This is a service / maintenance or supply contract in Lowell, Massachusetts. Contact the soliciting agency for additional information.

The bids will be for all labor, materials, equipment, tools, appliances etc. necessary for construction of the Large Water Meter Replacement Project Work includes removing and replacing 680 large water meters, registers, wiring, and AMI modules in the City of Lowell, Massachusetts. Meters and AMI modules are being furnished by the City under a separate Contract. Meter replacements include approximately 175 non-standard Type 1, Type 2 and Type 3 installations, ranging in size from 5/8- to 8-inch diameter. Work also includes rightsizing of select water meter settings, in-line water meter testing based on the AWWA M6 Standard. The City of Lowell herein called the "Owner" invites sealed bids on the separate copies of Bid Forms furnished for that purpose, all blanks of which must be appropriately filled in. The bound-in Bid Forms in the Contract Documents are for continuity and the convenience of Bidders and are not to be detached from the Contract Documents, filled out or executed. The Owner may consider informal any bid not prepared and submitted in accordance with the provisions hereof and may waive any informalities or reject any and all bids. Any bid may be withdrawn prior to the above scheduled time for the opening of bids or authorized postponement thereof. Any bid received after the time and date specified shall not be considered. No bidder may withdraw a bid within 60 days after the actual date of the opening thereof. Each bid proposal must be secured by an accompanying deposit of five percent (5%) of the total bid amount and submitted in a sealed envelope clearly marked, "Proposal for LARGE WATER METER REPLACEMENT PROJECT". The deposit shall be in the form of a Bid Bond, Certified Check, Cashier's or Treasurer's Check, made payable to the City of Lowell, or cash. The successful bidder must furnish a Payment Bond and a Performance Bond of an amount equal to One Hundred (100%) percent of the total Contract Price, issued by a Surety Company, satisfactory to the Director of the Department of Planning and Development. Attention of the Bidders is particularly called to the "Equal Opportunity Clause" and the "Standard Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Construction Contract Specifications" set forth herein. Attention of the Bidders is particularly called to the requirements of the conditions of employment to be observed and the prevailing wage rates to be paid on this project, as determined by the State Department of Labor Division of Occupational Safety. Note: Bidders must also comply with Certification of Compliance G.L.C. 30 & 39S Public Construction More Than $10,000.00. See page BP-11. The City of Lowell, acting through its Chief Procurement Officer, reserves the right to waive any informality in, to reject any or all bids or to accept the one which appears in the best interest of the City of Lowell. MBE's are encouraged to submit proposals. EOE/AA. The City reserves the right to reject any or all Bids, if it is in the public interest to do so or for any other good cause, not limited to the following. The City reserves the right to reject any or all Bids, if it determines that the Bidder does not possess the qualifications to perform the Work specified in the Bidding Documents. The City reserves the right to reject the Bid of any Bidder who the City has determined has not completed a prior project, whether with the City or elsewhere, because of the fault of the Bidder, its Subcontractors or employees; has been declared in default on a prior contract whether with the City or elsewhere; has failed to complete a prior project in a timely fashion whether with the City or elsewhere; based on its work record, is not capable of performing the within Contract whether due to lack of sufficient prior experience, as determined by the City, or any other reason; has a work record of its Subcontractors demanding direct payment from the City; has a work record of its Subcontractors, employees or material suppliers complaining to the City or other awarding authority regarding the Bidder's failure to pay them; has a record of complaints made to the City or other awarding authority by persons offended by the behavior of the Bidder, its Subcontractors or employees; or has a record of its failure to comply with the Commonwealth and/or City laws and ordinances or requirements. "Work record" or "record" constitutes a minimum of one event in the work history of the Bidder. The City shall reject every Bid that is not accompanied by a Bid deposit. The contract work period shall be for the period beginning on or about April 1, 2024 or as stated in the NOTICE TO PROCEED, WHICHEVER IS LATER and end on March 31, 2025. Failure to complete the work by the dates herein specified, or any proper extensions thereof granted by the OWNER will be subject to liquidated damages in the amount of $500 per day. Interpretation: No interpretation of the meaning of the plans, specifications or other pre-bid documents will be made to any bidder orally. Prospective bidders are required to submit all questions in writing to the Chief Procurement Officer by 4:00 P.M. (EST) on January 9, 2023. Any questions received after this time will not be considered for review by the City. Contractors should email questions and addendum acknowledgements to the following email address: pmvaughn@lowellma.gov. Please put LARGE WATER METER REPLACEMENT PROJECT CONTRACTOR QUESTION in the subject line. Any and all such interpretations and any supplemental instructions will be in the form of written addenda to the specifications which, if issued, will be e-mailed with return receipt requested to all prospective bidders (at the respective email addresses furnished for such purposes), not later than three days prior to the date fixed for the opening of bids. Failure of any bidder to receive any such addendum or interpretation shall not relieve such bidder from any obligations under his/her bid as submitted. All addenda so issued shall become part of the contract documents.