DEPARTMENT Infrastructure AGENDA NO. 6h
MEETING DATE August 13, 2024
AGENDA ITEM
Public Utilities Commission
City and County of San Francisco
Calendar: Consent Calendar
Project Manager: Ada Zhu
Approve Increase to Construction Duration Contingency for Contract No. DB-130, Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) – Phase 3 (2019) Summary of
Proposed
Commission Action:
Approve an increase of 368 calendar days (approximately one year) to the duration contingency for Design Build Contract No. DB-130, Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) – Phase 3 (2019), with Beta Engineering California, LP., for a revised duration limit of up to 1,847 consecutive calendar days (approximately five years), with no change to the contract amount, for administrative purposes, to allow the completion of contractor- delayed construction ac tivities and commissioning/testing to mitigate the risk of unplanned outages, and to repair recently discovered leaks at the Gas Insulated Switchgear and Transformers. The additional time duration is necessary for Staff to administer the contract while the contractor completes redesign and installation of the vehicle gate for site security, restore s pavement and install s new landscaping, and closes-out punch -list items and provide documentation following Davidson Ave Substation energization.
Background: The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) is building a high voltage electrical transmission and distribution system in the Southeast portion of the City and County of San Francisco to serve existing and future customers with large power needs. This is one of four subprojects to complete the transmission and distribution system. The DB-128R2, DB-129.1, and DB-129.2 projects installed electrical vaults and duct banks between the Mission Rock Development south of China Basin Park to t he new BCTD electrical substation at 1535 Davidson Avenue (near Quint Street). Under this DB-130 contract, the contractor is installing:
• a new BCTD electrical substation at 1535 Davidson
Avenue;
• new potable water pipeline on Davidson Avenue from the substation to Rankin Street;
• a new storm drain on Davidson Avenue from substation to Rankin Street;
• electrical transmission cables in existing duct banks and vaults from Pacific Gas & Electric ( PG&E) Potrero
Agenda Title: DB-130 Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) – Phase 3 (2019) Commission Meeting Date: August 13, 2024
Substation (Illinois Street and 23 rd Street) to the 1535 Davidson Avenue substation; and
• electrical distribution cables and equipment in existing duct banks and vaults from the 1535 Davidson Avenue substation to connections near the Southeast Plant, Bruce Flynn Pump Station, Booster Pump Station, Pier 70, Mariposa Pump
Station, and Seawall Lot 337.
On February 25, 2020, by Resolution No. 20-0047, this Commission awarded Design Build Contract No. DB -130, Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) – Phase 3 (2019) and authorized pre -construction s ervices only pending completion of environmental review.
The
original contract amount was $59,939,750, and the original contract duration was 396 consecutive calendar days.
On April 28, 2020, by Resolution No. 20-0078, this Commission approved the proje ct and authorized the release of funds for the construction phase.
On A
pril 13, 2021, by Resolution No. 21-0052, this Commission approved an increase of 360 calendar days to the existing duration contingency, for a total duration contingency of 399 calendar days and a total duration limit of up to 795 consecutive calendar days, with no change to the contract amount.
On M
arch 12, 2024, by Resolution No. 24-0053, this Commission approved an increase of 684 calendar days to the existing duration contingency, for a total duration contingency of 1,083 calendar days and a total duration limit of up to 1,479 consecutive calendar days, with no change to the contract amount.
The
contractor has experienced delays for due to numerous issues, including but not limited to:
• Supply chain inefficiencies.
• Unforeseen site civil conditions and structural redesign. • Installation of additiona l potable water and sewer
infrastructure.
• Additional coordination with PG&E to install conductors into their Potrero Switchyard facility.
• Mismanagement and poor coordination of subcontractors. • Poor workmanship in high and medium voltage cables
splices whic h resulted in failures, and the subsequent replacement and retesting.
• Multiple SF-6 gas leaks in the high voltage Gas Insulated Switchgear (GIS).
• Multiple nitrogen gas leak at Transformer No.1, and
subsequent investigation and repair.
Agenda Title: DB-130 Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) – Phase 3 (2019) Commission Meeting Date: August 13, 2024
• Water intrusion into supposedly watertight Variable
Frequency Interrupters (VFIs).
• Rework and additional testing resulting from two unplanned electrical outages.
Scope of Contract: The contract work is located in the Southeast portion of the City and County of San Francisco on Davidson Avenue from the new Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution substation at 1535 Davidson Avenue (near Quint Street) to Rankin St reet; Rankin Street from Davidson Avenue to Evans Avenue; and Illinois Street and 23rd Street from the PG&E Potrero Substation to the new 1535 Davidson Avenue substation.
The c
ontract work consists of:
• Bay Corridor Transmission & Distribution (BCTD) – new electrical substation on Davidson Avenue near Quint Street, San Francisco.
• BCTD electrical cable and equipment installation in selected portions of duct banks and vaults installed under other contracts.
• Install potable water pipe, hydrants, valves, and as sociated items on Davidson Avenue and Rankin Street.
