Bids and Proposals Submitted
Interested parties may download bid documents, plan holder lists and open bid information by visiting the purchasing website and clicking on Invitation To Bid (ITB) or Request for Proposal (RFP) to view bids. The information provided is dependent on the type of solicitation. In the case of ITBs where pricing information is contained within the submittal, the vendor's name and total price will be provided. In the case of RFPs or other complex bids entailing a multi-step evaluation, only the names of the bidders are provided. This information does not determine awards.
All submitted proposals (RFPs) and evaluation materials become public information and made available at the conclusion of the evaluation and negotiation process.
Obtaining Quotations and Bids
The City of Ann Arbor's main Bid/Proposal notification system is the Michigan Inter-Governmental Trade Network (MITN). If you have not registered on the MITN website for Bid/Proposal opportunities, please do so at: www.mitn.info
You can also periodically check the A2 Purchasing website for new opportunities under Invitation To Bid (ITB) or Request for Proposals (RFP).
The City of Ann Arbor uses the following methods to acquire product and services from its vendors:
A. $5,000-$24,999: Requires quotes from three or more different vendor sources. Quotes may be obtained via written, fax, e-mail or verbal method. Bids and Proposals of a complex nature must use the bidding method described in B.
B. $25,000 or Greater: Requires Competitive Bid or Proposal through the Procurement Unit. Bids or Proposals are advertised at least ten (10) days prior to the opening of the solicitation. Use of a Bid or Proposal is considered a formal solicitation process.
C. Purchases over $75,000: Require City Council Approval, in addition to Office of the Mayor/Administrative approval.
Procurement Cards
The City of Ann Arbor makes use of a Procurement Card Program to streamline the purchasing process for small dollar transactions under $5,000. Payments for small purchases may possibly be made through the use of the Procurement Card. Vendors who do business with the City of Ann Arbor are requested to accept these cards.
Responding to a Formal Solicitation (ITB or RFP)
Once a formal solicitation has been received from the originating service area or unit, the Procurement Unit reviews the document and once approved, advertises in various methods:
The Bid/Proposal documents are downloaded by the vendor from the previously mentioned websites. It is the vendor's responsibility to ensure all bid documents have been obtain from the websites before submitting a Bid or Proposal. Documents include; Bid packages, addendum, pre-bid meeting notes, pre-bid sign-in lists, Bid lists (if available) and Bid tabs.
Each Bid or Proposal has a deadline due date and time by which responses must be received. Responses are submitted (As a Sealed Bid) to the Procurement Unit via City Customer Service, 301 E. Huron 1st Floor, Ann Arbor, MI 48104. Any Bid or Proposal turned in after that due date and time is considered "Void" and will not be considered for award. The City will then have the option of returning the unopened sealed Bid/Proposal to the originating vendor, or will retain the unopened bid in their records, stating date and time it was officially received. There are no exceptions to this policy.
In the event of extensive errors on the Bid Proposal Form, the unit price will prevail and the bidder’s total offer will be corrected accordingly. Any Bids having erasures or corrections must be initialed in ink by the Bidder.
Insurance Requirements
The City of Ann Arbor may require an original Bid Bond or Performance Bond and will accept a faxed or copied Certificate of Insurance until the original document has been provided.
BID AWARDS
Acceptable Bids: Sealed Bids are opened and read publicly aloud by the Procurement Officer or her/his representative at the location and time specified within the bid document. Also present is a service area or unit representative to whom the bid applies. In order for the bid to be acceptable, it must have the information originally requested contained in the response of the bid. Omission of crucial information may be cause for bid disqualification. A bidder must have the capability to perform the requested contract requirements. There is no special attention given to any vendor who exceeds that which was specified in the bid.
Best Value/Lowest Price: Award will be made to the responsive and responsible bidder who offers the best value to the City of Ann Arbor. Best Value is determined by the bidder that best meets the award factors described in the bid document.
The City further reserves the right to reject any or all bids in whole or in part, and to waive any informality or technical defects, if it is determined that the best interest of the City will be served by doing so. In determining an award, qualifications of the bidder, conformity with the specifications of services to be supplied, cost, quality, delivery terms and a vendor’s past performance on City contracts will be considered.
The City reserves the right to consider total cost of ownership factors in the final award recommendation (i.e. transition costs, training costs, etc.).
The City reserves the right to award by item, part or portion of an item, group of items or total proposal, to reject any and all proposals in whole or in part, if, in the City’s judgment, the best interest of the City will be so served.
The City reserves the right to award multiple, optional use contracts. In addition to the other factors listed, offers will be evaluated on the basis of advantages and disadvantages to the City that may result from making more than one award.
Bid Tabs
The bid tabs are posted to the City Purchasing website for ITB's within one week of the bid opening. It is the vendors responsibility to download information once available to the public. Individual requests for bid tabs will not be issued.
Request for Best and Final Offer Guidelines
Note: Bidders are cautioned to propose their best possible offers at the outset of the ORIGINAL proposal process, as there is no guarantee that any proposal will be allowed an opportunity to submit a Best and Final Offer.
After the initial evaluation of Request for Proposals (RFP), we may have discussions with vendors determined to be reasonably susceptible of being selected for award. Best and Final Offers (BAFO) may be requested when proposals submitted are unclear, have deficiencies, when additional information is needed in order to make a decision, or when all cost proposals are too high.
If one vendor needs to provide additional information about the proposed solution, all vendors must be given an opportunity to provide information about the proposed solution.
All vendors determined to be reasonably susceptible for award must be given a fair opportunity to submit revised proposals. Vendors chosen to submit Best and Final Offers must be provided with the same information and submission requirements. The Procurement Unit must establish a deadline for submission of Best and Final Offers indicate the areas of the RFP to be addressed, and indicate how the revised proposals will be evaluated.
If an offer or does not submit a Best and Final Offer, its immediate previous offer will be considered as its Best and Final Offer (unless a bid withdrawal has been accepted).
Best and Final Offers must be requested by the Procurement Unit. Unsolicited Best and Final Offers from vendors cannot be considered.
After receiving Best and Final Offers, the Procurement Unit may conduct additional discussions or change the City’s requirements and request submission of another Best and Final Offer.
Best and Final offers can be evaluated as an adjustment to scores already received, or new evaluation criteria can be established, based entirely on the Best and Final Offer submission.
The BAFO request must disclose the evaluation process.
Bidders will NOT be provided any information about other proposals or prices, or where the bidder stands in relation to others at any time during the evaluation process. Any request for such information will be viewed as a compromise to the stated evaluation process and the requesting bidder may be eliminated from further consideration. Successful requests for proposal information by a bidder or an affiliated party before contract award may also result in disqualification.
