EIU Office of Internal Auditing

#147 - Architects and Engineers Selection

Approved: August 30, 2000

Nomenclature changes: December 13, 2001

Monitor: Vice President for Business Affairs

Whenever a project requiring architectural, engineering or land surveying services of $25,000 or more is proposed, the University shall provide no less than a fourteen day advance notice on the Illinois Procurement Bulletin, setting forth the project(s) and services to be procured. Said notice shall include a description of the project and shall state the time and place for interested firms to submit a letter of interest and, if required, a statement of qualifications.

For Capital Development Board Projects

On construction projects funded through the Capital Development Board, the following procedure shall be followed by the Office of the Vice President for Business Affairs, or designee:

1. A description of the project shall be developed to indicate:
   
   a. the geographic location of the project;
   
   b. the type of project;
   
   c. an estimated budget for the project;
   
   d. the anticipated schedule for the project; and,
   
   e. unusual requirements, such as funding, site selection, etc.
2. In accordance with the Architectural, Engineering, and Land Surveying Qualifications Based Selections Act (30 ILCS 535/1 et seq) (the “Act”), notice of the project shall be published on the Illinois Procurement Bulletin.
3. Firms on the University's bidders list and firms responding to the published notice shall be sent a Request for Qualifications that shall include information contained in the definition of the scope of the project. Each firm will be asked to indicate its interest and provide a statement of qualifications as required by the public notice.
4. Evaluations of firms responding to the Request for Qualifications shall be conducted in accordance with the Act.
   
   A Selection Committee, which may include the Vice President for Business Affairs, the Director of Facilities Planning and Management, the Manager of Design and Construction, the Dean or Director of the area affected by the project, the appropriate Vice President or designee, and a representative from Purchasing, shall evaluate all firms submitting responses.
5. The Committee shall determine the qualifications to be considered during the evaluation process. Qualifications to be considered may include, among others: (a) similar project experience, (b) capacity to perform the work, (c) firm history and inclination, and (d) proposed personnel.
6. On the basis of evaluations, presentations and discussions, the Committee will rank not less than three firms, when possible, and submit their recommendation to the Vice President for Business Affairs to present to the President for approval.
7. The Vice President for Business Affairs, or designee, shall notify the Capital Development Board of the University's recommendation.

For University Projects

For projects not funded through the Capital Development Board and for which the fees are $25,000 or more, the above procedures shall be followed, except the Vice President for Business Affairs shall have authority to approve the Committee’s recommendation, and the contract with the selected firm shall be negotiated by the Manager of Design and Construction in consultation with the Purchasing Department.

For projects not funded through the Capital Development Board and for which the fees are less than $25,000, the Director of Facilities Planning and Management in compliance with purchasing requirements, shall determine the firm selected to perform the architectural/ engineering work. The Director shall seek competitive rates for such services and, when feasible, use local firms and female or minority-owned firms.