STATE OF MICHIGAN
Department of Technology, Management and Budget
Purchasing Operations
Request for Proposal No. RFP-SC-071R0200335
Prequalification of Office Supplies Vendors
Buyer Name: Sue Cieciwa
Telephone Number: (517) 373-0301
E-Mail Address:
Estimated Prequalification Timeline / DateIssue Date / 10/14/11
Questions Due Date / 10/21/11
Response Due Date / 11/01/11
Anticipated Prequalification Status / 11/4/11
Rev 8/9/2011
1
Prequalification of Vendors – Office Supplies
Estimated Timeline: All dates listed on this cover page are subject to change via addendum posted on Bid4Michigan. Current and accurate dates can be found on the Bid4Michigan Solicitation Notice bearing the number: RFP-SC-071R0200335.
THIS IS A SOLICITATION TO PREQUALIFY OFFICE SUPPLIES VENDORS.
Section 1: Executive Overview
The State of Michigan, Department of Technology, Management and Budget (DTMB), Purchasing Operations, is seeking to establish a list of prequalified suppliers to bid on the statewide delivery of office supplies (border to border), including but not limited to toner and multi-purpose paper, to be used by State of Michigan agencies, its agents and employees, and MiDEAL members (authorized local units of government). The resulting Contract Term will be two years with two- one year options to renew.
Upon successfully passing the Step 1: Prequalified Vendor Selection Process as provided herein a supplier will be designated as a Prequalified Office Supplies Vendor. Only Prequalified Office Supplies Vendors will be invited to participate in Step 2: Competitive Pricing Selection.
Selection of a supplier via the Prequalified Vendor Selection Process does not guarantee a Contract with the State. The issuance of this RFP including Step 1 and Step 2, the receipt of proposals, and the designation of any supplier as a Prequalified Office Supplies Vendor does not bind or impose legal obligation upon the State or the supplier(s) in any way. The State may discontinue this process at any time.
Section 2: Selection Process
Step 1: Prequalified Vendor Selection Process
Each proposal must demonstrate the supplier’s current ability to meet the requirements of the State and provide the best value as determined by the State. The selection of a successful supplier will be made based on the State’s evaluation and determination of the ability of each supplier to deliver quality service in terms of the Selection Criteria. Each proposal will receive a score of Pass or Fail for each of the Selection Criteria. A successful proposal is one which results in a “Pass” for ALL three Selection Criteria. A supplier who submits a proposal which passes all Selection Criteria will be designated as Prequalified Office Supplies Vendor. Proposals that fail to provide sufficient information to adequately describe the supplier’s ability to fulfill the State’s requirements for any Criterion will be deemed non-responsive. A proposal which is scored as “Fail” in any Selection Criterion will be disqualified.
The Selection Criteria are as follows:
Pass / Fail1. / Criteria 1: General Requirements
2. / Criteria 2: Service Capabilities
3. / Criteria 3: Bidder Information
Pass / Fail
Step 2: Competitive Pricing Selection
All Prequalified Office Supplies Vendors will be invited to participate in a bid process of office supplies and will submit pricing via a live reverse auction*. It is the intention of the State to award to a single Contractor for all office supplies, including toner and multi-purpose paper. An award recommendation will be made to the Prequalified Office Supplies Vendor offering the overall lowest total price as calculated on an annual basis by the State.
The State will provide complete instructions and item listing applicable to Step 2 to Prequalified Office Supplies Vendors upon completion of Step 1.
*The State, in its sole discretion, may choose an alternative method for accepting competitive pricing. In the event the State chooses an alternative method, all Prequalified Office Supplies Vendors will be notified in advance.
Section 3: Prequalification Program Guidelines
Communications
The Bidder's sole point of contact concerning the prequalification solicitation is the Buyer in DTMB-Purchasing Operations. The State, except through the Buyer, will not respond to telephone inquiries or requests for meetings concerning this solicitation by Bidders or their representatives. Any communication outside of this process may result in disqualification or debarment or both. Only those communications made by the State in writing will be binding with respect to this prequalification solicitation.
After evaluation, DTMB, Purchasing Operations will post the list of prequalified vendors on www.Bid4Michigan.com .
Questions
Questions concerning this prequalification solicitation must be submitted as an attachment formatted in Microsoft Word or Rich Text Format (RTF) no later than the date and time published within the Solicitation Notice on Bid4Michigan to: Sue Cieciwa, Buyer Specialist, DTMB, Purchasing Operations
Email: .
Answers to questions will be prepared and posted under the solicitation number at: www.Bid4Michigan.com .
