R10 Request for Proposal

RFP ADDENDUM RFP-18 NEW 6/98 Linda LoSchiavo Buyer Name (860)713-5078 Buyer Phone Number STATE OF CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, Room 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 Proposal Due Date: 11 March 2004 RFP ADDENDUM #7 DESCRIPTION: Printing Services FOR: All Using State Agencies, Political Subdivisions and Not-for-Profit Organizations 1. Is the current inventory limited to a 90 day supply maximum? Answer: The current inventory is not limited to a 90 day supply. It is expected that the majority of the DMV inventory will be depleted by October. Also, the State (DMV representatives and possibly an OSC representative) will review the current inventory and may destroy a portion of it to eliminate the need for the awarded Vendor to buy and store the items. As stated in Section VI.E.2: “The inventory is estimated to be approximately $475,000 at current contract pricing, with most of the volume being with DMV forms (including a large order of validation stickers expected to be almost depleted by October). The State may choose to review the incumbent vendor’s inventory and destroy a portion of the inventory prior to the Vendor’s purchase of the existing inventory.” As stated in Section VI.B.2: “with respect to obsolescence, the Contract User will not be responsible for more than 90 days usage volume of inventory. Anything produced in excess of this will be at the Vendor’s risk, unless expressly required and authorized by the Contract User. The exception is the inventory transferred from the incumbent vendor – the State will pay for these forms in case of obsolescence.” 2. My question pertains to the inventory of the incumbent vendor that is to be transferred to the new vendor. What is the makeup of this inventory? What items are in inventory? Can you be more specific than approximate value? What is the condition of this inventory? What part or percentage is obsolete and will not be transferred to the new vendor? Who is to determine and identify old or obsolete items? Who is to determine items not fit to be sold due to damage sustained in the warehouse? Answer: See answer to Question #1. Unfortunately, the make-up of the existing inventory is not available. 3. In normal course of business, when one vendor succeeds another - the end user (in this case the State) would purchase the entire inventory allowing it to be pre-paid to the ordering agencies on an as needed basis. There would never be a transfer from one vendor to another. It just isn't done. Inheriting a half million dollar inventory with little margin would not be a positive incentive to participate in this contract. There is also no mention of the cost of transferring and handling this inventory. It would make much more financial sense for the State to leave the inventory where it is (until it is exhausted). Why should the State pay for unnecessary shipping and handling costs to the new vendor? Would DAS consider changing this section? Answer: We believe the transfer of entire inventory from the incumbent to the new vendor is practiced in the industry. The existing vendor had done this when they were awarded the contract. The State will not buy the existing inventory. If the awarded vendor wishes to leave the inventory with the incumbent vendor until depletion, it is up to the awarded vendor to negotiate this with the incumbent vendor. 4. In the Forms Matrix, the quantities are not well defined as to which items would be inventoried, nor what the annual or quarterly usages are for the items printed in quantities ranging up to 2,000,000 pieces. It is extremely hard to estimate the cost of exposure when we have no idea of usages for these larger items. How does the State propose to protect the vendor in the case of incorrect quantities specified? Does the State own the inventory or does the vendor own the inventory? This question must be addressed. RFP #04PSX0010 Addendum #7 Answer: The vendor owns the inventory. We have provided as much information as we have available to us regarding the usage volumes of the forms. We have listed monthly volumes for almost all the forms. Please note that E1b and E1c are only the specifications of these two items. The volumes can be found in the other DMV tabs (E1a and E2). We expect that the awarded vendor may be able to gather more information after contract award. 5. There is no mention of when a 90 day inventory would be billable. Is product only invoiced when shipped? or can we bill items inventoried in 90 days? six months? when? What if the item is inventoried longer than 90 days, when can we invoice? Answer: The inventory can only be invoiced when shipped. 6. On the D. Comptroller/DAS Forms you have various forms that are in books. Need to know: 1) Number of parts in set 2) Number of forms in a book 3) Type of book (Triad cover / Staple to chip/ End Opening cover) This pertains to the following: 5.5 x 8.5, n/a part, 1 per book 8 x 10.875, 1 part, 1 per book 8.5 x 11,n/a part, 1 per book Answer: The 8 x 10.875, 1 part, 1 per book, item number CO-92, is an accounting journal. The size referenced is the folded size. Inside pages: 12 sheets before folding, with columns on both sides of each sheet. The 8.5 X 11, n/a part, 1 per book (CO-203) should be 5.5 x 8.5, n/a part, 1 per book. The CO-201, CO-202, and CO-203 are booklets with text, not forms that are in books. Each has a finished size of 8.5 x 11 folded to a size of 5.5 x 8.5 booklets. Each booklet has 40 pages plus the cover when folded. Paper Stock: inside pages, 50 lb. cream white; outside cover, 80 lb., cover color. Color is different for each of the 3 form numbers. The information regarding the type of book is unavailable. 7. E1A Vessel Decals calls for 3M 510-10 material which is not a reflective material. Sure material is not 580? Answer: This is correct. Reflective material is not needed. 8. How does the State communicate the "set aside" of the users? Answer: “Set aside goals” is the same as “supplier diversity goals.” The list of State certified SBE/MBEs can be found at http://www.das.state.ct.us/Purchase/SetAside/SAP_Search_Vendors.asp. The Supplier Diversity website can be found out http://www.das.state.ct.us/Purchase/SetAside/default.asp. This Addendum must be Signed & Returned with your Proposal. Authorized Signature of Proposer Company Name APPROVED_________________________________ LINDA LOSCHIAVO Contract Specialist (Original Signature on Document in Procurement Files) Date Issued: 5 March 2004 RFP ADDENDUM RFP-18 NEW 6/98 Linda LoSchiavo Buyer Name (860)713-5078 Buyer Phone Number STATE OF CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, Room 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 Proposal Due Date: 11 March 2004 RFP ADDENDUM #6 DESCRIPTION: Printing Services FOR: All Using State Agencies, Political Subdivisions and Not-for-Profit Organizations PROPOSERS NOTE: Changes/Clarifications: The samples in Room 110 of 165 Capitol Avenue will be available for viewing until March 10th, 4 p.m. EST. We wish to reiterate that the Vendor shall make best efforts to assist the Contract Users in reaching their set-aside goals (See Section V.B.6), which includes printing of forms in the forms management work. In the new downloadable Excel file, Printing_Services_Pricing_Addendum.xls, we have made the following changes. Please adjust your pricing accordingly to reflect this information. See the file for further information. i. We have entered some paper specifications for the Comptroller/DAS Forms in Column M. ii. Item CO-819 has been changed from a 1-part to a 3-part form iii. Item CO-1022-1 has 2 sides iv. Included Tab A2. Contract Users have the right to request that an SBEs/MBEs supply the envelopes for an order. Please enter the prices for envelopes if an SBE/MBE were to print the envelopes. The matrix’s structure is exactly the same as that of Tab A of the pricing grids file. Additionally, please list out in your RFP response the SBE/MBEs who you plan to use and include their information in your response to Question 28 and 29. Please see the current envelopes contract (http://www.das.state.ct.us/Contracts/003_0369.pdf) and the Supplier Diversity website (http://www.das.state.ct.us/Purchase/SetAside/SAP_Search_Vendors.asp) if you need further information. If the Vendor submitting a proposal is an SBE/MBE, the Vendor can leave Tab A2 blank. 1. Pricing: The RFP asks for a 3-year firm term without mention of raw material factors. Will the State accept alternative pricing terms based on firm pricing with raw material clauses? Can we submit alternative term length firm pricing for consideration? Would the State accept a firm term on the contract with raw material increases being negotiated based on Industry published indexes? Answer: As discussed in Section XI, “alternative approaches and/or methodologies to accomplish the desired or intended results of this RFP are welcome and are specifically requested in a section of this RFP. However, these cannot be a substitute to the requirements set out in this RFP but are requested as an optional addition to the Vendor’s proposal to the State. With the exception of where specifically invited to do so, a proposal that departs from or materially alters the terms, requirements, or scope of work defined by this RFP may be rejected for being non-responsive.” Therefore, the Vendor has the right to submit an alternative pricing methodology but it must be in addition to the methodology requested in the RFP. If vendors wish to use an index, please use Pulp and Paper Week’s index and submit at least a two year history of monthly prices for the proposed index. 2. Upon final review of the "Proposer's Checklist" I noted that checklist numbers 15 & 16 refer to submitting two (2) copies of RFP-16. To clarify: we need to submit one (1) original set of the proposal, five (5) copies (double-sided), and two (2) copies of the Printing Services RFP Pricing Grids (RFP-16) (single-sided). Answer: For this RFP, we require one (1) original set of the proposal and five (5) copies of all materials requested in the RFP. This overrides the instructions in the Proposer’s Checklist. 3. As a privately-held company, we generally do not disclose our financials. The RFP goes into great detail that the Vendor will take to protect the State's confidential information, but is there a confidentiality agreement in place with the Vendors who submit information to the State of Connecticut as part of this RFP? Please clarify. Answer: Proposers may designate that this material is exempt from Freedom Of Information Request (FOI) pursuant to Sec. 1-210 Access To Public Records, Exempt Records, of The Connecticut General Statutes. If proposer desires that this information be exempt from public record this information must be submitted with your bid in a separate envelope labeled “Confidential” that includes the proposal number on the envelope. 4. E2. Other DMV Forms - Are any of the letterhead's personalized whether it be an individual person or by office (ref item code's: LT1, LT2, X2BW, X2B, LHRN, LHRW)? Answer The letterhead will not be personalized by order. Each form will be the same DMV letterhead. 5. Appendix B - Sample Jobs - What is the annual volume of business cards ordered per layout (ie. 1 clr vs. 2 clr, white vs. eggshell)? Answer: This information is unfortunately unavailable. See the current contract for all available information of the current purchases: http://www.das.state.ct.us/Contracts/023_0583.pdf. 6. What ink colors are printed on the 1 color and 2 color business cards? Answer: This information is unfortunately unavailable. See the current contract for all available information of the current purchases: http://www.das.state.ct.us/Contracts/023_0583.pdf. This Addendum must be Signed & Returned with your Proposal. Authorized Signature of Proposer Company Name APPROVED_________________________________ LINDA LOSCHIAVO Contract Specialist (Original Signature on Document in Procurement Files) Date Issued: 3 March 2004 RFP ADDENDUM RFP-18 NEW 6/98 Linda LoSchiavo Buyer Name (860)713-5078 Buyer Phone Number STATE OF CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, Room 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 Proposal Due Date: 11 March 2004 RFP ADDENDUM #5 DESCRIPTION: Printing Services FOR: All Using State Agencies, Political Subdivisions and Not-for-Profit Organizations PROPOSERS NOTE: Additional Information: 1. 2. 3. Due Date Extension: The due date for the RFP response has been pushed to March 11th, at 2:00 p.m. EST. Additional questions will be allowed until March 4th, 2:00 p.m. EST. Please submit all your questions via email to RFPPrinting@po.state.ct.us. We will post answers on March 5th. Percentage of releases (number of orders placed to fill) that will be received electronically vs. manually (fax, phone, mail) is estimated at: 80% 19% 1% 4. Faxed or mailed Electronic Same-day emergency pick up from warehouse. Paper specifications for the DMV Forms: White Bond is 20# Card Stock is 90# 2 Part NCR 15# / 14# 3 Part NCR 15# / 14# / 15# 4 Part NCR 15# / 14# / 15# / 14# 5. 6. Bindery for DMV forms R342 and R328 is as follows: 8.5 x 11, folded and stapled on the center spine. The specifications for R295 and R295SP are as follows: 8.5 x 11 Double-Sided Commercial Driver's Manual - 134 Pages Hazardous Materials Section - 36 pages Cover and Text Paper: 40# Newsprint Black Ink Binding: Glued and Taped (Black Tape) 1 RFP No.: 04PSX0010 Addendum #5 This Addendum must be Signed & Returned with your Proposal. Authorized Signature of Proposer Company Name APPROVED_________________________________ LINDA LOSCHIAVO Contract Specialist (Original Signature on Document in Procurement Files) Date Issued: 1 March 2004 2 RFP ADDENDUM RFP-18 NEW 6/98 Linda LoSchiavo Buyer Name (860) 713-5078 Buyer Phone Number STATE OF CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, Room 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 Proposal Due Date: 8 March 2004 RFP ADDENDUM #4 DESCRIPTION: Printing Services FOR: All Using State Agencies, Political Subdivisions and Not-for-Profit Organizations PROPOSERS NOTE: Listed below are the second batch of responses to potential Proposers having submitted questions prior to the 2:00 PM EST, February 20, 2004 deadline. Proposers are reminded that additional questions will not be accepted or answered past the deadline listed above. As a reminder, per Addendum 2, the due date for the RFP response has been pushed to March 8th, at 2:00p.m. EST. 1. If small or minority vendors are not selected, how will they receive business from this contract? Answer: The Print RFP will not decrease, or limit, the ability of the State’s SBE vendor community to supply print work to the State. While this RFP seeks to allow the State to consolidate management of its external Print needs to a Print Manager, and therefore may result in a contract with a fewer number of vendors than exists today, lack of inclusion on the final contract will in no way limit the State’s SBE community from supplying products to meet the State’s print needs. Just as individual Agencies currently make the determination as to whether to use an SBE vendor for any particular print job, these Agencies will continue to make this determination in the future. As a result of this RFP process, in the future, when an Agency makes a decision to use an SBE vendor, the awarded Print Manager will be required to ensure that said job is made available to the SBE community. Accordingly, SBE vendors will continue to have an opportunity, based on the price and quality of their offerings, to be awarded a share of the State’s print business. It is the State’s full expectation that future SBE participation in this category will not decrease from current levels. 2. Has a plan for determining how Small and Minority Vendors (who presently sell to the State) will be protected and given adequate work? You propose 25% of the printing budget will designated to Small and Minority Vendors. How will this be done? Who will "police" the contract to make sure Small and Minority vendors are given their fair share? Answer: The awarded vendor(s) are required to submit detailed quarterly SBE/MBE reports to the Supplier Diversity office to track their spending with SBEs and MBEs and inform each Contract User of their progress towards their supplier diversity goals. Additionally, as mentioned in Section V.B.2.ii, Contract Users can request that a job be given exclusively to SBEs/MBEs (therefore quotes to be solicited only from SBEs/MBEs). 3. Section B - RFP Scope of Services: 2 c ii - What % of the work will be required to be directed to SBEs/WBEs? Answer: As stated in Section V.6: “Under Connecticut General Statue § 4a-60g, the State has an established and on-going commitment to providing equal opportunity to small (SBE) and minority owned business enterprises (MBE) to contract as a vendor for the State’s purchased goods and services. The State’s goals (i.e., their “supplier diversity goals”) is to target 25% of good and services purchased to be purchased from SBEs. Furthermore, of the SBE/MBE purchases, the State’s goal is to direct 25% of those purchases from MBEs, or 6.25% of the total purchases of goods and services. The Vendor shall make best efforts to assist the Contract Users in reaching their set-aside goals.” 1 4. As a certified, woman-owned enterprise (MBE), would all purchases made through us on the State's behalf, even if manufactured by a subcontractor, qualify as MBE purchases for the State? Answer: Yes if the 2nd tier vendors is serving a commercially useful function. “Commercially useful function” means work that the small or minority business (SBE/MBE) on the State contract actually performs, manages or supervises. Work is not a commercially useful function if the SBE/MBE role is limited to that of an extra participant for the appearance of SBE/MBE participation involvement. 5. How do you plan to prevent out of state companies from winning the award and taking tax dollars with it? Answer: We have no statutory authority to limit a bid or RFP to Connecticut-based companies (except for set- aside bids.) 6. It is our understanding that the vendor awarded the forms management section of the contract is responsible for maintaining a 90day supply of forms in its fulfillment center. The RFP requests prices for quantities of forms to be released from that inventory. However, annual consumption rates were not provided. The estimated cost to manufacture an item is determined in part by the quantity to be produced. It is difficult to estimate a price for a release quantity without sufficient information to determine the manufacturing costs. For example, one product may have a 90-day consumption rate that is considerably higher than that of a very similar product. Since the print-run quantities of the first item manufactured will be higher, unit costs will be lower. Therefore our cost per release would be lower for the first item. The data we have been provided by the State is not sufficiently detailed to enable us to differentiate between items of varying projected consumption. Are estimated consumption levels available for the products for which prices have been requested? If not, what assumptions should we use to complete this section? Answer: The monthly consumption rates have been provided for almost every form. Please see: Tab D: Tab E1a: Tab E2: Cell P43 to AB119 Cell N10 to Z147 Cell L54 to X229 7. Section VI.B.3.E – Please clarify the issue of the contract vendor maintaining a list of authorized personnel and their representative, who can place orders, make changes etc. Is there a process in place to notify the contract vendor of personnel changes etc? Also – is the state open to having this authorization process converted to an electronic approval process? Answer: Yes, through e-mail. For the DMV, there are only 2 approvers for all approvals. Electronic approval may also be acceptable but please provide a description of any proposed electronic approval process in your response. 8. VI.6.A – Supporting detail with invoice submission. Please clarify what the states means by “supporting detail”. Answer: A copy of the receiver for each delivered order to any non-DMV address. The receiver must be attached to the back of each invoice. The Excel file to be attached to each account, monthly, will be determined later. 9. VI.7.A – Inventory Items – It is stated in this section that the contract user is not allowed to return product that is shipped from the inventory. However, in section VI.7.C there is a process for returning/restocking inventory. Can you please clarify the states policy regarding inventory returns? Answer: Section (a) discusses the policy for when the order is signed and accepted by the Contract User. Section (c) discusses the policy for when the Contract User refuses/returns an order not due to an error on the part of the Vendor, prior to the order being signed and accepted. Although we feel the latter situation is rare and perhaps will never occur, we would like to ensure the Vendor is protected should the situation arise. 2 Clarification For your reference, listed in the following chart are the sums of the historical annual volumes for each combination of form specifications on Tab D of the pricing grids. The numbers are calculated by summing up each matching form in the bottom chart of Tab D. Please note: historical volumes are not a guarantee of future volumes. Historical Annual Volumes 39,250 250 11,000 3,375 441,500 6,000 1,978 923 12 1,500 270 34,575 475 6,575 107,225 34,425 9,575 8,825 3,425 11,300 8,625 875 21,500 8,550 Form Specifications 10 x 13, 1 part, 250 per CT 11 x 8.5, 2 part, 100 per PK 11 x 8.5, 3 part, 500 per CT 11 x 9.125, 2 part, 100 per PK 11.75 x 8.5, 4 part, 800 per CT 4.125 x 9.5, 1 part, 500 per BX 5.5 x 8.5, 1 part, 100 per PD 5.5 x 8.5, n/a part, 1 per BK 6.25 x 14, 2 part, 1 per BK 7.25 x 3.25, 1 part, 250 per PK 8 x 10.875, 1 part, 1 per BK 8 x 11.625, 6 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11, n/a part, 1 per BK 8.5 x 11, 1 part, 100 per PD 8.5 x 11, 1 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11, 2 part, 100 per PD 8.5 x 11.625, 2 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11.625, 3 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11.625, 4 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11.625, 5 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11.75, 4 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 14, 1 part, 100 per PD 8.5 x 14, 4 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 6.125, 4 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 7, 1 part, 100 per PD 9 x 12, 1 part, 100 per PK This Addendum must be Signed & Returned with your Proposal. Authorized Signature of Proposer Company Name APPROVED_________________________________ LINDA LOSCHIAVO Contract Specialist Date Issued: 25 February 2004 (Original Signature on Document in Procurement Files) 3 RFP ADDENDUM RFP-18 NEW 6/98 Linda LoSchiavo Buyer Name (860) 713-5078 Buyer Phone Number STATE OF CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, Room 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 Proposal Due Date: 8 March 2004 RFP ADDENDUM #4 DESCRIPTION: Printing Services FOR: All Using State Agencies, Political Subdivisions and Not-for-Profit Organizations PROPOSERS NOTE: Listed below are the second batch of responses to potential Proposers having submitted questions prior to the 2:00 PM EST, February 20, 2004 deadline. Proposers are reminded that additional questions will not be accepted or answered past the deadline listed above. As a reminder, per Addendum 2, the due date for the RFP response has been pushed to March 8th, at 2:00p.m. EST. 1. If small or minority vendors are not selected, how will they receive business from this contract? Answer: The Print RFP will not decrease, or limit, the ability of the State’s SBE vendor community to supply print work to the State. While this RFP seeks to allow the State to consolidate management of its external Print needs to a Print Manager, and therefore may result in a contract with a fewer number of vendors than exists today, lack of inclusion on the final contract will in no way limit the State’s SBE community from supplying products to meet the State’s print needs. Just as individual Agencies currently make the determination as to whether to use an SBE vendor for any particular print job, these Agencies will continue to make this determination in the future. As a result of this RFP process, in the future, when an Agency makes a decision to use an SBE vendor, the awarded Print Manager will be required to ensure that said job is made available to the SBE community. Accordingly, SBE vendors will continue to have an opportunity, based on the price and quality of their offerings, to be awarded a share of the State’s print business. It is the State’s full expectation that future SBE participation in this category will not decrease from current levels. 