Port of Los Angeles: HVAC & refrigeration bid work guide

Facility types across the San Pedro waterfront

The Harbor Department's administrative offices are in San Pedro. Other facilities that the port or its tenants operate generally include cruise passenger terminals, waterfront public spaces and event venues, port police and fire support buildings, maintenance and warehouse space, and terminal operator buildings in the container areas. The public-facing assets are the most sensitive to comfort issues, since a failed air handler in a hall that is hosting an event is a visible event of its own.

Ownership and responsibility vary by building. Terminal operators and tenants may maintain what they lease, while the department maintains what it keeps. Always establish this before you scope.

Cruise, cold chain and the waterfront climate

A cruise terminal behaves like a small airport terminal on a ship timetable. On embarkation day, a big hall holds thousands of people for hours, then sits nearly empty. Air handling and controls need to ramp quickly, and humidity from the marine environment compounds the load. See our building controls service for the schedule and demand logic that makes such a space manageable.

Cold chain is a significant part of the port economy in general, because refrigerated containers and cold storage warehouses are an important part of the import and export of perishable goods. Whether a given port-owned building has refrigeration scope is facility-specific, but where it does, expect the issues described in our commercial refrigeration systems guide: power-loss readiness, alarm response, leak records and refrigerant compliance.

Like all waterfront property, equipment faces salt, moisture and corrosive conditions, so coatings and coil protection are routine specification items, not upgrades.

How the department generally procures work

Harbor Department contracts follow the City of Los Angeles framework with the Board of Harbor Commissioners approving larger awards. Construction work is generally competitively bid, some through a qualified list, and maintenance and repair needs are commonly met with term or on-call agreements. The city has long maintained business inclusion, small business and local business programs, and solicitations may state goals. The city's business assistance network and the department's own bid postings are typical places to find notices; confirm current portals and whether registration is required.

Waterfront access and security zones

Public areas such as promenades and event venues are straightforward. Secured terminal areas, cruise facilities and the container terminals are governed by federal maritime security rules and by operator procedures, which means credentials, vehicle inspections and escorts. Cruise terminals have an additional layer: security screening areas and the need to clear work areas before a ship arrives.

For rooftop and crane work, wind off the harbor, adjacent vessel traffic and underground utilities complicate staging. Confirm requirements with the department.

Workforce credentials and escorts

Workers in secured areas commonly need a federal transportation credential or a port-issued alternative, plus site safety orientation. Expect a lead time. A good practice is to identify the minimal credentialed core, then add the others in waves. Escorted days should be treated as exceptions, because they limit production. Confirm the current credential type that the particular terminal requires.

Shutdowns built around ship calls and events

A cruise terminal can be taken down on days with no embarkation, but the schedule for those days is set by the cruise lines far in advance. Event venues have booking calendars. Offices and operations spaces need phased work with temporary cooling. A plan that treats the calendar as an input rather than a surprise has a much better chance of holding.

• Obtain the vessel and event calendar before building the schedule.
• Plan the heaviest demolition for the quietest days, and verify with the department.
• Provide temporary cooling for control and dispatch rooms from day one.
• Build weather float into every rooftop lift.

Wage, labor and workforce programs

Public works for the City of Los Angeles generally require prevailing wage, DIR registration and certified payroll. The port and the city have used project labor agreements, targeted or local hiring, and apprenticeship provisions on some capital programs. Check the solicitation for what applies to a given project. Union crews from UA Local 250 handle PLA and prevailing-wage terms, and the prevailing wage guide explains the payroll side.

How we would approach it

Larger commercial and public projects across Los Angeles County, the Port of Los Angeles included, are approached by mobilizing from Orange County. For a waterfront project, we want to know three things before pricing: what the existing equipment looks like after years of salt exposure, how the building is actually used on a typical busy day, and who has authority to approve a shutdown.

From there we document the diagnosis and capture every asset in the DaVinci Portal. Related pages: airports, ports and transit, the neighboring Port of Long Beach, hotels, resorts and convention facilities for guest-oriented space, and the bid projects page.

What to have ready

• Active license, DIR registration and any city registrations the solicitation names.
• Outreach documentation for small and local business participation, if required.
• A credential plan for crews and delivery drivers.
• A schedule that cites the vessel and event calendar.
• Insurance and bonding confirmed in advance.