Prequalification Format
Each Bidder must respond to all sections of the solicitation. Failure to respond to every section may result in elimination from the prequalification process. Proposals must be formatted to include each of the sections specified in Section 2.
Prequalification Submission
Proposals must be received “on-line only” through purchasing operations Bid4Michigan web-site (www.Bid4Michigan.com) on or before the date and time specified within the Solicitation Notice published in Bid4Michigan. At the due date and time, the system cuts off, signaling the end of the response time. Bidders are responsible for submitting their proposals on time and in the method required by the Solicitation Notice. Proposals received by any other method than noted above cannot be considered. DTMB, Purchasing Operations will not accept faxed or e-mailed bid responses.
Please Note: The Bid4Michigan system will not allow online submission unless the online Certifications and Representations have been completed. Bidders are responsible for timely completion. Bids that are late because of failure to complete the Certifications and Representations prior to attempting bid submission will be rejected by the system.
Proposals received after the due date and time posted in the Solicitation Notification on Bid4Michigan.com will be disqualified.
Reservations
Although pricing will not be reviewed during the prequalification period it is important to note that the State will reserve the following rights in Step 2, Competitive Pricing Selection:
(a) consider total cost of ownership in the final award recommendation (i.e. transition costs, training costs, etc.);
(b) award by item or part of an item;
(c) reject any proposals in whole or in part;
(d) award to a single Contractor or more than one Contractor(s). The State may evaluate offers based on advantages and disadvantages that may result from making more than one award;
(e) consider overall economic impact. This includes considering principal place of performance, number of Michigan citizens employed or potentially employed, money paid to Michigan residents, Michigan capital investments, etc;
(f) award to another Bidder if the recommended Bidder does not accept the award;
(g) give a preference for products manufactured or services offered by Michigan-based firms if all other things are equal and if consistent with federal statutes. (MCL 18.1261);
(h) disqualify any bid based on the failure to complete the Certifications and Representations in the Bid4Michigan registration; and
(i) disqualify any bid based on the information provided in the Certifications and Representations in the Bid4Michigan registration.
(j) the State reserves the right to modify the Contract Term stated in Section 2.1.1 and Section 2.1.2 of the RFP Document.
Award Decision
Prequalification recommendations will be made to the Director of DTMB-Purchasing Operations.
Protests
If a Bidder wishes to protest the prequalification recommendation, the Bidder must submit a written protest, by the due date and time stated in the Notice of Recommendation issued from the Bid4Michigan system. The Bidder must include the RFP number and clearly state the facts believed to constitute error in the award recommendation along with the desired remedy. More information about the Bidder protest process is available at www.michigan.gov/buymichiganfirst; click on the "Vendor Information" link.
Reciprocal Preference
MCL 18.1268 provides that if the low bid for a State procurement exceeds $100,000.00 and is from a business located in a state that applies a preference law against out-of-state businesses, the State must prefer a bid from a Michigan business in the same manner in which the out-of-state Bidder would be preferred in its home state.
Taxes
The State may refuse to award a contract to any Bidder that has failed to pay any applicable State taxes or has any outstanding debt with the State.
False Information
If it is determined that a Bidder purposely or willfully submitted false information, the Bidder may not be considered for award, the State may pursue debarment of the Bidder, and any resulting contract may be terminated.
Clarifications and Deficiencies
(a) The State may issue a clarification request, in writing, to one or all Bidders. A clarification request does not allow a Bidder to change its proposal.
(b) The State may issue a Deficiency Report and Clarification Request (DR/CR) to each Bidder determined to be in the competitive range. Each Bidder must respond in writing to the DR/CR by the deadline established by DTMB-Purchasing Operations. The DR/CR response may include any changes to the Bidder's proposal to address the listed deficiencies or clarifications, including alterations to the Bidder's price proposal to address correction of the deficiencies.
Rev 8/9/2011
1
Prequalification of Vendors – Office Supplies
Section 4: Selection Criteria and Requirements
Criteria 1: General Requirements
No. / Requirement / Yes, my company meets or exceeds the specified requirement.[X] / No, my company cannot meet this requirement.
[X] / Yes, we can meet the requirement, but with the following modifications. (You must describe the modification in enough detail for the State to evaluate it).[X]
1 / At least five (5) years of experience as a prime contractor providing common office supplies including but not limited to various types of paper, toner and other supplies commonly used in an office environment to customers who have in excess of 10,000 purchase transactions per year which total in excess of $6 million.
