Annual Chemical Requirements for Water and Wastewater Plants

INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS
(GENERAL CONDITIONS)
CITY OF ITHACA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS
NOTICE TO BIDDERS
The City of Ithaca will receive sealed bids at the Office of the Deputy City Controller, 108 East
Green Street, Ithaca, NY 14850 until 2:00 p.m., Friday, May 8, 2026, and then at said office,
publicly opened for furnishing the following:
ANNUAL CHEMICAL REQUIREMENTS FOR WATER AND WASTEWATER PLANTS
Specifications and Information for Bidders may be obtained at www.cityofithaca.org/bids.
Bids will be received on a unit price basis with extended totals for an estimated total quantity.
Bids should not include sales taxes.
Bids actually received by mail or by hand after the appointed time on the date specified shall be
rejected, notwithstanding that such Bid may have been placed in a mailbox or other mail
receptacle regularly maintained by the United States Postal Service before such time, and
ordinarily in sufficient time to have been delivered on time.
The City of Ithaca reserves the right to reject any or all bids and to waive any informality or
technicality in any bid in the interest of the Owner. Any bid received after the deadline will be
rejected, regardless of the delivery method. The City is not responsible for late delivery by any
carrier service.
Wendy Cole
Deputy City Controller
April 21, 2026

INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS
(GENERAL CONDITIONS)
1. Terms used in these Instructions to Bidders, which are defined in the Standard General
Conditions of the Construction Contract (No. 1910-8; 1990 ed.), have the meanings
assigned to them in the General Conditions. The Terms "Owner" and "City" mean The
City of Ithaca. The Term "Bidder" means one who submits a Bid directly to Owner, as
distinct from a subbidder who submits a Bid to a Bidder. The term "Successful Bidder"
means the lowest, qualified, responsible and responsive Bidder to whom Owner (on the
basis of Owner's evaluation as hereinafter provided) makes an award. The term "Bidding
Documents" includes the Advertisement for Bids, Instruction to Bidders, the Bid Form, and
the proposed Contract Documents (including all Addenda issued prior to receipt of Bids).
2. Complete sets of the Bidding Documents in the number and for the deposit sum (as
required) stated in the Advertisement for Bids, may be obtained from the Office of the City
Controller.
Complete sets of Bidding Documents must be used in preparing Bids; Owner does not
assume any responsibility for errors or misinterpretations resulting from the use of
incomplete sets of Bidding Documents.
Owner, in making copies of Bidding Documents available on the above terms does so only
for the purpose of obtaining Bids on the Material/Work and does not confer a license or
grant for any other use.
3. To demonstrate qualifications to perform the work, each Bidder must be prepared to submit
within five days of Owner's request written evidence, such as financial data, previous
experience, present commitments and other such data as may be called for below (or in the
Supplementary Instructions).
4. All Bids shall be made upon forms furnished by the City and shall be submitted in a sealed
envelope plainly marked "Bid on Chemicals", and bearing the date and time of the opening.
Envelopes shall be addressed to: City of Ithaca, Controller's Office, 108 East Green Street,
Ithaca, NY 14850.
5. Bid form, as issued by the City of Ithaca, shall be completely filled in black ink or typed.
No Bid will be accepted which contains any changes, additions, omissions or erasures,
unless otherwise stated. The Bid Sheet needs to be completed for Bid total and both the
Waiver of Immunity Clause and the Non-Collusive Bidding Certification on the reverse
side of the Bid Sheet must be signed as required by law.
6. Bidders must submit with Bid detailed specifications, circulars, manufacturer's literature
and all necessary data on items to be furnished. This information must clearly show that
the item offered meets all detailed specifications herein. The City of Ithaca reserves the
right to reject any Bid if its compliance with the specifications is not clearly evident. If the
item offered differs from the provisions contained in these specifications, such differences
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INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS
(GENERAL CONDITIONS)
must be explained in detail, and Bid will receive careful consideration if such deviations
do not depart from the intent of these specifications and are in the best interests of the City
of Ithaca. Failure to submit any of the above data may result in the rejection of the Bid.
7. All prices quoted must be "per unit" as specified; e.g. do not bid "per case" when "per
dozen" is requested; otherwise Bid may be rejected.