2. Has a plan for determining how Small and Minority Vendors (who presently sell to the State) will be protected and given adequate work? You propose 25% of the printing budget will designated to Small and Minority Vendors. How will this be done? Who will "police" the contract to make sure Small and Minority vendors are given their fair share? Answer: The awarded vendor(s) are required to submit detailed quarterly SBE/MBE reports to the Supplier Diversity office to track their spending with SBEs and MBEs and inform each Contract User of their progress towards their supplier diversity goals. Additionally, as mentioned in Section V.B.2.ii, Contract Users can request that a job be given exclusively to SBEs/MBEs (therefore quotes to be solicited only from SBEs/MBEs). 3. Section B - RFP Scope of Services: 2 c ii - What % of the work will be required to be directed to SBEs/WBEs? Answer: As stated in Section V.6: “Under Connecticut General Statue § 4a-60g, the State has an established and on-going commitment to providing equal opportunity to small (SBE) and minority owned business enterprises (MBE) to contract as a vendor for the State’s purchased goods and services. The State’s goals (i.e., their “supplier diversity goals”) is to target 25% of good and services purchased to be purchased from SBEs. Furthermore, of the SBE/MBE purchases, the State’s goal is to direct 25% of those purchases from MBEs, or 6.25% of the total purchases of goods and services. The Vendor shall make best efforts to assist the Contract Users in reaching their set-aside goals.” 1 4. As a certified, woman-owned enterprise (MBE), would all purchases made through us on the State's behalf, even if manufactured by a subcontractor, qualify as MBE purchases for the State? Answer: Yes if the 2nd tier vendors is serving a commercially useful function. “Commercially useful function” means work that the small or minority business (SBE/MBE) on the State contract actually performs, manages or supervises. Work is not a commercially useful function if the SBE/MBE role is limited to that of an extra participant for the appearance of SBE/MBE participation involvement. 5. How do you plan to prevent out of state companies from winning the award and taking tax dollars with it? Answer: We have no statutory authority to limit a bid or RFP to Connecticut-based companies (except for set- aside bids.) 6. It is our understanding that the vendor awarded the forms management section of the contract is responsible for maintaining a 90day supply of forms in its fulfillment center. The RFP requests prices for quantities of forms to be released from that inventory. However, annual consumption rates were not provided. The estimated cost to manufacture an item is determined in part by the quantity to be produced. It is difficult to estimate a price for a release quantity without sufficient information to determine the manufacturing costs. For example, one product may have a 90-day consumption rate that is considerably higher than that of a very similar product. Since the print-run quantities of the first item manufactured will be higher, unit costs will be lower. Therefore our cost per release would be lower for the first item. The data we have been provided by the State is not sufficiently detailed to enable us to differentiate between items of varying projected consumption. Are estimated consumption levels available for the products for which prices have been requested? If not, what assumptions should we use to complete this section? Answer: The monthly consumption rates have been provided for almost every form. Please see: Tab D: Tab E1a: Tab E2: Cell P43 to AB119 Cell N10 to Z147 Cell L54 to X229 7. Section VI.B.3.E – Please clarify the issue of the contract vendor maintaining a list of authorized personnel and their representative, who can place orders, make changes etc. Is there a process in place to notify the contract vendor of personnel changes etc? Also – is the state open to having this authorization process converted to an electronic approval process? Answer: Yes, through e-mail. For the DMV, there are only 2 approvers for all approvals. Electronic approval may also be acceptable but please provide a description of any proposed electronic approval process in your response. 8. VI.6.A – Supporting detail with invoice submission. Please clarify what the states means by “supporting detail”. Answer: A copy of the receiver for each delivered order to any non-DMV address. The receiver must be attached to the back of each invoice. The Excel file to be attached to each account, monthly, will be determined later. 9. VI.7.A – Inventory Items – It is stated in this section that the contract user is not allowed to return product that is shipped from the inventory. However, in section VI.7.C there is a process for returning/restocking inventory. Can you please clarify the states policy regarding inventory returns? Answer: Section (a) discusses the policy for when the order is signed and accepted by the Contract User. Section (c) discusses the policy for when the Contract User refuses/returns an order not due to an error on the part of the Vendor, prior to the order being signed and accepted. Although we feel the latter situation is rare and perhaps will never occur, we would like to ensure the Vendor is protected should the situation arise. 2 Clarification For your reference, listed in the following chart are the sums of the historical annual volumes for each combination of form specifications on Tab D of the pricing grids. The numbers are calculated by summing up each matching form in the bottom chart of Tab D. Please note: historical volumes are not a guarantee of future volumes. Historical Annual Volumes 39,250 250 11,000 3,375 441,500 6,000 1,978 923 12 1,500 270 34,575 475 6,575 107,225 34,425 9,575 8,825 3,425 11,300 8,625 875 21,500 8,550 Form Specifications 10 x 13, 1 part, 250 per CT 11 x 8.5, 2 part, 100 per PK 11 x 8.5, 3 part, 500 per CT 11 x 9.125, 2 part, 100 per PK 11.75 x 8.5, 4 part, 800 per CT 4.125 x 9.5, 1 part, 500 per BX 5.5 x 8.5, 1 part, 100 per PD 5.5 x 8.5, n/a part, 1 per BK 6.25 x 14, 2 part, 1 per BK 7.25 x 3.25, 1 part, 250 per PK 8 x 10.875, 1 part, 1 per BK 8 x 11.625, 6 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11, n/a part, 1 per BK 8.5 x 11, 1 part, 100 per PD 8.5 x 11, 1 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11, 2 part, 100 per PD 8.5 x 11.625, 2 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11.625, 3 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11.625, 4 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11.625, 5 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 11.75, 4 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 14, 1 part, 100 per PD 8.5 x 14, 4 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 6.125, 4 part, 100 per PK 8.5 x 7, 1 part, 100 per PD 9 x 12, 1 part, 100 per PK This Addendum must be Signed & Returned with your Proposal. Authorized Signature of Proposer Company Name APPROVED_________________________________ LINDA LOSCHIAVO Contract Specialist Date Issued: 25 February 2004 (Original Signature on Document in Procurement Files) 3 RFP ADDENDUM RFP-18 NEW 6/98 Linda LoSchiavo Buyer Name (860) 713-5078 Buyer Phone Number STATE OF CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, Room 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 Proposal Due Date: 8 March 2004 RFP ADDENDUM #3 DESCRIPTION: Printing Services FOR: All Using State Agencies, Political Subdivisions and Not-for-Profit Organizations PROPOSERS NOTE: Listed below are the responses to potential Proposers having submitted questions prior to the 2:00 PM EST, February 20, 2004 deadline. Proposers are reminded that additional questions will not be accepted or answered past the deadline listed above. Vendors should note that similar questions have been grouped together for convenience. As a reminder, per Addendum 2, the due date for the RFP response has been pushed to March 8th, at 2:00p.m. EST. There are a few questions for which we are awaiting answers. We will post this second batch of questions and answers before end of day February 25th. Forms Management 1. Under Forms Management - Customer has asked for warehousing so therefore we will need to know months stored and number of releases. Example qty 100 - how many months stored & how many releases should each quantity band be based on? Answer: It is the job of the vendor to determine the quantity of forms to be stored so the customers will have the supply needed when requested. Supplies cannot run out. The vendor should use their forms management experience and technology to plan the storage and reprint schedule. We can only provide a look into the historical monthly usage. 2. Pricing Matrix - Flat Form - Size/Paper reads "(Bond) 16' Single Sheets 8-1/2 x 11" - Should this read "Bond 16# Single Sheets 8-1/2 x 11?" Answer: Yes. Similarly, the 110’ should read 110#. 3. Pricing Matrix - "C1" - under Additional cost for collating - How many parts to be collated? Answer: This should be $/page/M sheets. 4. Pricing Matrix - "D" - Number of orders not known - What should cost be based on? Answer: The State looks to the Vendor to determine the cost based on the specifications and estimated monthly usage information given. The information on the number of orders is unavailable for this RFP. 1 5. The RFP word document on page 19 states that pricing should include freight in the print price and possibly inside delivery as well while the excel spreadsheet item C6 states that shipping charges can be billed separately. Would you clarify if freight is to be in-price or charged separately? If freight is inprice could a list of ship-to locations be provided? Answer: For the situations described in Section VI.B.5 of the RFP document, the Vendor can charge shipping along with the pick and pack charge. This is intended to ensure that the Vendor offers the most competitive pricing on the forms with the knowledge that small orders as described in Section VI.B.5 will be allowed to charge a pick and pack charge and shipping. The ship-to locations cannot be provided at this time. You can assume that all locations are in Connecticut. 6. The pick and pack charge, item C6 in the spreadsheet, is that to be expressed as an order and line fee or a total estimated annual cost? Answer: The pick and pack charge should be expressed as a flat fee to be charged for each qualifying order. 7. If an item is stored is the product invoiced upon production or upon release from the warehouse? Answer: The product is invoiced upon release from the warehouse. Hence it is the vendor’s responsibility to use their forms management experience, technology, and approach to manage the inventory levels. 8. If inventory is shipped from the incumbent's warehouse to a new vendor's warehouse, will destruction of obsolete inventory take place prior to the move? Subsequently being billed out by the incumbent. Answer: The destruction of obsolete inventory will take place prior to the move. 9. Is the current contract pricing available for the DMV forms? Answer: The pricing can be found in Supplement 18 of the current Total Forms Management contract (http://www.das.state.ct.us/Contracts/956_0647.pdf) 10. Can I have the quantity that was ordered of the DMV Vessel decals? It is in the State of Connecticut RFP but there is no quantity attached with it. We need it to respond correctly. Answer: The historical volume is 136,000 (Cell Z-147 of worksheet E1a) 11. In section A.3 it mentions to 30-40 orders are processed per day. Does this refer only to inventory releases or is it an average of all orders processed with the contract vendor? Answer: This refers to the average of orders received and processed by the forms management vendor for forms management orders. 12. VI.B.5 – With respect to delivery of products, it is mentioned that some deliveries will be required to be delivered to the contract users specific department. Is this done at an additional charge to those specific contract users? Answer: There will be no additional charge unless the order qualifies for the Pick and Pack charge. 13. VI.E.2 – Please further explain the purchase of the inventory with the incumbent vendor. Any required period for this product to be used (e.g. 30-60 days from time of transfer to the new vendor)? Are additional charged permissible for these acquired products (i.e. Freight to contract user from warehouse, fulfillment/pick & pack charges, storage charges etc.)? Answer: There is no required period for usage. However, representatives of the State will review the incumbent’s inventory for items and destroy a portion of the inventory prior to the Vendor’s purchase of the existing inventory. The State will not pay for any additional charges, e.g., freight. A large portion of the inventory will be the DMV stickers and other seasonal forms. This portion is expected to be almost depleted by October. 14. Regarding the existing inventory at current vendors location. Will cost info be provided on the product and will the state support the new vendor in accepting the inventory at the published prices? If the new vendor is to "negotiate" a price with the old vendor the new vendor has very little leverage. Normally in inventory transfer situations, the inventory transfers at its known value with the user support. Answer: The current prices for DMV forms are listed in Supplement 18 of the current Total Forms Management contract (http://www.das.state.ct.us/Contracts/956_0647.pdf). The Vendor will be responsible for the negotiations with the incumbent vendor. It is assumed that because the incumbent is getting paid for the inventory in one shot and does not have to handle the order processing and delivery for the inventory, they will agree to a fair discount. General 15. Are there any samples of the custom reports that are going to be required per the RFP? Answer: Some of the reports are described in Appendix_C_Sample_Reports.xls, which is one of the files vendors can download from the RFP Synopsis page. 16. If all components of the RFP are not awarded to one vendor, who will do the invoicing. The awardee of the particular piece or the Print Manager awardee? Answer: If the State chooses to award the components of the RFP to separate vendors, each vendor will invoice their own work to the State. 17. Must we respond to each part of the RFP in order to be considered? Answer: Yes. 18. Can we decline to respond to say the Forms Management portion? Answer: As stated in Section XII.E, each proposal must cover all services requested in this RFP (all printing, forms management, and envelopes), whether by the vendor itself or through a partnership set up with another vendor (e.g., subcontracting). Smaller vendors may choose to submit a proposal based on the latter. Any partnerships and work expected to be performed by a vendor other than the vendor submitting the proposal should be explained clearly in the responses to each Qualitative Questions. 19. Will one or more than one vendor be selected for this contract? Answer: As stated in the Introduction: “The State intends to consolidate to one vendor for all externally printed materials to the extent possible. However, DAS reserves the right to award all or part of this award, to multiple vendors based on the best interests of the State.” 20. Does the category "miscellaneous", under product, include decals, stickers and labels? Answer: Yes 21. Tab F3 Guaranteed Savings Rate of the Forms Management - Pricing Matrix. What is the need to provide "grid pricing" when asking for % Guaranteed Savings over last price paid? Can you supply last price paid and quantities for each line item? Answer: The Guaranteed Savings Rate does not apply to envelopes and forms covered in the pricing matrices. See Section V.B.2. We do not have the annual quantities for the envelopes. The quantities for the forms are listed in Tabs D, E1a, and E2. Previous contract pricing for Total Forms Management (956-A-14-0647-C) and envelopes (03PSX0369) is available in the Contracts section of the DAS/Procurement Services website. 22. Page 9 of the RFP requests a guaranteed savings model. Does this savings guarantee apply only to the commercial print & publications items covered under this RFP? The envelope and forms pricing grids will have been submitted as part of the RFP and would not be subject to a further savings guarantee. See above. 23. Would the State be willing to accept an alternate format for cost savings not illustrated in the RFP? If an alternate method is presented in the proposal, would that lead to disqualification? Answer: As stated in Section XI, alternative approaches and/or methodologies to accomplish the desired or intended results of this RFP are welcome. However, these cannot be a substitute to the requirements set out in this RFP but are requested as an optional addition to the Vendor’s proposal to the State. 24. The RFP referenced below for Printing Services is obviously not something our company could respond to. Does this mean that we will not be able to bid on any print bids in the State of Connecticut after this RFP is awarded? Answer: The State intends for all external print work to go to the awarded vendor(s). The awarded vendor(s) will solicit bids from at least three vendors for all print work except for envelopes and forms covered by the contractual pricing matrices. Non-compulsory entities are not required to use the resulting contract(s) but will be encouraged to do so. 25. If awarded the business, will we have the opportunity to negotiate the terms and conditions of the contract with the State? Answer: As stated in Section X.Q: “Once the evaluation of the proposals and the vendor selection are complete, the selected proposal(s) and this RFP may then serve as the basis for a contract that will be negotiated and executed between the State and the selected vendor(s).” As stated in the RFP: “It is assumed that by submitting a proposal, the Vendor is in agreement with the RFP-19, Standard RFP Terms and Conditions, provided in the RFP package, as well as all the terms and conditions contained in this RFP. The terms and conditions in the RFP shall supercede those in RFP-19, should a conflict exist.” Any exceptions to the RFP terms and conditions must be stated clearly at the end of your response to the Qualitative Questions. You can answer as a newly-added Question 44: “Do you take any exceptions to the terms and conditions and stated in this RFP?” However, in doing so, please keep in mind that as stated in Section X.A: “To be considered acceptable, the proposal must be complete and conform with all RFP instructions and conditions. Each proposal must cover all services requested in this RFP (all printing, forms management, and envelopes). DAS, at its discretion, may reject in whole or in part any proposal if in its judgment the best interests of the State will be served.” 26. If we submit revisions to the terms and conditions of the contract and Request for Proposal, will the proposal automatically be rejected? See above. 27. Who is the consulting firm that wrote this RFP for the State and where are they based? Answer: The RFP was written by DAS/Procurement Services personnel, the representatives of key users of the resulting contract, and a third party consulting firm specializing in spend management. 28. Section V - Late Delivery: Please expand on the penalty for late delivery - does it apply to all products, all subcontractors, acts of God, etc. Is it enforced? Is it negotiable? Answer: Yes, it applies to all products. As stated in Section IX.U: “If the Vendor subcontracts on a State contract, the sole responsibility of the job will rest upon the Vendor, not the subcontractor.” The awarded vendor is responsible for any failures to meet terms and conditions, including delivery dates, by their subcontractors. The language in RFP-19, Item 19 shall apply: “The [Vendor] shall not be liable for losses or delays in the fulfillment of the terms of the contract due to wars, acts of public enemies, strikes, fires, floods, acts of God or any other acts not within the control of or reasonably prevented by the [Vendor]. The [Vendor] will give written notice of the cause and probable duration of any such delay. 29. Section B - RFP Scope of Services: 2.c.i - If the selected vendor is a "full-line" printer (able to produce most of the state requirements internally), does this requirement apply? Answer: Yes 30. Section B - RFP Scope of Services: 2 c ii - What % of the work requires the "union bug"? Answer: That information is not available but the State’s estimates that it is a minimal amount. 31. Section B - RFP Scope of Services: 2 c iii - How much of the annual predicted spend is run within the internal print shops? Answer: The estimated annual spend does not include work currently sent to the internal print shops. 32. Section B - RFP Scope of Services: 2 c iii - If the selected vendor is a "full-line" printer (able to produce most of the state requirements internally), does this requirement apply? Answer: Yes 33. Can you please estimate the percentage of purchases that will be paid for using a procurement card or other type of credit card? What has this level historically been and has it been increasing annually? Answer: That information is not available but the State’s estimates that it is a minimal amount. 34. On the envelope pricing matrix, item 14d is a #11 envelope printed on "color wove". This is inconsistent with the rest of the forms and we'd like to confirm that it is on a color wove. The #9 and #10 envelopes below it are named as colored envelopes but do not call for a color wove. Can you please confirm that you would like these items priced exactly as described in the pricing matrix? Answer: Yes. Please price the items exactly as they are described. 35. Will this new contract replace the present contracts for Envelopes (plain and printed) and the Printing Publications contracts? Answer: Yes 36. When this contract is in place and the vendor(s) chosen, will it be mandatory for all using agencies to abide from and buy printing under this contract? Answer: Only compulsory entities will be required to use the resulting contract(s) though all noncompulsory entities will be encouraged to use the contract(s) as well. 37. Several comments are made with respect to state agencies not being compelled to use the contracted vendor. Are there any agencies within the state that are compelled to use the contract vendor? Answer: Yes, state agencies not compelled to use the contract vendor are those within the Legislative and Judicial branches. However, they are currently using the DAS print contracts and are participating in the Buy Smart project. Go to www.ct.gov to view what departments are included in each branch. 38. What is the required response time for pricing of new products to be returned to the contract user? Answer: The pricing must be returned in no more than 5 business days. Samples 39. Since many items do not have complete specifications (pound of paper, color etc), will samples be available and if so, when can we receive? Answer: Samples of the DMV forms and some jobs in Appendix B are available for viewing in Room 110 of 165 Capitol Avenue each business day from February 24th to March 7th, 9 a.m. EST to 4 p.m. EST. Samples of the Comptroller forms will be available in the same location and time after February 25th. You will need your ID to enter the building. 40. Would it be possible to receive samples of the following printed items listed in Appendix B: #1,3,6,7,8,15,24,25,29,32,34 and 37? While it would be possible for us to provide re-engineering recommendations based on the specifications alone, the samples will allow us to provide a greater depth of analysis. See above. 41. Are samples available for the 42 commercial print jobs included in your RFP? See above. Outstanding Questions 42. Section VI.B.3.E – Please clarify the issue of the contract vendor maintaining a list of authorized personnel and their representative, who can place orders, make changes etc. Is there a process in place to notify the contract vendor of personnel changes etc? Also – is the state open to having this authorization process converted to an electronic approval process? Answer to be supplied in Batch 2. 43. VI.6.A – Supporting detail with invoice submission. “supporting detail”. Please clarify what the states means by Answer to be supplied in Batch 2. 44. VI.7.A – Inventory Items – It is stated in this section that the contract user is not allowed to return product that is shipped from the inventory. However, in section VI.7.C there is a process for returning/restocking inventory. Can you please clarify the states policy regarding inventory returns? Answer to be supplied in Batch 2. 