Carver County Open Fiber Initiative
Request for BEST VALUE Proposal for
Data Switches, Installation Services and Ongoing Support
Date Issued: November 5, 2012
Date Due: December 3, 2012 – 2 p.m. local time
Direct all communications related to this RFP to the following
Randy Lehs
Broadband Fiber Project Manager
Carver County Government Center
600 E. 4th Street
Chaska, MN 55318
952-361-1494
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION I – GENERAL INFORMATION 1
1.0 Background/Purpose 1
1.1 Vendor Questions and Dates 2
1.2 RFP Response, Bonds, Affidavit, and RFP Response Opening 3
1.3 Proposal Response Format 4
1.4 General Requirements and Instructions to Vendors 4
1.5 Response Evaluation 5
1.6 Contract Terms and Conditions 7
SECTION II – SPECIFICATIONS 19
2.0 Overall System 19
2.1 Data Switch Categories and Configurations (M/D) 20
2.2 Data Switch Requirements (M/D) 21
2.3 Network Management Tool (M) 22
2.4 Fiber Patch Cables and Optics (M) 22
2.5 UPS (M/D) 22
2.6 Project Schedule (M) 23
2.7 Equipment Warranty and Software Support (M) 23
2.8 Customer Provided Resources (M) 23
2.9 Product Literature (M) 23
2.10 Space and Environmental Requirements Information (M) 23
2.11 Alternate A - Implementation Services (M) 23
2.12 Alternate B - Ongoing Support Requirements (M) 24
2.13 Cost and Assumptions (M) 25
SECTION III – COST INFORMATION 26
3.0 Cost Information 26
3.1 Base Configuration Equipment Cost (Table A) 26
3.2 Extended Warranty and Software Support (Table B) 26
3.3 Implementation Costs (Table C) 26
3.4 Ongoing Support Costs (Table D) 26
APPENDIX A – LIST OF HUB AND ACCESS SITES 27
TABLE A – BASE CONFIGURATION EQUIPMENT COST 28
TABLE B – EXTENDED HARDWARE/SOFTWARE WARRANTY AND SUPPORT COST 28
TABLE C – IMPLEMENTATION SERVICE COST 29
TABLE D – ONGOING SUPPORT COST 29
ATTACHMENT A – AFFIDAVIT OF NON-COLLUSION FORM 30
ATTACHMENT B – STATEMENT OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION FOR EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYMENT 31
ATTACHMENT C – ACCEPTANCE FORM 32
ATTACHMENT D – REFERENCES 33
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Carver County RFP for Data Switches
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11/5/2012 1
Carver County RFP for Data Switches
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SECTION I – GENERAL INFORMATION
1.0 Background/Purpose
In order to meet Carver County’s communication needs the County is in the process of deploying a fiber based backbone network that connects county facilities and city buildings within the county as well as a number of user sites. The County applied for and was successful in obtaining federal funding made available under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) through the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) managed by the National Telecommunications Administration Institute (NTIA). This project is identified as the Carver County Open Fiber Initiative (CCOFI).
The County is issuing this Best Value Request for Proposal (RFP) for the purchase and deployment of Ethernet based data switches connecting the fiber ring and laterals. The members of the CCOFI collaboration represent a far-reaching collection of city, county and township governments, libraries, schools, colleges, public safety and law enforcement agencies, community organizations, and healthcare providers that serve rural and suburban areas and a broad cross-section of the community.
Please note that this RFP is not requesting Internet services or any transport to access internet services.
The County is requesting that vendors only respond to this RFP with equipment manufactured by one of the vendors listed below. Equipment proposed must all be from the same manufacturer.
1. HP
2. Extreme Networks
3. Cisco
4. Brocade
The RFP requests equipment and alternates for installation and ongoing support:
1. Base Configuration: This configuration is to create a ten gigabit ring and deploy access equipment at those facilities where access to ring is required. Extended warranty for two, three, and five year is also being requested as part of this configuration. Additionally, as part of the Base Configuration, the County is requesting that the vendor provide cost for UPS for hub sites. See Appendix A for list of hub and access sites.