8. Bidder must insert the price per unit and the extensions against each item in this Bid. In
the event of a discrepancy between the unit price and the extension, the unit price will
govern. Prices shall be extended in decimals, not fractions. In case of discrepancy between
the prices written in words and price in figures, the price written in words shall govern.
9. The prices submitted shall be exclusive from Federal and State taxes and must not include
New York State Sales and Use taxes on material and equipment to be incorporated in this
Bid. Said taxes shall not be included in equipment or contract price.
10. Prices shall be "Net" including transportation and delivery charges fully prepaid by the
Successful Bidder to destination indicated in the Bid. If award is made on any other basis,
transportation charges must be prepaid by the Successful Bidder and added to the invoice
as a separate item. In any case, title shall not pass until items have been delivered and
accepted by the City.
11. Prices shall be net FOB any point in the City of Ithaca, New York. Price quoted shall
include all delivery costs.
12. Where a bidder is requested to submit a Bid on individual items and/or on a total sum or
sums, the right is reserved to award Bids on individual items or on total sums. The City
reserves the right to adjust the quantities shown and to award the Bid in whole or in part
based on the lowest responsible Bid.
13. All Bids received after the time stated for the opening in the Notice to Bidders may not be
considered and will be returned unopened to the Bidder. The Bidder assumes the risk of
any delay in the mail or in the handling of the mail by employees of the City. Whether sent
by mail or by means of personal delivery, the Bidder assumes responsibility for having his
Bid deposited on time at the place specified.
14. In all specifications, the words "or equal" are understood after each article giving
manufacturer's name or catalog reference, or on any patented article. If the name of a
proprietary item or the name of a particular supplier is used, the specification is intended
to establish the type, function, and quality required. Other items of material or equipment,
or material or equipment of other suppliers may be used. The decision of the City as to
whether an alternate or substitution is in fact "equal" shall be final. If bidding on items
other than those specified, Bidder must in every instance give the trade designation of the
article, manufacturer's name, and detailed specifications of the item he proposes to furnish,
otherwise, Bid will be construed as submitted on the identical item as specified.
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INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS
(GENERAL CONDITIONS)
15. The submission of a Bid will be construed to mean that the Bidder is fully informed as to
the extent and character of the supplies, materials, or equipment required and a
representation that the Bidder can furnish the supplies, materials, or equipment
satisfactorily in complete compliance with the specifications.
16. If two or more Bidders submit identical Bids as to price, the decision of the Controller's
Office to award a contract to one of such identical Bidders shall be final.
17. See attached insurance requirements. The Bidder shall provide coverage for not less than
the amounts on the attached sample Certificate of Insurance.
18. Bidder must fill in all applicable spaces on Bid Form. All lines must have an indication of
Bidder's response whether it be "0", "N/A", "--", or a dollar figure. All lines must be filled
in to indicate Bidder's acknowledgment of the request. Bids that do not have all applicable
lines filled in on Bid Sheet may be disqualified as a non-responsive bid. We cannot assume
there is a "no charge" when lines are left empty.
19. The following two items will automatically rend a Bid unacceptable to the City of Ithaca:
A. Failure to sign Bid Sheet;
B. Failure to include necessary Bid Deposits (as required)
It shall be fully understood that any deviations from the inclusion of the above items will
be grounds to view the Bid as non-compliant and will not be considered for award.
20. Faxed Bids will not be accepted.
21. The City reserves the right to purchase items included in these specifications on New York
State Contracts, when available.
22. The Bidder agrees that estimated quantities given in the Bid are only for the purpose of
comparing Bids, and that the Bidder is satisfied with and will at no time dispute the
estimates as a means of comparing aforesaid Bids.
23. Bids will be opened and (unless obviously non-responsive) read aloud publicly. An abstract
of the amounts of the base bids and major alternates (if any) will be made available to
Bidders after the opening of Bids.
24. All Bids will remain subject to acceptance for forty-five (45) days after the day of the Bid
Opening, but Owner may, in its sole discretion, release any Bid and return the Bid Security
prior to that date.
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INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS
(GENERAL CONDITIONS)
25. City's Rights:
A. The City reserves the right to reject any and all Bids not deemed for the best interest
of the City and to reject as informal such Bids that are incomplete, conditional,
obscure, or which contain irregularities of any kind including unbalanced Bid. By
an unbalanced Bid, it is meant one in which the amount of Bid for one or more
separate items is substantially out of line with the current market prices for the
materials and/or work covered thereby.