45. If small or minority vendors are not selected, how will they receive business from this contract? Answer to be supplied in Batch 2. 46. Has a plan for determining how Small and Minority Vendors (who presently sell to the State) will be protected and given adequate work? You propose 25% of the printing budget will designated to Small and Minority Vendors. How will this be done? Who will "police" the contract to make sure Small and Minority vendors are given their fair share? To my knowledge, the present Forms Management Contract holder does not give much (if any) subcontracting of forms to Small and Minority Companies. With a larger amount of business going to one vendor, where is it stated this company must subcontract work through Small and Minority companies? Answer to be supplied in Batch 2. 47. Section B - RFP Scope of Services: 2 c ii - What % of the work will be required to be directed to SBEs/WBEs? Answer to be supplied in Batch 2. 48. As a certified, woman-owned enterprise (MBE), would all purchases made through us on the State's behalf, even if manufactured by a subcontractor, qualify as MBE purchases for the State? Answer to be supplied in Batch 2. 49. I hope the decision makers for this contract realize that the assigned vendor(s) will more than likely produce the printed materials purchased under this contract out of State. How do you plan to prevent out of state companies from winning the award and taking tax dollars with it? Answer to be supplied in Batch 2. 50. It is our understanding that the vendor awarded the forms management section of the contract is responsible for maintaining a 90-day supply of forms in its fulfillment center. The RFP requests prices for quantities of forms to be released from that inventory. However, annual consumption rates were not provided. The estimated cost to manufacture an item is determined in part by the quantity to be produced. It is difficult to estimate a price for a release quantity without sufficient information to determine the manufacturing costs. For example, one product may have a 90-day consumption rate that is considerably higher than that of a very similar product. Since the print-run quantities of the first item manufactured will be higher, unit costs will be lower. Therefore our cost per release would be lower for the first item. The data we have been provided by the State is not sufficiently detailed to enable us to differentiate between items of varying projected consumption. Are estimated consumption levels available for the products for which prices have been requested? If not, what assumptions should we use to complete this section? Answer to be supplied in Batch 2. This Addendum must be Signed & Returned with your Proposal. Authorized Signature of Proposer Company Name APPROVED_________________________________ LINDA LOSCHIAVO Contract Specialist (Original Signature on Document in Procurement Files) Date Issued: 23 February 2004 7 RFP ADDENDUM RFP-18 NEW 6/98 Linda LoSchiavo Buyer Name (860)713-5078 Buyer Phone Number STATE OF CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, Room 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 Proposal Due Date: 8 March 2004 By 2:00 pm RFP ADDENDUM #2 DESCRIPTION: Printing Services FOR: All Using State Agencies, Political Subdivisions and Not-for-Profit Organizations PROPOSERS NOTE: The RFP due date has been changed from March 2, 2004 to March 8, 2004. Please make note that the e-mail that was sent on February 18, 2004 was Addendum #1. Addendum #1 should have been written in the e-mail but was inadvertently left off. Please be sure to download the Addendum #1 from the website, if you haven’t already done so. All addendums must be signed and returned with your RFP response. The pricing grids have been updated again. Please either use the link in the e-mail for Addendum #2 or go to our website and download the revised pricing grids. There have been no changes to the pricing grids except that the newest revised pricing grids have unlocked all of the cells within the worksheet. In the previous revised pricing grids some of the cells in the worksheets were locked. For your information, the current contract pricing for the Forms Managements and the Envelopes can be obtained from our website. Below are the instructions on how to find these contracts. There is not a previous contract for the External Print Section of this RFP. Go to our website: www.das.state.ct.us/busopp.asp Scroll down to the heading CONTRACTS. The box that states "By Keyword", click the arrow to the right of the box for the drop down menu. Click on "By Contract Number". Click in the empty box to the right and type in the contract award number (Type in 0647 for Forms Managements and type in 0369 for Envelopes). Click GO Find the contract that you want and click on the contract number. Now, scroll to the bottom of the screen to "PDF: Review The Contract Document" to download and/or print the contract. As a reminder all questions regarding this RFP must be submitted in writing and must be received by DAS/Procurement Services no later than 2:00 pm on February 20, 2004. Questions received after the date and time specified will not be answered. Questions must be emailed or faxed to: Department of Administrative Services, Procurement Services, RFP #04PSX0010, Attn: Linda LoSchiavo, 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South Wing, Hartford, CT 06106. Fax number (860) 622-2923. E-mail: RFPPrinting@po.state.ct.us. Please include the vendor name in the subject of the message. 1 RFP #04PSX0010 Addendum #2 This Addendum must be Signed & Returned with your Proposal. Authorized Signature of Proposer Company Name APPROVED_________________________________ LINDA LOSCHIAVO Contract Specialist (Original Signature on Document in Procurement Files) Date Issued: 19 February 2004 2 RFP ADDENDUM RFP-18 NEW 6/98 Linda LoSchiavo Buyer Name (860)713-5078 Buyer Phone Number STATE OF CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, Room 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 Proposal Due Date: 2 March 2004 RFP ADDENDUM #1 DESCRIPTION: Printing Services FOR: All Using State Agencies, Political Subdivisions and Not-for-Profit Organizations PROPOSERS NOTE: The original pricing grid file has been revised with the following two changes listed below. 1. Widened columns for Envelopes to allow pricing to be viewable on screen. 2. Added tabs E1a, E1b, E1c, and E2, which contain DMV forms specs and monthly usage, as well as requests your proposed pricing for these forms. Please use the new link below for the revised pricing grids (File name: Printing_RFP_Pricing _Grids_REVISED.xls): Printing_RFP_Pricing_Grids_REVISED.xls The previous link for the pricing grids will be removed from the website and vendors should discard the original pricing grids that have previously been downloaded. If you have any problems downloading the files from the links that were sent through any e-mails, please go to our website and download the files there. Below are the instructions on how to get to the links on the website. Go to our website (www.das.state.ct.us/busopp.asp). Scroll “Bids/RFPs”. Click on “DAS State Central Procurement Bid/RFP’s Notices only”. Scroll down to Close Date of March 2, 2004, Bid Number 04PSX0010. Click on the blue “Synopsis” button in front of Printing Services. Scroll down till you see all of the links. Make sure that you have downloaded all files. Please make sure that you have downloaded four files plus the original RFP document (04PSX0010). As a reminder all questions regarding this RFP must be submitted in writing and must be received by DAS/Procurement Services no later than 2:00 pm on February 20, 2004. Questions received after the date and time specified will not be answered. Questions must be emailed or faxed to: Department of Administrative Services, Procurement Services, RFP #04PSX0010, Attn: Linda LoSchiavo, 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South Wing, Hartford, CT 06106. Fax number (860) 622-2923. E-mail: RFPPrinting@po.state.ct.us. Please include the vendor name in the subject of the message. 1 RFP #04PSX0010 Addendum #1 This Addendum must be Signed & Returned with your Proposal. Authorized Signature of Proposer Company Name APPROVED_________________________________ LINDA LOSCHIAVO Contract Specialist (Original Signature on Document in Procurement Files) Date Issued: 18 February 2004 2 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL RFP-11 Rev. 10/03 Linda LoSchiavo Contract Specialist (860)713-5078 Telephone Number DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 STATE OF CONNECTICUT NOTICE TO VENDORS: Logon to: http://www.das.state.ct.us/busopp.asp select the Bidder Notification System & complete the form to automatically receive a synopsis of new Bids & RFP’s via e-mail. www.das.state.ct.us/busopp.asp DAS CT State Web Site linda.loschiavo@po.state.ct.us Contract Specialist E-mail Address (860)622-2923 Fax Number Request for Proposal (RFP) SPECIFICATIONS & PROPOSAL DOCUMENTS ATTACHED 04PSX0010 2 March 2004 at 2:00 pm Eastern Time RFP Number: RFP Due Date & Time: DESCRIPTION: Printing Services Special Instructions NOTE: RFP’s are not opened in public on the due date. This contract replaces the following contract award(s) in part or in total: NONE Special Instructions: No SEALED RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 RFP DUE DATE/TIME: 2 March 2004 2:00 PM NOTE: Always use mailing label at left on all packages when returning the ORIGINAL & ONE COPY of your RFP response. RFP’s responses cannot be accepted after specified RFP Due Date/Time. Vendors will not be admitted to state buildings without a valid photo ID. Hand-delivered RFP’s must be brought to: DAS Customer Service Room 110 165 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, CT Return Proposal To: PROCUREMENT SERVICES DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES STATE OF CONNECTICUT 165 CAPITOL AVE 5th FLOOR SOUTH PO BOX 150414 HARTFORD CT 06115-0414 PROPOSER’S CHECKLIST RFP-20 NEW 6/98 STATE OF CONNECTICUT PROPOSER’S CHECKLIST RFP Number: 04PSX0010 READ CAREFULLY THIS FORM IS NOT TO BE RETURNED WITH YOUR PROPOSAL. HOWEVER, IT IS SUGGESTED THAT YOU REVIEW AND CHECK OFF EACH ACTION AS YOU COMPLETE IT. ____ 1. The Proposal (RFP-26) must be signed by a duly authorized representative of the company (unsigned proposals are automatically rejected) and the Proposal Schedule (RFP-16) must be included with your proposal. ____ 2. The proposal prices you have offered have been reviewed and verified. ____ 3. The price extensions and totals have been checked. (In case of discrepancy between unit prices and total prices, the unit price will govern the proposal evaluation). ____ 4. Any errors, alterations, corrections or erasures to unit prices, total prices, etc. must be initialed by the person who signs the proposal or his designee. Such changes made and not initialed mean automatic rejection of proposal. ____ 5. The payment terms are Net 45 Days. Net Terms for periods less than 45 days (Ex. Net 30) may result in proposal rejection. (You may offer cash discounts for prompt payment.) Exception: State of CT Small Business Set-Aside proposal payment terms shall be in accordance with CGS 32-9h. ____ 6. Any technical or descriptive literature, drawing or proposal samples that are required have been included with the proposal. ____ 7. The delivery information block has been completed. (Be specific: In most cases, “as ordered” or “as required” is not complete information.) ____ 8. If required, the amount of proposal surety has been checked and the surety has been included. ____ 9. Any addenda to the proposal have been signed and included. ____ 10. The pre-addressed mailing label has been used on your return mailing envelope or the envelope has been: a. marked with the Proposal Number and RFP Due Date & b. addressed to: State of Connecticut Department of Administrative Services Procurement Services 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 Hartford, CT 06115-0414 ____ 11. The proposal number on the pre-addressed mailing label or on your hand marked return envelope exactly matches the RFP number inside the envelope. ____ 12. Mail or hand-deliver your proposal in-time to be received no later than the designated RFP due date and time. Hand-delivered proposals must be delivered to the DAS Customer Service Desk, Room 110, 165 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, CT. Late proposals are not accepted under any circumstances. Allow ample time if mailing in your proposal. ____ 14. Form DAS-45 Employment Information Form must be completed entirely regardless of the number of employees, even if the company is family owned and/or operated and must be submitted with each proposal or proposal may be rejected. ____ 15. MAKE SURE TO INCLUDE THE ORIGINAL PROPOSAL SCHEDULE PAGES (RFP-16) ALONG WITH ONE COPY (UNLESS MORE COPIES ARE REQUESTED WITHIN THE PROPOSAL SPECIFICATIONS). ____ 16. VENDORS NAME MUST APPEAR IN THE UPPER RIGHT CORNER OF ALL PROPOSAL SCHEDULE PAGES (RFP-16). PROPOSAL RFP-26 Rev. 04/03 (Prev. Rev. 11/02) Linda LoSchiavo Contract Specialist (860)713-5078 Telephone Number DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES STATE OF CONNECTICUT RFP NO: 04PSX0010 DESCRIPTION: Printing Services FOR: PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South PO BOX 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 Page 1 of 3 RFP DUE DATE: RFP DUE TIME: RFP SURETY: 2 March 2004 2:00 PM Eastern Time $0.00 THIS FORM AND REQUIRED PROPOSAL SCHEDULE FORMS MUST BE RETURNED Read & Complete Carefully DATE ISSUED: 10 February 2004 TERM OF CONTRACT / DELIVERY DATE REQ’D: All Using State Agencies, Political Subdivisions and Not-for-Profit Organizations June 1, 2004 through May 31, 2007 Agency Requisition Number(s): 00014030 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL: Pursuant to the provisions of Section 4a-57 of the General Statutes of Connecticut as amended, sealed proposals will be received by Procurement Services for the State of Connecticut, at the address above for furnishing the commodities and/or services herein listed to state agencies. NOTE: Proposer means Individual/Sole Proprietor, Partnership or Corporation name. IMPORTANT: ALL pages of this form, Sections 1 through 4 must be completed, signed and returned by proposer as part of the proposal package. Failure to submit both pages constitutes grounds for rejection of your proposal. Section 1 of 4 - PROPOSER INFORMATION COMPLETE PROPOSER LEGAL BUSINESS NAME Taxpayer ID # (TIN): SSN FEIN WRITE/TYPE SSN/FEIN NUMBER ABOVE BUSINESS NAME , TRADE NAME, DOING BUSINESS AS (IF DIFFERENT FROM ABOVE) LLC CORPORATION LLC PARTNERSHIP LLC SINGLE MEMBER ENTITY PARTNERSHIP INDIVIDUAL/SOLE PROPRIETORSHIP NOTE: IF INDIVIDUAL/SOLE PROPRIETOR, INDIVIDUAL’S NAME (AS OWNER) MUST APPEAR IN THE LEGAL BUSINESS NAME BLOCK ABOVE. BUSINESS TYPE: A. SALE OF COMMODITIES B. MEDICAL SERVICES C. ATTORNEY FEES D. RENTAL OF PROPERTY (REAL ESTATE & EQUIPMENT) BUSINESS ENTITY: CORPORATION NON-PROFIT E. OTHER (DESCRIBE IN DETAIL) UNDER THIS TIN, WHAT IS THE PRIMARY TYPE OF BUSINESS YOU PROVIDE TO THE STATE? (ENTER LETTER FROM ABOVE) UNDER THIS TIN, WHAT OTHER TYPES OF BUSINESS MIGHT YOU PROVIDE TO THE STATE? (ENTER LETTER FROM ABOVE) NOTE: IF YOUR BUSINESS IS A PARTNERSHIP, YOU MUST ATTACH THE NAMES AND TITLES OF ALL PARTNERS TO YOUR BID SUBMISSION. NOTE: IF YOUR BUSINESS IS A CORPORATION, IN WHICH STATE ARE YOU INCORPORATED? WRITTEN SIGNATURE OF PERSON AUTHORIZED TO SIGN PROPOSALS ON BEHALF OF THE ABOVE NAMED PROPOSER DATE EXECUTED SIGN HERE TYPE OR PRINT NAME OF AUTHORIZED PERSON IS YOUR BUSINESS CURRENTLY A DAS CERTIFIED SMALL BUSINESS ENTERPRISE? IF YOU ARE A STATE EMPLOYEE, INDICATE YOUR POSITION, AGENCY & AGENCY ADDRESS. TITLE OF AUTHORIZED PERSON YES (ATTACH COPY OF CERTIFICATE) NO PROPOSAL RFP-26 Rev. 04/03 (Prev. Rev. 11/02) Linda LoSchiavo Contract Specialist (860)713-5078 Telephone Number DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South PO BOX 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 Page 2 of 3 Section 1 of 4 - PROPOSER INFORMATION (CONTINUED) CITY Add Additional Business Address & Contact information on back of this form. STATE OF CONNECTICUT THIS FORM AND REQUIRED PROPOSAL SCHEDULE FORMS MUST BE RETURNED Read & Complete Carefully STATE ZIP CODE PROPOSER ADDRESS STREET PROPOSER E-MAIL ADDRESS PROPOSER WEB SITE SAME AS PROPOSER ADDRESS ABOVE. STATE ZIP CODE REMITTANCE INFORMATION: INDICATE BELOW THE REMITTANCE ADDRESS OF YOUR BUSINESS. REMIT ADDRESS STREET CITY CONTACT INFORMATION: NAME 1ST BUSINESS PHONE: 2 BUSINESS PHONE: CELLULAR: 1ST FAX NUMBER: ND ND (TYPE OR PRINT) Ext. # Ext. # HOME PHONE: 1ST PAGER: 2ND PAGER: TOLL FREE PHONE: DATE EXECUTED TELEX: 2 FAX NUMBER: WRITTEN SIGNATURE OF PERSON AUTHORIZED TO SIGN BIDS ON BEHALF OF THE ABOVE NAMED PROPOSER SIGN HERE TYPE OR PRINT NAME OF AUTHORIZED PERSON IS YOUR BUSINESS CURRENTLY A DAS CERTIFIED SMALL BUSINESS ENTERPRISE? IF YOU ARE A STATE EMPLOYEE, INDICATE YOUR POSITION, AGENCY & AGENCY ADDRESS. TITLE OF AUTHORIZED PERSON YES (ATTACH COPY OF CERTIFICATE) NO FOR PURCHASE ORDER DISTRIBUTION: 1) CHECK ONLY ONE BOX BELOW 2) INPUT E-MAIL ADDRESS OR FAX # (IF CHECKED) E-MAIL FAX USPS MAIL EDI If EDI was selected, give us a person to contact in your company to set up EDI: NAME: E-MAIL ADDRESS: TELEPHONE NUMBER: FOR REQUEST FOR QUOTATION (RFQ) DISTRIBUTION: 1) CHECK ONLY ONE BOX BELOW 2) INPUT E-MAIL ADDRESS OR FAX # (IF CHECKED) E-MAIL FAX USPS MAIL ADD FURTHER BUSINESS ADDRESS, E-MAIL & CONTACT INFORMATION BELOW IF REQUIRED PROPOSAL RFP-26 Rev. 04/03 (Prev. Rev. 11/02) Linda LoSchiavo Contract Specialist (860)713-5078 Telephone Number DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South PO BOX 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 Page 3 of 3 Section 2 of 4 - IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR PROPOSERS STATE OF CONNECTICUT THIS FORM AND REQUIRED PROPOSAL SCHEDULE FORMS MUST BE RETURNED Read & Complete Carefully AFFIRMATION OF PROPOSER: The abovesigned proposer affirms and declares: 1. That this proposal is executed and signed by said proposer with full knowledge and acceptance of the provisions of Form RFP-19 of current issue and in effect on the date of proposal issue. Form RFP-19, entitled Standard Proposal and Contract Terms and Conditions are made a part of the contract. That this proposal is executed and signed by said bidder with full knowledge and acceptance of the provisions of all Special Proposal and Contract Terms and Conditions attached hereto. That should any part of this proposal be accepted in writing by Procurement Manager within ninety (90) calendar days from the proposal due date unless an earlier date for acceptance is specified by proposer in proposal schedule, said proposer will furnish and deliver the commodities and/or services for which this proposal is made, in the quantities and at the prices proposed, and in compliance with the provisions of the STANDARD PROPOSAL AND CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS, COMMODITY SPECIFICATION, PROPOSAL SCHEDULE AND SPECIAL PROPOSAL AND CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS. Should award of any part of this proposal be delayed beyond the period of ninety (90) days or an earlier date specified by proposer in proposal schedule, such award shall be conditioned upon proposer’s acceptance. Acceptance of the conditions set forth herein, agreement in strict accordance therewith, and will furnish and deliver the commodities and/or services to the state agency or agencies named in the PROPOSAL SCHEDULE at the prices proposed therein. Should Procurement Services determine that proposer has not completed Section 1 - Proposer Debarment and/or Suspension included as part of this document, then such determination may be just cause for disqualification from the evaluation of this proposal. 2. 3. 4. 5. Section 3 of 4 - PROPOSER DEBARMENT AND/OR SUSPENSION The abovesigned proposer further affirms and declares that neither the proposer and/or any company official nor any subcontractor to the proposer and/or any company official has received any notices of debarment and/or suspension from contracting with the State of Connecticut or the Federal Government. YES NO The abovesigned proposer further affirms and declares that neither the proposer and/or any company official nor any subcontractor to the proposer and/or any company official has received any notices of debarment and/or suspension from contracting with other states within the United States. YES NO If the abovesigned proposer and/or any company official or any subcontractor to the proposer and/or any company official has received notices of debarment and/or suspension from contracting with the State of Connecticut, other states within the United States or Federal Government, said notices must be attached to this document when submitting this proposal. Number of notices attached Section 4 of 4 – OTHER NOTICES Notice regarding Package Handling at 165 Capitol Avenue As part of new security processes, all mail, packages and parcels, including RFP’s, delivered to the State Office Building at 165 Capitol Avenue will be opened and examined by trained mail handling staff. RFP’s will then be resealed and forwarded to Procurement Services. This procedure also applies to hand- carried packages. Proposers, note that additional time will be required to carry out these procedures. Allow extra time for processing of mail or personally delivered bids to Procurement Services. Remember, RFPs cannot be accepted after the RFP Due Date & Time specified on the RFP. NOTE: ALWAYS USE MAILING LABEL INCLUDED WITH EACH RFP ON ALL PACKAGES WHEN RETURNING THE ORIGINAL & ONE COPY OF YOUR RFP RESPONSE. SIGNATURE OF AUTHORIZED PERSON IN SECTION 2 CONSTITUTES AGREEMENT WITH ALL PROCEDURES INDICATED ABOVE. STANDARD RFP TERMS AND CONDITIONS RFP-19 Rev. 11/02 Prev. Rev. 04/02 Linda LoSchiavo Buyer Name (860)713-5078 Buyer Phone Number DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 STATE OF CONNECTICUT RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 Standard Request for Proposal (RFP) and Contract Terms and Conditions - Page 1 of 3 All Requests for Proposal issued by the Department of Administrative Services, Procurement Services will bind Proposers to the terms and conditions listed below, unless specified otherwise in any individual Request for Proposal. Incorporated by reference into this contract are applicable provisions of the Connecticut General Statutes including but not limited to Sections 4a-50 through 4a-80 and applicable provisions of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies including but not limited to Sections 4a-521 through 4a-52-22. The contractor agrees to comply with the regulations referred to in this section as they exist on the date of this proposal and as they may be adopted or amended from time to time during the term of this contract and any amendments thereto. Submission of Proposals 1. Proposals must be submitted on forms supplied by Procurement Services. Telephone or facsimile proposals will not be accepted in response to a Request for Proposal. 2. The time and date proposals are due is given in each RFP issued. Proposals received after the specified due date and time of RFP given in each RFP shall not be considered. RFP envelopes must clearly indicate the RFP number as well as the date and time that the RFP is due. The name and address of the Proposer should appear in the upper left hand corner of the envelope. 3. Incomplete RFP forms may result in the rejection of the proposal. Amendments to proposals received by Procurement Services after the due date and time specified, shall not be considered. An original and one copy of the proposal schedule shall be returned to Procurement Services. Proposals shall be computer prepared, typewritten or handwritten in ink. Proposals submitted in pencil shall be rejected. All proposals shall be signed by a person duly authorized to sign proposals on behalf of the proposer. Unsigned proposals shall be rejected. Errors, alterations or corrections on both the original and copy of the proposal schedule to be returned must be initialed by the person signing the proposal or their authorized designee. In the event an authorized designee initials the correction, there must be written authorization from the person signing the proposal to the person initialing the erasure, alterations, or correction. Failure to do so shall result in rejection of the proposal for those items erased, altered or corrected and not initialed. 