The University of Tennessee REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS (RFQ) DESIGNER for UTC New Dining Facility (26/27) UT Chattanooga SBC No. 540/005-XX-2027

Description: The University of Tennessee (Owner) issues this RFQ to qualified Designers interested in providing architectural, engineering, and consulting services for the complete design, contract documents, and construction administration of the New Dining Facility project on the UT Chattanooga (UTC) campus. The Owner intends to enter into an agreement with a Designer that will deliver design services enabling new construction having the highest possible quality within the available funding and the required schedule. Qualifications Statements in response to this RFQ shall be submitted in accordance with the requirements provided herein. Summary of Project and Required Designer Services This project will construct a new dining facility along with demolition of the Natatorium Building, Connector Building, and renovation and addition of the Maclellan Gym and includes all related work. The project is located at the corner of Mocs Alumni Drive and Douglas Street on the UT Chattanooga campus. It will consist of partial demolition of Maclellan Gym which includes the natatorium and connector portion of the building. In its place, a dining facility with loading dock will be constructed. Prior to the demolition commencing a partial renovation and addition to the south end of Maclellan Gym will be constructed, to house wrestling locker rooms, laundry facilities, coaches' amenities, and training facilities. On the north side of the existing Maclellan Gym, a new ADA entrance, official's locker rooms and mechanical room will be constructed. Pending required approvals of this project, the anticipated total project budget is $45,000,000 (MACC $35,250,000). Specific project parameters and details are cited in the UTC New Dining Facility & Maclellan Gym Upgrades, programming document dated June 30, 2026. The design fee budget of $1,928,590 is established for these services and is based on the anticipated State approval amount for the Maximum Allowable Construction Cost (MACC) of $35,250,000. However, the Owner, at its sole discretion, may revise the MACC and corresponding designer's fee. The Multiplier as related to Articles 2.3.2 - 2.5 for the SBC-6 are subject to negotiation, and a multiplier may not apply. All travel expenses for the designer and their consultants are not reimbursable per the SBC-6a. All Designers must register with the Office of the State Architect to be able to enter into an agreement for this work. A Designer will be selected, approved, and retained under State Building Commission policy and standard Owner agreements and procedures as provided in the UT Designers' Manual. Designers submitting should review Designer Agreements (SBC-6 and SBC-6a) prior to submitting. By submitting you are agreeing to all terms as outlined in these agreements. Qualifications Statement Submittal Deadline and Tentative Schedule Submittal Location: Qualifications Statements will be received via TN Office of the State Architect's OSA Connect. The schedule below is tentative. Any events scheduled prior to the submission deadline may be modified at any time with changes issued in an addendum. Events scheduled after the deadline may be modified without notice. Event / Date / Time: • Project Review Conference: via Zoom November 17, 2026 9:30 am and In-Person with Site Tour to follow - meeting invitation will be sent to firms requesting information from RFQ Coordinator by November 13th, at 5:00 pm. Meeting information will be sent the morning of November 16th. • Deadline for Questions: emailed to RFQ Coordinator November 25, 2026 Received by 5:00 pm • Final issuance of Addenda: posted to web site December 1, 2026 Posted by 5:00 pm • Deadline to Contact RFQ Coordinator with Notice of Intent to Submit December 2, 2026 Received by 5:00 pm • Submittal Deadline: December 7, 2026 Uploaded to the TN Office of the State Architect's OSA Connect by 12:00 pm • Proposal Review Period December 7-18, 2026 • Target Date for Notification of Short-listed Designers for Interviews December 21, 2026 • Target Date for Interviews January 12, 2027 • Target Date to Award by The State Building Commission January 25, 2027 • Target time for Designer Agreement Signing and Negotiation Period January 26 - February 5, 2027 *Attendance is not a prerequisite for submission of Qualifications Statement. **All times noted above are Eastern Time. Qualification Statement Submittal Format Qualifications Statements shall be submitted as a single digital file copy in .pdf format. The digital file should not exceed 20 MB and should be named using the following format: Designer Name UTC New Dining Facility (26-27) 2026-12-7.pdf. All proposals must be uploaded to the TN Office of the State Architect's OSA Connect site. Proposers who intend to submit a qualification should notify the RFQ Coordinator no later than the time specified in the Schedule of Events. The subject line of the email should be clearly marked as follows: Qualifications Statement for UTC New Dining Facility (26/27) UT No. 540/005-XX- 2027. In the body of the email please include the following: Submitted By: <> Contact: <<Contact Person Name, Address, Telephone Number, email address>>. The Qualifications Statement shall be formatted to standard 8 1/2" x 11" (landscape or portrait). It shall not exceed 50 pages including pages with photos (used as dividers or section headers or otherwise), charts, spreadsheets, and appendices. Binding covers, a one-page transmittal letter, and table of content pages may be provided in addition to the maximum of 50 pages. Pages