470 220004260 - Outside Plant Fiber Maintenance, Locate, and Repair Services

The District currently owns approximately sixty-two (62) miles of fiber spread throughout Escambia County, FL.  Thirty-six (36) miles of fiber are aerial and the other twenty-six (26) miles are buried.  A link to the District owned fiber map may be requested by interested bidders as referenced in Section VI, Letter A (Preparation Requirements).  Included in the referenced sixty-two (62) miles of fiber are approximately twelve point six (12.6) miles (two point eight (2.8) miles of aerial and nine point eight (9.8) miles of buried) of fiber the District is considering discontinuing and removing.  The District invites proposals from qualified firms experienced in providing fiber optic maintenance, locate services, and repair services in accordance with the following:

1. 1. MAINTENANCE SERVICES:
      1. The Contractor shall perform bi-annual inspection and survey of the entire fiber optic route, both underground and aerial, to identify and minimize potential hazards to the fiber optic cables or infrastructure.  The inspection shall identify any of the following but not limited to areas of construction activity, missing or damaged buried-cable markers, damaged or unsecured closure lids, significant areas of standing water near ducts and handholes, damaged splice enclosures, and sunken or damaged handholes.
      2. The first bi-annual inspection and survey for each contract year shall be performed before August 1st of each school year with the exception of the initial year, which will be performed within one (1) month of Awarding this contract.
      3. The bi-annual inspection and survey shall be conducted by not only drive-by patrols but also through inspections on foot when necessary for visual inspections of handholds, splice points, and any other area deemed necessary by the District Contract Administrator (DCA).  If an immediate threat to the operation of the network or public safety is assessed, it shall be communicated to the DCA immediately and scheduled for repair.  All other possible threats will be thoroughly documented and reported to the DCA within one (1) week of the discovery and should be completed during regular business hours.
      4. Documentation of every inspection shall consist of the date of the inspection, exact location and description of any issues identified, suggested remedy, digital pictures of all issues and areas of high potential for issues, and name of the person(s) performing the inspection.  If an immediate threat is assessed and rectified, the Contractor shall provide a picture of the threat before repairs and after completion of the repair.
   2. LOCATE SERVICES:
      1. The Contractor shall perform Locate services on an as-needed basis and shall be compliant with industry standards and expectations.  Locates should be completed within two (2) days of receiving the request and will be marked with Orange paint as stated by APWA Uniform Color Code for Marking Underground Facilities (http://www.callbeforeyoudig.org/apwa-color-code.asp) or as specified by the State of Florida’s One Call System.
      2. Missed or incorrect locates which result in damages to the District Plant shall result in immediate repairs to the Plant by the Contractor and at no cost to the District.
      3. Documentation of every locate service ticket from the State of Florida’s One Call System shall consist of the date of the call, intake personnel, reason for the ticket, and digital pictures of the locate markings, if applicable.
      4. All necessary maps and records related to these services by the Contractor shall be defined within the State One Call System by the District.  Any necessary update to our maps or records will be brought to the attention of the DCA prior to recording it in the State One Call System.
   3. REPAIR SERVICES:
      1. The Contractor shall perform repair services on an as-needed basis and shall be compliant with industry standards and expectations.  Repair services, both routine and emergency, shall be properly documented and a supervisor must perform a final inspection of the repair with the DCA, or appointed designee.
      2. Repair services will be performed on a time and materials basis.  Costs associated with the repair and paid by the Contractor for materials will be reimbursed as part of the invoicing process.  Labor rates will be as specified in the price proposal and are billable upon arrival at the work site and end once the work has been completed at the site.  Any breaks taken during the working session will not be billed to the District.  Time spent on a repair shall be billed to the nearest quarter hour. 
      3. Repair services which resulted from negligence of the Contractor or Subcontractor shall be immediately remedied by the Contractor and at no cost to the District.
      4. Documentation of every repair shall include the date of the repair, description of the original issue, description of the repair, digital pictures of the issue, both before and after the repair, names of the repair crew, and name of the supervisor who performed the final inspection.
      5. In the event a fiber line is determined to be damaged to the point of no longer being viable for repair, the Contractor and DCA shall mutually review available options (such as replace or remove) and develop a scope of work.  Such scope of work will be approved in writing by the DCA and issued with a new or amended Purchase Order.  In the event of a demolition, the abandoned sections will be removed from the state's one-call database.
   4. EMERGENCY REPAIRS:

1. 5. DOCUMENTATION AND INVOICING:
      1. The Contractor shall submit a detailed, itemized invoice documenting all locate services, as described above, to the DCA, or appointed designee, for review by the 5th of every month for the previous month’s locate services.
      2. Documentation and invoicing of all maintenance and repair services shall be submitted within thirty (30) calendar days after District inspection and acceptance as described in Section III (Special Conditions), O (Invoicing and Payments) on pages 10-11 to the DCA, or appointed designee.