SPECIAL NOTICE
D -- Managed Printer Services
- Notice Date
- 1/24/2011
- Notice Type
- Special Notice
- NAICS
- 541519
— Other Computer Related Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Education, Contracts & Acquisitions Management, Contracts (All ED Components), 550 12th Street, SW, 7th Floor, Washington, District of Columbia, 20202
- ZIP Code
- 20202
- Solicitation Number
- ED-CIO-RFI-2011
- Archive Date
- 3/1/2011
- Point of Contact
- Matthew Healey, Phone: 2022458459, Gary L. Weaver, Phone: (202)245-6138
- E-Mail Address
-
matthew.healey@ed.gov, Gary.Weaver@ed.gov
(matthew.healey@ed.gov, Gary.Weaver@ed.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- RFI Purpose: The Department of Education is issuing this request for information (RFI) in an effort to conduct market research for potential sources that may have the technical capability to meet its requirements and develop and provide potential solutions for managed print services. The goal of the RFI is to ascertain the level of interest and availability of potential vendors seeking to provide managed print services and obtain additional information regarding managed services options and best practices. For this purpose, managed services include printing, copying, faxing, scanning and digital sending. Important Note: This is a request for information (RFI) only. This RFI is issued as market research, solely for information and planning purposes. It shall not be considered as an invitation for bid (IFB), request for quotation (RFQ), request for proposal (RFP), or as an obligation on the part of the government to acquire any products or services. Any response to this RFI is purely voluntary and will be treated as information only. The government assumes no financial responsibility for any costs incurred. The information provided may be used by the Department of Education in developing its acquisition strategy and the related statement of work, statement of objectives or performance specifications. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future RFP, if issued Background: The Department of Education must develop a long-term strategy for Department-wide managed print services, to include secure scanning and digital sending, network and desktop printing, copying and faxing. It is anticipated that the Department's needs will be met through a combination of single and multifunction devices. The Department currently has 5,600 users and, in addition to the network devices, has approximately 800 desktop printers deployed. Managed print services for networked and desktop devices are required at the Department's multiple Washington, DC offices as well as all regional locations throughout the United States and in Puerto Rico. The Department currently acquires managed print services under a Contractor-Owned, Contractor-Operated model. Under this model, the Department does not own the printer services-related assets; they are instead owned and managed by a support contractor. A majority of the printers currently deployed are approximately two years old, and few, if any, are older than four years old. Copiers and other devices have a broader age range, with some being older than four years old. The Department is currently considering alternate approaches for managed print services and its intent under this RFI is to develop a better understanding of the current, state-of-the-art capabilities and strategies to determine the best managed print services solution. The goal is to determine the most desirable and logical approach for moving forward in a way that enables the Department to enjoy a modern and robust printing environment that supports optimization from technical, financial, security and environmental perspectives. Industry feedback is vitally important and the government will be receptive to any and all ideas received from industry. Information Being Requested: Responses to this RFI will help shape the government's strategy for managed print services, as well as any subsequent formalized requests for proposal. The information provided in response to this RFI should include the following: 1) Company Profile/Information a) Brief company profile, to include company name, address, website and point of contact name, telephone number and email address. b) Indication of the company's size status; namely whether the company is a small business and/or small, disadvantaged business. c) Brief summary of the organization's experience with and capability of providing both network and non-network managed print services to approximately 5,600 users located at various sites throughout the country. d) Brief summary of the organization's specific experience providing both network and non-network managed print services to government agencies. e) Whether the company is hardware independent. f) The hardware vendor(s) for which your organization is a certified partner or provider, if any. Should also list any related certification level(s) achieved. g) Whether the organization has previously provided managed print services under a Contractor-Owned, Contractor-Operated (CO-CO) model. If so, please provide a list of the Agencies and/or businesses to which these services were provided. h) List of organizations to which your company has previously provided managed print services under a Contractor-Owned, Contractor-Operated (CO-CO) or cloud computing model. 