Audit, Design and Construction of District-Wide Energy Conservation Measures

Request for Qualifications 17-2526
For
Audit, Design and Construction of District-
Wide Energy Conservation Measures
RFQ Release Date
May 7, 2026
Submission Deadline
May 29, 2026 @ 2:00pm (PST)

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS
FOR AUDIT, DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF DISTRICT-
WIDE ENERGY CONSERVATION MEASURES
Carlsbad Unified School District
6225 El Camino Real
Carlsbad, CA 92009
May 7, 2026
Carlsbad Unified School District ("District") is requesting statements of qualifications ("SOQ(s)") from qualified entities
("Firm(s)") to design and implement an energy efficiency program and to design, engineer, procure, install, construct,
program, field test, and commission energy conservation measures ("ECM(s)") at District site(s) as needed by the District
("Project(s)").
FIRMS THAT INTEND TO SUBMIT A RESPONSE MUST MEET THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA:
Licensure. Hold a Types A and B + C-4, 10, 20 and 36 Contractors Licenses, which is current, valid, and
in good standing with the California Contractor's State License Board.
Location. The Firm can be located anywhere, but it must maintain a staffed office within 100 miles of the District.
Bonding. Have sufficient bonding capacity to provide a payment bond and performance bond with the Firm as
the principal and the District as the obligee.
Submittal. Interested Firms are invited to submit their response electronically via the District's PlanetBids portal:
https://vendors.planetbids.com/portal/80752/bo/bo-detail/141850. No hard copy submissions will be accepted.
Response Deadline. All Responses must be received on or before 2 pm PST, May 29, 2026.
Questions. Questions regarding this request for qualifications ("RFQ") may be directed via the PlanetBids RFQ
17-2526 portal. Firms are directed to not contact any other person with inquiries regarding this RFQ. All questions must be
submitted by 2 pm PST, May 21, 2026.
SCHEDULE
Date Event
May 7, 2026 RFQ Issued
May 21, 2026 Deadlines for questions and information requests
May 29, 2026 RFQ Due Date
June 3, 2026 Interviews (as needed)
June 24, 2026 Proposed Board Approval
The District reserves the right to reject any or all RFQ responses, in whole or in part, and to waive any irregularities or
informalities. The selection of one or more firms/ individuals will be solely at the discretion of the DISTRICT. The DISTRICT
reserves the right to negotiate contract fees, terms, and conditions and to terminate such negotiations at any time, and to
not enter into a contract with any or all RFQ responders.

1. General Information / Instructions for Response.
1.1. Statutory Structure. The District may, at its discretion and pursuant to applicable law(s), award a contract to
the selected Firm per Government Code section 4525, et seq. (the professional services statute),
Government Code section 53060, et seq. (the special services statute), Government Code section 4217.10, et
seq. (the energy efficiency statute), Education Code section 17250.10 et seq. (the design-build statute),
Government Code section 4525, et seq. (the architectural or engineering services procurement statute), or
Public Contract Code section 20111 (the general procurement statute for school districts).
1.2. Project Scope & Stages. The District intends to structure the Project in three (3) stages ("Stage(s)"),
as indicated below.
During the Investment Grade Energy Audit Stage, the awarded Firm will perform the services stated in
Attachment 1 to this RFQ, propose and estimate the cost of energy efficiency measures ("ECM(s)"),
and the District shall select the ECMs to be designed and constructed in its sole discretion.
During the Design Services Stage, the awarded Firm will design the ECM(s) selected by the District.
During the Construction Services Stage, the awarded Firm will construct the designed ECM(s).
The District intends to issue at least three Notices to Proceed, one for each Stage for each District site/ECM or a
group of sites/ECM(s). The District does not guarantee the award of any Stage for any site. The District
reserves the right to select all sites/ECM(s), some sites/ECM(s), or no sites/ECM(s) and can revise those Stages
at any time, with the compensation adjusted accordingly. The Project Scope and Stages are further detailed in
Exhibit A to the Form of Contract, attached to this RFQ as Attachment 3.
1.3. Exhibits. The following Exhibits are incorporated into this RFQ and each Firm should review and utilize each,
as indicated.
Attachment Title
Attachment 1 Project Description and Site Details
Attachment 2 Minimum Technical Specifications
1.4. Submittal Requirements. Firms must have demonstrated technical and managerial capability across a broad
range of energy, analysis, design, construction, funding, operations, reporting, and monitoring services. To be
considered for this Project, the Firm's submitted responses must demonstrate:
A proven record of on-time and on-budget performance.
Experience with HVAC application & installation along with other state and federal grant and
agency experience.
Experience with other conservation and renewable generation services, including associated
funding alternatives.
The District prefers firms that are NAESCO Accredited Energy Service Companies (ESCOs). Firms not holding
NAESCO accreditation may qualify as an Energy Services Provider (ESP) if they demonstrate:
successful completion of comparable energy conservation projects,
financial capability,
measurement and verification experience,
and technical expertise in ECM implementation.
That the Firm has an excellent safety record.
The Firm should identify key personnel assigned to the project, including California-licensed engineers
and/or certified energy professionals, and describe their qualifications and availability.

