Annual Contract for Vending Full Service Beverage Program

RFP # 13-9475-9EF

October 18, 2013

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR

ANNUAL CONTRACT FOR VENDING FULL SERVICE BEVERAGE PROGRAM

HENRICO COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Your firm is invited to submit a proposal to provide Full Service Beverage Vending for the Henrico County Public Schools (HCPS)in accordance with the enclosed specifications and terms included herein. The submittal consisting of the original proposal and six (6)additional hard copies marked, “A Proposal for aFull Service Beverage Program”, will be received no later than 2:30 p.m., November 15, 2013by:

IN PERSON OR SPECIAL COURIERU.S. POSTAL SERVICE

County of HenricoCounty of Henrico

Department of FinanceDepartment of Finance

Purchasing Division ORPurchasing Division

1590 E. Parham RoadP O Box 90775

Henrico,Virginia 23288Henrico,Virginia 23273-0775

This IFB and any addenda are available on the County of Henrico website at: The Bids and Proposals link is listed under the Henrico Business Section on the home page. To download the IFB, click the link and save the document to your hard drive. To receive an email copy of this document or any technical assistance please contact

Time is of the essence and any proposal received after 2:30 p.m., November 15, 2013whether by mail or otherwise, will be returned unopened. The time of receipt shall be determined by the time clock stamp in the Purchasing Office, Department of General Services. Proposals shall be placed in a sealed, opaque envelope, marked in the lower left-hand corner with the RFP number, title, and date and hour proposals are scheduled to be received. Offerors are responsible for insuring that their proposal is stamped by Purchasing Office personnel by the deadline indicated.

Nothing herein is intended to exclude any responsible firm or in any way restrain or restrict competition. On the contrary, all responsible firms are encouraged to submit proposals. The County of Henrico reserves the right to accept or reject any or all proposals submitted.

A pre-proposal conference will be held on October 28, 2013 at 9:00 a.m. in the Purchasing Office, North Run Office Complex, 1590 East Parham Road, Henrico, VA. Offerors are strongly encouraged to attend the pre-proposal conference. ONLY two (2) representatives per firm will be allowed to attend the meeting. A teleconference number has been established for suppliers who are unable to travel to the County of Henrico. To join the meeting, call 804-501-7555 and enter meeting ID 7002 and password 1028. It is limited to one caller from each supplier. PLEASE BRING A COPY OF THE REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL WITH YOU TO DISCUSS THE REQUIREMENTS.

The awarding authority for this contract is the Purchasing Director.

Technical questions concerning this Request for Proposal should be submitted to Eileen Falcone no later than November 1,2013.

Very truly yours,

Cecelia H. Stowe, CPPO, C.P.M.

Eileen Falcone.

Senior Buyer

804-501-5637

1590 E. Parham Road/P.O. Box 90775/Henrico, Virginia23273-0775

(804) 501-5660 Fax: (804) 501-5693

1. PURPOSE:

A.The purpose of this Request for Proposal (RFP) is to solicit competitive proposals from responsible offerors to establish one or more contract(s) to provide a Full Service Beverage Vending Program for the schools of Henrico County Public Schools (HCPS) that also complies with the County’s Wellness program (excerpts included on Attachment H).

B.Consideration for award will be that the awarded firm(s) will commit contractually to provide the specified package of services in accordance with HCPS requirements. HCPS seeks to provide the option for the schools to purchase brand name beverages and to ensure this ability, HCPS may award to more than one contractor in order to serve the schools. Each school facility shall have the option of choosing whether to install vending machines and the number of machines and the product(s) to be sold. For example, a school may choose to have four machines, two with Coca Cola products and two with Pepsi products. An exclusive contract (one that allows only one brand of vending machine and product) shall NOT be awarded.

C.To ensure equal access to equivalent services in every school, the pricing of the product and services for each school shall be standardized; however, each schools’ principals (or his/her designee) may have the ability to set the pricing of the product to the consumer. A pricing grid, which details the profits a facility can earn at sample volumes and prices, shall be included with your proposal as part of the evaluation process.

1. BACKGROUND:

The current contract was awarded to two suppliers that have been providing services since February 2009. Sales and commission history for the last three fiscal periods is provided in the table below, however, nothing shall bind the County of Henrico to any specified amount of work during the contract period.

Coca-Cola / July 2010- June2011 / July 2011- June2012 / July 2012- June2013
Units Sold / 126,504 / 135,912 / 142,896
Commission / $39,780.00 / $41,727.00 / $42,209.00
Pepsico / July 2010- June2011 / July 2011- June2012 / July 2012- June2013
Units Sold / 32,038 / 29,975 / 31,682
Commission / $11,396.00 / $10,964.00 / $11,73300

III.SCOPE OF SERVICES:

A.General:

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall be a firm regularly engaged in the sale, supply and maintenance of beverage vending equipment.