B. The City of Ithaca reserves the right to waive any informality or to reject any or all
Bids.
C. Awards will be made to the lowest responsive responsible Bidder, as will best
promote the public interest, taking into consideration the reliability of the Bidder,
the quality of the materials, equipment, or supplies to be furnished, their conformity
with the specifications, the purposes for which required, and the terms of delivery.
D. No contract hereunder shall, either in whole or in part, be assigned, transferred,
conveyed, sublet or otherwise disposed of to any other person, company or
corporation unless approval is first obtained in writing from the City.
E. Should the Successful Bidder fail to meet a delivery date required by the
specifications, the City may cancel the order and terminate the contract. In such
event, the City will assume no responsibility for any expense or loss to the
Successful Bidder because of such cancellation or termination.
F. Should any material or equipment delivered fail to meet specifications, the City
may require the vendor to replace the same with material or equipment which does
meet the specifications and, at the vendor's expense, to remove the rejected material
or equipment from wherever delivered or stored, and in the event that such proper
replacement and removal is not made by the vendor within 30 days, to cancel the
order and terminate the contract, in which event the City will assume no
responsibility for any expense or loss to the vendor because of such cancellation or
termination.
G. If the Successful Bidder fails to deliver within the time specified, or within a
reasonable time as interpreted by the City, or fails to make replacement of rejected
articles, when so requested, immediately or as directed by the City, the City may
purchase from other sources to take the place of the item rejected or not delivered.
The City reserves the right to authorize immediate purchase from other sources
against rejections on any contract when necessary. On all such purchases, the
Successful Bidder agrees to reimburse the City promptly for excess costs
occasioned by such purchases. Should the cost be less, the Successful Bidder shall
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INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS
(GENERAL CONDITIONS)
have no claim to the difference. Such difference shall be deducted from the contract
quantity.
H. A contract may be cancelled at the Successful Bidder's expense upon
nonperformance or poor performance of contract on ten calendar days written
notice to the Successful Bidder.
I. Payments cannot be processed by the City until contract items have been delivered
in satisfactory condition and a properly completed City of Ithaca voucher form has
been submitted to the ordering agency by the contractor.
J. Any errors in the Bid Award which are the fault of the City must be forwarded, in
writing, to the City of Ithaca Controller's Office within five (5) working days of the
notification of award. No corrections will be made beyond that date. If errors on
the part of the City are discovered too late to be corrected, the City will issue a "No
Award" on those affected items and re-bid or quote will be made at a later date.
K. Any and all awards resulting from this Bid shall be final and shall be for the
complete term of the contract. No rescinding of awards will be made because of
Bidder error or inability to supply them.
L. The City of Ithaca reserves the right to extend the term of this contract for any
length of time up to twelve (12) months beyond the time herein specified as the
expiration date of this contract at identical terms and conditions. Written notice
will be given to the contractor/vendor.
M. The City of Ithaca reserves the right to cancel this contract on 30 days written notice
to the Contractor.
26. Unless otherwise stated in the specifications, all items must be delivered into and placed at
a point within the City as directed by the shipping instructions. The Successful Bidder will
be required to furnish proof of delivery in every instance. Deliveries to the Ithaca Water
Treatment Plant, 202 Water Street, Ithaca, New York or the Ithaca Area Wastewater
Treatment Plant, 525 Third Street, Ithaca, New York must be made between the hours of
7:00 A.M. and 2:00 P.M. and fully unloaded by 3:00 P.M. Any delivery outside of these
hours, for weather or other extenuating circumstances require approval by the respective
facility.
It is the responsibility of the vendor to match the connectors at the appropriate plant for
unloading bulk liquid materials.
27. The Successful Bidder shall clean up and remove all debris and rubbish resulting from his
work from time to time as required or directed. Upon completion of the work, the premises
shall be left in a neat, unobstructed condition, and the building broom cleaned, and
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INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS
(GENERAL CONDITIONS)
everything in perfect repair and order. Old materials are the property of the Successful
Bidder unless otherwise specified.
28. Bids on equipment must be on standard new equipment, of latest model, and in current
production, unless otherwise specified. All supplies, equipment, vehicles and materials
must meet the provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA).
