Letterkenny Northern Network Project - Ground Investigation Contract

AI-generated analysis of the documents. Check the official notice and any amendments for current submission details.

1. At a glance

2. Scope of Work

This contract requires the provision of ground investigation services for the Letterkenny Northern Network Project. The contractor will undertake a range of intrusive and non-intrusive investigations to gather data on ground conditions. The work involves establishing site presence, conducting various drilling and excavation methods, performing in-situ and laboratory testing, and reporting findings.

Key activities include:

• Site Establishment and General Items:
• Establishing site offices and stores.
• Setting up rotary drilling, trial pitting, trenching, in-situ testing, and geophysical survey plant and equipment.
• Establishing instrumentation equipment.
• Provision of traffic safety and management, including road opening licenses and road damages bond.
• Preparation of health and safety documentation and risk assessments.
• Liaison with external bodies, landowners, and Donegal County Council to compile a water well register.
• Provision of insurances, naming Meath County Council as an insured party.
• Performing the role of Project Supervisor for the Construction Stage (PSCS).
• Rotary Drilling:
• Drilling with and without core recovery.
• Setting up drilling plant on gradients up to and exceeding 20%.
• Breaking out surface obstructions.
• Providing standing time for drilling plant.
• Implementing aquifer protection measures.
• Drilling in various strata to obtain cores of a minimum 76mm diameter, with depths ranging from 0 to 30m.
• Backfilling drillholes with grout or pellets where no standpipe or piezometer is installed.
• Disposal of excess inert arisings from drilling operations.
• Pavement Cores:
• Moving equipment for coring.
• Coring through road pavement (bitumen) up to 400mm depth using 100mm diameter cores.
• Reinstatement of existing pavement following coring.
• Pitting and Trenching:
• Moving equipment for trial pits and trenches up to 4.5m depth.
• Setting up slit trenches in road areas with traffic management.
• Saw cutting paved areas.
• Breaking out hard material or surface obstructions.
• Excavating trial pits and slit trenches in paved and non-paved areas.
• Providing standing time for excavation plant.
• Pumping water from pits and trenches, including temporary storage and disposal of contaminated groundwater.
• Leaving open slit trenches and trial pits as instructed.
• Backfilling trial pits and trenches with arisings or imported granular fill.
• Reinstating grassed surfaces and asphalt/bituminous pavement.
• Repairing road markings.
• Disposal of excess inert arisings.
• Sampling and Monitoring:
• Collecting various sample types: jar, tub, bulk, large bulk, and groundwater samples.
• Collecting environmental/contamination samples for specific suites (E, F, H, I).
• Collecting cut block samples from trial pits.
• Installing standpipes and piezometers, including gravel packing and bentonite seals.
• Providing protective covers and fencing for installations.
• Developing and purging standpipes/piezometers.
• Disposing of purged water.
• Reading water levels in standpipes, piezometers, and groundwater wells.
• Taking water samples from standpipes/piezometers, including purging.
• Conducting return visits for instrumentation monitoring and sampling.
• Geophysical Surveying:
• Performing geophysical utility surveys using ground penetrating radar (GPR) and other methods over an area of 26,182 m².
• In-Situ Testing:
• Conducting standard penetration tests, California Bearing Ratio (CBR) tests (plate bearing and DCP methods), and hand vane tests.
• Performing variable head permeability tests and soil infiltration tests (BRE Digest 365).
• Providing water supply for infiltration testing and protecting test areas.
• Calculating infiltration rates.
• Instrumentation:
• Backfilling exploratory holes with grout or pellets.
• Providing and installing proprietary standpipes, gravel packs, casing, and bentonite seals.
• Providing and installing protective covers and marker posts.
• Developing and purging standpipes/piezometers.
• Disposing of purged water.
• Geotechnical Laboratory Testing:
• Performing classification tests (moisture content, limits, particle size distribution, hydrometer).
• Conducting chemical and electrochemical tests (organic matter, ignition loss, sulphate content, pH).
• Performing compaction-related tests (dry density/moisture content, MCV, CBR).
• Conducting compressibility, permeability, and durability tests (consolidation, constant head permeability).
• Performing shear strength tests (vane, direct shear, triaxial compression).
• Conducting rock and aggregate testing (uniaxial compressive strength, point load index).
• Assessing pyrite induced expansion or swelling potential.
• Geoenvironmental Laboratory Testing:
• Conducting contamination testing on soil, groundwater, gas, and fill material for specified test suites.
• Reporting:
• Providing interim factual ground investigation reports, geophysical survey reports, and final factual ground investigation reports.
• Submitting digital field/engineering logs and laboratory test data in AGS transfer format.
• Providing digital copies of photographs.
• Storing samples and core boxes for 12 months.

3. Background & buyer context

This procurement is for ground investigation services related to the Letterkenny Northern Network Project. Donegal County Council is the contracting authority. The project falls under the broader remit of infrastructure development and planning within the region. While specific policy drivers are not detailed, such projects typically align with national or regional development plans aimed at improving infrastructure, connectivity, or service provision. The contract is being procured using the Public Works Investigation Contract standard form.

