SOLICITATION NOTICE
B -- Uzbekistan: Railway Telecommunications Modernization Project
- Notice Date
- 7/18/2002
- Notice Type
- Solicitation Notice
- Contracting Office
- United States Trade and Development Agency, TDA, ATTN: Railway Telecommunications Modernization Project--Uzbekistan, 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 200, Arlington, VA, 22209-2131
- ZIP Code
- 22209-2131
- Solicitation Number
- Reference-Number-0280013B
- Response Due
- 8/15/2002
- Point of Contact
- Evangela Kunene, Procument Data Manager, Phone 703-875-4357, Fax 703-875-4009,
- E-Mail Address
-
ekunene@tda.gov
- Description
- TDA funded a Definitional Mission (DM) in February 2002 to look at 10 potential projects in the rail sector in Uzbekistan. The DM consultant found that the upgrading of the existing rail telecommunications line has been identified as a high priority for the Uzbek government and Uzbek Railways (UTY). Much of the current system is based on Soviet electromechanical technology and is almost obsolete. The current system is not able to address the increasing needs of the railway and has no capability to support modern voice, data transfer, and automated technologies. One of the telephony networks is primarily analog with electromechanical switches. Little modern digital equipment has been introduced. A limited number of stations have automatic connections. For outside calls on the network, users must utilize operator-assisted connections. The procedure is limited by the operator's switchboard capacity and the number of transmission channels. Call end connection times do not meet modern standards, and often much time is spent in establishing end-to-end connection. Most of the telecom installations are based on Russian standards, with components from Russia and Eastern Europe, which are no longer in production and lack compatibility with current world technology. To complement the phone service provided through the switched telephone network, some voice and data services are provided through dedicated lines. These dedicated lines consist of a primary railway telephony transmitter/receiver and terminal user installations connected in parallel to the transmission line. Links to this kind of system vary widely in age and quality. Transmission media consists primarily of copper cables, which are buried underground. In order to have smooth railway operations, it is important to have train-to-train radio contact along the whole rail. The condition of many of these cables has deteriorated due to moisture penetration, which causes the transmission quality to also deteriorate. Cables are not well maintained and are susceptible to theft. Train-to-train radio systems are also unreliable. Track-to-train radio systems require an extensive upgrade. The existing system has poor connections and is limited to areas around the stations. Signaling systems, most of which are more than 25 years old, also require increasing maintenance. UTY would like to replace signals that are more than 30 years old by 2005. Funding from the Asian Development Bank has been earmarked to start the upgrade process. The upgrade will include lying of 650 km of optical fiber line between Tashkent and Bukhara. Phone stations and the traffic control center will also be upgraded and two separate switching stations will be established. The technical assistance involves funding a technical advisor to assist UTY in the tendering process for the fiber optics and transmission system for the Tashkent-Bukhara line. The advisor would also review the technical specifications to ensure that they encourage international competition. Secondly, the technical assistance would involve development of a UTY telecommunication network strategy/action plan. The plan will include step-by-step program for the upgrade of the telecommunication system, including identification of equipment needs, specification guidelines, financing and, utilization of surplus capacity for commercial use. The U.S. firm selected to conduct this feasibility study will be paid in U.S. dollars from a $400,425 grant to Uzbekistan Temir Yullari from the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (TDA). A detailed Request for Proposals (RFP) is available from TDA, at 1621 N. Kent Street, Suite 200, Arlington, VA 22209-2131. Requests for the RFP should be faxed to the IRC, TDA at 703-875-4009. In the fax, please include your firm's name, contact person, address, and telephone number. Some firms have found that RFP materials sent by U.S. mail do not reach them in time for preparation of an adequate response. Firms that want TDA to use an overnight delivery service should include the name of the delivery service and your firm's account number in the request for the RFP. Firms that want to send a courier to TDA to retrieve the RFP should allow one hour after faxing the request to TDA before scheduling a pick-up. Please note that no telephone requests for the RFP will be honored. Please check your internal fax verification receipt. Because of the large number of RFP requests, TDA cannot respond to requests for fax verification. Requests for RFPs received before 4:00 PM will be mailed the same day. Requests received after 4:00 PM will be mailed the following day. Please check with your courier and/or mailroom before calling TDA. Only U.S. firms and individuals may bid on this TDA financed activity. Interested firms, their subcontractors and employees of all participants must qualify under TDA's nationality requirements as of the due date for submission of qualifications and proposals and, if selected to carry out the TDA-financed activity, must continue to meet such requirements throughout the duration of the TDA-financed activity. All goods and services to be provided by the selected firm shall have their nationality, source and origin in the U.S. or host country. The U.S. firm may use subcontractors from the host country for up to 20 percent of the TDA grant amount. Details of TDA's nationality requirements and mandatory contract clauses are also included in the RFP. Interested U.S. firms should submit their Proposal to Uzbekistan Temir Yullari c/o TDA by 4:00 P.M., August 15, 2002, at the above address. Evaluation criteria for the Proposal are included in the RFP. Price will not be a factor in contractor selection, and therefore, cost proposals should NOT be submitted. Uzbekistan Temir Yullari reserves the right to reject any and/or all Proposals. Uzbekistan Temir Yullari also reserves the right to contract with the selected firm for subsequent work related to the project. Uzbekistan Temir Yullari is not bound to pay for any costs associated with the preparation and submission of Proposals.
- Record
- SN00120738-W 20020720/020718214431 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
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