Invitations For Bids For The Week Of September 15 - 19, 2014 fyi: City of Austin Bid Notices Are Posted On The City of Austin Purchasing Office

~ Website: http://www.austintexas.gov/department/purchasiing ~

Every Week Construction Contractors, Subcontractors & Suppliers Will Receive — Notices About City Construction Projects — News About Other Upcoming Projects & Events — Information About Bid Results & Awards (when available) — Plus Free Use Of The Plans & Computer Center

Project Name: REHABILITATION OF WASTEWATER LINES THRU TRENCHLESS PROCESS Solicitation No: IFB 6100 CLMC477 Estimated Value: $1,500,000 For info: Connie Smith, 512-974-7274 MANDATORY Vendor Conf: Sepr 11, 2014 at 11:30 am, 505 Barton Springs Road, Large Conf. Rm. 8A, 78704 Offers Due: Oct 9, prior to 10:00 am DBE Goal: 10.58%

PROJECT TRADES SUMMARY Fencing, Temporary Fuel Oil, Diesel Grass Seed Signs, Construction Project Identification Signs Manholes, Construction Of Photography, Construction Services Not Otherwise Classified Traffic Control Device Placement & Removal SVC Toilets, Portable Rental or Lease Erosion Control Services

Project Name: ABIA ARFF BUILDING RE–ROOF AND BUILDING WEATHERPROOFING Solicitation No.: IFB 6100 CLMC506 Estimated Value; $148,250 MANDATORY Vendor Conf: September 23, 2014 at 9:00 am, ABIA ARFF Building, 3300 Emma Browning Avenue, Training Rm., Austin, Texas 78719. A Mandatory site visit will follow the Vendor Conference. Offers Due: October 9, 2014 prior to 11:00A For info: Alison Vonstein, 512-974-7217 DBE GOALS: MBE – 3.85% WBE – 4.73%

PROJECT TRADES SUMMARY Insulation, Reroof, all kinds Flashing/Eave Strips/Gravel Guards/Ridge Rolls Roofing, Asphaltic Electrical Heating, Ventilating/Air Conditioning Photography, Construction Hauling Services

CITY OF AUSTIN CONSTRUCTION INVITATIONS FOR BID

BIDDING ON CITY OF AUSTIN SOLICITATIONS? BIDDERS MUST ATTEND MANDATORY PRE-BID CONFERENCES AND ARE ENCOURAGED TO ATTEND ANY NON-MANDATORY PRE-BID CONFERENCES TO ENSUSRE THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF OWNER’S BIDDING AND CONTRACTING REQUIREMENTS, PARTICULARY MBE/WBE PROCUREMENT PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS. IF THE PRE-BID CONFERENCE IS MANADATORY THE BIDDER MUST ARRIVE AND SIGN-IN WITHIN FIF-TEEN 15) MINUTES OF THE SCHEDULED START TIME OF THE MEETING. OTHERWISE THE BIDDER WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO SUBMIT A BID FOR THE PRO-JECT. The City of Austin Online Vendor Registration and Solicitation Advertising website has changed. On October 1, 2011, the City installed the Vendor Connec-tion, a replacement for the existing registration and solicitation advertising websites. This new site may be accessed at http://www.austintexas.gov/financeonline/finance/index.cfm and select Vendor Connection. Solicitation details and document packages are available at this website. Bidders / Proposers are required to document efforts to solicit MBE/WBE or DBEs in the Compliance Plan. The Goals for each project and the instructions and forms for the Compliance Plan are in-cluded in the MBE/WBE or DBE Program Packet included in the solicitation. For construction contracts, the MBE/WBE or DBE Program Packet is a separately bound volume of the Project Manual.

Get certified with the City of Austin as a MBE, WBE or DBE Call the —

Small & Minority Business Resources Dept (SMBR) Certification Division at 512-974-7645

ftäx à{x Wtàx The City of Austin’s

Small & Minority Business Resources’ (SMBR) Ninth Annual

Contractors’ and Consultants’ Appreciation Event Please join us for a reception that celebrates diversity in contracting, recognizes local businesses,

and showcases our service providers. Our annual event honors Austin area businesses that in-

crease diversity while doing business with the City.

September 23, 2014

6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. Asian American Resource Center

8401 Cameron Road, Austin 78754

RSVP by September 17th 512.974.7677 orBlender.Hill@austintexas.gov

The Austin Area Black Contractors Association invites

City Certified MBE/WBE Construction Contractors to an interactive training session on

reading and understanding construction plans and specifications and the

basics on preparing cost estimates and bidding construction solicitations

Mark Clarke, LEED AP, DBIA, Chief Estimator and Les Morgan, LEED, Senior Estimator

for Hensel Phelps’ Southwest Division will provide the training instructions

When: September 24, 2014 Time: 6:00 pm

Where: Austin Area Black Contractors Association Meeting Room, 6448 Hwy 290 E, F109, Austin, TX 78723

Limited Space | RSVP by September 22nd. 512-467-6894 or brc-pro@att.net

Come Learn How To Grow and Prosper Your Business!

Local Plan Room Sites To View & Check-out Plans & Specifications

City of Austin Construction & Technology Center 4201 Ed Bluestein Blvd., Suite 2103 Austin, TX 78721 website: www.austintexas,gov/smbr 512-974-7799

Austin Area Black Contractors Association (ABCA) 6448 Highway 290 East, Suite E-107 Austin, Texas 78723 website: www.abcatx.com 512-467-6894

Asian Contractor Association (ACA) 4201 Ed Bluestein Blvd., Suite 2104 Austin, Texas 78721 website: www.asiancontractor@gmail.com 512-926-5400

Associated General Contractors (AGC) of America, Building Branch 609 South Lamar Blvd. Austin, Texas 78704 website: www.agcaustin.org 512-442-7887

Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) 3006 Longhorn Blvd., Suite 104 Austin, Texas 78758 website: www.abccentraltexas.org 512-719-5263

United Hispanic Contractors Association de Austin (USHCA) 9205 Dean Keeton St. Austin, Texas 78705 website: www.uscha-austin.com 512-922-0507 (cell)

Beck continues to recognize safety of all our workers is top priority! The first step in making sure we keep a safe environment is training.

Bec k wi l l be ho st i ng a 3 0 Ho ur OS H A Cl ass .

The co st fo r the t ra i n i ng wi l l be co v ered by Bec k.

The class will be held over six days, 8/15/14, 8/22/14, 9/5/14,

9/12/14, 9/19/14, and 10/3/14. Class will be from 8AM-1:30PM each day. All attendees must attend each day for the full time period to achieve the certification. The class is setup for a maximum of 15 participants. Please register with Earl Duhon at earlduhon@beckgroup.com. Classes will be held at the Austin Associated General Contractors Office located at 609 South Lamar Blvd, Austin 78704. Please feel free to contact Matt Pickens at mattpickens@beckgroup.com or 512-736-1417 with any questions.

Nothing is more important than once you have identified a potential bid opportunity is to pursue it

aggressively and set-up a contracting infrastructure to . . .

□ Get the plans and specs or CDs ASAP □ Request a copy of the plan holder’s list □ Attend the pre bid/proposal conference, (request a copy of the sign-in sheet); and market your service (s) with a company profile resume, brochure or business card □ Request copies of the pre bid conference sign-in sheet □ Follow-up on contacts □ Study the plans and specs □ Decide what you're going to bid □ Give the plans and specs to your estimator □ Analyze and understand your estimate □ Read, follow and understand the bid packet instructions and Requirements □ Develop an internal bid checklist to verify that all bid documents are included in your bid package, i.e...addendum, amendments, forms, documents, and bid bond □ Have at least two company contract personnel to check and verify that all bid documents, forms, addendum, amendments, bid bond are included in your bid submittal. Check with owner to verify if all addendum or amendments have been received □ Contact potential prime bidders if you're bidding as a sub □ Bid with as many prime bidders as possible □ Follow up with prime bidders to find out whether or not your bid was used; and if not, reason why ! □ Utilize information and experience gained to bid future projects Source: DAS Program, Construction Mgmt Training Session

Proposed Construction Projects Bidding Between 1/1/14 and 12/31/14

Advertise-ment Date Project Cost Estimate

Sep-14 Linger Lane Lift Station $3,400,000

Sep-14 Walnut Creek Influent Bank stabilization-Site 5 $750,000

Sep-14 East Austin SSO-Ongoing Rehab $1,692,000

Sep-14 Ullrich Hydraulic & Energy Efficiency Improvements $4,000,000

Sep-14 Waters Park Relief Main $3,500,000

Oct-14 Group 21-Residential & Collector Streets Central East North $5,000,000

Oct-14 Tannehill Ell Reach Projects $1,733,000

Oct-14 Future Wastewater Pipeline Replace/Rehab TBD

Oct-14 Montopolis WRI Tank $8,370,000

Oct-14 Slaughter @ Manchaca Intersection Improvements $500,000

Oct-14 Boggy Creek- 38 1/2 Street to MLK channel improvements and culvert upgrade $6,403,000

