important facets of the work and schedule. Simple clarifications can be made in response to
questions. Other questions shall be recorded and clarified by addenda. Questions requiring interpretations by the
Design Professional shall be answered by addenda.
To assure an adequate number of bids are received, the Design Professional shall review the local bidding climate
prior to the preparation of bidding documents. The size and compositions of projects shall be considered to
encourage competitive bidding. If it appears a conflict among projects shall occur in the bidding market, the
rescheduling of the bids shall be considered if time permits and if this rescheduling can result in additional bids.
The Design Professional shall review the bidders list after the project has been on the market for seven (7) to ten (10)
days to determine if there is adequate interest in the project. The Design Professional shall contact prospective
bidders to encourage an adequate level of interest and suggest modifications that may be appropriate to achieve that.
If little interest is shown on the project, the Design Professional shall contact potential bidders and determine the
cause.
Bid Opening: The University of South Alabama shall conduct a public bid opening. The Design Professional shall
attend the bid opening if required by the agreement. Otherwise, attendance at a bid opening shall not qualify as a
reimbursable expense.
After the bids have been received, the Design Professional must prepare a review and analysis, including, but not
limited to:
An analysis of the bidder’s qualifications to determine if the low bidder is responsible (qualified).
If requested by the PM, a thorough analysis of the low bidder’s breakdown of cost against the scope of work
to determine if the bid is responsive.
An analysis and explanation of the bid spread and its comparison to the Design Professional’s
construction estimate.
pre-bid
An analysis and explanation of why there were variations in the bids.
The Design Professional shall provide a letter of recommendation for awarding the construction to the
construction to the lowest, responsible bidder. The PM must be notified if the Design Professional
determines that the apparent low bidder is not qualified.
UPDATED - JULY 23, 2009
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