THE PURCHASING DIVISION AND THE FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES DEPARTMENT/RISK MANAGEMENT DIVISION RECOMMEND APPROVAL OF THE ABOVE MOTION.
The Office of Economic and Small Business Development (OESBD) did not assign County Business Enterprise (CBE) goals for this procurement, because there is only one certified CBE firm that provides insurance brokerage services. Therefore, consistent with the Broward County Business Opportunity Act of 2012, as amended, Sec. 1-81.3 (1) (a), if there are fewer than two (2) certified CBEs available to participate in a specific project, no CBE goal will be applicable. The OESBD determined that this project is not subject to the Broward County Workforce Investment Program (Exhibit 2).
On June 14, 2016 (Item No. 25), the Board awarded a contract to Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services, Inc., for Agent/Broker Insurance Services for a five-year initial term for General Services and for Controlled Insurance Program Services, and authorized the Director of Purchasing to renew the Agreement for five one-year periods, for a potential ten-year contract. We are currently in year three of the initial five-year term. The Agreement provides for agent/broker general insurance services, as well as for Controlled Insurance Program (CIP) Services, which may include an Owner Controlled Insurance Program (OCIP) or a Contractor Controlled Insurance Program (CCIP).
Although a current contract exists, the County has determined that because of the size, complexity, and unique nature of the Convention Construction project that it would be in the best interest of the County to solicit agent/broker services specifically for an Owner Controlled Insurance Program (OCIP) for the design and construction of the County’s Convention Center Expansion and Hotel. Arthur J. Gallagher was informed of the County's intent and has agreed that the County should segregate this specific project and solicit under a new RFP (Exhibit 3).
OCIPs are traditionally more cost-effective and the County has experienced significant savings when utilizing an OCIP for past projects. Most notably, the owner can save from the bulk purchase of insurance. An OCIP will allow contractors/subcontractors to bid on the project without incorporating the cost of insurance premiums into their project costs. Smaller contractors can compete with larger contractors since their need to procure cost-effective insurance coverage is removed. Additionally, an OCIP provides for enhanced safety on construction sites. Enhanced safety leads to fewer accidents and claims, which in turn reduces insurance premium costs.
The purpose of this solicitation is to contract with one Agent/Broker to provide services for the Convention Center Expansion and Hotel project. It is anticipated that the services will include marketing and managing, at a minimum, the coverages normally associated with an OCIP, which may include, but are not limited to: general liability, workers’ compensation, employers’ liability, excess liability, professional liability, environmental pollution liability and builder’s risk coverage, in addition to other coverages and services as requested by the County. The Agent/Broker will work with the County to identify, develop and further refine the insurance needs of the project. At the County’s discretion, other insurance coverages and/or services may be included. Services will be provided on an as-needed basis at the request of the County.
The RFP method of procurement was selected for this project to best serve the County with additional evaluation criteria other than price alone. The RFP method provides for predefined evaluation criteria for ranking of firms based upon the required specialized expertise.
|