Recapitalization and building component and connectivity programs project management support services

Table of contents

• 1. Introduction
• 2. Attestation of assurance
• 3. Project requiremente
• 4. Fairness Monitor engagement and observations
  • 4.1. Request for proposal phase
  • 4.2. Evaluation phase
• 5. Reference documents

1. Introduction

Hallux Consulting Inc. was engaged as a Fairness Monitor (FM) to observe the competitive procurement process for the Recapitalization and Building Component and Connectivity Programs (Recap/BCC) Project Management Support Services, issued by Public Works and Government Services Canada (PWGSC) on behalf of the Parliamentary Precinct Branch (PPB), as a result of Solicitation Number EP756-152289/A. Hallux Consulting Inc. is an independent third party with respect to this activity.

We reviewed all of the information provided and observed all relevant activities.

We hereby submit the Final Report, covering the activities of the Fairness Monitor, commencing on April 2, 2015 after an initial statement of work had been drafted and the method of supply had been determined but prior to the drafting of the Request for Proposal, continuing through to the evaluators' consensus meeting of July 6, the presentation by the bidder on July 28, 2015, and the contracting officer's confirmation September 1, 2015 that he had sufficient evidence that the proposed rates for the initial contract period were justified.

This report includes our attestation of assurance, a summary of the scope and objectives of our assignment, the methodologies applied and relevant observations from the activities undertaken.

2. Attestation of assurance

The FM hereby provides the following unqualified assurance statement concerning the Parliamentary Precinct Branch Recapitalization and Building Component and Connectivity Programs Project Management Support Services, procurement process: It is our professional opinion that the competitive procurement process we observed was carried out in a fair, open and transparent manner.

3. Project requirement

A major undertaking is underway to preserve Canada's parliamentary buildings and grounds. Time and nature have taken their toll and the buildings, some of which predate Confederation, are suffering from deterioration. As the custodian of the Parliamentary Precinct, which includes Parliament Hill and the facing street, the mandate of Public Works and Government Services includes ensuring that this iconic corner of Canada is preserved for all Canadians.

The Recapitalization Program delivers work required to preserve the buildings and address health and safety issues and to reduce overall expenditures while ensuring the ongoing operations of occupied buildings until such time as the planned rehabilitations can be scheduled and completed. Projects are permanent interventions to stop or reduce the continued deterioration, including urgent building repairs, to ensure the ongoing viability of the buildings.

The Building Components and Connectivity Program delivers precinct-wide projects that provide the infrastructure and services to implement the connectivity requirements for the Precinct. Components are building fixtures, furnishings and equipment. Connectivity includes interconnected systems for networking, security, multimedia and other electronic communications. BCC is installed as part of each building project.

A recent reorganization within PPB has brought together responsibility within one directorate for both the Recapitalization Program and the Building Component and Connectivity Program. There have been separate teams supporting these two programs. Going forward, one team will support both programs.

This procurement initiative is to obtain external project management support services (PMSS) to assist PWGSC in managing the planning, design implementation for the Parliamentary Precinct Branch's Recapitalization and Building Component and Connectivity Programs. The PMSS team will deliver services in support of the responsibilities of the PWGSC Project Managers and Directors; together they will function to provide integrated project management for the programs.

The Request for Proposal was provided to all suppliers who qualified under the Task and Solution Professional Services (TSPS) supply arrangement for Tier 2 in the Project Management Services Stream and the Real Property Project Management Stream. In qualifying under these two streams, potential bidders needed to meet the requirements for resources in the following categories:

• Project Management Services Stream:
  • Project Leader/Executive – Senior;
  • Quality Assurance/Management Specialist – Senior;
  • Risk Management Specialist – Senior;
  • Procurement Specialist – Senior;
  • Technical Writer – Intermediate;
  • Communications Consultant – Intermediate.
• Real Property Project Management Services Stream:
  • Project Administrator for Real Property – Intermediate;
  • Project Manager for Real Property – Senior;
  • Project Manager for Real Property – Intermediate;
  • Project Planner for Real Property – Senior;
  • Financial/Cost Specialist for Real Property – Intermediate;
  • Claims Analyst for Real Property – Senior  FM Engagement and Observations.

4. Fairness Monitor engagement and observations

Hallux Consulting Inc. was engaged as a Fairness Monitor (FM) to observe the competitive procurement process for the Parliamentary Precinct Recapitalization and Building Component and Connectivity Programs for Project Management Support Services, and to attest to the fairness, openness and transparency of this monitored activity.