2 / The ability to provide paper (regular, colored, recycled, specialty, various sizes), toner and common office supplies (including but not limited to pens (including clear barrel), pencils, tape, shredders, flash drives, envelopes, easels, memo pads, staplers, computer accessories, calculators, folders, markers, highlighters, composition books, notebook dividers, presentation materials, waste baskets, report covers, clocks, organizers, planners, trays, business card holders, paper clips and binders).
3 / Provide the commodities and services identified in this Prequalification RFP (for the contract period described in Section 1) with no minimum order requirements.
4 / Provide pricing that is “F.O.B. Destination, within Government Premises” with transportation charges prepaid and allowed on all orders.
5 / Participate in the MiDEAL Program and market any awarded contract to MiDEAL members. A current listing of approved MiDEAL Members is available at: www.michigan.gov/mideal.
No. / Requirement / Yes, my company meets or exceeds the specified requirement.
[X] / No, my company cannot meet this requirement.
[X] / Yes, we can meet the requirement, but with the following modifications. (You must describe the modification in enough detail for the State to evaluate it).[X]
6 / The awarded Contractor must include a 6% administrative fee in its proposed prices on all sales transacted under any resulting Contract.
To the State:
The administrative fee equals 6% of the total sales reported from the State. The Contractor must remit the fee within 30 days after the end of each month.
In addition, the administrative fee remitted to the State equals 3% of the total sales reported from MiDEAL and any other cooperative purchasing participants. The Contractor must remit the fee within 30 days after the end of each quarter.
To the MiDEAL Members and Any Other Cooperative Purchasing Participants:
The administrative fee remitted to the MiDEAL member or any other cooperative purchasing participant equals 3% of the total sales reported from MiDEAL or any other cooperative purchasing participant. The Contractor must pay the administrative fee, based on total sales reported from MiDEAL or any other cooperative purchasing participants, by check payable to the MiDEAL member or cooperative purchasing participant. The Contractor must remit the fee within 30 days after the end of each quarter.
7 / Agree to utilize the State of MI Usage Report Format (See Attachment A)
8 / Agreement with Article 2 Terms and Conditions outlined in Attachment B of this solicitation.
No. / Requirement / Yes, my company meets or exceeds the specified requirement.
[X] / No, my company cannot meet this requirement.
[X] / Yes, we can meet the requirement, but with the following modifications. (You must describe the modification in enough detail for the State to evaluate it).[X]
9 / Include the manufacturer’s minimum standard warranty and one (1) year parts and/or labor warranty for all supplies and equipment purchased from any resulting contract. Bidder must provide a statement describing the process for reporting warranty issues and how repairs or replacements are handled. A separate Microsoft Word document may be used to respond to this requirement. Responses must be clearly labeled by Criteria and Requirement number.
10 / Existence of a Quality Assurance Program.
The Bidder must provide a description of the current Quality Assurance Program. A separate Microsoft Word document may be used to respond to this requirement. Responses must be clearly labeled by Criteria and Requirement number.
11 / Retail network within the State of MI. Bidder must provide a description of their retail network within the State of MI. The description should include the number of retail and warehouse facilities within the State. A separate Microsoft Word document may be used to respond to this requirement. Responses must be clearly labeled by Criteria and Requirement number.
No. / Requirement / Yes, my company meets or exceeds the specified requirement.
[X] / No, my company cannot meet this requirement.
[X] / Yes, we can meet the requirement, but with the following modifications. (You must describe the modification in enough detail for the State to evaluate it). [X]
12 / The ability to provide training to individual agencies, when necessary, on aspects of ordering, shipping, billing, and receiving. At the request of the State or MiDEAL member, provide in-service training to agency personnel on products, installation, and product safety issues. Provide agency training jointly with the State as needed during the period covered by the contract at no additional charge.
13 / The State requires the Contractor to complete security background checks on all employees, agents, contractors, and subcontractors involved in the delivery of any services on the premises of any State facilities. This includes all delivery personnel. Please describe in detail the process by which you administer background checks. Please address newly hired employees, periodic checks of existing employees, and all agents, contractors, and subcontractors.
Contractor will furnish the State with documented evidence of the completion of satisfactory background checks of all personnel involved in the delivery of services to the State.
The State requires all delivery personnel to wear apparel (uniforms) and present identification which clearly identifies them as employees of the Contractor.
If the State decides to perform an additional background check, the awarded Contractor will be required to provide a list of all personnel, including name and date of birth of those to be involved in the delivery of services to the State.
A separate Microsoft Word document may be used to respond to this requirement. Responses must be clearly labeled by Criteria and Requirement number.
For DTMB Purchasing Operations Only
Pass/Fail Status for Criteria 1: General Requirements
Note to Bidder: The State reserves the right to deny, accept and or negotiate any requested modifications.