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December 2014

BIL- Pre-Qualification of Bidders Notice


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INSTRUCTIONS TO APPLICATIONS

Belize Civic Center Project

Belize Infrastructure Ltd. [BIL]

Government of Belize

Date:     December 22, 2014

  1. 1. SCOPE OF BID

1.1    Belize Infrastructure Ltd. [BIL] (hereinafter referred to as “the Employer”), has secured funds to be used for the construction of a new sporting complex facility, the Belize Civic Center Sports Complex (BCCSC) to be located on Central American Boulevard, in Belize City.

1.2    The  Employer intends to pre-qualify eligible  contractors for the  following works under the

Project:

The works shall include the construction of the new facility on a compound of approximately 3.4 acres. The facility shall include a main sporting building having an area of approximately 39,000 square feet which includes the following:

Level 0: Parking, storage areas, ramps and entrance areas.

Level  1:  A  main  play  hall  along  with  storage  areas,  administration  offices,  bathrooms, concession areas, and fixed seating.

Upper Levels: Additional bathrooms, media facilities, fixed seating, concession areas.

Additionally, the facility will include recreational areas around the main building, fencing, landscaping and other accommodations.

The main facility will be of reinforced concrete with masonry walls and will be covered with a steel framed roof system spanning approximately two hundred feet clear. Critical aspects of the works include the air condition system, the electrical system, the structural systems and various finishes.

The project is eligible for International Competitive Bidding (ICB) open to international and national  contractors  as  individual  and/or  joint  venture  consortiums  under  the  following conditions.

Where reference is made to US$ value, the equivalent in the Employer’s currency BZ$ shall be

calculated at an exchange rate of 2:1.

  1. 2. SUBMISSION OF APPLICATIONS

2.1    Submissions of applications to pre-qualify to bid for  the project  must be submitted in duplicate and received in sealed envelopes clearly marked Application to Pre-qualify for the Belize Civic Ce nte r  S port  Comple x  P roje c t”  at the addresses noted below. Applications  must be either delivered by hand or otherwise received at the addresses below no later than 4:30 p.m. on  Monday, February 16, 2014 .

ORIGINAL TO:   Arch. Christy Mastry

General Manager

Belize Infrastructure Limited

1664 Market Street

Belmopan City

Belize, C.A.

2.2    The name and mailing address of the applicant shall be clearly marked on the envelope.

2.3    All the information requested for pre-qualification shall be answered in the English language.

Where information is provided in another language, this shall be accompanied by a translation of its pertinent parts into English. This translation will govern and be used for interpreting the information. All personnel for the project shall be fluent in English and all contractor correspondence and further communication for the project shall be in English.

2.4    Failure to provide information which is essential to evaluate the applicant’s qualifications or to provide  timely  clarification  or  substantiation  of  the  information  supplied,  or  inaccurate information may result in disqualification of the applicant.

  1. 3. QUALIFICATION CRITERIA

3.1    Pre-qualification will be based on applicants meeting all the following minimum pass/fail criteria regarding the applicant’s general and particular experience, personnel and equipment capabilities, and financial position, as demonstrated by the applicant’s responses in the forms attached to the Letter of Application.  Specific requirements for joint ventures are given under paragraphs 4.1 and 4.2 below.   Subcontractors’ experience and resources will not be taken into account in determining the applicant’s compliance with the qualifying criteria but all members of joint venture associations will.

3.2    General Experience: The Applicant shall meet the following minimum criteria:

(a)   The applicant shall provide company documents of its country having been incorporated and registered as a company for a minimum of ten (10) years.

(b)  The applicant shall have an average annual turnover (defined as billing for building construction works completed) of US $5 million over the past five years.

(c)    The applicant shall have successful experience as prime contractor solely, or as a lead partner in a joint venture in the execution of at least two (2) assignments of a  nature and complexity comparable to the proposed project activity within the last ten (10) years. Assignments of a similar nature shall include the construction of facilities intended to be used by the mass public having a present day value of at least $US 10,000,000.

(d)   The applicant must demonstrate that with the current work load he/she would be able to undertake the proposed assignment without being overloaded. As such the Applicant shall submit details of the firm’s current and anticipated work load along with the outstanding contract balances and duration to completion.

3.3   Key Personnel and Sub-contractors’ Capabilities:        The    applicant    must    have    suitably qualified personnel to fill the positions of Construction Project Manager, Site Engineers, Lead Foreman, Electrical subcontractor, Mechanical Sub-contractor, and Plumbing Subcontractor. The key personnel must all be able to speak and write in English and be academically qualified and possess at a minimum the level of experience noted below.

