SOLICITATION NOTICE
C -- CURTAIN WALL & STEAM HEATING FEASIBILITY STUDY
- Notice Date
- 3/24/2005
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- NAICS
- 541330
— Engineering Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, North Central Research Station, 1992 Folwell Avenue - Aquisition Management, St. Paul, MN, 55108
- ZIP Code
- 55108
- Solicitation Number
- NC-05-02
- Response Due
- 4/27/2005
- Point of Contact
- Carol Hulstrom, Contracting Officer, Phone 651-649-5201, Fax 651-649-5285, - Carol Hulstrom, Contracting Officer, Phone 651-649-5201, Fax 651-649-5285,
- E-Mail Address
-
chulstrom@fs.fed.us, chulstrom@fs.fed.us
- Description
- USDA-Forest Service, North Central Research Station (NCRS) seeks an engineering and architectural feasibility study for the NCRS headquarters building located on the University of Minnesota St. Paul campus. North Central Research Station is scheduled to repair or replace two major failing components of the headquarters facility in the near future: 1. Perimeter windowed curtain wall system, and 2. Perimeter steam heating system. This is a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) of Architectural-Engineering (A-E) Firms/Lead Investigators interested in contracting for this work. The A-E Firm as used in this RFQ means an individual, firm, partnership, corporation, association, or other legal entity permitted by law to practice the profession of architecture or engineering that will have contractual responsibility for the project implementation. The Lead Investigator is the individual or the team who will have primary responsibility to develop, conduct, and report the feasibility study. PERIMETER WINDOWED CURTAIN WALL SYSTEM. The headquarters building of the NCRS was constructed in the early 1960’s. The building is approximately 50,000 square feet in size and consists of two towers, (north tower and south). The north tower is made up of five stories. An elevator penthouse sits atop the roof. The south tower is built into the side of a hill and is made up of three stories. The air handler penthouse sits atop the south tower. The building is a reinforced concrete column, beam, and structural floor panel system with concrete spandrels along the perimeter. The building exterior envelope consists of horizontal strip windows between each floor, a vertical curtain wall system composed of insulated metal panels and brick panels, and aluminum fins parallel to each window jamb running from grade to the roof. The window system visually appears to be a curtain wall system, but in fact the curtain wall framing does not provide any structural support of the windows. The curtain wall only provides a visual “ribbed” appearance to the building. All indications are that the building exterior started leaking within the first year of occupancy. Various attempts to mitigate the leaks have been attempted over the years including: caulking between the curtain wall panels, caulking the seams of the architectural “fins”, caulking between the fins and the panels, and installing new weather stripping in the windows. None of these attempts to mitigate the leaks has had any prolonged effect. Leaks occur on all sides of the building, usually after a significant rainstorm accompanied by winds strong enough to drive the rain in a horizontal direction. The water usually saturates the area over and along the sides of the exterior windows resulting in loose plaster and water puddles on the floor. PERIMETER STEAM HEATING SYSTEM. The pneumatically controlled perimeter heating system is powered by steam purchased from the University of Minnesota centralized steam plant. The steam enters the building underground, into the second floor mechanical room. The steam is reduced through a 50 lb steam manifold and then through a 10 lb manifold. The 10 lb manifold distributes steam into 23 perimeter heating zones and up to the air handler penthouse. Pneumatic air operates a thermostatically controlled steam valve for each steam zone. Thermostatic traps are located at each terminal unit; terminal units being mostly radiators along with a few unit heaters. Elsewhere throughout the building, float and thermostatic traps are mostly used on condensate drip legs. The perimeter heating system requires a lot of time and expense to maintain. Besides the fact that steam traps have to be checked each year and occasionally fail, we are finding that the condensate lines are also failing. The condensate return piping (after the steam traps on terminal units) is in various stages of either plugging up or the walls are getting so thin that they rupture and leak. BUILDING USE. Originally, the building had a dual use. The north tower and the hallways connecting the towers have always been used as administrative space. The south tower contained a number of wet chemistry laboratories and associated office space for scientists and technicians. Over the years, the building has undergone a number of renovations. There is only one true wet chemistry laboratory with a fume hood left. All the other spaces have been converted to office space or some sort of utility space. All but the one fume hood has been removed. We are currently in the midst of consolidating employees to national facilities; meaning that not all of the existing space will be utilized. This was not for-seen when project funding was approved. BUILDING