or sheets with print on both sides will be counted as two pages. All pages must be numbered. Hyperlinks and QR Codes should not be included in any proposal. All pertinent information should be clearly and concisely documented within 50 pages allowed. Follow the information structure provided herein with clear identification of each information section. Request for RFQ Communications The Owner will convey all official communications and addenda pursuant to this RFQ to the interested parties from whom the RFQ Coordinator has received a Request for RFQ Communications in writing by email, with the request clearly indicating the organization name and the name and title of a contact person with their telephone number and email address. The Request for RFQ Communications shall be made no later than the date of the Project Review Conference detailed herein. Such request creates no obligation and is not a prerequisite for submitting a Qualifications Statement. RFQ Communications Process Interested parties must direct all communications regarding this RFQ to the following RFQ Coordinator, who is the Owner's official point of contact for this RFQ. Rebecca Douglas, RFQ Coordinator University of Tennessee System Attn Department of Capital Projects 505 Summer Place - UTT 9th Floor Knoxville, TN 37902 Telephone: (865) 974-2628 Email: designer@tennessee.edu If a respondent contacts anyone except the University's staff member listed above, the University may disqualify the respondent. Only the Owner's official written responses and communications shall be considered binding with regard to this RFQ. Each Proposer shall assume the risk of the method of dispatching any communication to the Owner. The Owner assumes no responsibility for delays or delivery failures resulting from the method of dispatch. "Postmarking" of a communication shall not substitute for actual receipt of a communication by the Owner. The Owner may interview up to five selected Designers that have submitted responsive Qualifications Statements. Additional Information • Procurement Method: The owner intends to use the Construction Manager / General Contractor (CM/GC) for the construction delivery method in accordance with State policy and procedures. All delivery methods will be in accordance with State policy and procedures. • Programming Team: The Programming Consultant for the project, Harley Ellis Devereauxt, Inc. (HED) has waived rights to be awarded a contract for design and preparation of contract documents for the project but may be a part of the team to design and prepare contract documents for the project as a consultant to another firm. A consultant to HED, in their work as Programming Consultant may be awarded the contract for the design and preparation of contract documents for the project or may serve on the team as a consultant to another firm who is awarded the design and contract document preparation contract. • Program Document: If there are any discrepancies between this RFQ and the Program Document, the information of this RFQ shall take precedent over the Program Document. • Project Schedule: The University desires to have this project ready by the Spring of 2030. They also anticipate possible multiple bid packages derived from a Construction Manager / General Contractor. • UTC Project Specific Guidelines: Work should comply with all UTC campus standards and all applicable codes. Branding and theming, security systems, IT (other than wireless access points and some networking equipment) and AV are all included in the building construction and require design. • Plans, Reports, Surveys, Assessments: If any existing plans, reports, surveys, or assessments exist, they will not be released as part of the RFQ process but will be released to the awarded firm. • Additional Consultants: Specific consultants will be considered as an additional service outside of normal Basic Services for this project. The consultant's expertise should complement the awarded design firm's capabilities. The consultants should provide specific needs associated with audio visual, furniture, fixtures, and equipment, geotechnical investigation, and construction testing along with any other anticipated special consultants foreseen as specific to this project. Proposers should pay particular attention to scopes included within the bid target as broken down in the Programming Budget. It is anticipated that these consultants may be involved during all phases of the project, as the technical input they provide can be critical to stakeholder engagement during program verification and early concept design through contract administration. It is expected that the Design Team providing Basic Services will have higher education expertise and that the specialty consultants will complement that expertise. Qualifications Statement Required Information and Scoring Designer Forms of Business: Any form of business arrangement with consultants or joint venture partners may be proposed. However, the Owner requires that a single Designer contract with the Owner and serve as the primary contact, project leader, administrative manager, and single source of responsibility, with any necessary business partners and consultants serving under that Designer's management. The Owner also prefers that this Designer have its principal place of business located in the State of Tennessee. A Qualifications Statement that is submitted by a Designer with supporting partners or as a joint venture will be evaluated on the combined experiences of the individual member firms as performed through the previous joint venture agreement. A. Designer Information (Pass/Fail scoring) A.1 Provide the Designer's name, address, website address, and