4. Conditional proposals are subject to rejection in whole or in part. A conditional proposal is defined as one which limits, modifies, expands or supplements any of the terms and conditions and/or specifications of the Request for Proposal. 5. Alternate proposals will not be considered. An alternate proposal is defined as one which is submitted in addition to the proposers primary response to the Request for Proposal. 6. Prices should be extended in decimal, not fraction, to be net, and shall include transportation and delivery charges fully prepaid by the Contractor to the destination specified in the proposal, and subject only to cash discount. 7. Pursuant to Section 12-412 of the Connecticut General Statutes, the State of Connecticut is exempt from the payment of excise, transportation and sales taxes imposed by the Federal Government and/or the State. Such taxes must not be included in proposal prices. 8. In the event of a discrepancy between the unit price and the extension, the unit price shall govern. 9. By its submission the proposer represents that the proposal is not made in connection with any other proposer submitting a proposal for the same commodity or commodities and is in all respects fair and without collusion or fraud. 10. All proposals are subject to public inspection upon award. Guaranty or Surety 11. Proposal and or performance bonds may be required. Bonds must meet the following requirements: Corporation must be signed by an official of the corporation above their official title and the corporate seal must be affixed over the signature; Firm or Partnership - must be signed by all the partners and indicate they are “doing business as”; Individual must be signed by the owner and indicated as “Owner”. The surety company executing the bond or countersigning must be licensed in Connecticut and the bond must be signed by an official of the surety company with the corporate seal affixed over their signature. Signatures of two witnesses for both the principal and the surety must appear on the bond. Power of attorney for the official signing the bond for the surety company must be submitted with the bond. Samples 12. Accepted proposal samples do not supersede specifications for quality unless sample is superior in quality. All deliveries shall have at least the same quality as the accepted proposal sample. 13. Samples are furnished free of charge. Proposer must indicate if their return is desired, provided they have not been made useless by test. Samples may be held for comparison with deliveries. Award 14. Award will be based on quality of the articles or services to be supplied, their conformance with specifications, delivery terms, price, administrative costs, past performance, and financial responsibility. 15. Procurement Services may reject any proposer in default of any prior contract or guilty of misrepresentation or any proposer with a member of its firm in default or guilty of misrepresentation. 16. Procurement Services may correct inaccurate awards resulting from clerical or administrative errors. STANDARD RFP TERMS AND CONDITIONS RFP-19 Rev. 11/02 Prev. Rev. 04/02 Linda LoSchiavo Buyer Name (860)713-5078 Buyer Phone Number DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 STATE OF CONNECTICUT RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 Standard Request for Proposal (RFP) and Contract Terms and Conditions - Page 2 of 3 Contract 17. The existence of the contract shall be determined in accordance with the requirements set forth above. However, the award of the contract is not an order to ship. 18. The Contractor shall not assign or otherwise dispose of their contract or their right, title or interest, or their power to execute such contract to any other person, firm or corporation without the prior written consent of Procurement Services. 19. Proposers have ten days after notice of award to refuse acceptance of the award; after ten days the award will be binding on the Contractor. If the Contractor refuses to accept the award within the ten day period, the award will be made to the next lowest responsible qualified proposer. 20. Failure of a Contractor to deliver commodities or perform services as specified will constitute authority for Procurement Services to purchase these commodities or services on the open market. The Contractor agrees to promptly reimburse the State for excess cost of these purchases. The purchases will be deducted from the contracted quantities. 21. Rejected commodities must be removed by the Contractor from State premises within 48 hours. Immediate removal may be required when safety or health issues are present. 22. Contractor agrees to: hold the State harmless from liability of any kind for the use of any copyright or uncopyrighted composition, secret process, patented or unpatented invention furnished or used in the performance of the contract; guarantee their products against defective material or workmanship; repair damages of any kind, for which they are responsible to the premises or equipment, to their own work or to the work of other contractors; obtain and pay for all licenses, permits, fees etc. and to give all notices and comply with all requirements of city or town in which the service is to be provided and to the State of Connecticut; to carry proper insurance to protect the State from loss. 23. Notwithstanding any provision or language in this contract to the contrary, the Commissioner may terminate this contract whenever he/she determines in his/her sole discretion that such termination is in the best interests of the State. Any such termination shall be effected by delivery to the Contractor of a written notice of termination. The notice of termination shall be sent by registered mail to the Contractor address furnished to the State for purposes of correspondence or by hand delivery. Upon receipt of such notice, the Contractor shall both immediately discontinue all services affected (unless the notice directs otherwise) and deliver to the State all data, drawings, specifications, reports, estimates, summaries, and such other information and materials as may have been accumulated by the Contractor in performing his duties under this contract, whether completed or in progress. All such documents, information, and materials shall become the property of the State. In the event of such termination, the Contractor shall be entitled to reasonable compensation as determined by the Commissioner of the Department of Administrative Services, however, no compensation for lost profits shall be allowed. Delivery 24. All products and equipment delivered must be new unless otherwise stated in the proposal specifications. 25. Delivery will be onto the specified State loading docks by the Contractor unless otherwise stated in the proposal specifications. 26. Deliveries are subject to re-weighing on State sealed scales. 27. Payment terms are net 45 days after receipt of goods or invoice, whichever is later, unless otherwise specified. 28. Charges against a Contractor shall be deducted from current obligations. Money paid to the State by the Contractor shall be payable to the Treasurer, State of Connecticut. Saving Clause 29. The Contractor shall not be liable for losses or delays in the fulfillment of the terms of the contract due to wars, acts of public enemies, strikes, fires, floods, acts of God or any other acts not within the control of or reasonably prevented by the Contractor. The Contractor will give written notice of the cause and probable duration of any such delay. Advertising 30. Contractors may not reference sales to the State for advertising and promotional purposes without the prior approval of Procurement Services. Rights 31. The State has sole and exclusive right and title to all printed material produced for the State and the contractor shall not copyright the printed matter produced under the contract. 32. The Contractor assigns to the State all rights title and interests in and to all causes of action it may have under Section 4 of the Clayton Act, 15 USC 15, or under Chapter 624 of the general statutes. This assignment occurs when the Contractor is awarded the contract. 33. Contractor agrees that it is in compliance with all applicable federal, state and local laws and regulations, including but not limited to Connecticut General Statutes Sections 4a-60 and 4a-60a. The Contractor also agrees that it will hold the State harmless and indemnify the State from any action which may arise out of any act by the contractor concerning lack of compliance with these laws and regulations. All purchases will be in compliance with Section 22a-194 to Section 22a-194g of the Connecticut General Statutes related to product packaging. 34. This contract is subject to the provisions of Executive Order No. Three of Governor Thomas J. Meskill promulgated June 16, 1971, the provisions of Executive Order No. Seventeen of Governor Thomas J. Meskill promulgated February 15, 1973 and section 16 of P.A. 91-58 nondiscrimination regarding sexual orientation, and the provisions of Executive Order No. Sixteen of Governor John G. Rowland promulgated August 4, 1999 regarding Violence in the Workplace Prevention Policy. STANDARD RFP TERMS AND CONDITIONS RFP-19 Rev. 11/02 Prev. Rev. 04/02 Linda LoSchiavo Buyer Name (860)713-5078 Buyer Phone Number DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 STATE OF CONNECTICUT RFP NO.: 04PSX0010 Standard Request for Proposal (RFP) and Contract Terms and Conditions - Page 3 of 3 Records, Files, and Information 35. Incorporated by reference into this contract and Pursuant to Public Act No. 01-169, each contract in excess of two million five hundred thousand dollars between a public agency and a person for the performance of a governmental function shall (1) provide that the public agency is entitled to receive a copy of records and files related to the performance of the governmental function, and (2) indicate that such records and files are subject to the Freedom of Information Act and may be disclosed by the public agency pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act. 36. Incorporated by reference into this contract is Section 461dd(g)(1) and 4-61dd(3) and (f) of the Connecticut General Statutes which prohibits contractors from taking adverse action against employees who disclosed information to the Auditors of Public Accounts or the Attorney General. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) 37. Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996, Bidders are expected to adhere to the same standards as the state agency/covered entity as to Protected Health Information (PHI), to maintain compliance with Title 45 CFR Part 164.504, Uses and Disclosures: Organizational Requirements, Bidder Contracts. Protected Health Information (PHI) includes information related to claims, health services, federal and state tax information, financials, criminal/court related information and other personally identifiable records. Bidder agrees that it shall be prohibited from using or disclosing the PHI provided or made available by the state agency/covered entity or viewed while on the premises for any purpose other than as expressly permitted or required by this Contract. These uses and disclosures must be within the scope of the Bidder’s services provided to the state agency/covered entity. Bidders shall establish and maintain reasonable safeguards to prevent any use or disclosure of the PHI, other than as specified in this Contract or required by law. Bidder agrees that anytime PHI is provided or made available to any subcontractors or agents, Bidder must enter into a subcontract, which contains the same terms, conditions and restrictions on the use and disclosure of PHI as contained in this Contract. Bidder agrees to make available and provide a right of access to PHI by the individual for whom the information was created and disclosed. Bidder agrees to make information available as required to provide an accounting of disclosures. Bidder agrees to make its internal practices, books, and records relating to the use or disclosure of PHI received from, or created or received by Bidder on behalf of the state agency/covered entity, available to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) for purposes of determining compliance with the HHS Privacy Regulations. At termination of this Contract, Bidder agrees to return or destroy all PHI received from, or created by the state agency/covered entity. If not feasible, extend the protections of this agreement to the PHI and limit further uses and disclosures. Bidder will have procedures in place for mitigating any harmful effects from the use or disclosure of PHI in a manner contrary to this Contract or the HHS Privacy Regulations. Bidder must develop and implement a system of sanctions for any employee, subcontractor or agent who violates this Contract or the HHS Privacy Regulations. The PHI shall be and remain the resources of the state agency/covered entity. Bidder agrees that it acquires no title or rights to the information, including any de-identified information, as a result of this Contract. Bidder agrees that the state agency/covered entity has the right to immediately terminate this Contract if the state agency/covered entity determines that Bidder has violated a material term of this HIPAA Compliance Agreement above. EMPLOYMENT INFORMATION FORM (DAS-45) REV 2/98 STATE OF CONNECTICUT COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS AND OPPORTUNITIES (CHRO) WORKPLACE ANALYSIS AFFIRMATIVE ACTION REPORT EMPLOYMENT INFORMATION FORM Contact Person RFP Number: 04PSX0010 Company Name Street Address City State Phone Number Date Report all permanent full-time or part-time employees, including apprentice and on-the-job trainees. Enter the number on all lines and in all columns. B JOB CATEGORY A C D E F WHITE OVERALL TOTALS ASIAN / PACIFIC BLACK HISPANIC AMERICAN INDIAN OR (Sum of all columns, (NOT OF HISPANIC (NOT OF HISPANIC ISLANDER ALASKAN NATIVE A-F ORIGIN) ORIGIN) Male & Female Male Officials/Managers Professionals Technicians Sales Workers Office/Clerical Craft Workers (Skilled) Operatives(Semi-skilled) Laborers (Unskilled) Service Workers TOTALS ABOVE Do you use minority businesses as subcontractors or suppliers? Yes No Do you use an Affirmative Action Plan? Yes No Explain: Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Explain: Describe your recruitment, hiring, training and promotion anti-discrimination practices. VENDOR AFFIDAVIT RFP-8 New 1/04 Linda LoSchiavo Contract Specialist (860)713-5078 Telephone Number STATE OF CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 BID NO.: 04PSX0010 Affidavit for Contractor or Lessor - Integrity in State Contracting Policy Office of the Attorney General Page 1 of 2 I, __________________________________, hereby swear that, during the ten years preceding the date of this affidavit, neither I nor an official, employee or agent of myself or ________________________________________ (legal name of entity) have provided or caused to be provided gifts, as defined in Conn. Gen. Stat. §1-79(e), except as otherwise set forth below, including a gift for the celebration of a major life event as described in Conn. Gen. Stat. §1-79(e)(12), to a state official or employee of the contracting or leasing agency or a state official or employee of a state agency or department which has supervisory or appointing authority over the contracting or leasing agency. The contracting agency has provided me with the names of the following agencies or departments that have supervisory or appointing authority over such department: . Name of recipient of the gift 1. 2. 3. 4. Sworn as true to the best of my knowledge and belief, false statement punishable under law: _________________________________ Print name: Sworn and subscribed before me on this day of , 2004, ____________________________ Commissioner of the Superior Court/ Description of gift and value Date of gift ________________________ Date Notary Public VENDOR AFFIDAVIT RFP-8 New 1/04 Linda LoSchiavo Contract Specialist (860)713-5078 Telephone Number STATE OF CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES PROCUREMENT SERVICES 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South PO Box 150414 HARTFORD, CT 06115-0414 BID NO.: 04PSX0010 Affidavit for Contractor or Lessor - Integrity in State Contracting Policy Office of the Attorney General Page 2 of 2 “GIFT” IS DEFINED UNDER Conn. Gen. Stat. §1-79(e), excluding subdivision (12) as follows: (e) "Gift" means anything of value, which is directly and personally received, unless consideration of equal or greater value is given in return. "Gift" shall not include: (1) A political contribution otherwise reported as required by law or a donation or payment as described in subdivision (9) or (10) of subsection (b) of section 9-333b; (2) Services provided by persons volunteering their time; (3) A commercially reasonable loan made on terms not more favorable than loans made in the ordinary course of business; (4) A gift received from (A) an individual's spouse, fiance or fiancee, (B) the parent, brother or sister of such spouse or such individual, or (C) the child of such individual or the spouse of such child; (5) Goods or services (A) which are provided to the state (i) for use on state property, or (ii) to support an event or the participation by a public official or state employee at an event, and (B) which facilitate state action or functions. As used in this subdivision, "state property" means (i) property owned by the state, or (ii) property leased to an agency in the Executive or Judicial Department of the state; (6) A certificate, plaque or other ceremonial award costing less than one hundred dollars; (7) A rebate, discount or promotional item available to the general public; (8) Printed or recorded informational material germane to state action or functions; (9) Food or beverage or both, costing less than fifty dollars in the aggregate per recipient in a calendar year, and consumed on an occasion or occasions at which the person paying, directly or indirectly, for the food or beverage, or his representative, is in attendance; (10) Food or beverage or both, costing less than fifty dollars per person and consumed at a publicly noticed legislative reception to which all members of the General Assembly are invited and which is hosted not more than once in any calendar year by a lobbyist or business organization. For the purposes of such limit, (A) a reception hosted by a lobbyist who is an individual shall be deemed to have also been hosted by the business organization which he owns or is employed by and (B) a reception hosted by a business organization shall be deemed to have also been hosted by all owners and employees of the business organization who are lobbyists. In making the calculation for the purposes of such fifty-dollar limit, the donor shall divide the amount spent on food and beverage by the number of persons whom the donor reasonably expects to attend the reception; (11) Food or beverage or both, costing less than fifty dollars per person and consumed at a publicly noticed reception to which all members of the General Assembly from a region of the state are invited and which is hosted not more than once in any calendar year by a lobbyist or business organization. For the purposes of such limit, (A) a reception hosted by a lobbyist who is an individual shall be deemed to have also been hosted by the business organization which he owns or is employed by, and (B) a reception hosted by a business organization shall be deemed to have also been hosted by all owners and employees of the business organization who are lobbyists. In making the calculation for the purposes of such fifty-dollar limit, the donor shall divide the amount spent on food and beverage by the number of persons whom the donor reasonably expects to attend the reception. As used in this subdivision, "region of the state" means the established geographic service area of the organization hosting the reception; (12) A gift, including but not limited to, food or beverage or both, provided by an individual for the celebration of a major life event; (13) Gifts costing less than one hundred dollars in the aggregate or food or beverage provided at a hospitality suite at a meeting or conference of an interstate legislative association, by a person who is not a registrant or is not doing business with the state of Connecticut; (14) Admission to a charitable or civic event, including food and beverage provided at such event, but excluding lodging or travel expenses, at which a public official or state employee participates in his official capacity, provided such admission is provided by the primary sponsoring entity; (15) Anything of value provided by an employer of (A) a public official, (B) a state employee, or (C) a spouse of a public official or state employee, to such official, employee or spouse, provided such benefits are customarily and ordinarily provided to others in similar circumstances; (16) Anything having a value of not more than ten dollars, provided the aggregate value of all things provided by a donor to a recipient under this subdivision in any calendar year shall not exceed fifty dollars. State of Connecticut Request for Proposal Printing Services Barbara A. Waters, Commissioner Department of Administrative Services February 10, 2004 Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 1 State of Connecticut Department of Administrative Services The State of Connecticut is seeking to improve its cost effectiveness as well as administrative efficiencies in the procurement of printing services. This is an Announcement of a Request for Proposal (“RFP”) to provide Printing Services for the Department of Administrative Services (“DAS”) and all State Agencies. The State’s political sub-divisions and not-for-profit organizations are also authorized to buy off of any resulting contract. DAS invites you to be part of this effort. Printing Services include all activities related to the execution and delivery of printed materials, including but not limited to general commercial print, publications, envelopes, stationery, business cards, and forms management. Excluded from the scope of this RFP are the print currently produced by the State’s internal print shops, maps, Braille/large print transcriptions, and photocopying services. Mailing services related to a print job is optional. Date: February 10, 2004 RFP # 04PSX0010 Barbara A. Waters, Commissioner Department of Administrative Services Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS NOTICE OF INTENT TO RESPOND __________________________________________4 I. INTRODUCTION ________________________________________________________5 II. RFP ABBREVIATIONS/DEFINITIONS ______________________________________6 III. CONTRACT TERM AND EXTENSION ______________________________________6 IV. CONTRACT PRICES ___________________________________________________6 V. SCOPE OF SERVICES __________________________________________________7 VI. TOTAL FORMS MANAGEMENT - SPECIFIC TERMS AND CONDITIONS ________13 VII. ENVELOPES REQUIREMENTS _________________________________________22 VIII. QUALITY REQUIREMENTS____________________________________________22 IX. CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS __________________________________24 X. RFP TERMS AND CONDITIONS _________________________________________31 XI. RFP PROCESS AND TIMING ___________________________________________36 XII. INSTRUCTIONS TO VENDORS _________________________________________37 XIII. EVALUATION CRITERIA ______________________________________________40 APPENDICES AND ATTACHMENTS ________________________________________41 Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 3 Notice of Intent to Respond State of Connecticut Printing Services The Vendor should return this form via fax no later than 2 p.m. EST on Friday, February 20th to Linda LoSchiavo at (860) 622-2923. “We plan to respond to RFP #04PSX0010 with a proposal.” Vendor: Contact Name: Contact Title: Address: ___________________ ____________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ Contact Telephone: Contact Email: Contact Fax: ___________________ ___________________ ___________________ Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 4 Request for Proposal Printing Services I. Introduction The State of Connecticut (“the State”) spends roughly $2.6 billion on purchased goods and services. In an effort to achieve cost savings in today’s adverse economic environment, the State recently initiated a spend management initiative named Buy Smart…Buy Together. The goals of the initiative are as follows: Leverage the considerable purchasing volume across the various State agencies, political subdivisions, and not-for-profit organizations to secure the most competitive pricing structure available Consolidate the State’s vendor base to offer vendors access to larger volumes of business and longer-term contracts, thereby resulting in competitive pricing based on the economies of scale involved Maintain or exceed current service and quality levels Facilitate and increase the use of state contracts by improving their value and benefits Ensure that State-based vendors as well as small and minority-owned businesses have adequate opportunity to participate in this process Based on a review of the current contracts, aggregate spend, and vendor base, the State has decided to include Printing Services as one of the expense categories in the Buy Smart…Buy Together initiative. Currently, the State’s agencies expect to spend approximately $9.2 million annually with over 168 vendors on Printing Services. The State intends to consolidate to one vendor for all externally printed materials to the extent possible. However, DAS reserves the right to award all or part of this award, to multiple vendors based on the best interests of the State. The purpose of this RFP is to solicit sealed proposals to establish a competitive contract with one vendor or a limited set of vendors for the management and execution of the State's outsourced printing needs. While there is no guarantee that the State will continue to require the same volume of Printing Services in the future, the expectation is that in the near future the purchase volumes will remain constant. Furthermore, there is a potential substantial additional spend from non-compulsory entities, which include institutions of higher education, political sub-divisions, and not-for-profit organizations, that are not required to use the State contracts. It is the State’s goal to encourage these entities to use the competitive contract(s) resulting from this RFP, although their participation is not mandatory. Further details on the scope of work and factors affecting the annual spend will be provided in later sections of the RFP. This solicitation is for procurement through an RFP ("competitive negotiation"), not through Invitation to Bid (ITB) ("competitive bidding"), in accordance with DAS competitive negotiation statutes and regulations. Please visit the following link to review the distinction between these two processes: http://www.cga.state.ct.us/2001/pub/Chap058.htm#sec4a-50.htm. We would like to invite your company to respond with a proposal that would encourage the State’s agencies and other entities authorized to use the resulting contract(s), collectively referred to as the “Contract Users”, to transfer to you their Printing Services purchasing volume in areas that you are qualified to supply. We strongly encourage vendors to view the State’s spend in total, and offer pricing that allows the State to benefit from the consolidation of volume. The pricing, quality, and service levels obtained through this process are expected to be more aggressive than any individual agency may currently have with your company. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 5 The proposals will be used as the basis for short list selection, negotiations and final vendor selection. To maximize your chances of success in this process and to have the opportunity to provide services for a substantial portion of the State’s business, we encourage you to provide an aggressive response to this RFP. With the future award, current contracts may be cancelled if it serves the best interest of the Contract Users and the State. II. RFP Abbreviations/Definitions Whenever the following terms are used throughout this document, the below definitions should be used for interpretation. Contract Users: All State Agencies, political sub-divisions, and not-for-profit organizations authorized to use the State’s contracts and contract pricing The Vendor: Any individual, company, or corporation formally submitting a proposal for the material or work contemplated, acting directly or through a duly authorized representative Proposal: The offer of the Vendor submitted on the approved form and setting forth the Vendor's prices for performing the work or supplying the material described in the specifications Contract: The written agreement covering the furnishing and delivery of material or work to be performed FOIA: Freedom of Information Act III. Contract Term and Extension The State intends that this contract shall be in effect for three years from the contract award date, though a period of up to five years may be selected prior to contract award. By mutual agreement of the Vendor and the State, this contract may be extended for a period up to the full original contract term or parts thereof under the same terms and conditions in the form of a contract supplement. Said option may be exercised only upon satisfactory performance and by mutual consent from both parties. Agreement on these optional years must be in writing from the Vendor and DAS. IV. Contract Prices Contract prices shall remain firm for the length of the contract term, unless otherwise specified by DAS. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 6 V. Scope of Services A. CURRENT SITUATION 1. Expected Annual Spend a. Currently the State expects to spend roughly $9.2 million annually in externally produced print materials. A review of the Fiscal-Year 2003 data shows that the State used approximately 168 printers. b. Due to the lack of consolidated reporting, the exact breakout of spend across product types is unknown. However, a survey of a sample set of invoices, quotes, and contracts received from key Contract Users shows the following breakdown. The State is providing this information for your reference only and does not guarantee this is an accurate representation of future spend. Product Publications (books, magazines, catalogs, and annual reports) Forms Forms Management Other Forms Envelopes #10 (various specs) #9 (various specs) All Other Commercial Print (Booklets, Tax Booklets, Brochures/Flyers, Newsletters, Postcards, Business Cards, Stationery) Miscellaneous (Posters, Folders, Other) c. % of FY 2003 Annual Spend 7% 18% 11% 6% 2% 4% 47% 5% For further information on current jobs, please review the contracts listed in the DAS/Procurement Services website at http://www.das.state.ct.us/busopp.asp#Contracts (under commodities 0075, 0083). 2. Pricing Pricing for each job is currently determined by one of the following means: a. Pricing matrices for several commodities (such as envelopes and forms) b. Contracts between individual Contract Users and selected printers for their specific jobs (such as Department of Revenue Services tax booklets and Department of Environmental Protection publications) c. Solicitation of bids from vendors listed in the general DAS Offset Printing contract, which provides pre-qualified vendors for Contract Users d. Solicitation of bids between vendors and the individual contract users (jobs under $10,000) Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 7 B. RFP SCOPE OF SERVICES 1. Overview a. The State seeks to establish a contract with a vendor to oversee all the external print purchases, essentially acting as the print manager for the State’s external print purchases. However, DAS may award portions of the scope of work (e.g., Forms Management, envelopes, etc.) to other vendors if it determines that would be in the State’s best interest. b. Upon receiving a job request from a Contract User, the Vendor will manage the printer selection and coordinate the execution of the job, including, but not limited to, any required pre-press, post-press activities. Mailing activities are optional and at the discretion of the Contract User. c. For each job, the Vendor shall be held responsible for failures to meet quality and service requirements on the part of the printer, regardless of whether the printer is owned by the vendor or is a subcontractor. d. A Contract User may decide to execute a bid or an RFP for a job through DAS if they feel the requirements of that job require a separate search for a suitable vendor. In those instances, the Vendor would not be responsible for the job, nor compensated for the job. e. The Vendor must be ready to fully deliver on all contract services, along with the terms and conditions, 4 weeks after contract award. The exception is the forms management work, which must begin August 1, 2004. Please see Section V.B.10. Implementation Timeline and Section VI. Total Forms Management – Specific Terms and Conditions for further details. 2. Pricing / Ordering Process The State has a variety of Printing Services needs. To capture pricing on all these needs, the methodologies the State wishes to employ are as follows: a. Forms Management i. ii. For existing forms, there will be established unit prices in the contract and the catalog. For new forms, pricing is determined based on pricing matrices covering a range of specifications and volumes. Pricing for additions to the catalog will be established at time of the decision to make the addition. iii. If a new form is not covered in the pricing matrices, the job will be handled in the manner described in Section c. below. b. Envelopes i. ii. c. Pricing is determined based on pricing matrices established in the contract. If a new envelope is not covered in the pricing matrices, the job will be handled in the manner described in Section c. below. All Other Print (offset printing, laser printing, forms/envelopes not covered by the aforementioned catalogs and pricing matrices, etc.) i. The Vendor will search for a competitive price, communicating to the Contract User (via email or fax) quotes from at least three printers, even if the Vendor is able to print the job at their own printing facilities. The Vendor must only solicit quotes from printers that can meet the requirements in this RFP (e.g., quality requirements, equipment capability, and delivery). o The Vendor is requested to propose a markup percentage for orders, as well as a minimum and maximum markup amount. The markup cannot exceed the Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 8 contractual markup percentage or the markup cap but will be no lower than the minimum markup amount (requested in the attached pricing grid.) o o ii. The Vendor must submit the quotes with their markup added. The Contract User must use the printer that provided the lowest quote. Any deviation must be communicated to the DAS Print Contract Specialist. The Contract User can submit the following criteria for any job, and the Vendor must solicit and provide three quotes to the Contract User in the manner described in Section i above unless there are not three vendors who can meet the criteria, can produce the job, and is willing to provide a quote: o o That a job be given exclusively to SBEs/MBEs, and therefore quotes to be solicited only from SBEs/MBEs. That a job be performed by a local printer to facilitate press checks. The mileage restriction from the Contract User’s location to the printer will be dictated by the Contract User and may be between 20-50 miles. That a job be produced by a printer with union capabilities / union bug. That the Vendor solicits quotes from specific printers, in addition to those to whom the Vendor had intended to include. o o iii. There is a substantial amount of print currently produced by the State’s in-house print shops. These print shops currently produce documents and publications primarily for their own agency by either electronic print, or press. Print that cannot be produced at the specific agency typically is sent to a commercial supplier and not to other agency operations. Currently the State is in the process of consolidating the internal print shops under the executive branch into one DAS internal print shop operation and location. After contract award, the Vendor must meet with the DAS internal print shop and determine the types of jobs on which the internal print shop wishes to have the opportunity to bid. The Vendor will request a quote from the internal print shop if the job is a fit for the print shop’s equipment. For jobs that are ultimately sent to the internal print shop, the Vendor will transfer responsibility for quality and order logistics to the Contract User. The State may require the Vendor to (a) incorporate the job into all required management reporting or (b) hand over all reporting responsibility once the job is awarded to the internal print shop and simply submit a quarterly report showing the jobs that were sent to the internal print shop. The State will pay the Vendor a minimal administrative fee (requested in the attached pricing grid) for performing these activities. The State will decide which option to use prior to contract award. iv. In order to ensure savings from this undertaking to consolidate to a print manager, the State is requesting a guaranteed savings model: o Upon contract award, the Vendor will spend the implementation period (estimated at 30 days) gathering historical invoices and entering them into a Print Baseline Database. The number of historical jobs that will be gathered is undetermined at this time and will depend on what Contract Users are able to provide. Future jobs that match the specifications of a job in the Print Baseline Database will have a ceiling price of the historical invoice price minus a guaranteed savings rate. Appendix B contains specifications and historical invoice prices of 42 jobs that are intended to provide the Vendor with a view into the State’s historical pricing and print requirements. Based on this sample set, the Vendor is requested to propose a guaranteed savings rate off all future jobs that match the specifications of a job in the Print Baseline Database. Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 9 o o Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut o If a job matches the specifications of a job in the Print Baseline Database except for a minor difference in volume, the Vendor should proactively provide pricing at the new volume as well as the historical volume to give the Contract User the ability to recognize the savings. 3. Additional Spend From Non-compulsory Entities There is a potential for substantial additional spend from non-compulsory entities, which include institutions of higher education, political sub-divisions, and not-for-profit organizations. It is the State’s goal to encourage these non-compulsory entities to use the competitive contract(s) resulting from this RFP, although their participation is not mandatory. 4. Special Requirements Some jobs may have special requirements that the Vendor will need to meet while adhering to the contract pricing. These include: a. Allowing the Contract User to deal directly with the printer b. Changes in work are sometimes due to changes in legislation or federal mandate and must be altered immediately. c. Rush jobs d. Certain forms and documents must be secure and safe from theft or forgery 5. Savings Opportunities a. For every job over $2,500, the Vendor shall offer a feasible cost-reduction suggestion to the best of their ability to the Contract User upon submitting the job quote. i. These may include using a lower-cost brand of paper with the same specifications, reducing the size slightly to better fit available presses, and moving the job delivery date slightly to allow combining a run for a similar job from another Contract User. The suggestion must be, in the Vendor’s best judgment, reasonable for what the Contract User is trying to achieve. ii. If the cost-reduction suggestion is implemented for the order, the Vendor shall be given a portion of the resultant savings. The attached RFP pricing grids requests your proposed percentage of the resultant savings. iii. Ideas that the Contract User initiates or tests without Vendor suggestion will not be counted as a creditable savings opportunity (e.g., as part of the quote, the Contract User had asked for job pricing for two different sizes to see for themselves which is cheaper.) b. For all jobs, the Vendor shall be accessible for discussions with any Contract User to review ways to lower the cost of their print jobs. c. DAS reserves the right to either seek additional discounts from the Vendor or to contract separately for a single purchase, if, in the judgment of DAS, the quantity required is sufficiently large to enable the State to realize a cost savings, over and above the published contract prices, whether or not such a savings actually occurs. 6. Supplier Diversity Under Connecticut General Statue § 4a-60g, the State has an established and on-going commitment to providing equal opportunity to small (SBE) and minority owned business enterprises (MBE) to contract as a vendor for the State’s purchased goods and services. The State’s goals (i.e., their “supplier diversity goals”) is to target 25% of good and services purchased to be purchased from SBEs. Furthermore, of the SBE/MBE purchases, the State’s Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 10 goal is to direct 25% of those purchases from MBEs, or 6.25% of the total purchases of goods and services. The Vendor shall make best efforts to assist the Contract Users in reaching their set-aside goals. a. All SBEs and MBEs must be certified by the State's Supplier Diversity Program and hold a current certificate from the State’s DAS/Supplier Diversity Office. For further information about the State's requirements to qualify as a SBE and/or MBE, please contact the Supplier Diversity Director: Meg Yetishefsky at (860) 713-5228. b. The Vendor must submit to DAS and each State Agency quarterly usage reports on the quarterly and fiscal year-to-date spend by SBE/MBE, broken out by State Agency. This spend will be the SBE/MBE’s cost to the Vendor, without the Vendor markup added. c. As mentioned in Section V.B.2.ii Pricing / Ordering Process, Contract Users can request that a job be given exclusively to SBEs/MBEs (therefore quotes to be solicited only from SBEs/MBEs). The Vendor shall then submit to the Contract User three quotes, unless there are not three SBE/MBE vendors that have the capability to produce the job and is willing to provide a quote. d. In the event DAS determines that it is in the best interest of the State, DAS reserves the right to award portion(s) of this RFP to at least one State Certified SBE/MBE Vendor. e. The Vendor shall pay SBE/MBE subcontractors in 30 days after invoice in accordance with Connecticut General Statue § 4a-60g or the latest applicable statute. f. SBEs and MBEs are defined as follows: Small Business Enterprise (SBE) A company that has been under the same ownership and management and has maintained its principle place of business in the State for a period of at least one year immediately following the date of application to the State’s Small Business Program with gross revenues of less than $10,000,000 in the most recent fiscal year and with 51% ownership held by person(s) who exercises the operational authority over the daily affairs of the business and has the power to direct the policies and management and receives the beneficial interests of the business. Minority Owned Business (MBE) A minority owned Business must meet the definition of a small business and: Must be owned and operated by a person(s) who is a member of a minority group; and Who has at least 51% ownership of the company; and Exercises the operational authority over the daily affairs of the business and has the power to direct the policies and management and receives the beneficial interests of the business. Minority Minority is defined in Connecticut General Statue § 32-9n as: Black Americans, including all persons having origins in any of the Black African racial groups not of Hispanic origin; Hispanic Americans, including all persons of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South American or other Spanish culture of origin; All persons having origins in the Iberian Peninsula, including Portugal, regardless of race; Asian Americans; Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 11 American Indians and persons having origins in any of the original peoples of North America and maintaining identifiable tribal affiliation through membership and participation or community identification; A woman; An individual with a disability. 7. Discounts and Rebates The State recognizes the potential to realize additional savings by partnering with vendors who work with the State to offer additional contract incentives that benefit both parties. In the attached pricing grid, we request that the Vendor propose additional incentives to the State and its Contract Users based on the following criteria: Payment Terms: Propose an additional percentage discount on pricing to be extended to each monthly invoice that is paid within a time period shorter than the standard net 45 days (30 days if the Vendor is an SBE/MBE), or via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). Tiered Volume Rebates: Propose year-end percentage rebates to the State if annual sales from Contract Users reaches or exceeds specified spending targets. The table in the attached RFP pricing grids suggests several different volume tiers, but the Vendor is free to propose additional volume tiers that would trigger a year-end rebate for the State. Contract Length: Propose the discount you would offer off all contract pricing if the contract length was longer than three years. 8. Non Performance The Contract User can report violations to contract requirements (e.g., quality, etc.) by a printer to the DAS Print Contract Specialist through a Vendor Performance Report. The DAS Print Contract Specialist will review the report and if the violation is validated, the printer will be placed on watch. A second validated violation complaint will prohibit the printer from providing quotes for any jobs under this contract for a period of one year. At the end of the one-year period, the DAS Print Contract Specialist will determine if the printer will be allowed to quote for services to the Contract Users. DAS reserves the right to reinstate the Vendor prior to the end of the one-year probation. 9. Electronic Print The State is currently in the process of implementing Executive Order Number 30, issued in August 2003, which requests that State agencies to begin transitioning their print to electronic media where feasible. While the process is slow, the State may request that the Vendor provide usage reports and feedback to assist in this effort. 10. Implementation Timeline The potential timeline for contract implementation is shown below. Dates will be finalized at contract award. Date May 3, 2004 May 10, 2004 May 24, 2004 June 1, 2004 Aug 1, 2004 Activity Contract Award. Print Baseline Database creation begins. Implementation Plan due from Vendor (activities, timeline, etc.). Vendor meets with the internal print shop manager. Implementation Plan finalized between Vendor and DAS/Procurement. Print Baseline Database finalized. Print and envelopes orders begin. Latest date for forms management work to begin (i.e., by then the Vendor must be able to meet all terms and conditions and deliver on the entire scope of services.) It is preferable that Comptrollers Forms may be converted before DMV forms (e.g., Comptrollers Forms converted June 30, 2004). Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 12 11. Contract User Responsibilities For jobs other than envelopes and forms that fit into the pricing matrices or catalog, the Contract User will do the following: a. Strive to use the Vendor for all external print jobs, and minimize the instances where they perform a separate bid or RFP through DAS. b. Submit all the detailed specifications and purchase order for a job to the Vendor, including such criteria as printers to add to the quoting process, SBE/MBE requirement, potential press check (20-50 miles), rush delivery, and union bug. c. Review quotes from the Vendor and use the printer with the lowest quote. d. Come up with savings opportunities on their own and apply ideas learned from prior Vendor suggestions e. Notify the DAS print Contract Specialist on contract violations by the Vendor through a Vendor Performance Report. f. For State agencies, if changes exceed 10% of the original Purchase Order dollar amount, the State agency must complete an amended purchase order. DAS does not need to approve. State agencies are authorized to make the changes as per this contract. g. Provide purchase orders and specifications to the Vendor when requested. VI. Total Forms Management - Specific Terms and Conditions The intent is to select a vendor that can organize, manage and support a comprehensive forms and document management program for the Contract Users. All terms and conditions below are in addition to those specified in Section V. Scope of Services and Section IX. Contract Terms and Conditions, though where there is a conflict, those in this section apply. A. OVERVIEW 1. Agencies are required to use the contract if they also have a need for more than one of the following services for their printed products: inventory management, distribution services, reporting, pick and pack fulfillment, and storage services. The Vendor must also be able to print and direct-ship Contract User-specific custom forms, design, typeset, and provide foreign language translating (translating services is to be used only if an item is being printed). 