HISTORY. A cooling tower was originally used for ventilation cooling. In the mid-1980’s the cooling tower was replaced with two York, 50-ton, rooftop chillers. The University of Minnesota is in the process of constructing a centralized chilled water plant. A study was commissioned in 2003 to determine the cost effectiveness of connecting to the new chilled water system vs. replacing the rooftop chillers. Cost-wise, it is literally a wash. However, not having the equipment to be concerned with nor having to keep staff around to maintain that equipment pushes the decision towards connecting to the centralized chilled water plant. The rooftop chillers would then be eliminated. In the early 1990’s, a direct digital control energy management system was installed in the building. The energy management system was used to control the building ventilation. Most of the control actuators remain pneumatic. The original air handling units were constant volume units with steam pre-heat coils and steam re-heat coils. Temperature controls were pneumatic. Air handling unit #1 supplies six ventilation zones in the north tower and air handling unit #2 supplies eight ventilation zones to the connecting corridors and the south tower. The towers and corridor return air to their respective air handling units. In 2001, the air handling units were replaced with modular Trane units. A steam to hot water converter was installed in the penthouse to serve ventilation pre-heat and re-heat coils. The temperature controls were converted to a complete electronic system controlled by the building energy management system. SERVICES. The steady deterioration of the condensate lines in the heating system along with the continual moisture problems due to the curtain wall system has prompted the Forest Service to determine what course of action(s) might be taken in order to deal with these problems. The services requested in this feasibility study is to investigate, evaluate, and report the deficiencies in the curtain wall system and the perimeter steam heating system and propose alternatives to solve or deal with these deficiencies. SELECTION PROCESS. This is a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) of Architectural-Engineering (A-E) Firms/Lead Investigators interested in contracting for this work. The A-E Firm as used in this RFQ means an individual, firm, partnership, corporation, association, or other legal entity permitted by law to practice the profession of architecture or engineering that will have contractual responsibility for the project implementation. The Lead Investigator is the individual or the team who will have primary responsibility to develop, conduct, and report the feasibility study. The A-E selection will be completed in two stages as follows: Stage I: Interested firms will submit a completed Standard Form 330 Architect-Engineer Qualification to establish a short-list (minimum of three A-E Firms) of firms with the qualifications to accomplish this project. Stage II: Qualified A-E Firms will submit proposals to accomplish the feasibility study. Stage I: The first stage will establish the capabilities of the A-E Firm/Lead Investigator. Capability to perform the investigation will be based upon the following criteria as provided in the SF 330. Criteria 1: PAST PERFORMANCE OF A-E FIRM (50 %) Relevant projects completed within the past 10 years by the A-E Firm. Names of key personnel who participated in example projects. Criteria 2: PAST PERFORMANCE OF LEAD INVESTIGATOR (50 %) Relevant projects completed within the last 10 years by the Lead Investigator. Stage II: The short-listed firms will be notified and asked to submit a proposal to conduct the feasibility study. The Government will establish the detailed evaluation criteria and the date that these submittals are due and provide the selection criteria along with the Stage I short-list announcement. Firms having the capabilities to perform the services described in this announcement are invited to complete Standard Form 330 Architect Engineer Qualifications (Part I and Part II) and submit two (2) complete copies and a letter of interest identifying this announcement by solicitation number arriving at the designated location no later than April 27, by 2:00 p.m. A follow-up listing of firms to be selected for Stage II will appear as a modification to this synopsis posting. This announcement is open to all businesses regardless of size. All contractors must be registered in the Central Contractors Register (CCR at www.ccr.gov) in order to be considered for award. NOTE: THIS NOTICE MAY HAVE POSTED ON WWW.FEDBIZOPPS.GOV ON THE DATE INDICATED IN THE NOTICE ITSELF (24-MAR-2005). IT ACTUALLY APPEARED OR REAPPEARED ON THE FEDBIZOPPS SYSTEM ON 08-AUG-2005, BUT REAPPEARED IN THE FTP FEED FOR THIS POSTING DATE. PLEASE CONTACT fbo.support@gsa.gov REGARDING THIS ISSUE.
- Web Link
-
Link to FedBizOpps document.
(http://www.eps.gov/spg/USDA/FS/63PX/NC-05-02/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: USDA-Forest Service, North Central Research Station, 1992 Folwell Avenue, St. Paul, Minnesota
- Zip Code: 55108
- Country: USA
- Zip Code: 55108
- Record
- SN00865709-F 20050810/050808213600 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps.gov Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
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