2. Alternate A – Implementation Services: The County is requesting design and implementation services for the equipment purchased for the Base Configuration.
3. Alternate B – Ongoing Support: The County is looking to vendors to provide second level support. Second level support means that in the event that the County cannot resolve a problem called in by end users or problems it detects through the management tool provided that it can call the vendor help desk operated 24x7 – 365 days for assistance.
Vendors responding to the Base Configuration must respond to the alternates. The County may award contracts for all, part, or none of the components of the RFP. The County reserves the right to award the contract to multiple vendors if it is in the best interest of the County. Vendors choosing to respond must comply with all of the requirements associated with the ARRA Grant funded projects, specifically,
a) The terms of the Federal Stimulus Grant awarded to the County under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Pub. L. 111-5 – 2009 (the “ARRA”).
b) Requirements and guidelines published by the United States Department of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (the “NTIA”) Broadband Technologies Opportunities Program (the BTOP”) 75 FR 3792, January 22, 2010.
A key requirement of the project is that vendors adhere to the Buy American provision. The Buy American provision requires the vendor to certify that all materials used for the project are manufactured in the United States of America unless exempted by the NTIA rules.
1.1 Vendor Questions and Dates
Questions and/or correspondence related to this RFP document or procurement must be in writing and e-mailed to:
Randy Lehs
Broadband Fiber Project Manager
Carver County Administrative Services
Carver County Government Center
600 E. 4th Street
Chaska, MN 55318
Phone #: 952-361-1494
E-Mail:
The following project dates have been established:
RFP Issue: November 5, 2012
Written Questions Received: November 16, 2012 (4:00 pm local time)
Written Responses Provided: November 21, 2012
RFP Response Due December 3, 2012 (2:00 pm local time)
At the time of RFP public opening only vendor names will be read out. Detailed vendor response and cost information will be made available after staff recommendations are made and County Board award of the contracts.
1.2 RFP Response, Bonds, Affidavit, and RFP Response Opening
Response to this RFP must be received at the following address.
Randy Lehs
Broadband Fiber Project Manager
Carver County Government Center
600 E. 4th Street
Chaska, MN 55318
One bound marked “ORIGINAL” and three loose-leaf copies of the RFP response must be submitted and clearly marked:
"CARVER COUNTY - RFP FOR DATA SWITCHES"
An electronic version of the response in Microsoft Word format and the cost data in Microsoft Excel should be included.
A security bond or certified check payable to Carver County in the amount of 5percent of the cost for the equipment being proposed (Base Configuration) is required. Certified check shall be returned to unsuccessful vendors after award of a contract or rejection of all responses.
The cost section of the RFP response must not contain any erasures, corrections, or white outs. Failure to comply will result in the response being rejected.
The County will reject all responses received after the closing time identified above. Facsimile responses will not be accepted. The County is not responsible if an improperly addressed response is opened prematurely. All requests to withdraw a response must be made in writing to the County at the address listed above. Vendors may not withdraw their response within 90 days after the actual date of the RFP response opening, without forfeiting the security bond.
The successful vendor will be asked to provide a Performance and Payment bond if required by law for the segments and any alternates selected within 10 days of contract award.
The County reserves the right to waive technicalities or irregularities, to accept any portion of a response, when responses are by items, to reject any or all responses, and to make arrangements in the best interest of the County.
The vendor must include as part of their response:
a) A signed affidavit of non-collusion.
b) A signed Statement of Affirmative Action for Equal Opportunity Employment.
c) A signed Acceptance Form.
The above forms are provided as part of the RFP document.
1.3 Proposal Response Format
Vendors must include the following in their response:
a) Certify that the response complies with the requirements of the RFP.
b) Vendor qualifications as outlined in Paragraph 1.5.
c) Cost information and additional information as required in relevant sections of the RFP.
