The Division of Construction Procurement is responsible for procuring highway construction and maintenance projects for the Transportation Cabinet.  The Finance and Administration Cabinet delegates purchasing authority to the Transportation Cabinet to allow for this.  The division’s primary responsibilities include:

• Contractor prequalification
• Preparing and advertising projects
• Bid receipt
• Contract execution
• Project cost estimation
• Wage and hour compliance

The Division of Construction Procurement carries out these responsibilities thorough the Office of the Director of Construction Procurement and three branches:

• Prequalification and Compliance Branch
• Advertising, Proposals, and Award Branch
• Plans, Specifications, and Estimates Branch

The Director’s Office includes the Director, the Assistant Director, engineering and administrative staff that provides administrative support to the entire division.  The Director of this Division is accountable for all procedures and processes for project procurement.  Primary responsibilities of the director’s office include:

• Reviewing and approving personnel actions and travel requests.
• Provide support to other divisions preparing projects for letting.
• Perform quality assurance reviews and updates for policies and procedures related to the division.
• Maintain the division website.
• Coordinate special requests with the State Highway Engineers Office.
• Oversee and manage the Cabinet’s Alternative Delivery Projects.

The Prequalification and Compliance Branch reviews prequalification applications to determine contractor eligibility in terms of work types and the maximum dollar amount of work the contractor can accept as a prime contractor. Also, the branch monitors compliance with state and federal laws concerning wage and hour and EEO on federal and state projects.

Primary responsibilities for prequalification include:

• Review and process TC 14-1, Application for Certificate of Eligibility, forms.
• Review and evaluate TC 14-19, Contractor’s Performance Report, forms.
• Make recommendations to the Construction Prequalification Committee.
• Process contractor certification documentation.
• Update website with prequalified contractors and prequalification information.

Primary responsibilities for compliance include:

• Assign and monitor trainees to federal projects.
• Conduct wage and hour reviews.
• Conduct EEO contract compliance reviews on federal-aid projects.
• Review and investigate discrimination complaints and sexual harassment complaints on state- and federal-aid projects.
• Review and investigate wage complainants.
• Furnish contractors and districts with required posters for project bulletin boards.
• Attend preconstruction conferences and advise contractor of wage and hour, and EEO requirements.
• Review and update wage rate changes and assign project wage rates.
• Review TC 14-312, Engineer’s Wage & Hour Report, forms
• Prepare annual reports.

The Advertising, Proposals, and Award Branch prepares and posts all necessary documents for advertisement of the bid lettings.  The branch reviews bids and subsequent submittals once the letting concludes, and then processes the award of projects.

Primary responsibilities include:

• Prepare Authority to Advertise
• Review proposals submitted for letting
• Prepare proposal documents for bid letting
• Advertise letting
  • Post letting information on DCP website
  • Notify consultant providing the electronic web-based engineering content management system.
• Maintain proposal addendums and other related documents
• Register bidders
• Manage the project questions submitted by bidders. Includes forwarding, editing Q/A as needed, and posting Q/A on Division website.
• Review bids after letting.
• Import bids into Department letting software program
• Check financial eligibility of low bidders
• Confirm DBE commitments–receives DBE subcontracts from prime and sub for review. Ensures FHWA 1273 and certificate of insurance are attached to all DBE subcontracts
• Enter data for Office of Civil Rights and Small Business Development (OCRSBD) approval.
• Process recommendations of the Awards Committee
• Maintain all contract-related documents (authority to sign, affidavits, proof of insurance, etc.)
• Issue project Notices to Proceed
• Serves on DBE Goal Setting Committee – run reports and memorandums for committee members, schedules the monthly DBE goal setting meeting prior to the advertisement, and gets summarization for SHE approval.
• Load contract in to KYTC’s construction software
• Create project encumbrances/review eMars to ensure funding is available.
• Upload contracts into eMars to encumber project funding.
• Pass project to the Division of Construction

The Estimating Branch is responsible for inputting highway construction projects into the KYTC project software system and producing the Engineer’s Estimate for cost comparisons of the bid received at the letting.

Primary responsibilities include:

• Project data entry into the KYTC bidding software program.
• Review project documents for applicable notes, permits, provisions, etc.
• Determine applicable bidding prequalification required for projects.
• Track material costs that affect the industry
• Prepare the official Engineer’s Estimate for all projects let by the division.
• Review contractor’s bids received on projects.
• Maintain a highway construction cost index for Kentucky projects.
• Maintain other software and databases used to produce the Engineer’s Estimate.
• Support the Awards Committee with information to decisions on project awards.