Public Higher Education Bulletin

Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago (NEIU) intends to issue contracts for the construction of a new El Centro facility located adjacent to where the Kennedy Expressway crosses Kimball in Chicago, Illinois. Due to the special nature of the educational operations of this facility, contractors who wish to submit a bid for one of the Prime Contractor sections of this construction project are required to qualify to participate in the solicitation.

This solicitation-specific qualification is in addition to the existing NEIU Purchasing requirements. The solicitation bid package is currently being prepared and is planned for a late October publication.

The El Centro Campus project is funded entirely by Northeastern Illinois University. This is not a State of Illinois Capital Development Board (CDB) project.

In order to qualify for one of the prime construction contracts, contractors shall submit a maximum of five construction projects completed within the past ten years that best demonstrate their experience on relevant projects of similar size, scope, and complexity. Ongoing projects may be included only if over 90% complete as determined by total payments received divided by current contract amount. A relevant project is defined as being similar in scope to the planned El Centro Campus. The following is a basic explanation of the planned new El Centro Campus.

The building is approximately a 60,000 square foot, three-story concrete, masonry, steel-frame, curtain-wall system, slab-on-grade building. The facility will house a wet and damp laboratory and specialty prep room for the disciplines of Chemistry, Biology, Physics and Earth Science. Also included will be a resource center, computer lab, community resource room, reception area, multipurpose space, classrooms including one for music, art, and a tiered classroom. In addition the building will also contain student/staff lounge, outdoor terrace and a photovoltaic array on the roof of the building. The exterior of the building will consist of, parking spaces for approximately 200 vehicles; open landscaped spaces to be used for informal classes and gathering spaces for students. The entire building will use wireless technology for computer connectivity and VOIP for telecommunication purposes. The project will be designated to LEED Gold, as defined by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). The scope of work will entail multiple prime contracts for General Construction, Plumbing, Heating, Ventilation, Electrical and Fire Protection. The property that the El Centro Campus will be built on has gone through a demolition phase in the past four months, multiple buildings were demolished portions of the site were remediated and excavated areas have been backfilled and graded. The site is close to shovel ready and is currently secured by a construction fence at the perimeter.

The attached Qualification Form must be used to submit contractor information. Information submitted in addition to the attached requirements of the Qualification Forms or in excess of the maximum of five projects, will not be considered. The attached Financial Disclosures and Conflicts of Interest form is also provided for completion and submission.

For all submitted prime contractor disciplines, the description of the projects shall clearly state the scope of work performed as the Contractor on a project with multiple prime contracts, or as a Prime Contractor in a project with a single prime contract, and the relevancy of the work to the El Centro project.

The experience of an affiliate, subsidiary, parent, or similarly related company of a different name shall not be considered as qualifying experience.

The University may seek and use contractor experience and performance information from other sources and projects in addition to that submitted by the contractor.

Qualification of the contractor will be determined based on a.) the relevancy of experience and satisfactory performance as described by the owners, construction managers, or architect/engineering firms involved with the projects submitted (the above firms may be contacted by the University), b.) the financial strength of the entity, c.) bonding capacity, and d.) successful completion of all required documents. Those entities qualifying for the project will be notified as soon as possible following receipt of all the required documentation.

Northeastern Illinois University has set a Business Enterprise Program (BEP) Utilization Plan goal of 25% for this project. To assist in reaching the goal NEIU will be hosting an on-campus event on September 25, 2012 where NEIU and its architect for this project will be providing information about the status of the project. At this time NEIU will share conceptual and design elements, we will also review the required documentation for qualification and provide information on becoming BEP certified as a MAFBE vendor of the State of Illinois. At the same time NEIU is inviting sub-contractors representing various building trades as well as suppliers to meet with possible successful prime contractors. Participation in this event is not mandatory but suggested to learn more about the project and to meet suppliers and sub-contractors representing trades that may be needed on this project.

The Qualification Form, Financial Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest Form and all required documents, with a signed contractor cover letter, are to be received by the Northeastern Illinois University Purchasing Department by 4:00 PM CDST on October 12, 2012 to be considered for qualification before the bid package is released.

Submit 3 copies of the response as defined in the specifications. The University reserves the right to accept or reject any and all responses or parts thereof.