Failure to submit your response in accordance with the requirements of this RFP may, at the discretion of the County, is grounds for rejection. Vendors must warrant that the materials provided and workmanship meets or exceeds all specifications contained or referenced herein. Vendors shall list types and quantities of materials provided for the project. The Vendor remains solely responsible for the accuracy of their response as to system performance, material quality, and material quantity.
1.4 General Requirements and Instructions to Vendors
The following must be considered in responding to this RFP.
a) The specifications provided herein are intended to facilitate an understanding of the County’s needs and are to be considered the minimum requirements. It is the vendor's responsibility to propose a technically sound and operationally functional system.
b) The proposed network equipment must be designed and installed to provide a highly reliable grade of service. All parts, materials, and service proposed must be currently available on the market and in continuing production (no discontinued manufacturers or parts). Any components included must be new. In addition, the vendor must clearly demonstrate that they have installed all components needed to provide service as proposed and that those components or service are fully operational. Vendors must document conformance with the performance requirements of Section II.
c) Each vendor is required to submit proposed contracts, catalog data, and technical information including design calculations and layout drawings that completely describe the network and associated services. Information provided will be used during the evaluation process. All general contents of this RFP and technical specifications herein, as well as the complete response of the successful vendor, will be included in any contract between the County and the successful vendor. Please do not include generic or bulk marketing material unless it illustrates, explains or refers to a specific point or section in which you are referring to, or bidding on.
d) The County reserves the right to determine whether a vendor is responsive to the RFP requirements and has the ability and resources to perform the contract in full and comply with the specifications. Inability to demonstrate vendor experience will result in rejection of the response.
e) The County reserves the right to request additional information from the vendor to satisfy any questions that might arise. The County reserves the right to award the contract in whole or in part, whichever is in the best interest of the County. All tie response will be resolved in a manner which is in the best interests of the County. The County further reserves the right to reject any or all responses, to waive any informalities and/or to issue invitations for new responses.
f) The County assumes no responsibility for understanding or representations concerning conditions made by its officers or employees prior to the execution of a legal contract, unless such understanding or representations are specifically incorporated into this RFP.
g) Verbal discussions pertaining to modifications or clarifications of this RFP will not be considered part of the RFP unless confirmed in writing. Any information provided by the vendor verbally will not be considered as part of that vendor's response until written confirmation is received by the County at the address provided in this RFP.
h) The vendor is required to review this document and to become familiar with the requirements necessary to make a complete response in compliance with local, state, and federal codes and the RFP specifications. Failure to review the provided information regarding this project will not relieve the vendor from submitting a complete and fully responsive proposal.
i) Where specific manufacturer's components and materials are listed, "equivalents or equals" will not be considered.
j) The County is not responsible for locating or securing any information that is not identified in the RFP and reasonably available to the County. To ensure that sufficient information is available, the vendor must furnish as part of the response, all descriptive material necessary for the County to determine whether the response meets the requirement of the RFP and establish exactly what the vendor proposes to furnish as to supplies, materials, and services.
k) Subcontractors working for the vendor must meet all the requirements of the RFP and any contract between the vendor and the subcontractor must include all contract terms agreed to between the County and the successful vendor.
1.5 Response Evaluation
The County will use the Best Value evaluation system. It is important that vendors review this subsection to understand the County’s evaluation process.
1. Vendor Qualification. Vendors responding to the RFP must have the following minimum qualifications. Vendor qualifications would be part of the evaluation as described further below:
a) The vendor or the subcontractors used must have a minimum of 5 years experience in installing and configuring equipment being proposed. Vendors shall supply references as required in Section II.
b) The vendor’s RFP response includes a robust and achievable project plan addressing implementation issues, deployment timeframes and risk management measures indicating a level of experience in successfully managing installation of networks with similar scope, size, and complexity.
c) The vendor or subcontractors used must have a service and support capability and be able to respond for warranty services if requested or required.
d) The equipment being proposed must have been deployed in at least three installations of similar size and scope.
e) The ability and the willingness of the vendor to comply with all of the requirements of the Grant awarded to the County under ARRA.