It is recommended that the Mayor and City Commission approve the award of a contract pursuant to Invitation to Bid (ITB) No. 2023-445-DF for the maintenance, inspections, and related services for emergency power generators, for all groups with the exclusion of item 2a in each group as noted herein, to All Power Generators Corp, the lowest responsive and responsible bidder, as the primary vendor, and R & D Electric, Inc., the second-lowest responsive and responsible bidder, as the secondary vendor.

This solicitation is currently under the cone of silence.

The Facilities and Fleet Management and Public Works Departments require services on emergency power generators installed throughout the City. On October 2, 2018, the City entered into an Agreement with All Power Generators, Corp as the primary vendor and R&D Electric, Inc. as the secondary, pursuant to Invitation to Bid (ITB) No. 2018-039-JC. The Agreement is scheduled to expire on October 1, 2023.

The purpose of the ITB is to award an agreement to qualified emergency power generator firm(s) to continue the inspection, maintenance and related needs of emergency power generators throughout the City. To ensure adequate services, the ITB is intended to be awarded to a primary contractor and a secondary contractor in the event that the primary is unable to perform as stipulated in the ITB. 

On July 21, 2023, the ITB was issued. Bid notices were issued to approximately 16,000 companies utilizing the City's e-procurement system, with 38 prospective bidders accessing the solicitation. A pre-bid conference to provide information to proposers submitting a response was held on July 28, 2023. One (1) addendum was issued. Responses were due and received on August 11, 2023. The City received five (5) responses from 360 Energy Solutions, LLC, All Power Generators Corp, Genserve LLC, R & D Electric, Inc., and TAW Power Systems, Inc.

The solicitation stated that the lowest responsive, responsible bidder, meeting all terms, conditions, and specifications, would be recommended for award. The ITB also allowed for the award by line item, by group or for the total of all groups, as is in the City’s best interest.

After review of the bids received, staff determined that with the exception of item 2a in each group for the purchase of new generators, the lowest (primary vendor) and second lowest (secondary vendor) responsive, responsible bidders for each group are as follows in the table below.

*Item 2a in each group is not recommended for award because bidders were either not certified by the manufacturer to sell this equipment, as required in the ITB, or the bids received offered discounts that were lower than the expectations or that are available through other sources, such as open market purchases or cooperative purchase agreements. When the need arises to purchase these units, staff will compete separately or secure through a cooperative purchase agreement that has better discounts than was offered through the bids received.

City staff verified that the bidders complied with all terms, conditions, and specifications of the ITB. Further, All Power Generators Corp and R & D Electric, Inc. have provided satisfactory services to the City since 2014.

Below are brief descriptions of the responsive and responsible bidders.

All Power Generators Corp

All Power Generators Corp ("All Power Generators") has nearly 30 years of generator maintenance and repairs experience servicing all brands, sizes, makes, and models of generators, in addition to automatic transfer switches, generator rentals, and all other generator equipment and accessories. Some of its clients include governmental agencies, public and private companies, as well as various condominiums throughout South Florida. Its main capabilities include emergency and on-demand services, load bank services, mobile refueling, pressure cleaning, and inspections.

R & D Electric, Inc.

R & D Electric, Inc. ("R & D Electric") has served the construction industry for over 12 years. Its best recommendations come from customers it has served on nearly every conceivable type of electrical installation. R&D Electric has a long history of satisfied owners and constructors, from single-family homes to medical device manufacturers facilities, from commercial centers and office buildings to institutional and governmental projects, from fire alarms to street lighting, R & D Electric has a long history of satisfied owners and constructors. R & D Electric is a Miami-Dade County Small Business Enterprise for Construction and Goods and Services as an electric contractor.

According to the 2022 Community Satisfaction Survey conducted by ETC Institute (the "Survey"), 79% satisfaction was given to the "Appearance and maintenance of the City's public buildings" among resident survey respondents. The services of this contract aim to provide necessary upkeep to the emergency power generators critical to delivering services to residents, businesses, and visitors alike.  

Staff performed a cost analysis to determine whether the fiscal impact was in the City's best interest. Although the new ITB has additional line items, the City compared the line items for routine maintenance from the previous contract and observed an average increase of 47%. The CPI-U for the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach region observed an overall increase of 17.8% during the five-year term of the current contract, from August 2019 through August 2022. However, the overall CPI increase, which is lower than the increase in the bids received, does not account for sector-specific increases, as well as supply chain and labor market issues experienced over the last several years. Staff believes it is prudent to award the inspection and maintenance portions of the ITB as it is necessary to continue the required services on existing generators. Based on the lowest responsive, responsible bid, estimated annual costs for the ongoing maintenance of the generators is expected to be $28,800.

As previously stated, item 2a in each group for the purchase of new generators is not recommended for award. Any purchase of new generators shall be subject to funds availability approved through the City's budgeting process.

Based on the foregoing, it is recommended that the Mayor and City Commission approve the award of a contract pursuant to Invitation to Bid (ITB) No. 2023-445-DF for the maintenance, inspections, and related services for emergency power generators, for all groups with the exclusion of item 2a, to All Power Generators Corp, the lowest responsive and responsible bidder, as the primary vendor, and R & D Electric, Inc., the second-lowest responsive and responsible bidder, as the secondary vendor.