The Construction Manager (CM) shall be academically qualified with at least a first degree in Civil Engineering, Architecture, Quantity Surveying, Construction Management or General Project Management.

At a minimum the CM shall have at least 15 years experience in construction project management (after receiving academic qualifications) with the successful management of at least two building construction projects with a current value of at least US $10,000,000. At least one facility must be a multi-leveled reinforced concrete system on driven piled foundation system having a height of at least fifty feet and an area of at least 39,000 sf in area.  The  CM  must  have  experience  in  steel  frame  construction  inclusive  of  large horizontal steel frame roof systems.

On-Site Engineer – shall each be academically qualified with at least a first degree in Civil

Engineering or Construction Engineering.

Second  Site  Engineer  –  shall  have  his  training  and  experience  focused  in  structural engineering.   He/she shall have supervised the installation of at least two long span roof systems in excess of 150 feet clear span. He/she shall be available to the project for any length of time necessary to supervise the above works as pre-approved by the Project Manager.

At least one of the SE must have experience in the management of tower cranes including their installation, operation, and dismantling to be available for that duration of the works. Each of the Site Engineers shall be qualified and licensed to practice Civil Engineering in Belize (or their home country)

The Lead Foreman must possess at least 20 years experience in the supervision of building construction projects.

The Mechanical and Electrical Subcontractors (Including plumbing, electrical and air conditioning) shall each be an established M and E firm who has been in the business of the relevant service installation for at least 20 years. The ME subcontractor(s) shall be lead and supervised by a registered electrical or mechanical engineer. The ME engineer and/or each of the ME sub-contractor(s) shall have experience in the successful installation of at least two building facilities each having the following minimum.

Electrical Installation:             Service Entrance above 500kVA

Mechanical Installation:         Chilled Water system to cover an area of at least 20,000 SF Plumbing Installation:                           Minimum Sanitary Fixtures of 100

3.4    Financial Position.   The applicant should clearly demonstrate that it has access to, or has readily available, cash, and credit facilities sufficient to meet the construction cash flow requirements, as indicated below with at least 50% being credit from a bank. The minimum credit requirements shall be US$2 million, net of applicant’s commitments for other assignments. The applicant shall submit clear indication that the level of credit noted above is in fact available.

The Employer shall make inquiries with the applicant’s bankers to verify these criteria.

3.5    The audited financial statements including income statements signed by a registered external auditor/accountant with notes for the last four (4) years (2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013) that clearly demonstrates the financial stability of the organization relative to the value of the proposed assignment.  Income statements may be requested for any years listed under section

3.2(a) and (b) which are not within the last four (4) years.

3.6    Litigation History.  The applicant shall provide accurate information on all litigation, arbitration and  formal  disputes  resulting  from  assignments  partially  executed,  completed  or  under execution by the applicant.  A consistent history of disputes by the applicant or any partner of a joint venture may result in failure of the application. Failure to accurately report litigation history will be grounds for disqualification.

  1. 4. JOINT VENTURES

4.1    Joint ventures must comply with the following requirements:

(a)    All joint ventures must meet the minimum qualification requirements:

(i)   The lead partner shall meet not less than 60 percent of all the qualifying criteria given in paragraphs 3.2 and 3.4 above.

(ii)  The other partners shall meet not less than 50 percent of all the qualifying criteria given in paragraphs 3.2 and 3.4 above.

(b)     The formation of a joint venture after pre-qualification, and any change in a pre-qualified joint venture, will be subject to the written approval of the Employer prior to the deadline for submission of bids. Such approval may be denied if:

(i)   Partners withdraw from a joint venture and the remaining partners do not meet the qualifying requirements;

(ii)  The new partners to a joint venture are not qualified, individually or as another joint venture; or

(iii) In the opinion of the Employer, a substantial reduction in competition may result.

(c)     All bids shall be signed so as to legally bind all partners, jointly and severally, and all bids shall be submitted with a copy of the joint venture agreement providing joint and several liabilities with respect to the construction contract.

4.2   The pre-qualification of a joint venture does not necessarily pre-qualify any of its partners individually or as a partner in any other joint venture or association.  In case of dissolution of a joint venture, each one of the constituent contractors may pre-qualify if such contractors meet all the pre-qualification requirements, subject to the written approval of the Employer.

  1. 5. CONFLICT OF INTEREST

5.1    The applicant (including all members of a joint venture) must not be formally associated, nor have been associated with the Consultant or the Project Manager within the past five (5) years or any other entity that has prepared the design, specifications, and other pre-qualification and bidding documents for the project activity. Any such association will result in the disqualification of the applicant.