In accordance with the terms of our engagement, we familiarized ourselves with the relevant documents, observed request for proposal and evaluation related activities identifying fairness-related matters to the appropriate parties, e.g., contracting and technical authorities, and ensuring that responses and actions were reasonable and appropriate.

4.1 Request for proposal phase

The Task and Solutions Professional Services (TSPS) method of supply was utilized for this procurement. All supply arrangement holders under E60ZN-13TSPS who qualified under Tier 2 for the Real Property Project Management Services and Project Management Services streams for all of the required resource categories were invited to submit a proposal. The RFP documents were sent by email to the five potential bidders on June 3, 2015 and the Notice of Proposed Procurement (NPP) was published on buyandsell.gc.ca June 4, 2015. The RFP had an initial closing date of June 25, 2015 which was extended to June 29, 2015. Five questions were received from the qualified bidders during the bid period. Responses to the questions were provided by way of the three amendments issued to the RFP. Ten queries were also received from suppliers that did not qualify under the TSPS method of supply, in response to the publishing of the NPP. The Contracting Authority responded by email to all the queries received. Only one bid was received in response to the RFP.

Key activities during this phase of the procurement included:

• Reviewing the draft RFP;
• Reviewing the final RFP as sent by email to the qualified supply arrangement holders;
• Reviewing queries posed by firms that did not qualify under the TSPS for the procurement and the answers provided by the contracting authority;
• Reviewing queries posed by potential bidders and the answers provided by the contracting authority; and
• Reviewing amendments to the RFP.

All potential fairness issues were properly addressed during the RFP phase.

4.2 Evaluation phase

During the period of June 30 to September 1, 2015 the Fairness Monitor Specialist observed:

• the training provided to the team of four evaluators;
• the distribution of the proposals and the individual evaluator scoring sheets and the signature of the confidentiality and conflict of interest statements;
• mandatory evaluation sheets for the bidder;
• the technical evaluation session held on July 6, 2015, which were undertaken in a consistent fashion and by consensus of all the evaluation board members;
• the presentation made by the bidder on July 28, 2015 which was part of the technical rating process;
• the validation of the technical evaluation results by the Contracting Authority;
• the calculation of the final scores for the technical rating; and
• the final evaluation spreadsheet which included both the technical and financial scores.

The FM Specialist observed that the evaluation processes and instructions published in the Final RFP, the RFP amendments and the Evaluation instructions were followed during the evaluation phase. Comments were provided by the FM Specialist as required throughout the evaluation process to the Technical Team and the Contracting Authority. All comments were addressed appropriately by project officials.

Correspondence from the contracting officer outlining the steps taken to satisfy himself that the proposed rates for the initial contract period were reasonable, were also reviewed. Analysis of the proposed rates is required when only one bid is received as was the case in this procurement.

No potential fairness issues were identified in this phase of the procurement.

5. Reference documents

Documents related to Solicitation Number EP756-152289/A are available on Archived - Project Management Services (EP756-152289/A) and/or through the project office.

Table summary

The following table includes a list of documents referred to in the report such as the Request for Proposal (RFP), amendments, clarification letters, debriefing letters, etc. Each row is numbered, followed by the document title, then a document identifier such as a date or document number.

No.	Document	Additional information
1	Notice of Proposed Procurement	Notice of Proposed Procurement (NPP) published on buyandsell.gc.ca on June 04, 2015.
2	Request for Proposal	Sent by email to the five qualified supply arrangement holders on June 3, 2015
3	Amendment No. 001	Sent by email to the five qualified supply arrangement holders on June 22, 2015
4	Amendment No. 002	Sent by email to the five qualified supply arrangement holders on June 23, 2015
5	Amendment No. 003	Sent by email to the five qualified supply arrangement holders on June 26, 2015

Addendum to the final report
December 7, 2015

Addendum to the final report dated September 14, 2015 for the competitive procurement process for the project management support services for the recapitalization and building component and connectivity programs undertaken by Public Works and Government Services Canada through request for proposal number EP756‐152289/A.

This Addendum to the Final Report covers the period following the conclusion of the evaluation phase during which the contract was awarded.

There was only one bid received. Subsequent to the verification that the proposed rates for the initial contract were reasonable, the bidder was awarded contract on September 8, 2015. On November 23, 2015 we reviewed debriefing notes which were sent by email to the successful bidder on November 25, 2015. A face-to-face meeting was not required.

Fairness Monitor attestation of assurance

The FM hereby provides the following unqualified assurance statement concerning the Project Management Support Services for the Recapitalization and Building Component and Connectivity Programs: It is our professional opinion that the competitive procurement process we observed was carried out in a fair, open and transparent manner.