The Firm has sufficient experience with Government Code 4217.10 et. al.
That the Firm holds valid California Contractor License(s) to provide the required services (list license
number[s] held by the firm).
That the Firm can provide ongoing energy management services, including energy production and cost
baseline and trending over years, site energy usage, and all metered utilities and billing information in-
house with interactive online dashboards accessible to the District at ALL times.
The District reserves the right to investigate the qualifications of all Firms under consideration and to confirm
any part of the information furnished, or to require other evidence of managerial, financial, or technical
capabilities that are considered necessary for the successful performance of the possible energy design-build
services.
2. Content of Response. Firm's Response must have each page numbered, not exceed twenty-five pages (excluding the
Letter of Interest / Executive Summary and Table of Contents, or Attachments 1, 2 and 3), and must include the
following information, using the following outline structure, except as may be otherwise directed:
2.1. Letter of Interest / Executive Summary. A dated one-page Letter of Interest / Executive Summary that
includes the legal name of the Firm, address, telephone, email address and the name, title, and signature of
the person(s) authorized to submit the Response on behalf of the Firm. The Executive Summary should include
a brief summary of Firm's qualifications, its approach to all scopes of work, and a brief summary of Firm's
experience with energy conservation projects and related other projects.
2.2. License Information. Provide the Firm's Contractor's Licenses (REQUIRED) and its engineer and/or architect
license numbers, including the specific discipline of those license(s).
2.3. Local Office. Provide the physical address of your local office nearest to the District, your main office if
different, and other relevant resources of your Firm.
2.4. Student Engagement. The District encourages proposers to identify opportunities for student engagement
and educational enrichment related to the proposed energy conservation measures, including support for
STEM, sustainability, workforce development, or career technical education programs, where feasible and
appropriate.
2.5. Personnel & Team Members.
Personnel. Include resumes of key personnel who would likely be assigned to the Project, including design
professionals, whether employees or employees of subconsultants. Specifically define the role of each
person and outline his or her individual experience and responsibilities. Indicate the name of the person(s)
who would serve as the primary contact(s) for the District. If the Firm would utilize resources from more
than one office, indicate office locations and how the work would be coordinated.
Describe the experience and qualifications of your measurement and verification team.
Other Proposed Team Members. In addition to Firm's personnel, identify team members, other
firms, funding partners, or similar entities Firm may request to be part of the Project.
2.6. Firm Information. Provide a comprehensive description of the Firm. The description should include the
following:
History. Provide a brief history of Firm, and, if a joint venture, of each participating entity. Identify legal
form, ownership, and senior officials of company(ies). Describe number of years in business and types of
business conducted and locations of Firm's California offices.
Indicate ability and experience with the application processes, qualification requirements and financing
for energy conservation-related projects.
Accreditation. Indicate if the Firm is accredited by the National Association of Energy Services Companies
as an Energy Services Provider or Energy Services Company and any other applicable accreditations
enhancing the Firm's ability to provide the services to the District for the Project.
Litigation. Indicate all litigation the Firm has been involved in within the past seven years, or that is
current and/or pending, associated with any design, construction, performance, savings performance,
measurement and verification (M&V) or related actions associated with any Firm energy savings

contract or specifically related to an Investment Grade Audit (IGA) agreement with a private or public
owner.Include all claims from the California Department of Industrial Relations or any of its divisions.
Safety.
2.6.1. Please provide the Firm's Experience Modification Rate (EMR) for California over each of
the last five (5) years.
2.6.2. Please provide any reportable Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
incidents (these incidents included severe injuries and death) over each of the last five
years and a description, including those of any subcontractors used on any projects where
the Firm was the prime contractor.
2.7. Past Projects (Firm's Experience).
Provide the following information for ALL projects Firm completed or is currently performing for public
school districts that were turn-key energy services for ECM(s) during the past 3 years. You may limit your
response to the Ten MOST-RECENT projects.
PLEASE IDENTIFY WHICH OF THE LISTED PROJECTS INCLUDED VERIFIED SAVINGS
PERFORMANCE
Project name/identification:
Project address/location:
Project owner, contact person, and telephone:
If Firm was not the designer, name the project architect and telephone number:
If Firm was a subcontractor, name of general contractor and telephone number:
Scope of work:
Original completion date:
Date completed:
Initial contract value (as of time of bid award):
Final contract value:
Details of verified savings performance:
Other project information:
Provide a detailed project history of any California public sector project(s), which was terminated by
the customer over the past five years. Include the following:
2.6..1. Customer's name, address, telephone number, and contact person.
2.6..2. Provide a summary and current status of the issue.
Provide two (2) Letters of Reference from California public-sector clients within the last three years.
2.8. Project Approach
Provide a description of the Firm's approach to performing energy audits and identifying
improvement measures.
Describe the Firm's expertise in applying/securing funding for energy
conservation/efficiency/generation infrastructure improvements for California K-12 clients.
Provide a description of the Firm's approach to managing K-12 projects and procedures for
minimizing occupant disruptions.
Describe how the Firm ensures construction deadlines are met.
Describe the steps taken by the Firm during and after the development process to ensure
successful project implementation.
Describe the Firm's service, maintenance, and warranty for projects.
Describe any training programs available for District employees.
2.9. Savings and Energy Management