  1. 6. BID PARTICIPATION

6.1    Only contractors and joint ventures that have been pre-qualified under the procedure will be invited to bid.  A qualified contractor or a member of a qualified joint venture may participate in only one bid for the contract.   If a contractor submits more than one bid, singly or in joint venture, all bids including that party will be rejected.  This rule will  not apply in respect of bids, which include specialist sub-contractors who are used by more than one bidder.

  1. 7. SECURITY

7.1    Bidders will be required to provide bid security in the form of a bid bond or banker’s guarantee, for  an  amount  of  US$75,000.00.    The  successful  bidder  will  be  required  to  provide  a performance security.   Examples of acceptable forms will be supplied with the bidding documents.

  1. 8. EMPLOYER’S RIGHT TO CHANGE

8.1    The Employer reserves the right to:

(a)   Amend the scope and value of any works for which bids are to be invited, in which event the works will only be bid among those pre-qualified bidders who meet the requirements of the works as amended;

(b)   Cancel the pre-qualification process and reject all applications.

The Employer shall neither be liable for any such actions nor be under any obligation to inform the Applicants of the grounds for actions taken.

  1. 9. NOTIFICATION OF PRE-QUALIFICATION

9.1   Applicants will be advised by the Project Manager in writing within 30 days of the date for submission of applications of the result of their application, and the names of the other pre- qualified applicants, without assigning any reason for the Employer’s decision.

Interested bidders are asked to request the pre-qualification application forms at sandra.cuello@bil.org.bz

10 Business Process Outsourcing Trends for 2015


by DATAMARK on December 19, 2014 in Outsourcing News

We’ve taken a look into the future of BPO, and here are the top trends we see driving the industry in 2015. Read on, and check out our infographic below!

  1. Innovation becomes the status quo

Buyers pushed for innovation from BPO providers for years, and now they are seeing it ingrained into the industry at last. A survey of 100 firms found that two-thirds have innovation incentives built into outsourcing arrangements, and nearly half meet regularly with providers to discuss innovation. Eighty percent said outsourcing partners “actively encourage innovation and ideas.”

  1. Contract structuring gets creative

BPO providers will get creative to land mega-sized, multi-year outsourcing deals. Innovative contract terms will include up-front payment for purchase of a client’s assets such as hardware, software, intellectual property and the transfer of workers.

  1. Buyers seek balanced shores

Competitive BPO providers will offer clients flexible outsourcing location options, known as balanced-shore outsourcing. Locations will include at-home; on-site; off-site within the same city; off-site at a lower-cost-of-living city; nearshore; farshore; and blends of these arrangements.

  1. Smaller, shorter BPO engagements

“Flexibility” is the theme of BPO contracts as buyers split work among several specialist providers, rather than bundling it into one large contract with one provider. The result will be smaller, shorter BPO engagements. Experienced buyers will seek “domain expertise” from providers, instead of simply the lowest price.

  1. Software robots on the rise

Providers of robotic process automation (RPA) software will aggressively market to BPOs these smart platforms that handle tedious, low-skill decision-making traditionally handled by clerical workers. Some BPO providers are incorporating RPA in their solutions to help reduce costs for their clients. By 2018, these digitally powered business processes will require 50 percent less BPO workers, Gartner predicts.

  1. Enterprise mobile apps take off

Made-for-business apps have been hyped for the past couple years, but in 2015 we’ll see the combined power of IBM and Apple shake the market up. They are releasing IBM MobileFirst apps for iOS, which will please those who bring iPhones and iPads to work. MobileFirst solutions that have potential in the BPO realm include banking and financial apps Advise & Grow and Trusted Advice; and insurance app Retention.

  1. Device convergence pushes process innovation

Not only will Apple’s mobile iOS blaze a path through business processes, but competitor Microsoft will muscle its way in with the enterprise edition of the Windows 10 operating system, set for release in 2015. Windows 10 is supposed to make life easier for IT by creating a unified app, security and deployment environment for all Windows-based devices, from phones to tablets to laptops to PCs to touch-screen displays.

  1. Organizations seek help managing and protecting unstructured data

In the wake of headline-making attacks and data breaches of Sony Pictures, JP Morgan, Snapchat and others, information security will be of the highest priority in BPO engagements. IT teams will work to not only protect the perimeter of organizations from attack, but will also build “application self-protection” features into made-for- business apps.

  1. New InfoSec strategies

In the Sony Pictures breach, 100 terabytes of data were allegedly stolen by hackers. Companies are realizing that they cannot manage information by buying more servers–they need strong enterprise content management (ECM) strategies and assistance from BPO providers experienced in securely managing unstructured information such as video and audio files, social media posts, and data on employees’ BYOD devices.

