PURPOSE
The purpose of this Procedure is to provide guidelines for performing emergency/urgent necessity work using pre-authorized, on-call construction contracts as well as Specialty construction contracts. Pre-Authorized construction contracts and Specialty construction contracts enable the Bureau of Engineering (BOE) to deliver emergency/urgent necessity projects rapidly and efficiently, with minimal to no preparation of final plans and without completing a formal bidding process.
REFERENCES
City Charter Section 371
Council File No. 96-1457 Authorizing Stormwater Facilities Urgent Necessity Work Using On-Call Contractors
Council File No. 86-1095 Authorizing Hyperion Treatment Plant and other Wastewater Facilities Urgent Necessity Work and Emergency Repair Services
Council File No. 03-0992 Finding that Failure of Retaining Walls, Bulkheads, Slopes, and Debris Removal is by Definition a Matter of Urgent Necessity.
Board Report – Request to Approve a Separate Rotation List for the Emergency Storm Drain Repairs Under the Current Contracts for Emergency Sewer and Storm Drain Repairs (BPW 8/29/11 Hearing, Agenda Item 3)
Board Report – Adopt the Construction Authority Policy for the Emergency Sewer and Storm Drain Repairs Program (BPW 9/12/11 Hearing, Agenda Item 6)
Board Report – Emergency Construction Services Contract for Repair, Replacement, and/or Construction of Retaining Walls, Bulkheads, Slope Repairs, Placement of Engineered Fill, Erosion Controls, Debris Removal and Other Geotechnical/Structural Emergency Public Works Projects (BPW 5/9/03 Hearing, Agenda Item 7)
Board Report – Adopt the Authority Policy for the Emergency Pre-Qualified On-Call (PQOC) Geotechnical/Structural Contractors List (BPW 3/20/15 Hearing, Agenda Item 2)
Board Report (File No. BPW-2017-0323) – Establishment of Pre-Qualified On-Call Contractor List – Emergency Demolition Services (BPW 4/5/17 Hearing, Agenda Item 6)
BACKGROUND
City Council and Mayoral action dated October 17, 1984, found that a sewer failure is by definition a matter of urgent necessity. It directed a rotational call list be established and that all authorized sewer repairs deemed an “urgent necessity” be awarded under emergency contract procedures.
On June 6, 1986, the Board of Public Works (BPW) authorized the On-Call Contract for Emergency Repairs and Correction Work on the Hyperion Energy Recovery System and Other Wastewater Treatment Facilities.
City Council action CF03-0992 dated June 27, 2003, found that failure of retaining walls, bulkheads, slopes and debris removal is by definition a matter of urgent necessity. On November 5, 2003, the BPW authorized the On-Call Contract for Emergency Geotechnical/Structural Repairs.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Board of Public Works (BPW) Liaison Commissioner: The Board is responsible for authorizing the establishment of Pre-Authorized and/or Specialty Contracts to address emergency/urgent necessity work. Each Bureau of the Department of Public Works is assigned a Liaison Commissioner. The BOE Liaison Commissioner is responsible for authorization of issuance of work under each Pre- Authorized or Specialty Contract based on the established procedures for each specific contract. In the absence of the BOE Liaison Commissioner, the President of the BPW is to be contacted and informed regarding emergency/urgent necessity work.
Client Department: The affected Bureau or Department will contact the BOE, usually the Program Manager, to solicit assistance for emergency situations by utilizing one of the Bureau’s appropriate Pre-Authorized or Specialty contracts.
Program Manager: The Program Manager or designee obtains approval from the Bureau’s Liaison Commissioner to use a Pre-Authorized or Specialty contractor list. The Program Manager is assigned to manage each of the BOE’s Pre- Authorized or Specialty contractor lists. The Program Manager is responsible for all aspects of the emergency/urgent necessity work, from receipt of the work request through construction, to the project close-out. Some of the Program Manager’s responsibilities may be delegated to the PE/CM.
Project Manager (PM): The PM, upon notification of the emergency/urgent necessity work request, must immediately assign the investigation to the appropriate design staff, coordinate a site visit, assist in the estimation of the cost of the repair, and ensure that required funds are available. A PM is responsible for a particular project. If a project is of a large scale or complex, it may require a Project Engineer and/or Construction Manager.
Project Engineer/Construction Manager (PE/CM): The PE/CM prepares any needed design and construction documents for the Pre-Authorized or Specialty contract contractor to initiate the commencement of work and is then responsible for administering any plans and specifications. The PE/CM is also responsible for coordinating the projects day-to-day construction management activities. The PE/CM is the principal interface between the Contractor, Lead Inspector and the rest of the Construction Management Team. The PE/CM also coordinates resolution of design issues and reports directly to the PM. Once the project is completed, the PE/CM prepares the summary report and as-built drawings. In some programs the roles of PE/CM may be combined.
Contractor: The Contractor is responsible for providing a proper and timely emergency response, compliance with directions, timely submittals and billings, and proper records.
Project Inspector: The Bureau of Contract Administration (BCA) Project Inspector is responsible for enforcing contractor compliance with the contract documents, determination of acceptability, quality and quantity of materials and workmanship, administering the project requirements with respect to subcontracts, and to prepare and process progress payment estimates, and construction site safety.
Public Affairs Office (PAO): On determination of a large and significant emergency project, the PAO should be notified to lead and manage all media contact and information dissemination.
PRE-AUTHORIZED/SPECIALTY CONTRACTS
Since October 17, 1984, the Bureau has had the capability to use contractors immediately when emergency situations arise in the sewer and storm drain collection system. In June of 1986, the Board approved the creation of the On-Call Contract for Emergency Repairs and Correction Work on the Hyperion Energy Recovery System and other Wastewater Treatment facilities. In May of 2003, the BPW approved the use of contractors for emergency geotechnical repairs or alterations. Variations of these contracts have remained in place since that time.