Modifications to the
Contract:
Modification Nos. 1 to 22: Staff issued Modification Nos. 1 -22, increasing the contract amount by $1,717,960 within the approved contract cost contingency, for a total contract amount of $61,657,710 and increasing the contract duration by 215 calendar days (within the approved contract duration contingency) , in accordance with Resolution No. 21-0052, for a total contract duration of 611 consecutive calendar days to address unforeseen site civil and structural redesign and relocation of transformer firewall and facilities; installation of additional potable water and sewer infrastructure; reconciliation of actual material quantities; upgrades to electrical instrumentation and controls; and installation and testing of additional transmission electrical cables and equipment, including a new three-way junction inside vault E-13 for University of California San Francis co ( UCSF) connection, a distributed temperature sensing
system at the 1535 Davidson Avenue
substation, and additional coordination and scheduling with PG&E to install electrical conductors in duct banks at the PG&E Potrero Switchyard.
Recommended Increase to Contract Duration Contingency:
Staff recommends the Commission approve an increase of 368 calendar days to the existing duration contingency, for a total duration limit of up to 1,847 consecutive calendar days (approximately five years), with no change to the contract amount.
Agenda Title: DB-130 Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) – Phase 3 (2019) Commission Meeting Date: August 13, 2024
The additional duration will permit Staff to administer and manage contractor’s completion of contractor -delayed design and construction activities, including commissioning/testing, warranty repair and component replacement on the GIS, Transformers, and 25 kiloampere (kA) vacuum fault interrupters, to mitigate the risk of unplanned outages and to reduce the likelihood of further impact to customers upon system reenergization. The additional time also covers the period of time during which the contractor will complete redesign and
installation of the vehicle gate for site security,
pavement restoration and street landscape, and to close out punch- list items and provide project documentation following the substation repair.
Staff management and oversight of the following repair work requires approval of the recommended duration contingency:
• Gas Insulated Switchgear (GIS) SF6 Gas leak that requires extended coordination between contractor, vendor, and
project team. These GIS specialty parts are manufactured in Switzerland. The GIS SF6 gas leak issue must be resolved prior to DAS re-energization for Power Enterprise Operator safety reasons and no-
interruptions to BCTD customer
power service.
• Substation Transformers’ repair th at requires extended coordination between contractor, vendor, and project team.
Timing with availability of parts/materials and technician.
The substation transformers’ repair must be resolved prior to DAS re -
energization for Power Enterprise Operator
safety reasons and no- interruptions to BCTD customer
power service.
• SFPUC’s review of many iterations of the Design Builder’s Testing and Commissioning documentations, several
instances due to receiving latest testing and commissioning results of electrical e quipment re -
tested due to repairs for
review prior to DAS re -energization. Approval of testing and commissioning documents provides re -assurance to
Power Enterprise (end user) that the electrical equipment operates safely and as intended.
• Driveway pavement and restoration design meeting code requirements. The Design Builder needed to re -design the driveway pavement after it proceeded to install the driveway pavement at its own risk, resulting in elevation differences that affected the vehicular gate installation.
• Design Builder told the Project Team in mid-June 2024 that 25 kA VFIs manufacturer decided to replace defective 25 kA VFIs entirely, which now require s at least 6 months procurement lead time, which extends the project duration. 25 kA VFIs are the connection point for Power Enterprise to provide power to serve several BCTD customers.
Agenda Title: DB-130 Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) – Phase 3 (2019) Commission Meeting Date: August 13, 2024
The project requires the recommended duration contingency increase for administrative purposes. Specifically, the City’s PeopleSoft accounting s ystem requires set durations for all contracts; it does not recognize that construction contracts do not end until the contractor has completed the work. If the work is not completed by the end of the contract’s specified duration, the accounting system does not permit the processing and payment of invoices for work performed.
Adding duration contingency is an
administrative work-around to address the limitations of the accounting system.
For this project, Staff is closely monitoring the contractor’s progress and documenting reasons for delays in completion. Granting the recommended duration contingency increase does not excuse the contractor’s delays or waive any rights or remedies under the contract. At the end of the project, Staff will determine whether delay incidents entitle the contractor to compensable or non- compensable time extensions and/or whether contractor is liable to the City for liquidated damages for delay.
Funding and Costs: Funding: Hetchy Power Capital Fund and Wastewater Capital Fund, Project No. 10014227, Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) Project
Original Contract Amount: $59,939,750
Original 10% Cost Contingency: $5,993,975
Requested Additional Cost Contingency: $0
Total Contract Cost Limit: $65,933,725
Schedule: Notice-to-Proceed Date: June 10, 2020
Original Contract Duration: 396 consecutive calendar days Original 10% Duration Contingency: 39 calendar days
Approved Increase to Duration Contingency: 1,044 calendar days
Requested Additional Duration Contingency: 368 calendar days Total Revised Contract Duration Limit: 1,847 consecutive calendar days
Environmental
Review:
On October 24, 2019, the San Francisco Planning Department determined the construction of the new electrical substation at 1535 Davidson Avenue (previously identified as 398 Quint Street ) to be categorically exempt under the California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines section 15303, Class 3 (New Construction or Conversion of Small Structures) under Case Number 2019-013330ENV.
