Business Administration AP 540 - Appendix A: Selection of Architect

Background

When the Division has determined that a new facility is needed, or major renovation is planned where an architect will be required, the Superintendent will proceed to hire an architect to plan the project.

Procedures

1. The Division shall request proposals from qualified Alberta-licensed architectural firms for capital projects according to the following criteria:
   1. For capital projects with budgets expected to be in excess of $2,000.000; or
   2. For lower budget projects which are deemed to be of strategic importance to the Division unless the project in question is closely linked to a previous project and it appears to be advantageous to the Division to retain the same design because of familiarity with the project background.
2. When the Division decides to request proposals from architectural firms, advertisements will be placed in relevant Alberta publications, and the Merx system to be compliant with the agreement on internal trade.
3. All proposals from architectural firms shall contain the following information:
   1. Brief history of the firm;
   2. Details of projects completed in recent years;
   3. The names of senior staff who would be nominated for the project for the Division; and
   4. Names of references from clients, contractors and financial institutions
4. The Director of Operations and Maintenance shall assess the ability of the responding firms to carry out the work for the Division based on:
   1. The information submitted by firms which have not previously worked for the Division; and an interview if the firm is short listed; or
   2. The past performance of firms which have previously worked for the Division, including such factors as:
      1. Co-operation;
      2. Timeliness of service;
      3. Accuracy of construction documentation;
      4. Completeness of construction documentation;
      5. Construction contract administration;
      6. Project budget control;
      7. Project close-out
      8. Change orders; and
      9. Satisfaction with the aesthetic and functional requirements of the project
5. The architectural firm(s) selected will be based on one of the following criteria:
   1. For firms which have not previously worked for the Division; the evaluation of the submitted information and the result of the interview process;
   2. For firms which have previously worked for the Division; the evaluation of their past performance