4. Eligibility & selection criteria

Bidders must meet the following minimum requirements to be considered:

• Turnover requirement:
• Average annual turnover of €500,000 arising from ground investigation contracts.
• Insurance:
• Public Liability Insurance: Minimum €6,500,000 per accident.
• Employer's Liability Insurance: Minimum €13,000,000 per accident.
• Professional Indemnity Insurance: Minimum €1,500,000 annual aggregate.
• Certifications:
• Not specified for this tender.
• Past experience:
• A minimum of three projects of similar size, nature, and complexity to the works required, undertaken in the past 5 years.
• At least one contract with a minimum value of €100,000 (excluding VAT).
• At least one ground investigation contract with a minimum value of €200,000 (excluding VAT).
• Experience in the role of Project Supervisor for the Construction Stage (PSCS) on a minimum of three projects of similar size, nature, and complexity.
• Personnel:
• An Investigation Supervisor with a minimum of 5 years' experience approved by the Employer's Representative.
• A Geologist with a minimum of 5 years' full-time on-site experience.
• Personnel responsible for PSCS services must have at least 4 hours of CPD every two years in health and safety training for PSCS services.
• Geographic / facility constraints:
• Not specified for this tender.

5. Award criteria & scoring

The award criteria are not explicitly detailed with scoring percentages in the provided documentation. However, the tender process is based on the submission of a price and the contractor's ability to meet the specified conditions and requirements. The contract will be awarded to the tenderer who offers to complete the investigation on the terms and in conformity with the documents for the specified price.

6. Submission requirements

Bidders are required to submit the following:

• Form of Tender: Completed and signed.
• Schedule: Including details of the Employer's Representative, scope documents, and confirmation that a performance bond is not required.
• Contractor's Proposals:
• Contractor's Programme showing the order of work.
• General description of arrangements and methods of working.
• General description of management arrangements.
• Description of quality assurance procedures.
• Any other information required by the Scope.
• Pricing: A lump sum price excluding all VAT, as adjusted in accordance with the Contract.
• Certificates:
• Rate of Pay and Conditions of Employment Certificate.
• Appendix B1: List of Previous Works Projects (completed in the specified format).
• Appendix C: Bankers Letter (on applicant's headed paper).
• Declarations:
• Not explicitly listed but implied through standard tender processes.
• Submission Portal: Tenders are submitted via eTenders.

7. Key dates & process

8. Contract terms that matter

• Contract Type: Public Works Investigation Contract (PW-CF7).
• Term: Not explicitly stated, but fieldwork completion is a milestone.
• Payment: Monthly payment on the basis of work completed.
• Fieldwork complete: 46% of Price.
• Draft report issued: 46% of Price.
• Final report issued: 5% of Price.
• Performance Bond: Not required.
• Insurance: Minimum indemnity limits are specified for Public Liability (€6,500,000), Employer's Liability (€13,000,000), and Professional Indemnity (€1,500,000 annual aggregate). Maximum excess levels are also defined.
• Termination: Standard contract clauses apply.
• Arbitration: Governed by Capital Works Management Framework (CWMF) Arbitration Rules. The President of Engineers Ireland will appoint an arbitrator if none is agreed.
• Liability: Contractor's liability to the Employer is capped at an amount to be specified in the contract (if not stated, it equals the Price).

9. Risks, red flags & unusuals

• Value vs. Turnover: The estimated contract value of €375,000 is below the minimum annual turnover requirement of €500,000 for ground investigation work. This suggests that bidders must demonstrate this turnover across multiple projects or have a significant portion of their business in ground investigations to meet the criterion.
• PSCS Role: The requirement for the contractor to perform the PSCS role is a significant responsibility and adds complexity to the bid preparation and execution.
• Reporting Milestones: The payment structure is heavily weighted towards fieldwork completion (46%) and draft report issuance (46%), with only 5% for the final report. This places emphasis on timely fieldwork and initial reporting.
• No Performance Bond: The absence of a performance bond may indicate a lower perceived risk by the contracting authority or a reliance on other selection criteria and contract terms.

10. SME fit assessment

This tender is likely suitable for small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that specialise in ground investigation services and have experience in fulfilling the Project Supervisor for the Construction Stage (PSCS) role.

• Credible Bidders: A firm with a turnover of at least €500,000 specifically in ground investigations, possessing the required insurance levels, and with a track record of at least three similar projects in the last five years, would be a credible bidder. Experience as a PSCS on comparable projects is also essential.
• Consortium/Sub-contracting: The documentation does not explicitly prohibit consortia or sub-contracting. However, the turnover requirement is stated for the "Applicant or Lead Member," implying a lead entity must meet this. SMEs may consider partnering if they cannot meet all requirements individually.
• Indicative Bid-Prep Effort: Preparing a compliant bid would require significant effort, likely several days, to gather past project evidence, detail PSCS experience, compile technical proposals, and complete all required forms and appendices.
• Pwin Signal: The tender is open to competition, but the specific PSCS requirement and the turnover threshold might narrow the field. The absence of a performance bond could be seen as a positive for SMEs. The incumbent is not identified.

11. Where to dig deeper

• Source RFT Filename(s):
• [Appendix-B1-List-of-Previous-Works-Projects-which-is-CEE.docx]
• [Appendix-C-Bankers-Letter.docx]
• [3 - Part 3 - LNNP_Ground Investigation Contract_Information Pack BOQ.xlsx]
• [2 - Part 2 - LNNP_Ground Investigation Contract_FTS.pdf]
• eTenders CFT ID: Not specified.
• Contact Email/Portal: Not specified.
• Most Important Attachments:
• Part 2 – Form of Tender, Schedule and Conditions of Contract (FTS.pdf)
• Part 3 – Information Pack BOQ (BOQ.xlsx)
• Appendix B1 – List of Previous Works Projects