Federal Highway Administration, Loudoun Tech Center, 21400 Ridgetop Circle, Sterling, Virginia

Y -- BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY PROJECT NC NHF 421(11) SOL DTFH71-98-R-00001 DUE 122297 POC Contact for verifying availibility of bidding documents: Leonette Akerson, 703-285-0006; Contact for technical information: Engineering Coordinator, Gary L. Brown, 703-285-0075; Contracting Officer, Mary W. Daigle This procurement will be conducted utilizing a competitive negotiated process. Proposals from eligible business concerns will be accepted for the Blue Ridge Parkway Project NC NHF 421(11), in Watauga County, North Carolina, which consists of the construction of a sample section of an artificial stone masonry wall facing at the Blue Ridge Parkway Sandy Flats maintenance facility. The wall consists of cast-in-place concrete with each individual artifical stone, joint, and bed stained to produce the required finish and visual appearance as detailed in the request for proposal. The approximate dimensions of the sample wall are as follows: Length: 5.0 meters; Height: between 2.0 to 2.5 meters; Thickness: 0.2 meters minimum, and with adequate thickness to stand vertically and reinforced to withstand required transportation and handling. Construction of the wall is expected to fall in the price range of $10,000 to $50,000. The Government will select no more than three eligible firms to construct sample walls.Upon the Government's final acceptance of a firm's sample wall, the firm's drawings and specifications for the accepted sample wall will be incorporated into an upcoming roadway construction project with an estimated artificial stone masonry wall quantity of 3,250 square meters. Evaluation of the proposals will be based on, but will not be limited to: The offeror's price; construction methodology; and past performance history on similar wall construction. Final criteria will be detailed in the request for proposal. Request for Proposal No. DTFH71-98-R-00001 to be issued on or about November 20, 1997. The proposal documents will be available on or after the issue date, from the Federal Highway Administration, Eastern Federal Lands Highway Division, 21400 Ridgetop Circle, Sterling, Virginia 20166-6511, telephone: 800-892-8776, at no charge to bidders, subcontractors, and suppliers. Please call to verify availability of the proposal documents. All requests for proposal documents and planholder's lists will be mailed first class. It is strongly recommended that all requests for proposal documents and planholder's lists be received 7 calendar days before receipt of offers to ensure receipt of requested materials. Requests for 'faxing' or overnight mailing will not be accepted. Proposals due on or about December 22, 1997, at 2:00 pm, local time, at the Federal Highway Administration address listed above, Attn: Office of the Division Engineer. Note that no public opening of the offers will be conducted. The following applies to Minority, Women-Owned and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises: The Department of Transportation (DOT) Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization has bonding programs to assist minority, women-owned and disadvantaged business enterprises in acquiring short-term capital and bonding assistance for transportation-related contracts. Loans are available under the DOT Short Term Lending Program (STLP) at prime interest rates up to $500,000 to provide accounts receivable financing. The DOT Bonding Assistance Program enables firms to apply for bid, performance and payment bonds up to $1,000,000 per contract. DOT provides an 80 percent guaranty on the bond amount to a surety against losses. For further information and applicable forms concerning the STLP and Bonding Assistance Program, please call (800) 532-1169. (0308)

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