Project 695-24-107 Replace Boilers 4 and 5 Clement J. Zablocki, VA Medical Center 5000 West National Avenue Milwaukee, WI 53295

What they want

• Demolish and remove existing Boilers 4 and 5 and install one new Boiler 5 (a single firetube boiler), with new mechanical, electrical and control systems
• Base bid covers removing both boilers; Alternate Bid Item 1 covers removing only Boiler 5, leaving Boiler 4 as a summer back-up, with piping and controls adjustments
• Use VA's required boiler controls provider, Whesco Group, for the control hardware, software, programming and testing (about $99,200 per VA's justification)
• Work inside the occupied boiler house in a busy hospital, following VA's three phasing plans and infection control and safety rules
• Send pre-construction submittals within 60 days of NTP, including safety, security, logistics, phasing and schedule plans
• Build and follow an approved cost-loaded critical path method (CPM) schedule: a chart of every task and how the tasks depend on each other
• Test, commission and train VA staff on the new boiler plant, and deliver closeout documents

What they'll judge offers on

• Price: lump-sum Base Bid (CLIN 0001) and price for Alternate Bid Item 1
• Responsibility check: safety and environmental record, experience modification rate (EMR: an insurance rating of workers' compensation claims), and government database checks

What to include when you submit

• Email the complete bid to both Kristine.Sutton@va.gov and Ryan.McMillin@va.gov by the response due date and time; the solicitation advises sending it by close of business the day before and asking for a receipt
• Bid on ALL bid items: the lump-sum Base Bid (CLIN 0001) and Alternate Bid Item 1
• Complete Standard Form 1442 (SF 1442, the construction offer form), including company name, tax ID, SAM unique entity ID (UEI) and a past performance point of contact
• Include a bid guarantee on Standard Form 24 (SF 24) of at least 20 percent of the bid price, not more than $3,000,000
• Include the completed and signed VAAR 852.219-75 limitations on subcontracting certificate (Attachment E)
• Include proof of current SAM and DSBS (SBA's Dynamic Small Business Search) registrations as of the time of the bid
• Include a certification of safety and environmental record (no more than three serious, one repeat or one willful OSHA or EPA violation in the past three years) and the Pre-Award Contractor Safety and Environmental Record Evaluation Form with OSHA 300 and 300A forms
• Include your EMR on your insurance carrier's letterhead; if it is above 1.0, add the carrier's written explanation and the date it may drop to 1.0 or below
• Include a copy of the organized site visit sign-in sheet from the site visit conducted on October 14, 2026 (Amendment 0001)
• If bidding as a joint venture, include the joint-venture agreement and printed proof of the SBA SDVOSB certification
• Send written questions only to the Contract Specialist and Contracting Officer; telephone inquiries are not accepted

After award, you must have

• Payment bond (Standard Form 25A) and performance bond (Standard Form 25), each for the awarded contract value; surety bonds and certificates of insurance go to the Contracting Officer before the notice to proceed From SOLICITATION-DESCRIPTION.docx: Each bond shall be issued for a penal sum equal to the value of the awarded contract.
• Project manager with at least ten years of construction project management experience, and a superintendent who is OSHA 30 certified and dedicated to this project; named in a memo within 60 days of NTP From S02 - ATT C - Specifications.pdf: The PM shall have a minimum of ten years of construction project…
• All contractor personnel must receive annual seasonal flu vaccinations or obtain a medical or religious exemption From SOLICITATION-DESCRIPTION.docx: VHA Directive 1192.01 issued August 10, 2020, requires all contractor personnel to receive annual seasonal influenza vaccinations or obtain an exemption for medical or religious reasons.

Current contractor

No incumbent is named. VA's justification names Whesco Group as its sole source boiler controls provider and integrator for the existing boilers 1 through 3 (control work valued at $99,200 by VA).

Not in the notice text

• Parts of the solicitation, specifications and drawings were attached but not read here (the middle sections of SOLICITATION-DESCRIPTION.docx, S02 - ATT C - Specifications.pdf, S02 - ATT A - Drawing Set Part-1.pdf and S02 - ATT B- Drawing Set Part-2 (1).pdf), so some requirements may be missing from this brief; check them on SAM.gov
• The map (S02 - ATT F - MAP.pdf) and the site visit sign-in sheet (S06 - site visit sign in 10-14-26.pdf) are scanned files that were attached but not read
• Davis-Bacon wage rule: the clause on construction wage rate requirements (FAR 52.222-6) is listed and a wage determination is attached (S02 - ATT G - Wage Determination.pdf), but its text couldn't be read; check the rates on SAM.gov
• Whether a firm that did not attend the October 14, 2026 site visit can still bid, since a copy of the sign-in sheet is requested
• The Government's estimate beyond the stated $2,000,000 to $5,000,000 range