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Highway Department

Qualification Based Selection for Professional Services

The DeKalb County Highway Department contracts for professional engineering, architectural, and land surveying services using a Qualifications Based Selection (QBS) process in accordance with the Local Government Professional Services Selection Act (50 ILCS 510) and the DeKalb County Government Purchasing and Award of Contracts Policy. This same process is intended to be followed for other disciplines deemed to be a professional service, such as land acquisition appraisers and negotiators, etc. Only prequalified or approved by either the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) or the Illinois Capital Development Board (CDB) in the specific category(s) of professional services being requested will be considered. The County has developed a tiered approach for selection of professional services using (QBS).

  • If the total cost of professional services is estimated to cost less than $25,000:
    • The Department will review the qualifications on file of at least three firms that are prequalified in the category(s) of interest and rank the firms based on staff expertise, experience, and availability to perform the work.
    • Negotiate a contract with the highest ranked firm.
    • Present the negotiated contract to the Highway Committee of the DeKalb County Board for approval.
  • If the total cost of professional services is estimated to cost $25,000 but less than $100,000:
    • The Department will advertise and post on the Department website (Request for Professional Services) a list of projects requiring Professional Services and request a Statement of Interest (SOI) from prequalified firms.
    • Submitted SOI’s will be reviewed and ranked based on staff expertise, experience, and availability to perform the work.
    • Negotiate a contract with the highest ranked firm.
    • Present the negotiated contract to the Highway Committee of the DeKalb County Board for approval.
  • If the total cost of professional services is estimated to cost $100,000 or more:
    • The Department will advertise and post on the Department website (Request for Professional Services) a list of projects requiring Professional Services and request a Statement of Interest (SOI) from prequalified firms.
    • Submitted SOI’s will be reviewed, ranked and a shortlist of firms identified based on staff expertise, experience and availability to perform the work. The complexity of the project and the number of (SOI’s) submitted will dictate the number of firms to be included on the shortlist, with no less than three firms as a minimum.
    • After the firms are shortlisted the Department will issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) to each firm.
    • Upon review of the RFP’s, which may include interviews, department representatives will rank each firm taking into consideration qualifications of the key staff, qualifications of the sub consultants, experience with projects of similar scope and magnitude, and understanding of the proposed work.
    • Negotiate a contract with the highest ranked firm.
    • Present the negotiated contract to the Highway Committee of the DeKalb County Board for approval.
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