Describe the Firm's approach to projecting and proving the energy and operational savings.
Provide a description of the ongoing energy management and monitoring services, costs and term
after installation to ensure continued savings, including the Firm's service and role.
Provide a link to at least one Energy Management Dashboard operated and managed by your Firm
and currently in use by a school district in California.
Provide data supporting the Firm's savings from ongoing energy management services.
2.10. Schedule. Prior to the issuance of a Notice to Proceed for work in the Construction Services Stage, Firm will
provide a preliminary schedule showing the total time required to complete the Project for the scope of
work covered by the Notice to Proceed.
2.11. Student Education. Provide a description of the Firm's approach to student engagement and learning to
expand the District's sustainability efforts.
2.12. Investment Grade Energy Audit Scope. Provide a draft scope of work for the Investment Grade Audit that
accomplishes the comprehensive analysis of the Services Requested. Further services will be selected by the
District at its discretion.
2.13. Additional Information. Provide any additional information your Firm wishes the District to consider,
including additional services and/or benefits that may result from program implementation and Firm's
added value elements in delivering infrastructure modernizations, sustainability programs, and other
programs that enhance the health of District's students and staff.
3. District's Evaluation / Selection Process
3.1. District intends to select one Firm that best meets the District's needs to perform the services as described in
this RFQ. The District will evaluate qualifications based on the scoring criteria outlined in this section.
Respondents who are not actively engaged in providing services of the nature proposed in their response to
the RFQ and/or who cannot clearly demonstrate to the satisfaction of the District their ability to satisfactorily
perform the work in accordance with the RFQ requirements will not be considered. Respondents who do not
meet the minimum requirements will not be considered. District may, at its discretion, interview some or all of
those Firms that provide a Response. While the District intends to select one Firm, it reserves the right to
select more than one Firm to recommend to the governing board of the District for approval.
3.2. Selection Committee. A Selection Committee, as deemed necessary, will be formed to evaluate the submittals.
The Selection Committee may select one or more finalist(s) to interview with the committee as part of the
evaluation process. The District does not guarantee that an interview will take place, thus reserving the right to
select a Firm based solely on the information provided in the submittals received in response to the RFQ.
Should an interview take place, the key personnel responsible for fulfilling the requirements of the Project
shall be required to be present at the interview.
3.3. All costs associated with the preparation or submission of a Response are solely the responsibility of the
Firm submitting the Response.
3.4. The District reserves the right to select one Firm for the entire Project or to divide the Project by scope and/or
by site and award separate contracts to multiple Firms. The District also reserves the right to reject any and all
Responses and/or to utilize other methods to procure architectural, design, energy and construction services
for the District.
3.5. The District's evaluation will consider multiple factors including, without limitation, respective skills,
experience, qualifications, personnel, project approach, and financial strength; expected long-term General
Fund savings; proven performance; technology components; and overall thoroughness of the Response
including the responsiveness to the RFQ and during the RFQ process.
4. Public Records. Responses submitted to this RFQ will become the property of the District and subject to the California
Public Records Act, Government Code sections 6250, et seq. Those elements in each Response that are trade secrets as
that term is defined in Civil Code section 3426.1(d) or otherwise exempt by law from disclosure and which are
prominently marked as "TRADE SECRET," "CONFIDENTIAL," or "PROPRIETARY" may not be subject to disclosure. The
District shall not be liable or responsible for the disclosure of any such records including, without limitation, those so
marked if disclosure is deemed to be required by law or by an order of the Court. A Firm that indiscriminately identifies