2.The Successful Offeror(s) shall render services under the contract to be awarded pursuant to this RFP as an independent Contractor, and nothing herein shall be construed as placing any employees of the Successful Offeror in the category of either a classified or other type of employee of the County.

3.The Successful Offeror(s) shall provide beverage vending machines, all product, and service, to any of the approximately 80 schools/facilities requesting this service. The service shall include timely machine repair and maintenance, stocking product, collecting proceeds and remitting commissions timely to each facility.

4.The Successful Offeror(s) shall be granted exclusive use of the areas designated by the HCPS school Principal or his/her designee with the understanding that such area may be changed from time to time at the discretion of the school Principal. At no time shall a structure be altered to accommodate the placement of vending machines.

5.Beverages may not be dispensed through vending machines to elementary students; therefore, machines located at elementary schools shall be for faculty/adult use only.

6.The Successful Offeror(s) shall comply with excerpts from the Nutrition Sections of HCPS’s Wellness Policy which is subject to change as new laws are passed. (see Attachment H).

7.A list of schools and annex locations is provided as Attachment C to this RFP and is not representative of any guarantee of the volume of business. All new schools and central office’s functional locations shall be serviced as part of this contract.

8.The beverage vending program should provide the highest amount of revenue for HCPS from commissions to generate funds for schools to use for the benefit of the entire school population.

9.The Successful Offeror(s) shall provide all services and products under the direction of HCPS and its principals or his/her designee.

B.Responsibilities and Obligations of the Successful Offeror:

1. All products offered shall be of name brand and approved by the Principal or his/her designee.

1. Prices shall be prominently posted on the front of vending machines, at all times.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall pay all Federal, State, and County taxes chargeable to the operation.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall be responsible for any and all property damage to the County resulting from its operation, which shall be promptly repaired by the Offeror(s) at their own expense. The Offeror(s) shall receive approval by the HCPS school principal prior to making any repairs.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall make service calls at a minimum of once a week at all sites; this may be adjusted during the course of the contract. More frequent service calls for some sites may be necessary as determined by usage. The service call shall include collecting monies, rotating products and refilling machines.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall be required to leave the vending services premises in the condition it was in before the start of the contract(s), except for normal wear and tear, when the contract(s) fully expire.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall provide as part of the proposal submission, a REFUND PLAN for customers who may lose money in the vending machines. The refund plan shall be simple, accurate and prompt.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall perform the vending services in an efficient, businesslike manner,offering name brand beverages desired by customers and requires a reasonable demand from the public.

1. The vending machines/equipment to be used by the Successful Offeror(s) shall be National Automatic Merchandising Association (NAMA) certified and bear the NAMA Service Mark. Machines shall be of the latest design, with state of the art equipment and matching in order to present a favorable appearance to the public. All machines must come equipped with a dollar bill validator.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall be responsible for machine sanitation and regular inspections for safe operations and shall maintain machine interiors in accordance with the standards set forth in the Virginia Department of Health Food Regulations 12 VAC 5-421 regarding the vending of food and beverages. Machines shall be kept clean and in good working order at all times. The Successful Offeror shall keep all areas and facilities under their jurisdiction clean and sanitary at all times.

1. All expired products shall be removed from machines in a timely manner. It is expected dates will be checked on the weekly restocking visits.

1. Machines are to be well stocked to ensure continuous availability of products.

1. At any time during the contract period, vending equipment may be added or removed at no additional cost to HCPS.The Successful Offeror(s) shall furnish, install, and service at no additional charge all equipment necessary to provide the beverages. HCPS assumes no responsibility for any equipment provided by the vendor. Electrical requirements needed to operate the equipment must be stated in the proposal. All vending machines must be securely installed.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall ensure that equipment is properly functioning at every visit. The successful Offeror(s) shall provide an emergency service telephone number and contact person on a highly visible label decal on all machines. Emergency calls must be responded to within 24 hours during weekdays and on an emergency only basis on the weekend. An out-of-service machine shall be brought back into service within five (5) working days from placement of a service call. If a machine is out of service more than four (4) times in a two month period the Offeror will be asked to replace the machine with a working unit.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall provide repair services on all equipment installed under this contract. The Successful Offeror will have a minimum of one National Automatic Merchandising Association (NAMA), Level II, Certified, Journeyman Mechanic on staff; to perform maintenance on the installed equipment.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall provide vending machines with transaction counters to allow a school representative to conduct a transaction count along with a vending count to record the number of sale items in the machines prior to and/or following any restocking, upon request.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall agree that on any business day they may be requested to appear at a facility and open any or all vending machines and permit a count of product and money in any or all of the vending machines.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall agree that a representative of HCPS may audit, examine and copy any and all records and information relating to the operation for the vending machines in any HCPS facility. Failure to keep, maintain and make available these records, for any reason, shall constitute a material breach of the contract. Successful Offeror(s) shall keep all records for a minimum of the period of the contract plus two years, or until audited, whichever comes first.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall establish, maintain and provide accurate reports and timely payment of commissions on a monthly basis. The monthly reports are to include, but are not to be limited to the following:

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall deliver to and review with the Contract Administrator a monthly report detailing all revenues and items sold related to the operation under this Contract. The revenue statement shall include a sales summary by product and product group on a weekly basis for each week of operation. Submission of the monthly report shall be no later than one week following the monthly reporting period.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) will interpret and summarize the data contained in the Revenue Statement and provide recommendations for improvement where applicable.

1. Period covered by the report (e.g. monthly)

1. Gross sales for the period by location

1. Number of beverages sold per location

1. Date of Disbursement

1. Commissions shall be paid every month in business check form, no later than one week following the monthly report period.

1. Payments should be made directly to the school to the attention of the Principal.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall deliver to the Contract Administrator an audited annual operating statement (Financial Audit) showing all revenues and expenditures related to the operation under this Contract. The annual operating statement shall be externally and independently audited. Such statement will be submitted to the Contract Administrator, no later than sixty (60) days following the Successful Offeror’s fiscal year end.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall provide all delivery, set up and maintenance of vending equipment at no additional cost to the County.

1. Offerors must provide as part of their proposal submission, their approach to meet the current ADA requirements related to vending machine operation, placement and equipment offering.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall be a current member of the National Automatic Merchandising Association (NAMA).

1. HCPS participates in the National School Lunch Program which prohibits the sale of beverages to students during regular school hours (See Wellness Policy, Attachment H). Use of vending machines at the secondary school level shall not be available to students during the hours of 12:01 midnight until 2:00 pm (the last lunch period). The availability shall be controlled by a timer built into the vending machine. The Principal or his/her designee of each school must approve the installation of vending machines, which are used at times other than during the school day.Therefore the Successful Offeror(s) shall provide vending machines with built in timers which will assure that HCPS are in compliance with the federal guidelines.

1. All products sold in vending machines shall be of the highest quality, and shall conform in all respects to federal, state, and local food and other laws, orders, and regulations (See Wellness Policy, Attachment H).

1. In case of special events (i.e. home games) the vending machines may need to be restocked outside of the normal scheduled time. The Successful Offeror(s) must be on call and be able to provide service and products within 48 hours of the call.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall consider using a generic machine front down-play soda advertisement in the schools.

C.Personnel:

1. Successful Offeror(s) and their employees shall park motor vehicles only in a place or places designated and/or approved by the facilities manager (principal).

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall require their employees and agents to wear nametags and dress neatly (in uniforms if part of successful offeror’s normal dress code) when on HCPS premises. All employees of the successful offeror must conduct themselves at all times in a courteous manner, so as not to create a disturbance or distraction at any facility.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) must be willing to comply with HCPS Vendor Contract Addendum (see attachment G). By signing the addendum the Successful Offeror(s) will be required to provide certification that (1) he has not been convicted of a felony or any offense involving the sexual molestation or physical or sexual abuse or rape of a child; and (2) whether he has been convicted of a crime of moral turpitude.

1. The Successful Offeror(s) shall be responsible for the removal of any trash and clean-up of all debris, which is a result of the contract.

D.Delivery and Installation Requirements:

1. Delivery and installation shall occur in the least disruptive manner and shall not interfere with instruction. Appointments shall be made well in advance of scheduled installation and shall include coordination with any existing vendors and/or equipment already installed at the location. Offerors shall describe their methodology and plan to complete this task in a timely manner.

1. The successful Offeror shall ensure that all electrical requirements are met prior to the date of installation by physically inspecting each site prior to delivery. Inspections shall be made by appointment with each school/location.

E.Pricing:

1. The prices charged for the products sold in the vending machines shall be firm throughout each period of the contract.

1. Commission percentages and incentives must be consistent and offered to each school covered under contract. Sports related incentives shall be offered at a minimum to all high schools.

1. The percentage offered for the commission, any amount of revenue sharing programs, and annual guaranteed minimum contract fees (if any) shall remain fixed over each period of the contract.

F.Site Visits:

In preparation for submitting a response to this solicitation Offerors are not to visit any school/facility or speak with the personnel there without first coordinating their visit with the Finance Division Manager, HCPS General Services at 804-652-3640.

IV.ANTICIPATED SCHEDULE

The following represents a tentative outline of the process currently anticipated by the County:

Request for Proposals distributedOctober 18, 2013

Pre Proposal MeetingOctober 28, 2013 at 9:00 a.m.

Deadline for questionsNovember 1, 2013