number of years in business. A.2 Provide the name, e-mail address, mailing address, and telephone number of the primary contact for the Designer (one only). A.3 Provide a signed statement certifying that the firm and its consultants identified in C.2 will fulfill the requirements of the basic services for the completion of this project. This statement must be signed by a principal of the submitting firm. A.4 Provide a statement of whether the Designer, its consultants or any individual who shall perform work under this contract has a possible conflict of interest (e.g., employment by the State of Tennessee) and, if so, the nature of that conflict. A.5 Provide a list of current projects on which your firm is committed, the status and what services are being provided. B. Qualifications and Experience (Maximum Score: 70 Points) B.1 Describe the Designer's qualifications to deliver the services needed for this project in regard to the following. (Maximum of 10 points) • The form of business and the general credentials of the Designer. • The proposed personnel experience in working together on projects. Identify up to five example projects which required the collaborative effort of the Designer and consultant's personnel, and their specific role in the projects. • The firm's sustainable design capabilities including experience with State of Tennessee Sustainable Design Guidelines or The Tennessee High-Performance Building Requirements, sustainable design credentials of personnel, and example sustainable design projects. B.2 Provide the following information on up to five of the Designer's or consultant's projects (proposing firm should have at least 3 projects listed) that have been completed within the last ten years and are of similar type, scope, and complexity. All projects cited should directly compare to this project in use and general components. (Maximum of 25 points) • Extent of services provided for each project from the firm representing the work. • A reference (by an Owner representative) for each project including contact name, address, telephone number, email address. The Owner may contact references as well as any other source available. • Photographs for each project. • Construction Procurement Method. If Construction Manager / General Contractor provide methodology used for early release bidding packages and any phasing of project that enabled the owner to move-in earlier than anticipated. • Direct experience in producing multiple early release packages showing capabilities to provide design on a non-linear design schedule. • Construction Cost and effected square footages. • Dining and Commercial Kitchens. Key project components to identify: • Informal learning / Community Spaces • Athletics Locker Rooms • General Use (Lounges, meeting rooms, etc.) • Renovations and Demolitions • Example construction documents of each project may be requested if your firm is shortlisted. B.3 Provide the resumes of key Designer and consultant personnel who shall be assigned to this project and describe their proposed role and time commitment to this project. Provide each individual's current position, years with the firm, education, licensing, professional credentials, similar project experience, and design phase of other assigned projects currently underway. (Maximum of 20 points) B.4 Provide a matrix showing the relationship between the projects (B.2) and the Designer's and consultant's personnel (B.3). Show projects in columns and personnel in rows. (Maximum of 10 points) B.5 Provide the Designer and consultant office location(s) that will be supporting this project with the distance in miles to the project site. If the Designer and consultants have multiple locations serving this project describe how personnel from each location are involved. (Maximum of 5 points) C. Technical Services (Maximum Score: 30 Points) C.1 Describe how the Designer will approach and document various aspects of the project: program confirmation, planning, design, architectural and engineering, contract documents, specifications, graphics, accessibility, data/AV services, building envelope, interiors, cost estimating, value engineering, sustainability, construction administration, etc. Describe how the Designer will adapt its approach to meet the requirements of the project. Include details on how this team works with a CM/GC to enable the desired delivery of the project. (Maximum of 15 points) C.2 Provide an organizational chart for this project illustrating lines of authority and specific staff proposed. The chart and related explanations shall describe the responsibilities of the personnel (Designer and consultants) and the lines of communication. (Maximum of 10 points) • Clarity of responsibility and communication • Completeness and inclusion of key personnel and design phase which they will be involved. • List all personnel and roles as described in B.3. C.3 Provide a preliminary schedule for this project identifying the time appropriate for each phase/task for design and construction. Designers shall demonstrate their approach to meeting the schedule. Provide examples of experience in enabling Owners to meet aggressive project completion schedules. (Maximum of 5 points) • Describe in detail how the schedule will be met. • Proposed number of early release packages and possible dates of release • Show examples of experience. D. Specialty Consultants (Information Only) D.1. Provide listing of anticipated Specialty Consultants. For each consulting firm include: • Firm's credentials • Expertise / Discipline • Experience in work required in the past 5 years (up to 3 projects) • Personnel assigned to their project along with resume Total Maximum Score: 100 points