  1. Companies embrace a mix of SaaS and private cloud

 As companies shift to SaaS, on premises software deployment is declining rapidly,expected to drop from 34 percent  to 17 percent by 2017, according to Gartner. However, because of security concerns, CIOs are increasing adoption of private cloud more than public. Experienced BPO providers are navigating this new reality, looking for opportunities to offer organizations BPaaS (business process as a service), RPA and secure private cloud infrastructure.

Making The Perfect Pitch


Before the break we told you about Finpyme (FIN-PI-MEH) Export Plus, a programme where producers get to pitch their product before a panel of prospective money lenders. 

The idea is to get financing for products that can break into the CARICOM market. If it sounds familiar, it should; it’s like the TV show shark tank:..

Mike Singh, CEO- Ministry of Trade
“Think about it – you know the show the “Shark Tank” – it’s along the line of where they come up, present their project, talk about what they are looking to do and they get feedback and advice and possibility of financing as well.”

Shahera McKoy, Export Belize – BELTRAIDE
“The idea was to take the idea that the companies had to look at a specific project that they wanted to develop that would lead to them accessing export markets or developing systems in place to make them more export ready.”

Kahlil Salazar, PURE NATURE MD
“This is for a development an all-natural fruit sour sop based drink that has been shown to have properties to lower your blood sugar level – improve your glucose metabolism. It’s very refreshing for us. We are excited about it. We can’t wait to get the product off the production line and into Caricom because that’s really what we want to do. We want to export to Caricom. 27 million people in Caricom, 15 million suffer from obesity, hypertension or diabetes. Belize has 13% prevalence of diabetes which is about 43,000 – that’s the statistics on paper – it’s much more than that.”

Shahera McKoy, Export Belize – BELTRAIDE
“Once they started getting into the process of looking at the opportunities that does exist, they became excited. I work particularly with two of the companies; Caribbean Premier and Quality Poultry and I can certainly say that the excitement is there in terms of advancing the projects further.”

Mike Singh, CEO- Ministry of Trade
“From what I am hearing from the people in the room, there is lots of interest from getting them to where they want to be.”

Jules Vasquez
“Do you think these products, the one you work with, are products that we will soon see in the Caribbean on grocery store shelves?”

Shahera McKoy, Export Belize – BELTRAIDE
“Certainly, I am excited for the companies and I can see the possibilities.”

Salazar’s PURE Nature MD recently pitched the same project to a panel at an investors’ showcase IN BARBADOS and got a million dollars in MATHCING FUNDS – meaning they’ll LEND a million in financing if he can come up with a million.

http://belizenews.com

Private Island Luxury Tourism Development


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The Government of Belize, through BELTRAIDE, is pleased to announce the completion of the sale of the island of Caye Chapel, on Monday 8 December, 2014. Caye Chapel, an island in the Belize District, consisting of 265 acres, was purchased by a leading Mexican luxury hotel development group.
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The group, who are owners and operators of luxury tourism developments in Mexico City, Cancun, and Acapulco, are currently working on a detailed development plan for the island for presentation to Government.  It is expected that this plan will include the announcement of a partnership with a renown global luxury hotel brand, to be announced in the near future, as well as the development of high-end residencies and other amenities.

Continue reading “Private Island Luxury Tourism Development”

Summit a testimony to solidarity, fraternal relationship – CARICOM Secretary-General


(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana)     The Fifth CARICOM-Cuba Summit was testimony to the solidarity and fraternal relationship that existed among Caribbean people, CARICOM Secretary-General, Ambassador Irwin LaRocque said on Monday.

Addressing the Summit in Havana, Cuba, the Secretary-General retraced the history of the relationship between CARICOM Member States and Cuba, and outlined the myriad ways in which they had cooperated.

“Cuba has demonstrated its commitment to the sustainable development of our Region, by providing generous assistance in areas such as health, education, agriculture and sports. This has been a significant boost to the Caribbean Community, in particular to our efforts at strengthening our human resource capacity.

“More recently, Cuba came forward to assist CARICOM countries to prepare, in the event that Ebola comes into the Region. This is in keeping with Cuba’s leadership role in the global fight against the deadly disease, which has seen more than 250 medical personnel from this country, in the vanguard of the battle in West Africa. This is no surprise to us who have experienced Cuba’s humanity, such as with Operation Milagro.”

Continue reading “Summit a testimony to solidarity, fraternal relationship – CARICOM Secretary-General”

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