Oct-14 Betty Dunkerley Campus Infrastructure Imprv $1,260,000

Nov-14 Mexican American Cultural Ctr-Signage, Parking & Shading $542,100

Nov-14 Cesar Chavez St. Promenade between 1st St. W Ave TBD

City of Austin Source: City of Austin

Public Works Department

Request for Proposal Greenwater Residential Tower Block 1

Trammell Crow Company/The Hanover Company is pleased to issue this Request for Proposal to your firm for Commissioning Agents associated with the Greenwater Residential Tower Block 1, located at the intersection of Cesar Chavez and San Antonio Street in Austin, Texas. The Project is intending to be LEED silver certified and AEGB 2 Star rated and consists of a 439 unit, mixed use, residential tower with a (2) Level below & (38) Level above grade concrete frame with a combination of brick and glass exterior. The mechanical system consists of split systems for the units and amenity spaces. Hot water will be provided by individual water heaters located in the residential units. There are outside air units located on the roofs. The scope of this proposal will consist of providing the necessary commissioning services as outlined in the Project Manual and as required for LEED and AEGB. Construction began in February 2014 and intends to provide a phased turnover beginning with owner occu-pancy in November 2015 with final turnover of June 2016. The 100% Construction Documents can be accessed by the following link:

Drawings: https://balfourbeattyus.box.com/s/71kckn1isulq00t08tl7 Specs: https://balfourbeattyus.box.com/s/17zxkajj3w4k9vnfw0lf

Trammell Crow Company/The Hanover Company strongly encourages the participa-tion of Minority and Women Owned Business Enterprises (M/WBE) firms in construc-tion of this project. The term M/WBE means minority-owned and women-owned busi-

nesses certified by the City of Austin. The goals for M/WBE participation for the project are as follows:

African American-Owned Business 2.9% Hispanic-Owned Business 9.0%

Asian American and/or Native American-Owned Business 4.9% Women-Owned Business 15.8%

M/WBE firms are encouraged to submit proposals for this project. Additionally, all businesses that submit proposals for this project are encouraged to include M/WBE firms as lower tier subconsultants for appropriate opportunities. An availability list of City of Austin certified M/WBE firms is attached to this solicitation. Your proposal shall include: All fees relative to this work. Your company’s approach to managing this work. Resumes of individuals that will be assigned to the project and their roles.

List of project of similar size and type as Block 1. List of projects completed by your firm that are LEED certified and AEGB rated.

An itemized list of services you will be providing for the project with unit costs and quantities of each.

Sample reports and plans to be utilized for this project. Your Certificate of Insurance.

Please submit your proposal by 3:00 PM on September 24, 2014 by email or hard copy to 100 Congress Avenue, Suite 225 Austin Texas 78701. You may direct all questions to me via the contact information below TRAMMELL CROW COMPANY Bryan Embrey Vice President, Development Management (512) 485-5500 bembrey@trammellcrow.com

PROCUREMENT OPPORTUNITIES Opening Solicitation No. Description Buyer 09/17/14 B1407-003-RV University Savings Building (USB) Richard Villareal 2:00 PM HVAC System Replacement (512)854-4881

09/03/14 10:00 A.M. An Optional Pre-Bid Conference will be held at the Purchasing Department 700 Lavaca St., Suite 800, Austin, Texas 78701 09/29/14 B1408-002-LD Janitorial Services- Various Locations Loren Breland 1:00 PM (512)854-4854

Optional Pre-Bid Conferences will be held at the site visits at all locations and will be conducted on Wednesday, September 17, 2014 and Thursday, September 18, 2014. The site visit schedule is listed below. Site visits will start promptly at 9:00 a.m. at the first location listed for each day.

Wednesday, 9/17/14 @ 9:00 a.m. 1. TNR Parks West & Rd and Bridge, 16424 Hamilton Pool Rd, Austin, TX 2. Sheriff West Command, 3800 Hudson Bend Road, Austin, TX 78732

Thursday, 9/18/14 @ 9:00 a.m. 1. South Rural Community Center, 3518 FM 973, Del Valle, TX 79617 2. Travis County Housing Services, 5021 E. Cesar Chavez, Austin, TX 78701 3. Sheriff East Command, 7811 Burleson Manor Road, Manor, TX 78763 4. East Rural Community Center, 600 W. Carrie Manor Road, Manor, TX 78653

2014 — Get MBE/WBE/DBE/HUB CERTIFIED!

