The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) is seeking expressions of interest from consulting engineers or engineering firms to carry out quality assurance of drainage structures in infrastructural construction in 4 districts in Acholi and West-Nile Sub-Regions (Arua, Nebbi, Kitgum and Lamwo).
A. Background and context
Under the U-Growth II program, the Danish International Development Agency (Danida) is funding the “Development Assistance to Refugee Hosting Areas, Phase III (DAR III)” and “Restoration of Agricultural Livelihoods in Northern Uganda, Phase III (RALNUC III)” interventions. DRC carries out DAR and RALNUC which aim to improve infrastructure to enable agricultural livelihoods in West-Nile and Acholi Sub-Regions, respectively.
DRC creates a variety of infrastructural assets through a labour intensive approach which engages the local population. The major part of infrastructure sub-projects under DAR and RALNUC are community access roads (CARs). Some CARs include bottlenecks such as lowlands and streams which are addressed by installing culvert bridges (and building drifts).
Bigger culvert installations (more than 3 lines) are tendered to sub-contracting engineering firms in a competitive bidding process. DRC directly oversees the construction of simple culvert installations (up to 3 lines) by hiring local masons to do the work and procuring materials. The works are supervised by DRC and the engineering departments in the involved districts. The culvert and drift installations and the implementation modalities are described in the DAR/RALNUC Rural Infrastructure Manual.
Construction of the first culverts started on in 2015. Progress has, however, been slow and not all culvert installations have yet been completely finished.
B. Purpose
The objectives of this assignment are:
• Assess whether the culvert (and drift) installations are being constructed in accordance with the specifications and the quality of the workmanship is satisfactory
• Coach engineering staff at DRC so that they can supervise the construction work correctly.
• Assess whether individual contractors are committing structural / avoidable errors
• Identify any reasons for delay in the implementation process that relate to the construction of drainage structures
• Provide recommendations on how to speed up implementation / avoid delays in future implementation cycles
C. Key responsibilities
The activities should include but not necessarily be limited to the following:
1. Review the list of all constructions done to date (incl. those that are in progress), assess the designs.
2. Inspect a sample of drainage installations that are under construction or have just been completed under DAR and RALNUC III in each of the four districts and assess the workmanship.
3. Coach DRC engineering staff during joint field visits.
4. Prepare brief technical reports with findings, assessments and recommended improvements to design and workmanship immediately after each field visit.
D. Output
The reports mentioned under activity no. 4.
E. Duration of the assignment
The assignment should start on 25/07/2016 and be completed by 21/10/2016. Field visits of three full days each should be conducted to each of the four districts, during which various drainage installations will be inspected. Transport from the DRC offices in each district capital to the field locations will be facilitated by DRC.
F. Qualifications
A reputable consultancy company with proven experience and knowledge in;
• Construction and maintenance of community access roads
• Construction of culvert and drift installations quality assurance of infrastructural construction work
• Experience from Northern Uganda and/or other post-conflict areas will be an added advantage.
HOW TO APPLY:
Interested applicants who meet the required profile are invited to submit an expression of interest by email toadministrator@drcuganda.org by 17th July 2016 including:
1. A suitability statement including CV of participating consultant(s) with details of qualifications and experience.
2. Technical proposal that summarizes understanding of the TOR, methodology and tools to be used.
3. Work-plan clearly indicating the activity schedule.
4. Financial proposal providing cost estimates and consultancy fees.
5. Contacts of three organisations that have recently contracted you to carry out similar assignment.