INVITATION TO BIDDERS

Sealed proposals will be received until November 15, 2012, by the Port of Iberia (POI) Board of Commissioners, at the POI Port Administrative Offices, 4611 South Lewis Street, in New Iberia, Louisiana 70560 until 11:00 A.M. for the project referenced below.

Electronic bids may be submitted online at www.centralauctionhouse.com. To view these, download, and receive bid notices by email, you will have to register with Central Auction House (CAH). Vendors/Contractors will have the option to submit their bids and bid bonds electronically or by papers copy. Any questions about this process, contact Ted Fleming with Central Auction House at 1-866-570-9620.

PORT OF IBERIA (POI)
MILLENNIUM EXPANSION – PHASE II
IBERIA PARISH, LOUISIANA

Included in the work is the clearing and excavation required for the extension of Slip C-8 in the Port of Iberia. Work shall also include coordination and relocation of existing utilities and demolition and removal of existing roadways and structures.

At exactly 11:00 A.M. on November 15, 2012, all bids will be publicly opened and read in the Board Meeting Room in the Administrative Offices Building. Subsequent to the opening, the bid/bids will be evaluated by the appropriate party/parties and will be presented to the POI Board of Commissioners President for handling in accordance with the Louisiana Public Bid Law.

Sealed bids shall be either hand-delivered by the bidder or his agent. Bids may also be delivered by a package or express delivery service or carrier. However, if this form of delivery is utilized, the form of delivery receipt utilized by said carrier or service shall be considered as a sufficient written receipt received by the bidder.

Bids received prior to the time of the scheduled bid opening will be securely kept unopened. No bid received after the scheduled time for opening will be considered. Bidders are cautioned to allow ample time for transmittal of bids by mail or otherwise. Bidders are urged to secure information relative to the probable time of arrival and distribution of mail at the place where the bids are to be opened. Failure of the U.S. Mail or of any express carrier or delivery service to deliver the bids timely shall not be considered due cause for the scheduled time of the bid opening to be extended; provided however, that any bid submitted through www.centralauctionhouse.com shall not be disqualified from consideration if it otherwise complies with the requirements herein; is submitted to www.centralauctionhouse.com prior to the deadline; the delay in delivery to the bid opening is not the fault of the Bidder; and the bid is received by the PORT or its engineer within 48 hours of the bid opening. In such case the bid opening shall be considered automatically extended for such time as is necessary for such bid to be delivered to the Port.

The bidder must be a properly licensed Contractor under the provisions of Chapter 24 of Title 37, Louisiana Revised Statutes, together with any other applicable laws. Work Classification: CLASS III – HEAVY CONSTRUCTION.

On any bid submitted in the amount of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00) or more, the bidder shall certify that he is licensed under R.S. 37:2151-2163 and show his license number on the bid above the signature of his duly authorized representative, as well as showing his license number on the outside of the sealed envelope containing his bide. The successful bidder must register with the Iberia Parish Sales and Use Tax Department for Use Tax purposes. Bids shall be submitted on the proposal forms provided in the contract documents and shall be sealed in an envelope.

Drawings, Specifications, Contract Documents and Proposal forms may be examined and obtained at the office of Shaw Coastal, Inc. located at 4171 Essen Lane, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 70809, Phone (225) 932-2739, upon deposit of $150.00 for each set of documents. Deposits on the first two sets are fully refundable to all bonafide prime Bidders upon return of the documents, in good condition, no later than ten (10) days after receipt of bids. One-hundred percent of the deposit of all other sets of documents will be refunded upon return of documents as stated above. Please contact Seneca Toussant, P.E., Phone (225) 987-7568, for any clarification or information with regard to the specifications.

A Mandatory Pre-Bid Conference will be held on October 30, 2012 at 10:00 A.M. at the POI Port Administrative Offices, 4611 South Lewis Street, in New Iberia, Louisiana.

Evidence of authority to submit a bid shall be required in accordance with R.S. 38:2212 (A)(1)(c) and/or 39:1594 (C)(4). Failure to do so will result in bid being declared non-responsive and shall be cause for rejection.

Notwithstanding anything in this Invitation or the Bids documents to the contrary, no bids submitted through www.centralauctionhouse.com, shall require a separate electronic signature for the person signing the Bid Form, as long as an officer of the bidder, or other person authorized by resolution, has signed the Louisiana Uniform Public Work Bid Form and an accurate facsimile of that form is transmitted electronically in the bid package. A facsimile of the Bid Bond shall be considered sufficient if transmitted electronically.

All proposals must be accompanied by a bid security in the form of Certified Check, Cashier's Check or acceptable Bid Bond in the amount of five (5%) percent of the amount of the proposal made payable to the Port of Iberia District Board of Commissioners. Failure to do so will result in the bid/bids being declared non-responsive and shall be cause for rejection. Bid Bond, if utilized as bid security, must be written by a surety company licensed to do business in Louisiana and signed by the surety’s agent or attorney-in-fact. Surety must be listed on the current U.S. Department of the Treasury Financial Management Service list of approved bonding companies as approved for an amount equal to or greater than the amount for which it obligates itself in the Bond, or must be a Louisiana domiciled insurance company with at least an A-rating in the latest printing of the A. M. Best’s Key Rating Guide. If surety is qualified by virtue of its Best’s listing, the amount of the Bond may not exceed ten percent of policyholders’ surplus as shown in the latest A. M. Best’s Key Rating Guide. The Bid Bond shall be in favor of the Port of Iberia District Board of Commissioners and shall be accompanied by appropriate power of attorney. No Bid Bond indicating an obligation of less than five percent (5%) of the amount of proposal by any method is acceptable.

A Bid will be considered responsive if it conforms in all respects with the conditions and requirements of the Bidding Documents. In order to be considered responsive, Bid Proposals must; (a) be fully completed, signed and be responsive in all respects to the conditions of the Invitation to Bidders, Instructions to Bidders, and Information to Bidders; (b) be made on the Proposal Forms provided and submitted intact as part of the Contract Documents; and (c) be accompanied by the required items listed in the appropriate sections of the Bidding documents.

No bid may be withdrawn for a period of forty five (45) days after receipt of bids, except under the provisions of LA R. S. 38:2214.

The successful Bidder shall be required to furnish a Performance Bond and Payment Bond written by a company licensed to do business in Louisiana, in an amount equal to 100% of the Contract amount. Surety must be listed currently on the U. S. Department of Treasury Financial Management Service List (Treasury List) as approved for an amount equal to or greater than the contract amount, or must be an insurance company domiciled in Louisiana or owned by Louisiana residents. If surety is qualified other than by listing on the Treasury list, the contract amount may not exceed fifteen percent of the policyholders’ surplus as shown by surety’s most recent financial statements filed with the Louisiana Department of Insurance and may not exceed the amount of $500,000. However, a Louisiana domiciled insurance company with at least an A-rating in the latest printing of the A. M. Best’s Key Rating Guide shall not be subject to the $500,000 limitation, provided that the contract amount does not exceed ten percent of policyholders’ surplus as shown in the latest A. M. Best’s Key Rating Guide nor fifteen percent of policyholders’ surplus as shown by surety’s most recent financial statements filed with the Louisiana Department of Insurance. The Bond shall be signed by the surety’s agent or attorney-in-fact.

Successful bidder must register with the Iberia Parish Sales and Use Tax Department for use tax purposes. The POI District Board of Commissioners reserves the right to reject any and all bids in accordance with State Bid Law.