This is a service / maintenance or supply contract in Cayce, South Carolina. Contact the soliciting agency for additional information.

The Utilities Division of the City of Cayce (City) seeks expressions of interest and qualifications from qualified and experienced Civil Engineering firms for engineering services associated with the evaluation and testing of emerging contaminants at the City's Water Treatment Plant. This research and its findings will result in an engineering report that will provide guidance to the City in meeting the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National Drinking Water Standards for Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) removal, commencing in 2029. Question Submission Deadline: July 2, 2025, 3:00pm Question Response Deadline: July 11, 2025, 5:00pm Point of Contact: Allison Barrs, Financial Reporting Manager abarrs@caycesc.gov Selection Review Process: August 22, 2025 Selection and Approval by City Council: September 17, 2025 Kick-Off and Notice to Proceed: September 24, 2025 The City of Cayce invites qualified firms to submit proposals to provide engineering services based upon the scope of work contained in this Solicitation. The City reserves the right to reject any and all proposals, to waive any informalities or irregularities and to make the selection among the proposals as are deemed in the best interest of The City. The City is not liable for any costs incurred to prepare or present a response to this Solicitation. The City seeks proposals from qualified providers interested in providing comprehensive engineering services services to the City. The objective of the City is to ensure comprehensive services while maintaining competitive contract pricing. The City may award a contract to the best service provider(s) with innovative ideas, which may not be the lowest price proposal. The City reserves the right not to award some or all of the services contemplated herein. Term of Award to be discussed as part of negotiations. The City reserves the right to cancel the contract, at any time, without cause and without penalty with a minimum thirty (30) days written notice. Termination or cancellation of the contract will not relieve the Proposer of any obligations for any deliveries entered into prior to the termination of the contract (i.e. reports, statements of accounts, etc., required and not received). Termination or cancellation of the contract will not relieve the Proposer of any obligations or liabilities resulting from any acts committed by the Proposer prior to the termination of the contract. Contractor agrees that it will not discriminate in hiring, promotion, treatment, or other terms and conditions of employment based upon race, sex, national origin, age, disability, or in any way violate Title VII of 1964 Civil Rights Act and amendments or the South Carolina Human Affairs Law, except as permitted by said laws. 2.6. Proposal Errors Submitters are cautioned to verify their Proposal prior to submission. Negligence on the part of the submitter in preparing the Proposal confers no right of modification of the Proposal after the closing time for its receipt. Inadvertent errors (such as the omission of one page of a multi-page document) that have a correction submitted after the designated submission time may be considered at the sole discretion of the City if the submitter submits with the correction sufficient information to prove that the error was inadvertent. Such amendments are not favored and, in the case of doubt, requests will be denied. 2.7. Late Proposals; Misrepresentations Responses will not be accepted after the submission deadline for any reason. The City strongly encourages vendors complete their responses well in advance of the solicitation deadline. Any material misrepresentations made by the submitter(s) will void the response and eliminate the submitter(s) from further consideration. The City reserves all rights with regard to this solicitation. Protest of Contents of Solicitation (Invitation For Bids or RFPs or other solicitation documents, whichever is applicable, or any amendment to it, if the amendment is at issue): Any Proposer who is aggrieved in connection with a solicitation document shall file a written protest to the City Manager, jcrosland@cityofcayce-sc.gov, within four calendar days of the date of posting of the solicitation, RFQ, RFP, or other solicitation document or any addendums to it on the City's website. Protest of Award: Any Proposer who is aggrieved in connection with the award of the contract shall file a written protest with the City Manager within four calendar days of the date the Intent to Award memorandum is posted on the City's website. Any matter that could have been raised pursuant to the section above on protest of contents of solicitation, may not be raised as a protest of award. Exclusive remedy: The rights and remedies granted in this section to Proposers, either actual or prospective, are to the exclusion of all other rights and remedies of Proposers against the City. The proposed project will include an evaluation of the various treatment options that are known to remove PFAS. This includes advanced treatment options such as Granular Activated Carbon (GAC), Anion Exchange (AIX), and Reverse Osmosis/Nanofiltration (RO/NF), at a minimum. The benefits of feeding increased dosages of Powdered Activated Carbon (PAC) will be evaluated as well. The study will involve research and bench scale testing to determine the efficiency of PFAS removal for each treatment option. In addition, the study will evaluate which of the treatment options, or combination of options, is also capable of treating the algal byproducts geosmin and 2-Methylisoborneol (MIB), which would be an added benefit to ensure the City is capable of treating water to minimize taste and order concerns during future algal blooms. Pros and cons of each of the advanced treatment options related to the City's specific site characteristics will be considered. This will include a review of the efficiency, required construction footprint, upfront capital costs, maintenance costs, residuals/solids handling, ease of operation, and long-term impacts. Upon completion of the research and bench scale testing, pilot testing will be performed on one or more technologies to determine actual removal efficiencies and the design dosages required to meet the proposed regulations. PFAS sampling and analyses will be performed over the course of the study in order to track the removal rates. It will also be necessary to observe potential negative impacts to the plant due to treatment interferences. The study and pilot testing will allow the City to gather important information that will assist in developing a path forward for PFAS, MIB, and Geosmin treatment. The research and findings will be presented in an engineering report. The report will also include anticipated costs for engineering, construction/implementation, and on-going operational and maintenance costs for the various treatment options. The method of Contractor Selection has not been Determined at this time.