Wor
k to be completed during the increased duration contingency is within the scope of the project authorized under this exemption.
The exemption determination can be found here: link.
Agenda Title: DB-130 Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) – Phase 3 (2019) Commission Meeting Date: August 13, 2024
Local Business
Enterprise
Participation and
Non-Discrimination
in Contracting:
The Contract Monitoring Division established a Local Business Enterprise (LBE) subcontracting requirement of 15% for design and 10% for construction for this contract. The contractor committed to
33.51% LBE participation for design and 23.99% LBE participation for construction in its bid submittal
, and these amounts remain
unchanged.
Agenda Title: DB-130 Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) – Phase 3 (2019) Commission Meeting Date: August 13, 2024
BC
TD Project Overview Site Map
BCTD
Duct Bank Alignment and Davidson Electrical Substation Location Map
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
City and County of San Francisco
RESOLUTION NO.
WHE
REAS, The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) is building a high voltage electrical transmission and distribution system in the Southeast portion of the City and County of San Francisco to serve existing and future customers with large power needs; and WHEREAS, On February 25, 2020, by Resolution No. 20-0047, the Commission approved the award of Design Build Contract No. DB -130 Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) – Phase 3 (2019) to Beta Engineering California, LP., and author ized the contractor to commence pre- construction services only pending completion of environmental review of the proposed project; and
WHEREAS, On April 28, 2020, by Resolution No. 20- 0078, the Commission approved the project and authorized the release of contract funds for construction services; and WHEREAS, The construction contract amount was for $59,939,750, and the construction contract duration was 396 consecutive calendar days; and WHEREAS, On June 10, 2020, SFPUC issued the construction contract Not ice-to- Proceed; and
WHEREAS, On April 13, 2021, by Resolution No. 21-0052, the Commission approved an increase of 360 calendar days to the existing duration contingency, for a total duration contingency of 399 calendar days and a total duration limit of up to 795 consecutive calendar days, with no change to the contract amount; and
WHEREAS, On March 12, 2024, by Resolution No. 24- 0053, this Commission approved an increase of 684 calendar days to the existing duration contingency, for a total duration contingency of 1,083 calendar days and a total duration limit of up to 1,479 consecutive calendar days, with no change to the contract amount; and
WHEREAS, Modification Nos. 1 through 22 increased the contract amount by $1,717,960, within the approved cost contingency, and increased the contract duration by 215 calendar days (within the approved duration contingency) , in accordance with Resolution No. 21-0052, to address unforeseen site civil conditions and for structural redesign and relocation of firewall and facilities; installation of additional potable water and sewer infrastructure; reconciliation of actual material quantities; upgrades to electrical instrumentation and controls; and installation and testing of additional transmission electrical cables and equipment, including a new three -way junction inside vault E -13 for UCSF connection, a distributed t emperature sensing system at the 1535 Davidson Avenue substation, and additional coordination and scheduling with Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) to install electrical conductors in duct banks at the PG&E Potrero Switchyard, for a total contract amount of $61,657,710, and total contract duration of 611 consecutive calendar days; and
WHEREAS, Staff recommends the Commission approve an
increase of 368 calendar days
to the duration contingency, for a revised duration limit up to 1,847 consecutive calendar days , with no change to the contract amount , for administrative purposes to permit staff to administer and manage contractor’s completion of contractor delayed construction activities and commissioning/testing to mitigate the risk of unplanned outages, and to repair recent discovered leaks at the Gas Insulated Switchgear and Transformers. The additional time contingency duration will cover the time period of contractor’s complete redesign and installation of the vehicle gate for si
te security, pavement restoration and new landscaping installation, and close-out punch-list items and documentation following Davidson Ave Substation (DAS) energization; and WHEREAS, Contract Monitoring Division established a Local Business Enterprise (LBE) subcontracting participation requirement for 15% design and 10% construction for this contract, and the contractor committed to 33.51% design and 23.99% construction LBE participation with its bid submittal; and
WHEREAS, Funds are available from Project No. 10014227, Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) Project; and
WHEREAS, October 24, 2019, the San Francisco Planning Department determined the construction of the new electrical substation at 1535 Davidson Avenue (previously identified as 398 Quint Street) to be categorically exempt under the California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines section 15303, Class 3 (New Construction or Conversion of Small Structures) under Case Number 2019-013330ENV; and
WHEREAS, Work to be completed during the increased duration contingency is within the scope of the project authorized under this exemption; now, therefore be it RESOLVED, That this Commission hereby approves an increase of 368 calendar days to the existing duration contingency for Design Build C ontract No. DB -130, Bay Corridor Transmission and Distribution (BCTD) – Phase 3 (2019), for a total duration contingency of 1,451 calendar days, and new duration limit up to 1,847 consecutive calendar days, with no change to the contract amount.
I hereby certify that the foregoing resolution was adopted by the Public Utilities Commission at its meeting of August 13, 2024.
Director of Commission Affairs,
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission