Create MBE-WBE Commitment Forms

Description

This function is part of the Contract Awards subsystem and is used to electronically create the forms for MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects (formerly EO-32 form). For State projects where minimum participation levels for MBE and/or WBE have been established, the apparent low bidder must submit the required information prior to the Due Date (typically within 7 days of the date they are determined to be the apparent low bidder). One MBE/WBE Commitment screen must be submitted for each MBE/WBE business partner and business type combination the prime wishes to use on the project. Each form must be acknowledged by the MBE or WBE business partner (‘sub’) listed on the form. When one or more forms are ready to be submitted, the information is submitted by the apparent low bidder using the MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects List screen. The apparent low bidder can perform the submission function multiple times, as long as the Reviewer has not marked the review as complete (or has created a new revision) and the Submission Due Date has not passed.

The system automatically calculates the MBE and WBE percentages that may be achieved (assuming the forms are approved) based on the value of the Amount field in the underlying forms (calculated at 60% when the MBE or WBE is a regular dealer). When the forms are submitted, an email notification is sent informing them that the information is ready to be reviewed. The reviewer may approve, disapprove, or conditionally approve each form, then mark the entire package as ‘Completed” (with regard to the review). In order for the contract to be awarded, the value of the approved MBE and WBE percentages must be equal to or greater than the MPL established for the project. (An exception is made if the prime declares themselves ‘self-contained’ or requests an MPL Evaluation. See the Help topics under the Review, Submission, and Approval category.

Important Note: Each MBE/WBE form must be acknowledged by the MBE/WBE business partner named on the form before the form can be approved. It is the prime contractor’s responsibility to ensure the forms are acknowledged in a timely manner so that the package of forms can be electronically submitted and approved by the Submission Due Date.

Quick Navigation

The Create MBE/WBE Commitment Forms function follows the screen navigation described in the table below. Step-by-step directions appear later in this document.

From this screen….	perform this action:
ECMS Welcome page	Select the "My Projects" option from the navigation bar
My Projects	Click the Project Number hyperlink
Contractor Project Page	Click MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects link
MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects List	Click ADD button
Business Partner Selection (pop-up)	Select the business partner(s) for which you want to create a MBE/WBE Commitment form Click OK Note: You can select one or more business partners at the same time. If you select more than one, you are returned to the list screen and must navigate to the detail screen for each business partner to complete the form.
MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects (detail screen)	Enter: Your Firm’s Contact Information Agreement Amount and Information Click SAVE button Click ADD ITEM button
MBE/WBE Commitment Item	Select construction item(s) to associate with MBE or WBE If applicable, indicate Partial Item Complete Partial Description Click SAVE Note: You can select one or more items at the same time. If you select more than one, you are returned to the detail screen where the items are displayed in an embedded list. To navigate to the MBE/WBE Item screen, click the Item Number hyperlink.
	Repeat for each MBE or WBE