City Charter Section 371 requires formal competitive bidding for all construction projects, unless the Council (or its designee) approves the contracting officer’s (or designee’s) written declaration that “urgent necessity for the preservation of life, health or property” justifies bypassing this step. The City Council has determined that formal competitive bidding may be waived on contracts for work necessary to address an “urgent necessity”. The BOE maintains the following Pre-Authorized Contracts:
Emergency Sewer and Storm Drain Repair Contract
Emergency Geotechnical/Structural Repair Contract
Emergency Wastewater Treatment Plant Repairs and Services Contract
The BOE also maintains the following Specialty Contracts:
Construction Services Contract (CiSco)
Super Expedited Wastewater Emergency Rehabilitation for Sewers (SEWERS) Contract
On-Call Demolition Contract
Independent contracts have been established for each type of emergency/urgent necessity work. Only the BPW can authorize use of these contracts. The Board has delegated the BOE Liaison Commissioner and/or the City Engineer to authorize such work based on the established procedures for each specific contract. The BOE makes a recommendation to the Board on a case-by-case basis to use the on-call procedure and selects a contractor from the appropriate pre-authorized/specialty list. After authorization from the Liaison Commissioner, the BOE issues a construction order to the selected contractor. All other types of emergency contracts require Council approval on a case-by-case basis, as described in Procedure 23.1 – Emergency Contracts.
Establishing an On-Call Contractors List
The BPW authorizes distribution of Requests for Qualifications (RFQs) to solicit contractors that are qualified to perform emergency/urgent necessity services for sewers and storm drains, geotechnical/structural work, demolition work, and wastewater treatment plant repair services. The BOE objectively rates the contractors’ submitted Statements of Qualifications, according to the evaluation criteria described in the RFQ, and recommends the contractors that successfully obtain a qualifying passing score to the Board for establishment of an on-call list of contractors. Each list is typically established for three to five years.
Program Databases
Every Program in the BOE utilizes a database of all projects under their purview. All events and dates are updated as they occur. It is especially important for emergency projects to have all events and dates entered as soon as possible so they can be tracked by all interested parties and all data is available for audit purposes.
ADMINISTERING AN PRE-AUTHORIZED/SPECIALTY CONTRACT
Failure Notification/Identification
Notification of a possible facility failure or emergency for which the BOE has either been assigned or been requested to assume responsibility may come from: Council Offices, citizens, or other governmental or City agencies, departments, or bureaus. However, if funded by Wastewater, the BOS makes the determination regarding emergency or urgent necessity work requests and notifies the BOE to initiate and/or proceed with emergency or urgent necessity procedures, as required. On notification of a possible problem or failure, the respective, responsible Program or Division will investigate and determine the extent of the problem and develop possible actions to either repair or remove the problem or failure. Typically, this consists of records research, field investigation, and/or review of other existing relevant data, with subsequent reporting to Program or Divisional management for determination of appropriate action. An order of magnitude cost estimate based on the anticipated work necessary to repair the failure or to complete the work request is developed and a source of funding is also identified.
Determination to Use On-Call Procedures
The determination to initiate emergency on-call procedures rather than using normal construction contracting procedures is to be made by the Program Manager for the respective on-call list. Criteria for determining the applicability for types of repair work have been established for each program. The responsibility for program and/or discipline determinations is as follows: Wastewater Conveyance Construction Division (WCC) for collection system facilities, Environmental Engineering Division (EED) for treatment and pumping plant facilities, Street Improvement and Stormwater Division (SSD) for storm water facilities, Project Award and Control Division (PAC) for demolition services, and Geotechnical Engineering Division (GEO) for slope repair services. Each emergency determination requires identification of a funding source.
Funding
The emergency/urgent nature of the work does not allow project-specific appropriations for treatment plant, sewer, or storm drain work. At the beginning of the fiscal year, the sewer, storm drain, and treatment plant programs set aside funds in special accounts for the emergency work.
There are no special appropriations for emergency geotechnical/structural or demolition work. In these situations, appropriations are made on a case-by-case basis and usually come from the General Fund for emergency geotechnical/structural contracts or the Program requiring the work for emergency demolition contracts.
In cases where there is no bidding and often no project plans, the contractor’s work is directed by City staff, and they are paid for their time, materials, and equipment used. When time allows for the preparation of contract documents, there are procedures for obtaining bids and work may be performed utilizing lump-sum agreements.
Obtaining a Contractor
When using a pre-authorized contract, emergency on-call repair work is typically assigned to contractors by their particular position on the list. When using a Specialty contract, the contractor is obtained based on the contract requirements of each Specialty contract.
Construction Order
Construction Orders are issued to the contractors for each project containing confirmation of Board authorization, the construction “not to exceed” authority, work location(s), and a summary of the work. Revised Construction Orders are issued as the scope of work changes or work locations are added and/or deleted, and if the method of payment has been revised, along with respective changes in construction cost authority. The Construction Order is typically signed by the PM. Copies of the Construction Order are distributed to the Payment Section of the BCA, Project Inspector, Office of Accounting, Construction Engineer, and funding source. If the work has been bid, PAC will award the work with the approval of the Board.
Reporting Requirements
Depending on the frequency or use of the particular emergency on-call list, different procedures may be established for reporting to the BPW or oversight committee. For the Emergency Sewer Repair Program, the program reporting includes: a monthly meeting with the Liaison Board Commissioner, verbal updates to the Liaison Board Commissioner, weekly meetings with the Project Delivery Team (PDT), monthly reporting to the Program Review Committee (PRC), monthly updates to LA Stat, and a monthly report to the Program Deputy.
RELATED PROCEDURES
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