MBE/WBE/DBE/HUB Certifications do not guarantee your company a contract from the city, county, state, federal governments or the private sector. You still have to market your company to each individual entity you desire to do business with. To help you market your company to these entities, contact the following certifying agencies and get on their bidder’s list for construc-tion and construction related opportunities:

City of Austin MBE/WBE/DBE Certification Small & Minority Business Resources Department 4201 Ed Bluestein Blvd., Austin, Texas 78721 Contact: Elton Price, Manager, Certification Division 512-974-7645

South Central Texas Regional Certification Agency 301 South Frio, Suite 310, San Antonio, TX 210-227-4722

-State of Texas - Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts Statewide HUB Program HUB Certification 1711 San Jacinto Blvd., Austin, TX Contact: 512-475-2414

Other Certifying Agencies that serves the State of Texas North Central Texas Regional Certification Agency 624 Six Flags Drive, Suite 216, Arlington, TX Contact: 817-640-0606 TXDot (Texas Department of Transportation) Business Opportunity Programs Section 125 East 11th Street, Austin, TX 78701 Contact: 512-486-5050

Note: Travis County and the Lower Colorado River Author-ity accepts MBE/WBE Certi-fications from the City of Austin and HUB Certification from the Texas State Comp-troller of Public Accounts Statewide HUB Program. Capital Metropolitan Trans-portation Authority accepts DBE Certification from the City of Austin Small and Minority Business Resources Department.

4 TECHNOLOGY TRENDS IN CONSTRUCTION FOR 2014

Information technology has been shaping the construction industry for decades. But there have been a few breakthroughs and refreshing innovations on old processes that are taking a particular hold for technology trends in construction 2014. New buzzwords like ‘Big Data’, ‘data-driven design’ and ‘crowdsourced placemaking’ are on the lips of construction and manufacturing innovators. The industry has placed high value in integrating and utilizing information technology. But only 10 percent of companies indicate that they are industry torchbearers, willing to adopt new technology before others do. Are you a torchbearer? Here are a few technology trends in construction for 2014 that give you competitive edge above your competition.

Full-force Mobile Computing Mobile devices on the job have been trending in construction industry technology for some time. “70% of construction professionals already view mobile technol-ogy as important to their businesses, planning to use it to access and share information such as customer and job data, drawings, schedules, photos, and plans” says Sage Construction Industry Technology Trends survey. But there is a new face in the mobile computing arena: cloud computing. Long ago mobile devices replaced the paper information exchange with a simpler digital version via smart phones, tablets and laptops. But cloud computing takes it a bit further than simple information exchange. With the power of the cloud you can bypass small-scale functionality for limitless computing power giving way to full force functioning software of a desktop application in your pocket. The future effects of this trend point to a higher level of company-wide connection and overall better onsite efficiency.

Data-Driven Design In 2013, the world learned a lot about how to use the Big Data infrastructure that was new to the market. This coming year, those lessons will be applied toward analyzing and utilizing the data. This will be the year of: ’What can I do with Big Data?’ The construction industries answer: data-driven design. “Using data in the AEC industry is not new. The built environment has long been an abundant source of data,” says Randy Deutsch, architectural professor at the University of Illinois. “What is new is the amount of data that is available to us, our capacity to measure and ability to capture, process, and act on that data, and, frankly, our industry’s urgent need to do so.” The use of Big Data trend in construction offers an opportunity to completely change how firms design, construct, and operate buildings. But getting to that point means overcoming some significant barriers, specifically data reliability, privacy, and security. Despite these setbacks data-driven design will take hold this year and continue to grow in the future.

Crowdsourced Placemaking The drafting table is about to get overcrowded. We are talking hundreds, even thousands of opinions, all providing invaluable input on your next project. These, of course, are the future occupants and end users of the spaces you create. For the first time, the masses can have an effect in how the constructed environment around them is formed. For instance, using mobile apps, social media, and secu-rity camera footage, architects can learn how groups of people move through a space. They can then create hypothetical circumstances (“If we added a colle-giate gear shop in the student union, would you choose to buy there instead of off campus?”) and ask for feedback on early design ideas through social media polls or large-scale surveys. Like it or not, the mass participation of construction de-sign is on its way. Current buzzwords like “crowdsourced placemaking” and “data-driven design” will soon become commonplace.

Real-time Energy Performance Modeling Energy modeling has been around for many years, but the process remains time-consuming and costly. As you may know, energy performance modeling is one of the most time consuming processes in the planning development. Single-purpose models, such as airflow or daylighting models, can take days and sometimes even weeks to generate. With new software tools, required analysis can be per-formed during conceptual design. Applications allow designers to model energy performance in early concepts in real time. By condensing the time it takes to analyze energy performance data from days to hours, it is now practical for de-sign teams to adjust their designs with out workflow disruptions based on the data at hand. There are other digital tools revolutionizing conceptual design with real-time building performance data. This software comes with energy simulation features that enable users to gather instant energy-performance feedback on early design decisions based on proposed building orientation, thermal perform-ance, and massing. Energy efficiency is on everyone’s mind and now the model-ing itself will be efficient as your buildings. While traditional process will not be halted and replaced tomorrow; the mere existence of these trends will push the construction industry further and further into the digital age. Information technol-ogy is improving efficiency in many sectors and will continue to do so. Will you be in the 10 percent of early adopters? If so, you may want to consider a technology partner. More than 47% of firms surveyed admit to not having any IT manage-ment. The current and future tech influences make it all the more important for construction companies to be strategic in their IT planning and investments.

Source: Entech, Business IT Solutions

Apple, Inc. 5501 West Parmer Lane | Austin, Texas

Apple is requesting bids for the following service providers for work at the location listed above:

LANDSCAPE MANAGEME

Pre Bid Suppliers have been vetted through the Austin SMBR. Please contact the SMBR directly if you have any questions about the Austin SMBR process. This is a seven day advanced notice of the RFP. Once the RFP has been released, Suppliers will receive e-mail notification from Apple’s electronic bidding process. The bid proc-ess is hosted by Ariba (www.ariba.com).

______________________________

Bid Documents Available on September 12, 2014

Request for Proposals will be sent directly to the Suppliers through the Apple electronic bidding process, which is hosted by Ariba (www.ariba.com). The entire bid process, including bid submittals, will be managed through Ariba. If you have any questions about Apple’s procurement process please contact:

SUPPLIERDIVERSITY@apple.com Corporate Procurement

One Infinite Loop, Cupertino, CA 95014 All

Invitation to Bid:

Seaholm Power Plant-Athenahealth

Phase 2 Tenant

Finish-Out

LOCATION: 800 West Cesar Chavez BID DATE: Tuesday, September 23, 2014 TIME 2:00 PM START DATE: October, 2014 TENANT: Athenahealth PROJECT CONTACT: Matthew Crane – mcrane@flintco.com Peter Robredo — probredo@flintco.com VALUE: $5,000,000

DESCRIPTION: Flintco, LLC (CM @ Risk) is soliciting proposals from Subcontractors and Material Suppliers for the Seaholm Power Plant - Athenahealth Tenant Finish-out. The scope includes, final clean, glass & glazing, structural steel, millwork, spray insula-tion, doors & hardware, drywall, paint, sealed concrete, flooring, tile, signage, specialties, access flooring, plumbing, mechanical, electrical, fire protection, & sound masking System. Flintco, LLC is an EEO Employer of HUB and M/WBE Subcontractors and Suppliers. All are encouraged to submit bids. Proposals due 9/23/14 @ 2:00 PM at Flintco’s jobsite office 8100 Cross Park, Austin, Texas 78754 or emailed to mcrane@flintco.com A strongly encouraged pre-proposal meeting on 9/16/14 @ 10:00 AM will be held at the Seaholm Power Plant, 800 West Cesar Chavez, Austin, TX 78701 (parking will not be available on site). Contact Matthew Crane at Phone (512) 844-1013 or Peter Robredo at pro-bredo@flintco.com. Phone: (512) 970-6324 or Fax: (866) 605-7784 to receive the bid documents.

UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN Project Name: (TCC) Replace Dishwasher/Grease Waste System in Kitchen Solicitation #: 15CSP001 Pre-Proposal Conf.: September 15, 2014 at 3:00 p.m. at 1301 E. Dean Keeton Road, FC1, Room 2.106 Large Conference Room, Austin, Texas

General Construction Budget: $221,000.00 to $250,000.00 Envelopes No. 1 is due October 6, 2014 at 11:30 a.m.

Project Summary: Flooring, plumbing, HVAC and electrical.

Project Name: (BRK) HVAC & Building Renovations (Phase 10) Solicitation #: 14CSP017 Pre-Proposal Conf.: August 28, 2014 at 9:30 a.m. at 1301 E. Dean Keeton Road, FC1 Room 1.118C Training Room C, Austin, Texas

General Construction Budget: $720,000.00 to $816,000.00 Envelopes No. 1 is due September 15, 2014 at 11:30 a.m.

Project Summary: Demolition, concrete, metals, carpentry, thermal and moisture protection, steel doors and hardware, drywall, flooring, acoustical panel ceilings, painting, roofing, HVAC, Electrical.

Project Name: (WHC) Will C. Hogg Building Renovation of Wagner Dormitory Solicitation #: 14CSP019 Pre-Proposal Conf.: August 27, 2014 at 10:30 a.m. at Winedale Historical Center, 3738 FM 2714, Round Top, Texas 78954

General Construction Budget: $837,000.00 to $949,000.00 Envelopes No. 1 is due September 15 2014 at 2:00 p.m.

Project Summary: Asbestos abatement, demolition, concrete, metals, carpentry, thermal and moisture protection, openings, glazing, painting, flooring, drywall, plastering, specialties, general appliances, countertops, fire suppression, plumbing, HVAC, electrical, fire alarm system, grading, erosion control, site improvements, landscaping, parking bumpers.

WHEN TO BID OR NOT BID A PROJECT? The decision to bid or not bid a project is often times one of the greatest dilemmas a contractor faces following an inquiry to bid. Often times, the immediate temptation is to bid on most projects that become available in order to keep work coming in and avoid idle production. Yet the deci-sion to bid on a construction project which is not suitable for a particular company can have costly ramifications not only financially, but could just as well damage the future credibility of the company. Often times, passing up on the opportunity to bid on a project is the best decision a builder can make. How then, does a contractor faced with this dilemma make an informed decision whether to bid the job? While there is no clear cut answer to this question, the builder should consider the following after receiving the bidding documents and reviewing the project:

Competition: •Who else is likely to bid this job? •How many bidder will there be? •Are the bidders equal, or are they smaller contractors with lower overhead?

Nature of the job: •Is the firm capable of building the project? •Has the company done any similar work in the past? •Do the firm’s superintendents and project managers have the right kind of experience to handle the job?

Market conditions: •Is the job extended over a long period? •Will there be many unknown factors such as labor rates, material prices, or other prevailing economic conditions which may upset the project?

Firm’s previous experience with the owner or architect: •Has the company done any work with them in the past? •Has the relationship been satisfactory? •Are they a good client or a good architect? •Would it be prudent to work for them again? •Is the company obliged to submit a bid due to this past relationship?

Cost to prepare a proposal: •Does the probability of getting the job warrant the cost of preparing the proposal? •What are the chances of winning the job at a reasonable profit?

All of these factors should be considered in a logical way in order to reach a decision to bid or not bid a job. It is also important that the contractor pursue this thinking as early as possible and reach a firm decision in order to allow as much time as possible for the estimating staff to pre-pare an accurate bid. Good planning and sound decision making during the bidding process can make the difference between a successful project and an unsuccessful one, but the decision to bid or not bid a project is the most important factor in the success of a business. Source: Google

SMBR’s PLAN ROOM

The City of Austin’s Small & Minority Business Resources

(SMBR) Plan Room is open for business weekdays from 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. SMBR’s Plan Room provides free electronic access to the McGraw-Hill Dodge system of drawings and construction specifications for projects in 100 counties in South and Central Texas as well as hard copy plans and specifications from local, private, and public sector jobs that can be viewed onsite or copied for a minimal fee. For a list of the current available Plans and Specifications, you can access it on our website at www.austintexas.gov/smbr or visit this link https://data.austintexas.gov/Business/Construction-Plans-in-SMBR-s-Plan-Room/x442-h34c or for questions or to schedule a training as a first time user — please call Genia Browder, Plans Room Coordinator at 512- 974-7799.

You Are Invited

Seton Medical Center Project Overview

& Minority and Woman-Owned Business

Outreach and Networking Session

Carver Library │1161 Angelina Street │Austin, TX 78701 │Rooms 1 & 2

Tuesday, September 23, 2014 │ 2:00 PM CDT

Information about the project and upcoming construction op-portunities will be presented including the following scopes of work:

For questions, please contact Brian Haulotte with JE Dun Construction at Brian.Haulotte@jedunn.com

Side-walks & Paving

Landscap-ing &

Irrigation

Pave-ment Mark-ings

Structural & Misc.

Steel

Ornamental Railings

Expansion Joint Assem-

blies

Masonry Exterior Metal Panels

Metal Wall Lou-vers

Carpentry & Mill-

work

Roofing & Sheet Metal

Waterproofing and Sealants

Firestop-ping

Doors, Frames & Hardware

Tiling Flooring Painting Toilet Parti-

tions & Acces-sories

Wall & Door

Protec-tion

Lockers Misc. Spe-

cialties

Loading Dock

Equip-ment

Food Service

Equipment

Radio Fre-quency Shield-

ing

Building Mainte-nance Equip-ment

Heliports Eleva-

tors

Pneu-matic Tube

System

Low Volt-age Sys-

tems/Access

Controls

Flagpoles

The Austin Area Black Contractors Association is reaching out to all

African American Construction Contractors located in Travis, Hays, Williamson,

Bastrop and Caldwell Counties to get MBE/WBE/DBE

Certified with the City of Austin.

For More Information, Call 512-467-6894

City of Austin Small and Minority Business Resources Department (SMBR) 512-974-7600

MANAGEMENT TEAM Veronica Briseño Lara, Director Debra Dibble, Assistant Director Thomas Owens, Resource Services Division Manager Elton Price, Certification Division Manager Tamela Saldana, Compliance Division Manager Kristi Samilpa, Business Process Consultant Genia Browder, Plans Room Coordinator Angela Hill, Executive Assistant

WORKER MISSCLASSIFICATION ENFORCEMENT In February Mike Hill, bond agent with Baldwin Cox Agency, a North Texas agency specializing in bonding and insurance for contractors posted a piece about worker misclassification in Texas titled

How Contractors Can Make More Money By Cheating: Worker Misclassification

If you're a construction employer, and you're using people as "independent con-tractors" vs. as employees, it's time to stop! More states are gearing up to find you. More contractors who are NOT cheating their workers are getting legis-lators' attention. If you think you can get away with this process without conse-quence, those days are numbered. Astute owners are also increasingly aware of the consequences of the practice. They are the ones who are also supporting programs to bring more workers into our industry. That's because those owners realize they get a higher value building if the workers on the job know what they're doing when they build it. And they get paid what they're legally required to be paid for their valuable work. And they do excellent work because they are trained, paid properly, are covered by workers comp, likely get paid vacation and appreciate our industry's best employers. If you choose to continue cheating your workers and their families, and therefore, your clients and government taxing authori-ties, I suggest that you sleep with one eye open. Enforcement is coming! 10/23/2013 | Reprint September 2014

Prime Contractors • Trade Associations Agencies • Business Organizations

Your notices or announcements must be received no later than12 Noon on Wednesday by E-mail at: brc-pro@swbell.net in a Word Document. Announce-ments or notices will be published on a first come, first serve basis.

Please Do Not Send PDF formatted announcements, notices, isqft, Grade Beam documents or tables. All will have to be converted to a Word document or we will NOT be able to publish. (These types of software are not compatible to the Bid Briefs’ publishing software). DAS further request that bid announcements or notices be submitted at least two weeks prior to closing date to give MBE/WBE/DBE/HUB firms sufficient time to review the project’s plans and specifications; and to prepare their bid responses. Fax Transmittals, PDF and isqft documents and table formats will not be ACCEPTED FOR PUBLICATION IN THE ON-LINE BID BRIEFS. You may download Bid Briefs on Mondays to review or use. In order to continue to receive Bid Briefs, you may sign-up as a subscriber on abcatx.com website and click on the Bid Briefs’ link.

Immigrants are most susceptible to worker misclassification

Week after week, Alfredo Barreda carried a paycheck from his construction job to the bank, where he waited in line for a teller and then stuffed two wads of cash into the front pockets of his pants, he said. Workers don't have protections. Companies don't withhold taxes. Regulators don't seem to care. McClatchy reporters spent a year un-raveling the scheme, using little-noticed payroll records that show how widespread this practice has become and what it costs us. The money in the left pocket went home, to his partner, Denise Alejandre, and their three children. The roll of bills in the right, he said, went back to his boss. It wasn’t the life he’d imagined as a young man, when he hoped that wiring and plumbing work would lead him to the success his own parents had envisioned years ago when they brought young Alfredo and his siblings across the Mexico-U.S. border. Barreda, 35, works on federal contracting projects in Southern California. His path to the middle class has been stunted, he said, by the schemes that keep him short of being able to pay his bills. Barreda is one of thousands of immigrants laboring in an industry rife with broken promises and informal agree-ments. ...violations do not occur in isolation. Julie Su, the California labor commissioner. “There is nothing we can do,” Barreda said. “That’s not right. But it’s the only way we know.” A nationwide McClatchy investigation found that in Southern states such as North Carolina and Texas, where there’s a lack of unions and a supply of eager immigrants, like Barreda, as many as a third of construction workers have been wrongly classified as independent contractors instead of employees. The problem persists across the na-tion, though, from California to Washington, D.C., and each year the practice costs taxpayers billions of dollars while state and federal governments are desperate for any addi-tional tax revenue. But, as McClatchy found, misclassifica-tion breeds other schemes as company owners clamor for an advantage over competitors. Companies may dodge prevail-ing wages required by the Davis-Bacon Act, a 1930s-era law that mandates fair wages on federally backed projects. Workers are sometimes cheated on hours or overtime pay.

They may be paid cash under the table, pushed into an un-derground economy. Some workers interviewed by McClatchy, like Barreda, complained of kickbacks, in which they had to return some of their wages to company bosses. “Generally, violations do not occur in isolation,” said Julie Su, the California labor commissioner. “You uncover one violation and it’s often a doorway into multiple violations.” McClatchy’s review of payroll records shows immigrants are most susceptible to misclassification and other exploitation. Using the records as a starting point, McClatchy found and interviewed hundreds of laborers and tradesmen.

Many, in addition to being misclassified, told unsettling stories of mistreatment: Companies refusing to provide tax forms that allowed workers to file tax returns.

Bosses forcing workers to pay a fee to use protective gear such as hard hats and steel-toe boots.

Bosses refusing to settle up on days’ or weeks’ worth of pay.

A workplace injury without any insurance to take care of it.

“You have certain contractors who find ways to game the system,” said David Kersh, the executive director of the Car-penters/Contractors Cooperation Committee in California, a labor management group. “They’re cheating workers. They’re cheating taxpayers.” “It makes me feel invisible,” said Camilo Loyola, a Mexican immigrant who moved to North Carolina more than 20 years ago. During two decades in the construction industry, Loyola has been shortchanged on wages and deprived of tax forms, he said. In 2011, he worked on a government-financed project in Raleigh and was improperly treated as an independent contractor. He

knew it was wrong, but he needed to keep the money flow-ing for his family. Armando Sanchez, a Mexican immigrant who became a U.S. citizen, helped build an affordable hous-ing complex in Jacksonville, N.C., in 2010. He said he was treated as an independent contractor and shortchanged on the hours he worked. “These days, you work for less or you don’t work at all,” he said.

Samuel Mora worked with a crew his father assembled at an affordable housing complex in Fayetteville, N.C. Sometimes, he said, it took weeks or a month for his father to be paid and then to distribute cash to his workers. No one bothered to define what they were, but records show Samuel Mora was treated as an independent contractor. He was resigned to the realities of working in construction in America.“We say it’s better to do something than nothing,” Mora said. Jonathan Alcorn / MCTAlfredo Barreda works on a home at a military base in San Pedro, California. In San Fernando, Barreda’s pay never reflected what he truly worked, he said. Anything more than $17 to $20 an hour had to be returned. He patted his right pocket, miming the missing money. “All the time I say, ‘This money should be mine.’ . . . It wants to be together.” Barreda signed an affidavit as part of a com-plaint filed with the U.S. Department of Labor stating his boss forced his brothers and him to return portions of checks. If they didn’t agree to return the money, they would-n’t work, he said. His older brother, Abel Barreda, who de-scribed himself as foreman, signed a separate affidavit ex-plaining that he collected the money from his brothers and other workers to give to his boss or use to buy tools. While they started off working illegally, Barreda and his two broth-ers have since become legal U.S. permanent residents.

Often, laborers affected by the schemes are, like the Barre-das, foreign-born. Immigrants have swarmed to the United States over the past two decades seeking refuge and oppor-tunity. Many found work in construction trades, riding building booms that swept across parts of the country. Slowly, they supplanted the American workers who made a life pouring concrete and shingling roofs. By 2012, Hispanic workers accounted for nearly 20 percent of construction workers nationally, up from just 9.2 percent in 1990.This is particularly true in California, where 40 percent of workers in the construction industry are immigrants, the highest rate in the country, according to the National Association of Home Builders’ use of census data from 2011. Among the misclassified workers listed on records McClatchy analyzed, the majority had Hispanic surnames.

The practice of misclassification dates back decades, but its prominence grew after the 1986 amnesty law signed by President Ronald Reagan. The law granted legal status to thousands of people living here without papers, but it also made it harder for companies “to knowingly hire” immi-grants who are in the U.S. illegally. With the federal govern-ment cracking down, more employers have turned to mis-classification as a way to keep an illegal labor force. Employ-ers aren’t required to verify the immigration status of inde-pendent contractors. “Employers realized one way to avoid this is not to be called an employee,” said Muzaffar Chishti, the director of the Migration Policy Institute’s office at the New York University School of Law. “The sanctions apply only if you directly employ someone.”

By Franco Ordoñez and Mandy Locke McClatchy Washington Bureau, September 5, 2014 (Part II will be featured in Bid Briefs Sep 22 Edition)