29. Placing in the mail of a Notice of Award and/or Purchase Order to a Successful Bidder, to
the address given in Bid proposal, will be considered sufficient notice of acceptance of
contract. The award shall bind the Successful Bidder on his part to furnish and deliver at
the prices and in accordance with the condition of this Bid.
30. The City of Ithaca is an Equal Opportunity Employer with an Affirmative Action Program.
The contractor shall comply with all the provisions of the laws of the State of New York
and the United States of America which affect municipalities and municipal contracts,
and more particularly the Labor Law, the General Municipal Law, the Workers'
Compensation Law, the Lien Law, Personal Property Law, State Unemployment
Insurance Law, Federal Social Security Law, State, Local and Municipal Health Law,
Rules and Regulations, and any and all regulations promulgated by the State of New York
and of amendments and additions thereto, insofar as the same shall be applicable to any
contract awarded hereunder with the same force and effect as if set forth at length herein.
31. The Contractor shall not discriminate against any employee, applicant for employment,
subcontractor, supplier of materials or services or program participant because of actual or
perceived age; creed; color; disability; domestic violence victim status; ethnicity; familial
status; gender; gender identity or expression; height; immigration or citizenship status;
marital status; military status; national origin; predisposing genetic characteristics; race;
religion; sex; sexual orientation; socioeconomic status; or weight.
32. All questions about the meaning or intent of the Contract Documents are to be directed to
Nate Carman at the Water Plant, (607) 273-4680, or Peter Wernsdorfer at the Wastewater
Plant (607) 273-8381. Interpretations or clarifications considered necessary by Owner in
response to such questions will be issued by Addenda mailed or delivered to all parties
recorded by Owner as having received the Bidding Documents. Questions received less
than ten (10) days prior to the date for opening of Bids may not be answered. Only
questions answered by formal written Addenda will be binding. Oral and other
interpretations or clarifications will be without legal effect. Addenda may also be issued
to modify the Bidding Documents as deemed advisable by Owner.
33. Bid Security will not be required.
34. This is not a prevailing wage rate project.
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INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS
(GENERAL CONDITIONS)
35. It is the responsibility of each Bidder, before submitting a Bid to: (a) examine the Contract
Documents thoroughly; (b) visit site to become familiar with local conditions that may
affect cost, progress, performance or furnishing of the work; (c) consider federal, state and
local laws and regulations that may affect cost, progress, performance or furnishing of the
work; and (d) study and carefully correlate Bidder's observations with the Bid document.
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GENERAL NOTES
GENERAL NOTES
1. Any New or Replacement Chemical for bids must meet the following requirements: (Current
chemicals have NYSDOH approval)
A. Approval for use as a drinking water chemical by meeting NSF 60 & 61; AWWA; EPA;
and NYSDOH requirements. A maximum feed rate must be stated, and if fed above
that rate, what must be tested for to assure public health standards are being met;
B. Any new or replacement chemical must first be proven to work, by the vendor, as a
replacement in kind for the current coagulant in use by:
1. Having bench studies done at the Water Treatment Plant;
2. Having full-scale trials done at the Plant under various treatment conditions.
The testing must be completed during the previous year to the bid requests.
All chemicals and equipment costs for the testing will be at the vendor's
expense. No similar testing on other sources will be accepted in lieu of the
testing listed above; but will allow a vendor to show the application of their
product;
2. Any New or Replacement Chemical for bids must meet the following requirements: (Current
chemicals have NYSDOH approval)
A. Approval for use as a drinking water chemical by meeting NSF 60 & 61; AWWA; EPA;
and NYSDOH requirements. A maximum feed rate must be stated, and if fed above
that rate, what must be tested for to assure public health standards are being met;
B. Any new or replacement chemical must first be proven to work, by the vendor, as a
replacement in kind for the current coagulant in use by:
1. Having bench studies done at the Water Treatment Plant;
2. Having full-scale trials done at the Plant under various treatment conditions.
The testing must be completed during the previous year to the bid requests.
All chemicals and equipment costs for the testing will be at the vendor's
expense. No similar testing on other sources will be accepted in lieu of the
testing listed above; but will allow a vendor to show the application of their
product;
C. Sludge generation, characteristics and frequency of having to handle the settled sludge
will figure in the ability of the chemical to work at the Water Treatment Plant.
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