Authority_October_2020

October 2020 - The Authority 47 If your authority or design profes- sional only provides documents via the sale of paper specs and prints, we encourage you to examine other options, which could expand your pool of qualified vendors and lower your overall bid management costs. Pre-bid or site meetings During the bidding process, it is sometimes necessary to have potential bidders and agency representatives together to share information, answer questions, and conduct on-site walk- throughs. By now, most of us have participat- ed in online video conferences with Skype, GoToMeeting, Zoom, Cis- co Webex, and G Suite, which have a variety of features to fit unique needs. Posting agencies simply email a con- ference link to participants. Initially, these programs only seemed useful as replacements for in-person meetings typically held in conference rooms or similar venues. However, authorities that need bidders to vis- it a proposed work site have gotten creative and accomplished this using these very same tools. One authority, for instance, stationed an operator at the job site with their mobile device. When a bidder want- ed to see a particular aspect or object during the pre-bid meeting, the opera- tor would simply broadcast that image to all of the virtual participants. And since the entire Zoom meeting was recorded and made available electroni- cally as part of a “pre-bid meeting vid- eo,” bidders could revisit the footage at their convenience without leaving their office. Some authorities have also allowed bidders to schedule an appointment to visit the site either by themselves or with a small group to ensure physical separation. If timing was somewhat tight, the posting agency or their representa- tive provided specific time slots on a certain day or days. Although more time consuming than traditional walk- throughs, this strategy is a workable alternative; however, it does eliminate the often-productive ideas and inter- actions that arise during larger group discussions. Receiving sealed bids and public bid openings Due to the elevated risks of COVID-19, many authorities have stopped accepting paper bids and have instead shifted to online electronic bid management platforms, also known as e-procurement. These programs allow bidders to electronically provide pricing, bid bonds, and other requested information in a secure, sealed-bid system, all from the convenience of their home or office. At the time of bid opening, the au- thority or design firm simply retrieves the information without any physical interaction with bidders. Keep in mind that Act 88 of 2006, the Local Gov- ernment Unit Electronic Bidding Act, amended the commonwealth’s Pro- curement Code to allow local govern- ment agencies, including authorities, to incorporate electronic bidding into their competitive bidding processes. Specifically, Section 4603 (Electronic Bidding) of the code reads: “Notwith- standing any other provision of law concerning the requirements for competitive bidding for purchases and contracts by a local government unit, a local government unit may permit the electronic submission of bids and may receive bids electronically if the local government unit has the electronic ca- pability to maintain the confidentiality of the bid until the bid opening time.” While bid openings have traditionally been conducted during an in-person meeting because officials need to open envelopes with paper bids, a vir- tual bid opening can satisfy the intent of a public event, provided it has been advertised accordingly. Therefore, authorities should include the partic- ulars of where bidders can obtain bid results in their advertisements. In the case of electronic procurement, this would be a web address instead of a physical one. Due to the elevated risks of COVID-19, many authorities have stopped accepting paper bids and have instead shifted to online electronic bid management platforms, also known as e-procurement.