2. Products include but are not limited to documents, snap-aparts, custom continuous, cut sheets, digital printing, letterhead, documents with security features, labels, cards, mailers, interdepartmental envelopes, and stickers/decals. 3. There are an estimated 30-40 orders a day, about 650-800 a month. 4. The estimated dollar amount for each order is approximately $190. 5. The minimum order amount is one unit of measure (pack, box, pad, carton). 6. The forms are created by the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and the Office of the State Comptroller (OSC). 7. DMV forms are invoiced to DMV. OSC and DAS forms are invoiced to the individual ordering entities. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 13 B. SCOPE OF SERVICES 1. Inventory There are currently more than 400 forms/documents (estimated 83 Comptroller’s Forms and 330 DMV forms) in the program. The Vendor must manage inventory levels to insure that Contract Users have adequate stock. It is the intent of the State that minimum levels of inventory be stocked and the State will not be subject to claims for excess inventory or storage charges. If an order cannot be filled because a product was out of stock, the Vendor will be responsible for: (a) finding a printer to print the rush job to meet contractual turnaround times and (b) paying any premiums over the contractual pricing for the rush job. 2. Obsolescence / Destruction The Vendor must keep current with agencies on any revisions or changes to the forms and other printed products. With respect to obsolescence, the Contract User will not be responsible for more than 90 days usage volume of inventory. Anything produced in excess of this will be at the Vendor’s risk, unless expressly required and authorized by the Contract User. The exception is the inventory transferred from the incumbent vendor – the State will pay for these forms in case of obsolescence. The Vendor shall make best efforts to recycle the forms/documents authorized for destruction, at no additional charge to the Contract User. With some forms, the Contract User may request destruction of obsolete forms via shredding or burning. Though these cases are expected to be rare, the Vendor is requested to submit their destruction pricing in the attached pricing grid to be applied in these situations. If requested by the Contract User, the Vendor shall allow a Contract User representative to witness the shredding or burning process. The Vendor must provide a Certificate of Destruction after the shredding or burning process has been completed, if requested by the Contract User. 3. Overstock In the event an overstock situation develops due to direct action of a Contract User, the ordering Contract User will be responsible for the costs of the forms. Any such claims by the Vendor must be brought to the Contract User’s attention in writing and copied to the DAS Print Contract Specialist. 4. Ordering a. Orders may be sent via fax, telephone, mail, and Core-CT, the State’s PeopleSoft ERP system. b. The ordering Contract User shall approve of reprint amounts and frequency. c. The ordering Contract User may require proofs for approval prior to printing. d. There must be no minimum order amount. The Contract User can order as little as a single unit of measure (e.g., one pack, carton, or box). e. The Vendor must maintain a log of authorized approvers with a sample signature for each authorized ordering individual and the Contract User they represent. These individuals will be the only authorized approvers for reprint amounts, revisions and new forms. Reprints, revisions and new forms processed without these authorized approvers will not be compensated by the State. f. Layouts for revisions and new forms may be submitted on OMNI Forms to the Vendor by the DMV, OSC, or appropriate contract user, if applicable. The vendor must have the capability to accept this format for setting up a print job. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 14 5. Pick and Pack “Pick and pack” (producing and shipping on demand) is a large part of the State program. This refers to the small orders. For DMV forms, the Vendor may choose to produce some of these at time of order but it is the Vendor’s responsibility to review ordering patterns and forms specification to make the determination as to which forms they will handle in this matter while meeting all contract terms and conditions. The Vendor can charge the pick and pack charge (requested in the attached pricing grid) for the following situations only: DMV forms: orders of less than 1,000 total forms (regardless of combination of types of forms) for police, dealers, outside customers, and driving schools (defined in Section VI.H.2.) but not any other ordering entities. All other orders: orders of less than or equal to 500 forms (regardless of combination of types of forms) Inventories must be packed and “end labeled” according to Contract User requirements (e.g., 25’s, 50’s, etc.) when pick and pack service is required. Shipments must be packed by delivery location (i.e. – Dept., Area, Bldg.) for ease of distribution. The Vendor will be required to deliver to departments for some agencies. 6. Invoicing DMV will be invoiced for all DMV forms. All other forms will be invoiced to the ordering entity (approximated at 174 different buyers). The Vendor must be able to submit invoices in the following ways: a. Monthly summary invoice (by Contract User) including all supporting detail b. Individual invoices (one invoice for each shipment) c. Electronic invoicing file (Excel spreadsheet). File content will be determined by the Contract User, prior to the first order is accepted. Each Contract User will decide the invoicing method that best suits its organization. Monthly invoicing starting and ending days to be determined by the Contract User. 7. Returns / Exchanges a. Inventory Items Once an inventory release order is placed by a Contract User and the Vendor has correctly filled and shipped that order, the Contract User is not allowed to return that item to the Vendor once it is signed and accepted by the Contract User. The Vendor will pay for any item that was pulled or shipped incorrectly to the Contract User. b. Custom Orders Once a custom order is placed by a Contract User, the order can be cancelled prior to the printing of the item. Once the Vendor has begun the printing process (defined as after typesetting approved), the Contract User will be held responsible for entire payment of those items printed. The Vendor will cease the printing process if they receive a written or email request to do so. The Contract User will be charged for any cost that the Vendor incurs (typesetting, film, plates, etc) if the project is cancelled before the print production. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 15 c. Restocking Charge If the Contract User refuses/returns an order not due to an error on the part of the Vendor, the Contract User will be responsible for paying the Vendor a restocking charge (requested in the attached pricing grid.) The Vendor shall not charge the Contract User any additional shipping fees or refusal fees that may have been incurred. The Contract User may only return inventory items. 8. Delivery There are approximately 4,000-5,000 ship-to locations. Inside delivery is required by some Contract Users. All orders shall be shipped with an itemized packing list denoting the following fields: Contract User, date of order, purchase order number, invoice number, all contents (including their item numbers, volumes, and descriptions) The weight of delivered cartons is not to exceed 40 lbs, unless stated otherwise in the purchase order. Loose packing in cartons is not allowed. Each carton and package must be labeled on each end, showing description, quantity and form numbers (if any). 9. Recycled Paper The use of recycled paper is encouraged by the State whenever practical and applicable. However, Contract Users may require that certain forms not be printed on recycled paper. 10. Forms Analysis Forms analysis includes development of standard specifications, combining related forms and eliminating duplicate forms. All such analysis/recommendations shall be subject to the approval of the ordering Contract User. The interaction of the various forms shall be studied and the applicable Contract User will be notified as to the results and recommendations of the study. Suggestions of this type shall be presented to the ordering Contract User. 11. Security Certain forms (estimated at a dozen) will have a monetary value and will be required to be secured within a locked area with restricted access, separate from the other forms. This locked area must have an operational camera and alarm system. These forms will have a list of authorized shipping addresses and authorized ordering personnel. Unauthorized deliveries will be cause for penalties, to be determined by DAS and the Contract User on a case-by-case basis. 12. Catalog Maintenance a. The Vendor will continually update and maintain a catalog of the forms and other products that the State uses. b. The catalog will include the following fields: Effective Date Category Code Description - Minimum Order Quantity - Unit of Measure (UOM) - Quantity of Forms Per UOM Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 16 c. Revision Date Item ID Lead Time For Revisions Restricted Shipping Locations - Price(s) (Bulk and Per UOM) - Secure Form Designation - Issuing Contract User The Vendor shall provide the catalog to the DAS Print Contract Specialist on a monthly basis if there was an update to the catalog during the month. d. The catalog pricing is inclusive of costs for storage, fulfillment, inventory management, reporting, freight, insurance (if any), and delivery to Contract User. No additional fees may be charged for these items. 13. Sales & Support The State requires a minimum of two account representatives (1 dedicated to DMV-related orders) for the proper support of the State’s requirements. The Vendor’s sales office must be located within or close to the State, preferably close to Hartford, where large concentrations of State Offices are located. 14. Reporting Reporting is a key aspect of the forms management program. The Vendor shall submit the following reports in electronic format (i.e., Microsoft Excel) to the DAS Print Contract Specialist at no charge. All reports except the SBE/MBE usage report will be required on a monthly basis, due no later than thirty days after the end of each month. The SBE/MBE usage report will be required on a quarterly basis. Quarterly is defined as First Quarter (July –September) Second Quarter (October –December), Third Quarter – (Jan – March), Fourth Quarter (April – June). The Vendor shall send these reports to any Contract User who requests the reports. The final format of these reports shall be approved in writing by the DAS Print Contract Specialist prior to the first order being placed. Failure to submit the required reports on time will result in a financial penalty of $500 a month. a. Report of usage by form with the following fields: c. Form Number (if applicable) Form Description Number of Orders Average Order Size Total Number of Forms (UOMs x forms per UOM) Ordering Entity Number of Orders Total Number of Orders with Processing Period greater than 48 hours Total Number of Forms (UOM x forms per UOM) Form Number Form Description Reorder Quantity - Inventory Volume - Inventory Value - Obsolescence Cost - Total Invoiced Amount - Price Per UOM - Total Invoiced Amount - Number of UOMs b. Report of usage by ordering entity with the following fields: Inventory report with the following fields: Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 17 f. Quantity Used Last Reorder Date Total Number of Forms (UOMs x forms per UOM) Form Number Form Description Reorder UOM - Total Value of Sold Forms d. Reorder report with the following fields: - Reorder Date - Reorder Value Total Number of Reordered Forms (UOMs x forms per UOM) e. Catalog as described in the above section, Catalog Maintenance The Vendor must provide on a monthly basis a list of the forms that need to be reprinted. Information on this list should include: Form Number Form Description Reorder UOM Last Reorder Amount Total Number of Reordered Forms (UOMs x forms per UOM) - Current Inventory - Reorder Value - Last Reorder Date 15. Performance Review The Vendor will meet with the Print Review Group (consisting of DAS Print Contract Specialist and key Contract User representatives) on a monthly basis, or as determined by DAS, to: Review management reports Identify any savings opportunities Review internal customer satisfaction and agree upon a course of action to address any issues Review progress of actions taken to address previously-identified issues Review incidents where forms have run out and were not available DAS will review the Vendor’s performance on an annual basis. Unsatisfactory performance may lead to contract termination prior to the contract end date. 16. Performance Bond The Vendor must supply to the DAS prior to contract award a performance bond in the amount of $250,000. C. TURNAROUND TIME 1. Printing a. Multiple part forms: b. Cut sheets: c. Complex forms or long run (more than 100,000) jobs: 15 work days maximum 10 work days maximum 25 work days maximum Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 18 2. Delivery a. From inventory: 2 work days from receipt of authorized requisition. Additional 24 hours is allowed if shipping UPS to outreaching towns b. Next day courier services (e.g., UPS) may be used for outreaching towns. c. Some Contract Users require same day fulfillment for emergency orders and will pick up the required forms from the local warehouse. d. The Vendor must use its own transportation for secured forms or accept full responsibility if using external shippers. 3. Design & Typesetting Revision Type Minor revisions Description Changes to text that are less than a paragraph, such as revision dates, revised fields, or phrases which will occupy the same place and size as existing text or graphic changes (less than a few blocks). The Vendor must be able to accept OMNI Forms format from DMV and OSC. Changes to text that are more than a paragraph up to one-half page of text and more than a few blocks of graphic up to one-quarter (1/4) page of graphics. The Vendor must be able to accept OMNI Forms format from DMV and OSC. Changes to text that are more than one-half of page and more than one-quarter (1/4) page of graphics. The Vendor must be able to accept OMNI Forms format from DMV and OSC. Turnaround Time 3 work days Intermediate revisions 5 work days New/major revisions (Complete Reset) Translations D. PRICING 7 work days 14 work days Pricing submitted in the pricing matrices shall hold firm for the contract term. All freight (whether inside delivery or to a dock) must be included in the contract unit prices, including freight from manufacturer to distribution center/warehouse and from distribution center/warehouse to delivery destination. Pricing may be individually negotiated for unique orders not falling under the price matrices. E. PROGRAM CONVERSION 1. The Vendor will have 1 week from contract award to submit an implementation plan. DAS and key Contract Users will work with the Vendor after contract award to prepare a procedures manual with details on services, ordering, invoicing, etc. It will be approved solely by DAS prior to the issuance of a starting date for the Vendor. The implementation plan will detail all activities and timeline required for program conversion. The conversion must be complete prior to August 1, 2004. Once the conversion plan is approved by DAS, the Vendor must immediately begin the conversion process. 2. The Vendor must buy existing inventory from the incumbent vendor. The inventory is estimated to be approximately $475,000 at current contract pricing, with most of the volume being with DMV forms (including a large order of validation stickers expected to be almost depleted by October). The State may choose to review the incumbent vendor’s inventory and destroy a portion of the inventory prior to the Vendor’s purchase of the existing inventory. It is the Vendor’s responsibility to negotiate and determine the inventory sell price with the incumbent vendor. The Vendor must Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 19 sell the existing inventory of forms they purchase from the incumbent vendor at the incumbent vendor’s current catalog price, with no additional costs to the State. 3. The Vendor must review and verify the transferred inventory. 4. The Vendor shall pay for all transportation costs to move the inventory from the existing warehouse/distribution center to the Vendor’s warehouse/distribution center, including all packing/moving/unpacking fees involved. The State will not pay any additional inventory transfer fees. 5. The Vendor is responsible for notification to all Contract Users (and their customers on the ship to files) of changes to the program and new ordering procedures and forms, and bear the cost to notify Contract Users (and their customers on the ship to files) of new fax numbers, phone numbers, liaisons, email addresses and other forms of communication to enable delivery of forms without interruption of State business. The cost of placing a forwarding message on the previous vendor’s phone system will be born by the new Vendor. Disruption of Contract Users’ (and their customers on the ship to files) business due to the Vendor not adhering to the conversion plan will be cause for penalty. First time delivery to any Contract User (and their customers on the ship to files) during the life of the contract must include a small supply of order forms. F. QUALIFICATIONS The State is requesting the following qualifications of the Vendor. Any exceptions must be fully explained in Appendix A, Question 33. 1. Minimum 3 years experience providing comprehensive forms management program services. 2. Maintain and operate inventory management software capable of providing all required management reporting and invoicing methodologies. 3. Sales and support staff experienced in Forms Management and as previously described in Scope of Services. 4. The Vendor must be able to provide barcoding, laser printing, self-sealing documents, and pressure sensitive items. 5. Local Distribution Center - The State requires the distribution center to be within Hartford County, unless otherwise permitted by the State. The Vendor does not need to meet this requirement for the RFP proposal but after contract award, the Vendor has until August 1, 2004 to have a distribution center in operation and able to meet the scope of services outlined in Section VI. Total Forms Management - Specific Terms and Conditions. The distribution center must have a minimum of 8,000 sq. ft. of available space to allot to this program. G. ACCOUNT TRANSITION If, at the end of the resulting contract, DAS awards the work to another vendor, the Vendor must: 1. Sell the inventory to the new vendor or the State at the contractual and catalog pricing for the forms, without any additional markup or transition fees. 2. Provide a database of each form, along with inventory levels 3. Provide the electronic version of the “ship to” locations, along with the forms historically ordered for each ship to location. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 20 H. DMV-SPECIFIC 1. Overview The DMV requires multiple levels of document management. There are 7 unique programs running within this agency. Each one services the needs of users of DMV Brochures, Forms and Documents. Each program has its own: Custom order form Account number Billing cycle Authorized shipping addresses. Authorized forms The Vendor must familiarize itself with each program’s forms and rules. 2. Ordering and Delivery Details Party Police Dealers Driving Schools Emissions, DMV Branches, Wethersfield branch Outside Customers Comment Requires on-demand Most do not have a PC or access to the Internet. They use their own system. Requires on-demand Requires on-demand and automatic deliveries Examples include credit unions, banks, out-of-state dealers, leasing companies, doctor’s offices, etc. The Vendor must enforce order quantity limits (maximum of 10 packs (100 pieces per pack) Automatic delivery twice a month Delivery must only be on Wednesdays. On-demand includes special bulk packaging and delivery instructions. Order Method Fax Fax Mail Fax & Phone & Core-CT Fax Estimated Number of Ship-To Addresses 153 2,286 395 52 1,040 Invoices must include a copy of each shipping manifest for each delivery. 52 91 DMV Branches, Wethersfield branch DMV Branches, Wethersfield branch, and AAA 3. Account Service Fax & Phone &CORE Fax & Phone & CORE The Vendor must provide a dedicated account representative for the DMV. 4. Reorder A deadline date must be set for any revisions needed. Based on annual usage, each form will have a minimum reorder quantity. Reorder quantities will be determined before the first order is placed. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 21 Lack of availability of user forms will be cause for fines or penalties. If an order cannot be filled because a product was out of stock, the Vendor will be responsible for: (a) finding a printer to print the rush job to meet contractual turnaround times and (b) paying any premiums over the contractual pricing for the rush job. VII. Envelopes Requirements A. Prices quoted shall be net, including all transportation and delivery charges fully prepaid by the Vendor f.o.b. Contract User storehouse/dock. Inside delivery to the desk or office will be assessed an additional charge (requested in attached pricing grids). B. Side seam construction shall NOT be allowed on all white wove envelopes. All commercial and official envelopes shall be useable on standard inserting & metering machines. C. All flaps shall have full seal gumming; all windows shall have solid or edge patch gumming and shall run satisfactorily in the appropriate inserting equipment. D. Prices shall include Class I and Class 2 printing Black or one color. E. Upon request, the Vendor shall be required to provide a sample envelope for proofing by the applicable Contract User. F. All envelopes shall be packed in skeleton boxes. Bulk packing in cartons is not acceptable. G. A printed specimen shall be attached at the end of each box to plainly show which item is contained in the box. H. The Contract User may require a 2% random sample (minimum of 10 finished pieces or more) from each job run produced at the Contract User’s expense. No invoice will be paid until this sample has been reviewed and accepted. The Contract User may use the sample to run through their own insertion/post-press equipment as any deviation from specifications may make the envelope incompatible with intended post-press activities. Therefore, if the sample shows the printer did not produce according to specifications, the Contract User has the right to reject the order and only pay for the received sample at the rate of “sample volume/total purchase order volume” x “total purchase order price”. VIII. Quality Requirements A. GENERAL The Vendor shall adhere to the State’s print quality requirements. Failure to meet these requirements may lead to financial penalties or contract termination. Specific criteria may be given for each job by the Contract User but three dimensions of quality are of particular importance: Content Integrity Proper content integrity must be maintained at all times. It is unacceptable for any job to contain any content integrity errors, which include, but are not limited to, missing text or graphics, mispagination, or incorrect information (e.g., material from another job). Such errors would, at a minimum, require critical rush job replacement. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 22 Production Quality All print material must meet the State’s quality standards, which include, but are not limited to, ink density, screen percentage, register, and color matching. Final products are expected to match “signed” proofs, including all changes made at final approval. Production Quantity Underage is unacceptable in every case. The Contract User will not incur any charges for excess of overage limitations stated in the purchase order or, if no limitation is stated, any quantity in excess of 5% of the quantity called for in the job specifications (excluding any pieces provided as part of the quality control section detailed below). B. QUALITY METRICS The table below outlines minimum quality guidelines that the Vendor shall follow. Note that these guidelines are not exhaustive and may be refined in cooperation with the Vendor. For materials not meeting these quality standards, the Contract User will require, at a minimum, expedited, no-cost replacement of defective pieces. Repeated failure to meet these quality standards may result in cancellation of the contract. Table 1: Standard Quality Metrics Quality Dimension Content Integrity Quality Specification Text/Graphics Pagination Ink Density Halftones Separations Screen Percentage Trapping Register Color Match Dot Gain Finishing/Bindery Folding Packaging Other Flaws Quality Target Complete Correct SWOP target Precise, No Variation Precise, No Variation 10% Precise, No Variation Precise, No Variation Precise, No Variation SWOP target Precise, No Variation Precise, No Variation Precise, No Variation No (minimal) flaws Error Definition Metric Tolerance Incomplete, missing, misspellings, or typos Mispaginated Variation Limit +/- 5% Density Range 1.20 Density Range 1.20 Variation Limit Variation Limit Variation Limit Density Units: - Color - Black Variation Limit Variation Limit Variation Limit Mutes Per Thousand Rate Per Thousand +/- 5% +/- 0.010 in +/- 0.010 in +/+/+/+/+/10 5 0.02 0.04 5% 1/16 in 1/16 in Production Quality For some projects (e.g. showcase posters), the Contract User will request “premium” quality, as defined by table above. The State expects that these projects comprise a very small portion of the print spend. Quality metrics for these projects are listed in Table 2 below. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 23 Table 2: Premium Quality Metrics Quality Dimension Quality Specification Ink Density Screen Percentage Trapping Register Dot Gain Finishing/Bindery Folding Quality Target SWOP target 10% Precise, No Variation Precise, No Variation SWOP target Precise, No Variation Precise, No Variation Error Definition Metric Variation Limit Variation Limit Variation Limit Variation Limit Variation Limit Variation Limit Variation Limit Production Quality Tolerance +/- 3% +/- 2% +/- 0.005 in +/- 0.005 in +/- 3% +/- 1/32 in +/- 1/32 in C. QUALITY CONTROL Press checks, including occasional sample “pulls” from ongoing jobs, by authorized representatives of the Contract Users may occur; The Contract User will not incur any additional charge for this service. Failure to comply with the State’s quality requirements may also result in non-payment or cancellation of the contract. The Contract User may require a 2% random sample (minimum of 10 finished pieces or more) from each job run produced at the Contract User’s expense. No invoice will be paid until this sample has been reviewed and accepted. For envelopes, the Contract User may use the sample to run through their own insertion/post-press equipment as any deviation from specifications may make the envelope incompatible with intended post-press activities. Therefore, if the sample shows the printer did not produce according to specifications, the Contract User has the right to reject the order and only pay for the received sample at the rate of “sample volume/total purchase order volume” x “total purchase order price”. D. QUALITY ASSURANCE GUARANTEES The Vendor must guarantee its products to be free from defects in materials and workmanship. The terms of this contract will supersede any language to the contrary on purchase orders, invoices or other documents produced by the Vendor. The Vendor is to agree to repair and/or immediately replace without charge to Contract Users any product that proves to be defective or fails within the contract term as specified. IX. Contract Terms and Conditions It is assumed that by submitting a proposal, the Vendor is in agreement with the RFP-19, Standard RFP Terms and Conditions, provided in the RFP package, as well as all the terms and conditions contained in this RFP. The terms and conditions in the RFP shall supercede those in RFP-19, should a conflict exist. A. STATE OWNERSHIP All negatives, plates, mechanicals and/or computer media, etc. generated by the Vendor that relate to this contract shall become the property of the State and/or the Contract Users. Mechanicals and/or negatives furnished by the State or Contract Users to the Vendor must be returned in acceptable condition with the final delivery of each printing. All artwork must be returned to the Contract User as soon as the printing job is completed. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 24 Failure to return these materials may delay payment of Vendor’s invoice and result in a penalty assessment which may be deducted from the Vendor’s invoice or a penalty assessment that would be owed to the Contract User. B. TRANSFER OF DATA All data stored in the Vendor’s files, electronic or hard copy, will be returned to the Contract Users upon the completion of the job. C. COMPOSITION/SPECIFICATIONS All work is according to job sample(s)/mock-up(s) and all job specifications. All job specifications should be read carefully for they may supersede the job sample/mock-up. Be aware that most samples/mock-ups may be for format purposes only. The Vendor must get final copy from the Contract User. D. CONSTRUCTION AND MATERIALS Whether specified or not, all work must be of such kind and quality as to give satisfactory results when the item in reference is used under the conditions stated and implied. E. DEVIATIONS IN QUANTITIES The Contract Users will not pay for such deviations in quantities. Deviations in quantities are defined as any quantities in excess of overage limitations stated in the purchase order or, if no limitation is stated, any quantity in excess of 5% of the quantity called for in the job specifications (excluding any pieces provided as part of the quality control sample detailed in Section VIII.C. Quality Control.) F. ADDITIONAL PAGES/AUTHOR’S ALTERATIONS/ADDITIONAL CHARGES When any additional changes are needed (e.g., additional pages for a publication, author’s alterations), the Vendor shall submit to the Contract User a list containing the description of the work to be performed along with any charges. The Contract User will either approve or disapprove these changes and charges. In the event, the Vendor proceeds to perform any type of work without written permission from the Contract User, the Vendor will be liable for all additional costs incurred in excess of the amount specified in the original purchase order. The Contract Users will not be responsible for any additional charges not approved in writing prior to the Vendor performing any work. G. FILE DELIVERY METHOD Each Contract User will have its own software program (Quark, MS Front Page, etc.) for delivering job files. The Vendor must ensure the printers from whom they are soliciting quotes are able to handle the files in the file format specified by the Contract User and will not need to further subcontract the file conversion service. H. PROOFS Final proofs of all forms as approved by a Contract User shall apply only for the correctness of copy. All other factors including but not limited to paper stock, composition, inks, carbons, color sequences, numbering, etc. shall be governed by the original job specifications and any authorized revisions. The Vendor shall submit to the Contract User two sets of proofs unless otherwise stated in the job specifications. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 25 The Vendor shall have the Contract User’s approval and signature written on the proof prior to proceeding any further. If the Vendor proceeds without approval and signature, the Vendor will assume all charges for corrections that may be needed. I. DISCREPANCIES In the event of any discrepancies between the final proofs and the job specifications, the job specification shall govern. The Vendor shall notify the Contract User of any discrepancies between the final proofs and the job specifications for resolution of the discrepancy. Failure to notify the Contract User as prescribed above shall not relieve the Vendor from completing the job in accordance with the job specifications at no additional cost to the Contract User. J. ELECTRONIC CAPABILITIES On July 1, 2003, the State began utilizing an internet-based E-Procurement ordering system (PeopleSoft), known as Core-CT. With Core-CT, purchase orders will be electronically transmitted or faxed to the vendor. Companies receiving awards from this RFP must be able to use this service or any updated and/or replacement service designated by the State during the contract term to receive orders from the State. Companies that do not and/or cannot comply with our E-Commerce requirements when required, and/or fail to provide functional data files within a reasonable amount of time (as specified by the State) may be terminated from a contract award. The Electronic Catalog Supplier Kit section of the DAS/Procurement Services website (http://www.das.state.ct.us/Purchase/Info/supplier_kit.asp) details the requirements for data catalogs and other information we need to successfully send purchase orders and payments to vendors. Please review the information to ensure you are able to meet the requirements. The catalog file will be required for forms management and envelopes. The unit of measure accepted by Core-CT is the ANSI X-12 EDI standard For further information regarding requirements concerning this service, contact the State’s Core-CT Catalog Management Team, at catalog.management@po.state.ct.us PRIOR TO YOUR PROPOSAL SUBMISSION. Technical questions regarding this service may also be faxed to John Pacholski at 860-622-2918. K. DELIVERY The weight of delivered cartons is not to exceed 40 lbs, unless stated otherwise in the purchase order. Loose packing in cartons is not allowed. Each carton and package must be labeled on each end, showing description, quantity and form numbers (if any). L. PURCHASE ORDERS Each Contract User will issue its own purchase orders for services related to this contract. The Vendor shall not perform services without receiving a purchase order. Questions regarding purchase orders should be directed to the issuing Contract User. M. SUBSTITUTIONS Substitutions on any specification on any order will not be accepted by Contract Users, unless authorized in writing through a revised purchase order. N. RETURNS Once an order is placed by the Contract User, the order can be cancelled prior to the printing of the item. Once the Vendor has begun the printing process (defined as after typesetting approved), the Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 26 Contract User will be held responsible for entire payment of those items printed. The Vendor will cease the printing process if they receive a written or e-mailed request to do so. The Contract User will be charged for any cost that the Vendor incurs (typesetting, film, plates, etc) if the project is cancelled before the print production. O. PAYMENT TERMS Payment terms are net forty-five (45) days for all orders from the date of receipt of proper and complete invoices, or delivery and acceptance of the product, whichever is later, unless otherwise agreed upon between the Contract User and the Vendor. Under Connecticut General Statue 4a-60j, if the Vendor is an SBE/MBE, the payment terms are thirty (30) days. P. PAYMENT OPTIONS The Contract Users pay by check, electronic funds transfer, or with the State's authorized procurement (credit) card. The State uses a procurement card for order placement and payment in many instances. The Vendor must be able to accept the State's credit card for single purchases under $1,000 (subject to change). The Vendor is responsible for the procurement card user-handling fee associated with procurement card purchases. The Vendor should only charge to the State’s procurement card when the goods are delivered (physical receipt of goods, at store), or are shipped. Questions regarding the State’s Mastercard Program should be directed to Ms. Kerry DiMatteo, Procurement Card Program Administrator at (860) 713-5072. Q. TAX EXEMPTION Material covered by this proposal is exempt from all FEDERAL and STATE TAXES. Such taxes shall not be included in prices quoted, nor added to any invoice associated with a purchase made under the resulting agreement. For work performed by subcontractor, a simple certification process will be used to qualify for tax exemption. R. VENDOR REVIEW The Vendor will meet with the Print Review Group (consisting of DAS Print Contract Specialist and key Contract User representatives) on a monthly basis to: Review usage reports Identify any savings opportunities Review internal customer satisfaction and agree upon a course of action to address any issues Review progress of actions taken to address previously-identified issues DAS will review the Vendor’s performance on an annual basis and determine if the contract should be terminated prior to the contract term end date. S. MANAGEMENT REPORTING The Vendor shall submit the following reports in electronic format (i.e., Microsoft Excel) to the DAS Print Contract Specialist at no charge. All reports except the SBE/MBE usage report will be required on a monthly basis, due no later than thirty days after the end of each month. The SBE/MBE usage report will be required on a quarterly basis. Quarterly is defined as First Quarter (July –September) Second Quarter (October –December), Third Quarter – (Jan – March), and Fourth Quarter (April – June). The Vendor shall send these reports to any Contract User who requests the reports. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 27 The final format of these reports shall be approved in writing by the DAS Print Contract Specialist prior to the first order being placed. Failure to submit the required reports on time will result in a financial penalty of $500 a month. See Appendix C for some samples of the reports requested. Invoice report listing separately for each invoice: Contract User Invoice Date Product Type (e.g., Envelope, Brochure) Name of Project SBE/MBE Required Match with Baseline Database? Volume Vendor markup over Manufacturer Cost Basic specifications (e.g., “8-1/2 x 11, 1 fold, 4/0) SBE/MBE? Discount Amount - Invoice number - Purchase Order Number - Forms/Envelopes ID - UOM (Forms Only) - Press Check Required - Price in Baseline Database - Manufacturer (Printer) - City and State of Manufacturer - Manufacturer Cost - Applicable Discounts Two quarterly usage reports – one for SBEs who are not MBEs and one for only MBEs, broken out by State agency. The required fields are: Contract User SBE Total Invoiced - Current Quarter Total Invoiced - Fiscal YTD SBE as % of Spend - Fiscal YTD SBE Invoiced - Current Quarter - Total Invoiced - Current Quarter - SBE % - Current Quarter - SBE as % of Spend - Current Quarter - SBE - SBE Invoiced - Fiscal YTD Cost Savings reports - A listing of all jobs that match specs of a job in the Print Baseline Database. The required fields are: Contract User Printer name Product ID (if applicable) General specifications (e.g., “8-1/2 x 11, 1 fold, 4/0) Price in the Print Baseline Database Savings % - Invoice number - Order date - Product type (e.g., “Brochure”) - New invoice price - Savings dollar amount Demand Management Savings reports - A listing of all jobs in which a demand management savings was achieved through an accepted suggestion from the Vendor. The required fields are: Contract User Printer name Product ID (if applicable) General specifications (e.g., “8-1/2 x 11, 1 fold, 4/0) Quote based on Contract User’s specifications prior to savings idea Savings idea (e.g., “Move from abc paper stock to def paper stock with same specs”) Savings dollar amount generated from implementation of savings idea Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 28 - Invoice number - Order date - Product type (e.g., “Brochure”) Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut - Vendor compensation for savings T. SERVICE AVAILABILITY 1. Contact Information The Contract Users require the Vendor to have either a local telephone number within the (860) area code, a toll free (800) number, or agree to accept collect calls. Each Contract User is responsible for placing its orders and may be accomplished by written purchase order, telephone, fax or computer on-line systems. The contact should be able to be reached Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. EST. 2. Customer Service The Vendor shall provide a single, local point of contact (and a back-up) to handle questions or problems that may arise. At least one Customer Service Representative must be available during Vendor’s operating hours. All service representatives must have on-line access to information to provide immediate response to inquiries concerning the status of jobs, State contract pricing, contracted services/exclusions, contract compliance requirements, and general service information. Representatives should be available by telephone (local (860) or toll free (800) number preferred), fax, or email. The Customer Service contact should be able to be reached Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM EST. U. USE OF SUBCONTRACTORS If the Vendor subcontracts on a State contract, the sole responsibility of the job will rest upon the Vendor, not the subcontractor. If the Vendor has any problems with the subcontractor, it is the Vendor’s responsibility to handle and resolve all problems. If the problems are not resolved, the Vendor must find another means to complete the printing job by the stated deadline. By the act of submitting a proposal, any work provided under the contract is work conducted on behalf of the Contract User and the Commissioner of DAS or her designee may communicate directly with any subcontractor as the State deems to be necessary or appropriate. It is the Vendor’s responsibility to ensure that all negatives, plates, mechanicals and/or computer media, etc, generated by the subcontractor/printer are returned to the Contract User. All billing invoices will be issued from the Vendor only. If work is subcontracted, the invoice must list the subcontractor’s name. The Vendor shall be responsible for all payment of fees charged by the subcontractor. The Vendor shall clearly break out the amount billed by the subcontractor and the Vendor’s markup. It is important for the Vendor to ensure that the subcontractor is made aware of, understands, and abides by all that is written within all the RFP/contract terms and conditions. The Vendor must provide the subcontractor with copies of all the State’s printing specifications and terms and conditions that are included in the contract. This will help ensure that there are no discrepancies, misunderstandings or problems regarding the printing job. V. LATE DELIVERY The Contract User shall have the right to recover the amount of 5% of the invoice price, with a minimum of $20, for each business day elapsing between the time guaranteed for delivery and the actual date of delivery. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 29 W. CHANGE OF ADDRESS In the event the Vendor moves or updates contact information, it is the responsibility of the Vendor to advise DAS/Procurement Services of such changes in writing. The State will not be held responsible for payments or purchase orders delayed due to the lack of routing caused by the lack of notification on the Vendor’s part. Change of address, telephone updates, etc. must be forwarded to: Linda LoSchiavo, Department of Administrative Services, Procurement Services, 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor – South Wing, Hartford, CT 06106. X. SECURITY Vendor must adhere to established security and/or property entrance policies and procedures established for each requesting Contract User. It is the responsibility of each Vendor to understand and adhere to those policies and procedures prior to any attempt to enter the Contract User premises. Y. INSURANCE Vendor shall not commence work under this contract until it has obtained all insurance required under this Section, nor shall the Vendor allow any forms management subcontractor to commence work on its subcontract until all similar insurance required of the subcontractor has been obtained. Certificates of Insurance shall be forwarded to the DAS/Procurement Services (Gregg Nome) upon contract award, and to Contract Users upon request. Updates on the insurance coverage are the responsibility of the Vendor. Insurance requirements will be strictly enforced. The Vendor shall assume any and all deductibles in the described insurance policies. The Vendor's insurers shall have no right of recovery or subrogation against the State and the described insurance shall be primary coverage. Any failure to comply with the claim reporting provisions of the policy shall not affect coverage provided to the State. Each required insurance policy shall not be suspended, voided, cancelled or reduced except after 30 days prior written notice by certified mail has been given to the State. "Claims Made" coverage is unacceptable, with the exception of Professional Liability. The Vendor agrees that he/she will not use the defense of sovereign immunity the adjustment of claims or in the defense of any suit, unless requested by the State. Commercial General Liability $1,000,000 Combined Single Limit per occurrence for bodily injury, personal injury and property damage. Coverage shall include Premises and Operations, Independent Contractors, Products and Completed Operations, Contractual Liability and Board Form Property Damage coverage. If a general aggregate is used, the general aggregate limit shall apply either separately to the project or the general aggregate limit shall be twice the occurrence amount. Workers’ Compensation and Employers Liability Statutory coverage in compliance with the Compensation laws of the State is required. Coverage shall include Employer’s Liability with minimum limits of $100,000 each accident, $500,000 disease-policy limit, $100,000 each employee. With respect to all operations the Vendor performs and all those performed for the Vendor by subcontractor(s), the Vendor, and subcontractor(s) if used, shall carry Workers Compensation Insurance at statutory coverage limits and/or, as applicable, insurance required in accordance with the U. S. Longshoremen’s and Harbor Workers Compensation Act, the Federal Employers Liability Act, all in accordance with the requirements of the laws of the State, and the laws of the United States respectively. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 30 Automobile Liability $1,000,000 Combined Single Limit Automobile Liability insurance shall be maintained against claims for damages resulting from bodily injury, including wrongful death, and property damage which may arise from the operations of any owned, hired or non-owned automobiles used by or for the Vendor in any capacity in connection with carrying out this contract. If a general aggregate is used, the general aggregate limit shall apply either separately to the project or the general aggregate limit shall be twice the occurrence amount. The Vendor’s operations on airports that use vehicles on the air side require five million dollars ($5,000,000) automotive coverage unless specifically modified by the State, and may require additional special vehicle coverage depending on the types of vehicles employed. Minimum Scope of Insurance All Liability insurance policies shall be written on an “occurrence” basis only. All insurance coverage is to be placed with insurers authorized to do business in the State and must be placed with an insurer that has an A.M. Best’s Rating of no less and A-, VII. All certificates of insurance for the Vendor and any subcontractor used for the forms management work shall be filed with DAS on the standard Accord Certificate of Insurance form showing the specified insurance and limits. The State shall be named as an Additional Insured. The State of Connecticut, DAS/Procurement Services, 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South Wing, Hartford, CT 06106 Attn: Linda LoSchiavo shall be the listed Certificate Holder. Please make note of the Contract Award Number. The Vendor’s insurer shall have no right of recovery of subrogation against the State and the Vendor’s insurance shall be primary coverage. Z. PROPERTY DAMAGE The Vendor shall make prompt restitution to the State by certified check, replacement, or repairs (subject to the State's approval), in settlement of any damage(s) to the Contract User's or tenants' property caused by the Vendor's employee(s). X. RFP Terms and Conditions It is assumed that by submitting a proposal, the Vendor is in agreement with the RFP-19, Standard RFP Terms and Conditions, provided in the RFP package, as well as all the terms and conditions contained in this RFP. The terms and conditions in the RFP shall supercede those in RFP-19, should a conflict exist. A. CONFORMITY AND COMPLETENESS OF PROPOSALS To be considered acceptable, the proposal must be complete and conform with all RFP instructions and conditions. Each proposal must cover all services requested in this RFP (all printing, forms management, and envelopes). DAS, at its discretion, may reject in whole or in part any proposal if in its judgment the best interests of the State will be served. B. DURATION AND AVAILABILITY OF PROPOSED PRICES The prices, terms and conditions specified in the Vendor’s proposal must be valid for a period of 90 days from the due date of the proposals. Once a contract is signed, the prices must remain valid for the term of that contract and any subsequent extension(s), unless the State agrees in writing that the pricing should be modified. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 31 C. AMENDMENT OR CANCELLATION OF THE RFP DAS reserves the rights to cancel, amend, modify or otherwise change this RFP at any time if it deems it to be in the best interest of the State to do so. D. STATEMENT OF NON-COMMITMENT This RFP is not an offer to enter into an agreement with any vendor; it is a request to receive proposals from vendors interested in providing Printing Services to Contract Users. DAS reserves the right to reject all proposals, in whole or in part, and/or enter into discussions with any party who submitted a proposal to provide such services. The State will not have any obligation to the Vendor unless and until it has entered into a written agreement with the Vendor on terms and conditions satisfactory to Contract Users and approved by the Office of the Attorney General. DAS entering into negotiations with the Vendor with respect to any proposal or otherwise shall not be deemed to be an acceptance of such proposal or an agreement with the Vendor. E. MULTIPLE AWARD DAS reserves the right to award to multiple vendors. F. AWARD BASIS DAS reserves the right to award this RFP in whole or in part based on the best interest of the State. G. PROPOSAL MODIFICATIONS No additions or changes to any proposal will be allowed after the proposal due date, unless such modification is specifically requested by the State. The State, at its option, may seek vendor retraction and/or clarification of any discrepancy or contradiction found during its review of proposals. H. VENDOR PRESENTATION OF SUPPORTING EVIDENCE The Vendor must be prepared to provide any evidence of experience, performance, ability, and/or financial surety that the State deems to be necessary or appropriate to fully establish the performance capabilities represented in their proposal. I. VENDOR DEMONSTRATION OF PROPOSED SERVICES AND/OR PRODUCTS At the discretion of DAS, the Vendor must be able to confirm their ability to provide all proposed services and/or products. Any required confirmation must be provided at a site approved by DAS and without cost to the State. J. VENDOR MISREPRESENTATION OR DEFAULT DAS may reject the proposal and void any award resulting from this RFP to a vendor who makes any material misrepresentation in their proposal or other submittal in connection with this RFP. K. ERRONEOUS AWARDS DAS reserves the right to correct inaccurate awards. This may include, in extreme circumstances, revoking the awarding of a contract already made to a vendor and subsequently awarding the contract to another vendor. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 32 Such action on the part of the State shall not constitute a breach of contract on the part of the State since the contract with the initial vendor is deemed to be void and of no effect as if no contract ever existed between the State and such vendor. L. PROPOSAL EXPENSES The Vendor is responsible for all costs and expenses incurred in the preparation of proposals and for any subsequent work on the proposal that is required by the State. Any costs incurred for site visits for discussions or negotiations are also entirely the responsibility of the Vendor. M. OWNERSHIP OF PROPOSALS All proposals submitted are the property of State; the RFPs will not be returned under any circumstances. Vendor-specific information (such as names, contact information, or pricing data) is used for vendor selection on behalf of the State. The Vendor acknowledges and agrees that its proposal and all associated documents are, and will remain, the exclusive property of the State and the Contract Users, without any royalty or other payment owing thereon to the Vendor. N. OWNERSHIP OF SUBSEQUENT PRODUCTS Any product, whether acceptable or unacceptable, developed under a contract awarded as a result of this RFP shall be the sole property of the State unless otherwise stated in the contract. O. STATE FISCAL AND PRODUCT PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS Any product or services acquisition resulting from this RFP must be contingent upon contractual provisions for cancellation of such acquisition, without penalty, if the applicable funds are not available for required payment or if the product or services fail to meet minimum State criteria for acceptance and performance reliability. P. VALIDATION OF PROPOSALS The Vendor’s proposal shall be a binding commitment which the State may include, by reference or otherwise, into any contract with the Vendor. The proposal must provide the names, titles, addresses and telephone numbers of those individuals with authority to negotiate a contract with the State and contractually bind the Vendor. The proposal must also include evidence that it has been duly delivered on the part of the Vendor, that the persons submitting the proposal have the requisite corporate power and authority to structure, compile, draft, submit and deliver the proposal and subsequently to enter into, execute, deliver and perform on behalf of the Vendor any contract contemplated in this RFP. Q. EXECUTION OF CONTRACT This RFP is not a contract and, alone, shall not be interpreted as such. Rather, this RFP only serves as the instrument through which proposals are solicited. Once the evaluation of the proposals and the vendor selection are complete, the selected proposal(s) and this RFP may then serve as the basis for a contract that will be negotiated and executed between the State and the selected vendor(s). This RFP and the proposal will likely be attached to the contract as exhibits. Some of the terms and conditions within this RFP may be negotiable. If DAS and the initial vendor fail to reach consensus on the issues relative to the contract, then DAS may commence contract negotiations with the next highest scoring vendors. Additionally, upon Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 33 conclusion of negotiations with initial vendor, if DAS intends to award only part of this contract to the initial vendor (based on the best interests of the State), DAS may commence contract negotiations with other vendor(s) on the non-awarded portion of the contract. The State may also decide at any time to start the RFP process again. The contract may include a liquidated damages clause at the discretion of the State. R. ORAL AGREEMENT OR ARRANGEMENTS Any alleged oral agreements or arrangements made by the Vendor with any Contract User or employee will be disregarded in any State proposal evaluation or associated award. S. INDEPENDENT PRICE DETERMINATIONS The Vendor shall warrant, represent, and certify that the following requirement have been met in connection with their proposal for this RFP: The costs proposed have been arrived at independently, without consultation, communication, or agreement for the purpose of restricting competition as to any matter relating to such process with any other organization or with any competitor; Unless otherwise required by law, the pricing proposed has not been knowingly disclosed by the Vendor on a prior basis directly or indirectly to any other organization or to any competitor; and No attempt has been made, or will be made, by the proposed to induce any other person or firm to submit or not to submit a proposal for the purpose of restricting competition. T. OFFER OF GRATUITIES The Vendor warrants, represents, and certifies that no elected or appointed official or employee of the State has, or will, benefit financially or materially from this procurement. Any contract and/or award arising from this RFP may be terminated by DAS if it is determined that gratuities of any kind were either offered to, or received by, any of the aforementioned officials or employees from the Vendor, the Vendor’s agent(s), representative(s) or employee(s). U. FREEDOM OF INFORMATION Due regard will be given for the protection of proprietary or confidential information contained in all proposals received. However, vendors should be aware that all materials associated with the procurement are subject to the terms of the FOIA and all rules, regulations and interpretations resulting there from. It will not be sufficient for vendors to merely state generally that the proposal is proprietary or confidential in nature and not, therefore, subject to release to third parties. Those particular sentences, paragraphs, pages or sections which a vendor believes to be exempt from disclosure under the FOIA must be specifically identified as such. Convincing explanation and rationale sufficient to justify each exemption consistent with Section 1-210(b) of the FOIA must accompany the proposal. The rationale and explanation must be stated in terms of the prospective harm to the competitive position of the vendor that would result if the identified material were to be released and the reasons why the materials are legally exempt from release pursuant to the abovecited statute. V. PAYMENTS AGAINST A CONTRACT AWARD Under no circumstances shall the successful Vendor begin to perform under the contract prior to the effective date of the contract. The State shall assume no liability for payment of services under the terms of the contract until the successful Vendor is notified that the contract has been accepted by DAS and approved by the Office of the Attorney General. In no case, shall a successful Vendor bill Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 34 the Contract User for amounts in excess of the amount(s) indicated in the final proposal agreed to and accepted by the DAS. Any authorized or agreed additional charges can only be approved for payment by means of an amendment to the contract. W. SUBLETTING OR ASSIGNING OF CONTRACT The contract or any portion thereof, or the work provided for therein, or the right, title, or interest of the Vendor therein or thereto may not be sublet, sold, transferred, assigned or otherwise disposed of to any person, firm, or corporation, or other entity without the prior written consent of the State. No person, firm or corporation, or other entity, other than the Vendor, to whom the project was awarded, is permitted to commence work on the project unless such consent has been granted. X. COMPLIANCE WITH EMPLOYMENT-RELATED LAWS AND REGULATIONS 1. Equality of Employment Opportunity During the performance of any contract financed in whole or in part by appropriation of the State, the Vendor agrees to the following: The Vendor will not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, creed, color, sex, age, or national origin. The Vendor will take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed and that employees are treated equally during employment without regard to their race, creed, color, sex, age, or national origin. Such action shall include, but not be limited to the following: advertising, lay-off or termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation, and selection for training including apprenticeships. The Vendor agrees to post in conspicuous places, notices to be provided by the Contract Users setting forth the provisions of this non-discrimination clause. The Vendor will, in all solicitations or advertisements for employees placed by or on behalf of the Vendor, state that all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, creed, color, sex, age, or national origin. 2. Discrimination and Labor Recruitment The Vendor shall comply with Executive Orders No. Three and Seventeen, promulgated June 16, 1971 and February 15, 1973 and to the Guidelines and Rules of the State Labor Commissioner implementing Executive Order No. Three and further agree to submit reports of compliance staffing on Labor Department Form E.O. 3-1 when and as required. The Vendor shall also comply with non-discrimination provisions as described in Connecticut General Statutes Nos. 4a60 and 4a-60a and any other applicable statute or regulation and administrative procedure. 3. Affirmative Action and Contract Compliance Reporting Vendors are advised that in addition to evaluating their qualifications, experience, capabilities, competitiveness of cost, and conformance to the RFP specifications, weight may also be given to vendors who demonstrate a commitment to affirmative action by full compliance with the Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities regulations. The Employment Information Form, included in this RFP, should be completed by the Vendor and included with proposal. 4. Americans with Disabilities Act The Vendor shall comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act in accordance with Public Law 101336 and any other applicable federal laws and regulations. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 35 Y. CONFORMANCE WITH FEDERAL, STATE AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS By executing the contract, the Vendor represents and warrants that, at all pertinent and relevant times to the contract, it has been, is and will continue to be in full compliance with all Federal, State, municipal or other governmental department, commission, board, bureau, agency, institution, office council, instrumentality, municipalities or not for profits codes, statutes, acts, ordinances, guidelines, resolutions, orders, judgments, decrees, injunctions, rules, regulations and the like. Z. STATE ACCESS TO RECORDS, RECORD KEEPING, AND RECORD TRANSFER The Vendor shall prepare, maintain and preserve all records with respect to the administration of this program. During the term of the contract the State and/or Contract Users shall have access during normal business hours to all such records, in whatever form they exist or are stored, which records shall be the property of the State and/or Contract Users, and upon termination of the contract, all such records, or exact copies thereof, shall be immediately turned over intact to the State. The Vendor shall afford the officers, attorneys, accountants, auditors, and other authorized representatives of the State free and full access to the records to be maintained by the Vendor as pertains to the contract. At the option of the State, periodic audits may, at reasonable times, be made of the successful vendors’ and all of its subcontractors’ books and records insofar as they pertain to the contract. Such audits shall be made at the State’s expense by the State or independent public accountants designated by the State. Said books and records shall be made available to the Auditors of Public Accounts of the State. AA. CONFIDENTIALITY AND CARE OF DATA The Vendor agrees to protect the confidentiality of any files, data or other material pertaining to this contract and to restrict their use solely for the purpose of performing this contract. The Vendor will take all steps necessary to safeguard data, files, reports or other information from loss, destruction or erasure. Any costs or expenses of replacing or damages resulting from the loss of such data shall be borne by the Vendor when such loss or damage occurred through its negligence. XI. RFP Process and Timing The timeline for this RFP process is aggressive - with proposals due by 2 p.m. EST on Tuesday, March 2nd, 2004. Negotiations and discussions may follow with qualified and responsible vendor(s) who submit the proposal(s) found to best meet the needs of the initiative and the State. The Vendor is advised to review all sections of this RFP carefully and to follow instructions completely, as failure to make a complete submission as described elsewhere herein may result in the rejection of the proposal and disqualification of the Vendor from further participation. Alternative approaches and/or methodologies to accomplish the desired or intended results of this RFP are welcome and are specifically requested in a section of this RFP. However, these cannot be a substitute to the requirements set out in this RFP but are requested as an optional addition to the Vendor’s proposal to the State. With the exception of where specifically invited to do so, a proposal that departs from or materially alters the terms, requirements, or scope of work defined by this RFP may be rejected for being non-responsive. Please be aware that the State intends to use the language in the RFP for the final contract with some of the terms being negotiable. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 36 Key RFP Dates: Activity RFP available to vendors Notice of Intent to Respond due Written questions due from vendors Written answer posted on DAS website Proposals due from vendors Proposal evaluation Oral presentations, if necessary Site visits / vendor negotiations, if necessary Vendor(s) selection Date Feb. 10, 2004 Feb. 20, 2004, 2 p.m. EST Feb. 20, 2004, 2 p.m. EST Feb. 23, 2004 Mar. 2, 2004, 2 p.m. EST Mar. 3, 2004 to Mar. 23, 2004 End of Mar. 2004 First half of Apr. 2004 End of Apr. 2004 XII. Instructions to Vendors A. VENDOR NOTIFICATION Prior to submitting a response to the RFP, the Vendor may sign up online at the State Procurement website to receive future email notices on Printing Services, if they have not done so already. Instructions for registration can be found at the State Procurement website: www.das.state.ct.us/Purchase/Register/eProcurement_Reg_form.asp B. FILES TO DOWNLOAD Please note that there are four additional files to download and complete for your proposal. Appendix_A_Qualitative_Questions.doc Appendix_B_Sample_Jobs.xls Appendix_C_Sample_Reports.xls Printing_Pricing_Grids(RFP-16).xls C. INQUIRIES We welcome your interest in working with us, and we will be pleased to answer any questions you may have in formulating your response. Questions for the purpose of clarifying this RFP must be submitted in writing and must be received by DAS/Procurement Services no later than 2 p.m. on Friday, February 20th, 2004. Questions received after the date and time specified will not be answered. Questions must be emailed or faxed to: Department of Administrative Services, Procurement Services, RFP #04PSX0010, Attn: Linda LoSchiavo, 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor South Wing, Hartford, CT 06106. Fax number (860) 6222923. E-mail: RFP-Printing@po.state.ct.us. Please include the vendor name in the subject of the message. Answers to all questions will be provided in the form of an addendum and will be available on the DAS/Procurement Services website (www.das.state.ct.us/busopp.asp) before end of day on February 23, 2004. Proposers must download a copy of the addendum from the website. After the RFP due date, your organization shall not contact any employee of the State for additional information, except in writing via e-mail at Linda.loschiavo@po.state.ct.us directed to Linda LoSchiavo. Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 37 D. AUTHORIZED SIGNATURES The proposal must be signed by one or more authorized officials with the authority to bind your company. The proposal must also provide the name, title address, email, and telephone number of those individuals, and of those who may be contacted to clarify the information provided. Upon award, the Vendor shall provide DAS with a copy of their Corporate Resolution, authorizing the signer to bind the company. E. SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS The Vendor must submit one (1) original and five (5) copies of the proposal along with two (2) copies of electronic versions (either on diskette or CD-ROM). The proposals must be submitted in a SEALED envelope or carton, clearly marked with the RFP number (# 04PSX0010), and the name and address of the Vendor. Any material that is not so received may be opened as general mail, and result in invalidating the Vendor’s submission. Facsimile or unsealed proposals will not be accepted under any circumstances. The State is dedicated to waste reduction and the practice of using and promoting the use of recycled and environmentally preferable products and services. To promote these values, all proposers are encouraged to submit proposals following these guidelines: All copies should be printed double sided. Pricing pages should be single sided. All proposals and copies should be printed on recycled paper with a minimum post-consumer content of 30% or on tree-free paper. All bids should note the level or type of paper used to satisfy this request. Unless necessary, all proposals should minimize or eliminate the use of non-recyclable or non re-usable materials. Three-ring binders are acceptable if the size of the proposal warrants such use. Proposers are encouraged to use paper dividers or similar method to effectively organize the proposal for review. Proposals should be submitted in a format that allows for the easy removal and recycling of recyclable materials. In addition to recycled paper, Proposers are encouraged to use other products that contain recycled content in their proposals. To be considered acceptable, the proposal must be complete and conform with all RFP instructions and conditions. Each proposal must cover all services requested in this RFP (all printing, forms management, and envelopes). DAS, at its discretion, may reject in whole or in part any proposal if in its judgment the best interests of the State will be served. The proposals must be mailed or delivered in person to the address below to arrive by 2 p.m. EST on March 2nd, 2004. Proposals received after that time, due to whatever reason, will not be accepted and will be returned to the Vendor. If the late proposal is delivered in person, the proposal will not be accepted. If the late proposal is received in the mail, the Vendor will be required to pick up their proposal, at no expense to the State. Postmark dates will not be considered as the basis for meeting any submission deadline. Proposals will not be publicly read on the due date. Mailing Address: RFP# 04PSX0010 State of Connecticut Department of Administrative Services, Procurement Services Attn: Linda LoSchiavo P.O. Box 150414 165 Capitol Avenue, 5th Floor – South Wing Hartford, CT 06106 Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 38 Address for In-Person Delivery: DAS Customer Service Attn: Linda LoSchiavo, Procurement Services RFP # 04PSX0010 165 Capitol Avenue, Room 110 Hartford, CT Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 39 XIII. Evaluation Criteria The Selection Committee will review and score all proposals. The Selection Committee will be composed of State purchasing officials and, where applicable, a selection of key category end-users from across the State government bodies that will review and score all proposals using the following criteria: 1. Applicable Content Ability to meet the Scope of Services and terms and conditions (as detailed in this document) Specific plans and methodology of approach Use of SBEs and MBEs in providing the State’s services Implementation program for the State Demonstrated ability to service clients having a similar scope of work Location of facilities used to serve the State 2. Business Information Length of time in business Qualifications of staff Experience with other government entities Other references Financial stability 3. Account Management Strategy for managing contract and customer service approach Reporting capabilities Ordering capabilities 4. Service Quality Ability to meet or exceed the service quality requirements outlined by the Contract Users 5. Value Demonstrated offering of the best combination of service, quality, and price to the State Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 40 Appendices and Attachments See attached file (Appendix_A_Qualitative_Questions.doc) See attached file (Appendix_B_Sample_Jobs.xls) See attached file (Appendix_C_Sample_Reports.xls) See attached file (Printing Services RFP Pricing Grids (RFP-16)) Buy Smart…Buy Together State of Connecticut Printing Services (RFP # 04PSX0010) Page 41