Step-by-Step Directions

User Action	Result
Open your browser software and access the ECMS Welcome page.	The ECMS Welcome page is displayed with the navigation bar on the left.
Using the Registered Users Login fields at the top of the navigation bar, enter your user ID and password. Click GO or tap the Enter key.	The ECMS Welcome page appears. Your user name now appears at the top of the navigation bar, and the navigation bar options are tailored to your security group(s).
From the navigation bar, select the Contractor Services option.	The Contractor Services options available to your user group are displayed.
Select the My Projects option beneath Contractor Services on the navigation bar.	The My Projects page is displayed and lists the projects associated with your business partner ID.
If needed, enter search criteria to narrow the displayed listing of projects, then click the REFRESH button.	The My Projects page is updated based on your search criteria.
Locate the project for which you want to create a MBE/WBE Commitment form and click the Project Number hyperlink.	The Contractor Project page for the specified project is displayed.
If necessary, use the down arrow icon at the upper left of the screen to jump to the bottom of the screen.	The lower portion of the screen is displayed.
Click the MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects hyperlink.	The MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects List is displayed. Initially, the Review Status field is blank; the MBE% and WBE % field displays the MPL for the project, and the Approved percentage and Ready to Review percentage fields display zeroes. The list sections (Completed, Ready for Review, and Submission Needed) are blank.
If necessary, use the down arrow icon at the upper left of the screen to jump to the bottom of the screen.	The lower portion of the screen is displayed.
Click the ADD button.	The Select Business Partner screen appears in a separate browser window. If the project is in Pre-Award status (that is, the contract has not yet been awarded to your firm), the list of MBE/WBE business partners includes only those business partners for which a submitted MBE/WBE Solicitation form exists. When the project is in Pre-Construction status (that is, your firm has been awarded the contract), all certified MBE/WBE business partners are available for selection.
Select one or more business partners for which you want to submit a MBE/WBE Commitment by clicking the X in front of the entry.	The selected user(s) moves to the Selected Items list.
Click the OK button.	The Select Business Partner window closes. If you selected a single business partner, you are returned to the MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects (detail) screen. This screen is essentially the blank “EO-32” form. You will create a MBE/WBE Commitment form for each MBE or WBE business partner. If you selected multiple users, you are returned to the MBE/WBE Commitment list. From there, navigate to the detail screen (that is, to the "blank EO-32 form") by clicking the Business Partner name hyperlink. Note: You can declare that you will be ‘self-contained’ (that is, not planning to subcontract any work, service, or supplies) by selecting the Self-Contained checkbox at the bottom of the screen. You can request that your firm be permitted to perform less than 50% of the work items for the project by selecting the Request to Perform Less Than 50% of Work Items checkbox. To request an MPL Evaluation, select the Request for MPL Evaluation checkbox. Separate Help documents explain each procedure.
Under the Prime section of the detail screen, enter the name of the contact person in your firm who can answer questions about the MBE/WBE Commitment form in the Contact field.	The name you entered appears in the field.
Enter the contact person’s telephone number, including area code in the Phone field.	The number you entered appears in the field in 999-999-9999 format. Note: You must complete the Prime Contact fields for the first form you create; after the initial form is created and saved, the Prime Contact fields are prefilled on each subsequent MBE/WBE Commitment for created for the project.
Note the MBE% and DBE % (the MPLs established for the project) fields are displayed at the bottom of the Prime section of the screen.	None.
If necessary, select the Type (MBE or WBE).	If the user is listed as only a MBE or only a WBE, the Type field is prefilled and protected. If they are listed as both MBE and WBE, the Type field displays the MBE and WBE radio button groups, and you must select the type of certification they should be considered as for purposes of the form.
Enter the amount of the agreement between your firm and the MBE or WBE business partner in the Agreement Amount field.	The amount you entered is displayed in the field. When you tab to the next field or save the screen, the system automatically calculates the % Bid field.
Enter the amount for Mobilization in the Mobilization field.	The amount you entered appears in the field.
Enter the starting and completion dates of the agreement between your firm and the MBE or WBE business partner in the Starting and Completion date fields.	The dates you entered appear in the fields. The dates must be entered in mm/dd/yyyy format. Tip: You can use the Calendar/clock icon to the right of the date fields to select the date from a pop-up calendar graphic. The calendar graphic displays the current month. If the date you want to select is within the current month, simply click the day. To change the month the calendar displays, use the single left- arrow key to display the previous month(s) and the single right-arrow key to display the next month. The year can be changed using the double arrows.
Select the type of business from the drop-down list.	The entry you selected appears in the field. A MBE/WBE user may be submitted on more than one MBE/WBE Commitment form, provided each form has a unique Business Type.
Click the SAVE button.	The system displays a ‘please wait’ message while the MBE/WBE item information is saved. When the processing is complete, a ‘save successful’ message is displayed.
Click OK on the message box.	The MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects screen is re-displayed, and the data you have entered thus far has been saved.
To associate specific work items with the MBE or WBE business partner, click the ADD ITEM button.	The MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects Item screen is displayed.
Click the selection arrow to the right of the Item number field.	The Add Construction Items selection window is displayed in a separate browser window. This screen is in the standard ECMS selection window format. The Select Items to be Added list box displays the list of construction items.
Click the X in front of the item or items you want to associate with this MBE or WBE business partner in the Select Items to be Added list box.	The item(s) you selected appears in the list.
Click the OK button.	The Add Construction Items selection window closes. If you selected only one item, you are returned to the MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects Item screen with the item number you selected displayed in the Item number field. If you selected more than one item, you are returned to the MBE/WBE Commitment detail screen, which lists all selected items. Use the Item Number hyperlink to navigate to the MBE/WBE Item screen, if necessary.
On the MBE/WBE Item screen, select the Partial checkbox If the MBE or WBE business partner will perform only part of the work item.	An ‘X’ appears in the "Partial" checkbox, and the Partial Description field appears below.
Enter a brief description of the partial work to be performed in the Partial Description field.	The text you entered appears in the field. If the Partial checkbox is selected, this is a required field.
Click the SAVE button.	The system displays a ‘please wait’ message while the MBE or WBE item information is saved. When the processing is complete, a ‘save successful’ message is displayed.
Click OK on the message box.	The message box closes, and the MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects Item screen is re-displayed with the data you just entered and saved.
To continue associating items with the MBE or WBE business partner, click the NEW button.	The fields on the screen are cleared, and you can select another work item to associate with the user by clicking the selection arrow to the right of the Item number field and repeating the previous steps. Important: If you click the ADD button before saving the currently displayed information, your data will be lost.
When you have finished associating items with this MBE or WBE business partner, click the SAVE & EXIT button to return to the MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects List.	The MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects List is displayed. The Items you associated with the user are displayed in the embedded Items and Partial Items tables at the bottom of the screen.
If you are satisfied with the form, click the SUBMIT FOR ACKNOWLEDGEMENT button.	The system displays a confirmation message, followed by the ‘please wait’ and the ‘successful’ messages. When the screen is re-displayed, the BEO Form Status field displays ‘Awaiting Acknowledgement’. Important: Before you can submit the form to BEO, the Business Partner you are submitting must log into the system, access the form, and acknowledge it by clicking the ACKNOWLEDGE button.
	Use the Go links to access other project-related screens. Use the navigation bar to access other ECMS functions or to log out of the system.

Related Help Documents

Topic	Help Document
Project listing	Tell Me About My Projects
BEO Submission list	Tell Me About DBE Participation for Federal Projects or MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects List
EO-32, Attachment A	Tell Me About DBE Participation for Federal Projects or MBE/WBE Commitment for State Projects Screen
Subcontracted items	Tell Me About DBE Participation Item or MBE/WBE Commitment Item
Acknowledge form	Tell Me About DBE Participation or MBE/WBE Commitment Acknowledgment List
Self-contained status	How Do I Declare Self-Contained Status
MPL or Good Faith Effort Evaluation	How Do I Request MPL or Good Faith Effort Evaluation
Subcontract more than 50% items (D-431, D-432)	How Do I Request to Perform Less Than Fifty Percent Work Items

Created by
Joseph D Howe/PennDOT on 03/16/2005 at 10:51:07 AM