all or most of its Response as exempt from disclosure without justification may be deemed non-responsive. In the
event the District is required to defend an action on a Public Records Act request for any of the contents of a Response
marked "Confidential," "Proprietary," or "Trade Secret," the Firm agrees, by submission of its Response, to defend and
indemnify the District from all costs and expenses, including attorneys' fees, in any action or liability arising under the
Public Records Act.
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Attachment 1
Project Description and Site Details
Project Description and Goals
The District's ultimate goals are to: 1) improve the health and safety of classrooms and facilities, 2) promote efficient
facilities operations through reduced utility and maintenance costs, and 3) utilize funding alternatives to relieve budget
pressure. Firm shall support the District's goals by auditing, designing and constructing energy conservation measures
("ECM(s)") that accomplish the following:
Achieve long-term operational efficiencies through reduced utility costs and/or reduced electricity and gas usage.
Create general fund relief through reduced operating expenditures;
Meet current health guidelines for indoor air quality and ventilation standards;
Upgrade antiquated and inefficient equipment;
Maintain consistent and reasonable levels of occupant comfort;
Maintain or improve building functionality and compatibility with existing equipment;
Improve utilization of technology to achieve optimum performance and savings;
Provide training to District employees on maintenance and repair of equipment and controls; and
Provide comprehensive funding solutions including application preparation, compliance, and reporting requirements.
Scope of Work
The Project(s) will be completed in three stages as noted in this RFQ.
Energy Audit Stage
During the Energy Audit Stage, the awarded Firm will audit District sites, propose and estimate the cost of energy
efficiency measures ("ECM(s)") for the sites, and the District shall select the ECMs to be designed and constructed in its
sole discretion. This stage of the work includes:
1. Utility Rate Analysis and recommendations.
2. HVAC Audit. All systems will be logged with associated model, serial number, age, cooling and heating
capacities, controls information, energy data visual condition assessment (including picture), and priority for
replacement.
3. Study of existing plumbing systems efficiency
4. Study of existing natural gas/propane efficiency.
5. Study of existing lighting efficiency.
6. Energy conservation operational review.
7. Analysis of funding and grant opportunities.
8. Study existing energy generation systems efficiency (PV systems)
Design Services Stage
During the Design Services stage, the awarded Firm will design the ECM(s) selected by the District based on the findings
of the Energy Audit, including but not limited to:
1. District-wide repair, modification and replacement of HVAC systems and related controls.
2. Interior, Exterior and Sports Lighting upgrades and replacements, including related controls.
3. Plumbing system repairs, replacements or upgrades based on potential water savings.
4. Update or replace building management, maintenance management, and other technologies related to
facility management and controls integration.
5. Other ECM(s) discovered through the Energy Audit stage, at the sole discretion of the District.
6. Commissioning and/or re-commissioning plans for all existing facilities district-wide.

7. Update, replace, repair existing energy generation system, including controls/monitoring.
8. Lifecycle costs for all proposed energy projects.
Carlsbad Unified School District - Site Details
Site Location
CUSD District Office 6225 El Camino Real, Carlsbad CA 92009
Aviara Oaks Elementary 6900 Ambrosia Lane, Carlsbad CA 92011
Aviara Oaks Middle 6880 Ambrosia Lane, Carlsbad CA 92011
Buena Vista Elementary 1330 Buena Vista Way, Carlsbad CA 92008
Calavera Hills Elementary 4100 Tamarack Avenue, Carlsbad CA 92010
Calavera Hills Middle 4104 Tamarack Avenue, Carlsbad CA 92010
Carlsbad High 3557 Monroe Street, Carlsbad CA 92008
Carlsbad Village Academy 1640 Magnolia Ave, Carlsbad CA 92008
Hope Elementary 3010 Tamarack Avenue, Carlsbad CA 92010
Jefferson Elementary 3743 Jefferson Street, Carlsbad CA 92008
Kelly Elementary 4885 Kelly Drive, Carlsbad CA 92008
Magnolia Elementary 1905 Magnolia Avenue, Carlsbad CA 92008
Pacific Rim Elementary 1100 Camino De Las Ondas, Carlsbad CA 92009
Poinsettia Elementary 2445 Mica Road, Carlsbad CA 92009
Sage Creek High 3900 Bobcat Boulevard (Cannon Rd), CA 92010
Valley Middle School 1645 Magnolia Avenue, Carlsbad CA 92008

Construction Services Stage
During the Construction Services stage, the awarded Firm will construct the ECM(s) designed in the Design Services Stage.
Proposed ECM(s) will be selected at the sole discretion of the District. In evaluating and selecting projects, the District will
consider factors including, but not limited to, projected life cycle costs, operational efficiencies, reduced costs and/or
reduced electricity and gas usage, compliance requirements, funding opportunities, and overall long-term value to the
District. Firms shall provide turnkey implementation services for the approved scope of work, including all necessary
permits; compliance with applicable public utility requirements, laws, regulations, and codes; design and engineering
services; any required Division of the State Architect (DSA) approvals; procurement; delivery; installation; commissioning;
training; warranty service; and compliance with any applicable funding or incentive programs. Firms must incorporate life
cycle cost analysis into the design phase of the Project and clearly identify projected long-term operational and
maintenance impacts.
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