Septage Treatment Facility and Management: Request for Proposals

Terms of Reference - Septage Treatment Facility

Instruction to bidders:

The USAID-Rotary International San Fernando City Sewerage and Septage Management project is requesting proposals for the design and construction of a septage treatment facility. A pre-bid conference will be hosted by the project staff at 4:00 PM on May 20, 2010 in the People's Hall at the City Hall Building in San Fernando. Interested contractors must register at least one day in advance of this meeting by contacting the City Environment Office by email at: valmar_valdez@yahoo.com. Proposals will be accepted through May 30, 2010 from accredited firms that meet the following criteria:

a) The firm must be a registered company in good standing in the Philippines and be in compliance with all SEC requirements;

b) The firm must employ at least one civil engineer; and

c) The firm must have successfully completed at least one other similar project in the Philippines, and be willing to provide references.


The Following Terms of Reference shall be utilized by prospective contractors:


1. Tasks to be performed:

1.a. Design of the septage treatment and biosolids handling facilities (System). The System shall be designed for a flow of 15 cubic meters of septage per day. The System shall be designed to minimize odors and other nuisances, and minimize the use of electrical power. The selected contractor will be required to provide a design report and preliminary specifications that will be submitted with their proposals and reviewed and approved by the project team. The technology featured in the design must meet the requirements of the Philippine Department of Heath. Once approved and the contractor is hired, final construction grade plans and specifications shall be prepared prior to construction. The selected contractor will be required to obtain an ECC based on their design. Once completed, as-built drawings and an Operation and Maintenance manual shall be submitted to project staff.

1.b. Construction of the system. Prior to construction, the contractor shall prepare a site specific health and safety plan (Safety Plan), in conjunction with the project staff. The contractor shall be responsible for complying with the requirements of the Safety Plan at all times and employ a designated safety officer to be present on-site at all times when construction activities are occurring. Once the Safety Plan is approved, the contractor shall perform construction staking to locate all tanks, basins, pipe lines and other structures. This will be approved by the project team prior to construction. The contractor shall perform the construction in accordance with the approved plans, and utilize best practices and materials that are suitable for the project. The contractor shall be responsible for conducting leak tests on all tanks and basins and verifying water-tightness. The contractor shall provide the project staff with a time line that identifies milestones, and update the time line as needed. The contractor shall be responsible for removing all spoils from excavation, waste products and scrap materials from the site and performing re-vegetation for any disturbed soils after construction is completed. The contractor shall be responsible for obtaining all required inspections, certifications and clearances required to operate the facility.

1.c. Operation and maintenance. The contractor shall provide operation and maintenance of the facility for a minimum of 30 days after system turnover. During this time, the contractor shall prepare and submit the Operation and Maintenance plan and agree to train project team staff on all operation and maintenance tasks.


2. General Information:

2.a. Location. The septage treatment system will be located on a parcel of land near the San Fernando City Sanitary Landfill. The parcel is located at: 16 DEG 37' 50" N latitude, 120 DEG, 20' 21" E longitude. The parcel is one hectare and gently sloping. Site visits may be arranged by contacting the project staff through the "contact us" tab on this web page, or by contacting the CENRO at valmar_valdez@yahoo.com. San Fernando City (the City) shall be responsible for providing a suitable access road that can accommodate heavy truck traffic.

2.b. Capacity. The septage treatment facility shall be designed to treat a volume of up to 15 cubic meters of septage per day. For the design considerations, the septage shall be assumed to contain BOD and TSS levels of 5,000 mg/l and be of domestic origin.

2.c. Expandability. This System represents phase 1 of the septage treatment program for the City. The system shall be designed and installed to the extent possible, to allow future expansion, with an ultimate design flow at 50 cubic meters per day at build out.

2.d. Performance. The System shall be designed to meet or exceed the environmental discharge requirements for Class C water as per the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.


3. Additional Considerations

3.a. Ease of operation - The project team will rank higher in the selection process those technologies that are easier to operate, require less skilled labor, and minimize future expenses for replacement parts.

3.b. Longevity of system components - Those proposals that feature components that will last longer will be ranked higher than shorter lived products or components.

3.c. Proven technology - Technologies for the treatment of septage and handling of biosolids that are shown to be effective through actual demonstration projects will be ranked higher than new or innovative technologies without existing physical demonstration facilities.

3.d. Further/alternative suggestions — Bidders are welcome to propose designs, construction plans, and operations and management proposals that fall outside the specifications of these Terms of Reference, if the arguments for such divergence are compelling and thoroughly explained.

4. Time line for Project Completion:

4.a. Preliminary specifications and design report due July 31, 2010
4.b. Final construction grade plans and specifications due September 15, 2010
4.c. Construction staking by October 10, 2010
4.d. Construction completion and turnover by May 1, 2011


This concludes the Terms of Reference. Interested contractors are encouraged to submit proposals by the deadline complete with cost and payment terms. Attendance at the Pre-bid meeting is mandatory for consideration.

Thank you for your interest in this project.