2) Hardware Approach a) Recommended approach for identifying printer models to be deployed and updating the models over time. i) Whether printer models should be uniform throughout the Department. ii) Strategy for minimizing life cycle costs. b) Recommended refresh cycle for each of the following: network and desktop black & white and color printers, copiers, scanners, fax machines, and multifunction devices. c) Your organization's inventory strategy and approach for ensuring necessary replacements and deployments are timely. d) Recommended average ratios for the following: users per network printer, users per network copier, users per network scanner, users per fax machine and users per multifunction device. e) Recommended maximum distance from a user to each type of networked device. f) The Asset Management tool(s) that your organization utilizes and/or recommends. Also, the recommended frequency of Department-wide asset inventory for managed devices. g) The Printer Server monitoring tools that your organization utilizes and/or recommends. h) Recommended features for ensuring security and privacy of data (such as confidential printing). 3) Services Approach a) High level summary of the managed print services strategy to be employed, to include recommendations for deploying and maintaining printers and performing on-site technical support. b) Recommended hardware and technician deployment approach given the existence of multiple local and regional offices. c) Recommendation for the type of Helpdesk Support to be provided and standard resolution timeframes for key activities such as equipment fixes and toner replacements. d) Recommended key service areas and metrics for Service Level Agreements (SLAs). e) Approach and frequency of redistribution of printer assets as users physically shift and move throughout the Department. f) Strategy for coordinating with other infrastructure vendors and establishing the related roles and responsibilities. If significant subcontracting or teaming is anticipated in order to deliver technical capability, organizations should address the administrative and management structure of such arrangements too. g) Key transition activities and suggested transition timeline from existing vendor. Include recommendation regarding whether or not to obtain and utilize existing equipment. h) Recommendations to reduce environmental impact, in terms of energy and paper consumption, solid waste and CO2 emissions, etc. i) Approach for donations and/or disposal of assets at end of life. j) Recommendation for the type and frequency of training your organization would provide the Department's users. 4) Reporting a) Frequency and content of detailed reporting recommended for billing and analysis purposes. b) How your organization provides sufficient reports to enable the customer to perform analysis in terms of: i) Consumables cost management ii) Utilization optimization iii) Performance towards environmental goals iv) Device performance v) Spatial deployment optimization vi) Billable cost validation vii) Customer Satisfaction 5) Pricing Model a) Suggested pricing strategy for managed print services. Some key issues to consider: i) Would hardware pricing be one-time or monthly? ii) Would hardware pricing be included in the cost of refresh? iii) Would services be priced separately from the hardware? iv) Would services pricing be fixed or on a per-activity basis? v) What is the recommended method of implementing pricing changes over time, as hardware and consumables costs change? vi) What is the industry standard percentage for hardware and consumable discounts (below list price) offered to managed print service clients? 6) Information Technology Security a) Approach for FISMA compliance for printers and print servers. b) Suggested tools and approach for ensuring security and privacy of data while in transit and in queue. c) Current and future threats and vulnerabilities 7) Additional Concerns and/or Key Issues Not Addressed Above, as Related to Managed Print Services RFI Submission Requirements: Proprietary information is not being solicited; however, if it is submitted, it should be appropriately marked. Please limit your formal submission to no more than 20 pages, to include cover letter and response. In addition, you may include up to two attachments that consist of briefing slides, pre-printed commercial brochures or sales literature. Electronic submissions are strongly encouraged. All items must be in Microsoft office 2000 or adobe pdf format and should be free of all computer viruses. Technical questions and industry responses shall be submitted via email to: Matthew Healey at Matthew.Healey@ed.gov. Technical questions must be received no later than 4:00 pm eastern standard time on Monday, February 7, 2011. RFI responses must be received no later than 4:00 pm eastern standard time on Monday, February 14, 2011 Month, Day 2011. All material submitted in response to this RFI must be unclassified and properly marked.
- Web Link
-
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