SOURCES SOUGHT
D -- Mission Network Connectivity
- Notice Date
- 12/22/2014
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 517410
— Satellite Telecommunications
- Contracting Office
- Agency for International Development, Washington D.C., USAID/Washington, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Room 7.10-006, Washington, District of Columbia, 20523, United States
- ZIP Code
- 20523
- Solicitation Number
- SOL-CIO-15-000003
- Archive Date
- 1/23/2015
- Point of Contact
- Veronica M. Moss, Phone: 703-666-5637
- E-Mail Address
-
vmoss@usaid.gov
(vmoss@usaid.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- 1.0 Request for Information 1.1 Purpose The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is issuing this Request for Information (RFI) as part of its market research regarding proven capabilities of vendors on network connectivity issues in locations other than the continental U.S. (OCONUS), i.e., developing nations at which the Agency is located. Note: USAID may utilize responses to this RFI to develop a list of vendors for any resulting RFQ for selecting, designing, and implementing a secondary network connectivity solution at its missions listed in this RFI. 1.2 Submission Instructions The following information shall be provided in response to this RFI: •— Name and Address of the Vendor •— Point of contact with name, title, phone no., fax no. and email address •— GSA/GWAC Contract Number and period of performance •— NAICS Code and procurement preference group categories, as applicable •— A written summary of the proposed solution and demonstrated capability to meet the needs outlined in Section 2.0 below. Responses shall not exceed 10 pages. Responses must be submitted via email in PDF or MS Word file formats to Veronica Moss at vmoss@usaid.gov no later than 4:00PM on January 8, 2015. 1.3 Disclaimer DISCLAIMER: THIS RFI IS NOT A REQUEST FOR QUOTATION (RFQ) AND IS NOT TO BE CONSTRUED AS A COMMITMENT BY THE GOVERNMENT TO ISSUE A SOLICITATION OR ULTIMATELY AWARD A CONTRACT. RESPONSES WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED AS QUOTATIONS NOR WILL ANY AWARD BE MADE AS A RESULT OF THIS SYNOPSIS. All information contained in the RFI is preliminary, as well as subject to modification, and is in no way binding on the Government. Vendors are responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation. All information received in this RFI that is marked "Proprietary" will be handled accordingly. Responses to the RFI will not be returned nor will receipt be confirmed. 2.0 Background and Scope Background USAID is the principal U.S. Agency to extend assistance to countries recovering from disaster or extreme poverty and engaging in democratic reforms. With headquarters in Washington, DC, USAID fosters transformational development around the world. Our work supports economic growth and trade, agriculture and the environment, education and training, democracy and governance, global health, global partnerships, and humanitarian assistance. USAID's footprint spans 90 plus locations throughout the world including developing nations in the following regions. •1. Afghanistan and Pakistan, •2. Africa, •3. Asia, •4. Europe and Eurasia, •5. Latin America and the Caribbean, •6. Middle East, and •7. United States Infrastructure within many of these regions lacks the maturity required to support the network connectivity needs at USAID missions. Due to this, USAID has established secondary network connectivity paths at its missions, one of which is the Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) network in place at the 25 missions outlined in Appendix A. Under the existing structure, these missions are grouped into three networks, two of which have shared bandwidth pools. The third network consists of locations that all have dedicated bandwidth. USAID is interested in determining vendor capabilities for providing a secondary network path at these locations, which will serve as the replacement for the existing VSAT services. Included in Appendix A are the bandwidth levels for the missions in USAID's existing VSAT network Scope USAID is researching vendor capabilities to provide a network connectivity solution at the missions listed in Appendix A. The current solution is VSAT based, but it is not a requirement that it remain so. USAID is requesting that vendor responses address a solution that will serve as a reliable, cost effective secondary network path to these missions at bandwidth levels on par with today. This shall be a managed service solution that includes Transition Services, a Network Operations Center (NOC) for continuous monitoring, Lifecycle Support, Equipment Management (procurement, installation, servicing, and replacing), and Help Desk Services. Overall Constraints/Needs Vendors should describe their solution, VSAT or other, which will support the information gathering process (e.g., site surveys), equipment ordering/shipping, implementation, management, and maintenance of a comprehensive network connectivity solution for missions currently on the VSAT network. This solution should leverage whatever mechanisms are best and that satisfy all related laws, standards, policies, rules, regulations, and other requirements including NIST SP 800-47, NIST SP 800-52, NIST SP 800-53, NIST SP 800-137, OMB M-06-16, e-Gov Act of 2002 including Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA), and agency-related policies/directives, etc. Vendors must address the ability to implement their solution at the 25 stated missions in a small time frame; between six (6) and nine (9) months. Because many of the locations listed in Appendix A are in regions that may pose a security risk, responses should address the ability of the vendor to provide cleared personnel. During the implementation of the current VSAT network, the deployment team encountered various issues that delayed installation, including customs delays and in-country strife. Vendors should address their ability to mitigate these and other risks. Potential Capabilities of Vendors Network Standup and Transition Services: The vendor should address their capabilities related to standing up new network connectivity services at geographically dispersed, developing nations in a narrow time frame. This includes project management, logistics, communications, and transition services from the existing network connectivity services to the newly established services. Solutions should be easily deployable and a ssimilate into existing IT architecture. Connectivity: The vendor should address their ability to provide a flexible and scalable solution that enables locations to modify or add connectivity requirements to accommodate future needs. Connectivity must be capable of transporting vital command and control data between foreign offices and Washington, D.C. Solutions should be capable of concurrently supporting both Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) and Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4). Security: Vendors should address their ability to meet minimum security requirements necessary for all of their facilities through which USAID's network could potentially be accessed. Any solutions discussed should provide or support encrypted network paths/tunnels that support Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) standards. Network Operations Center (NOC): The vendor should address their ability to provide continuous monitoring services for all locations on the planned network. Monitoring services include data collection and reporting for established performance measures. Vendors should address the ability to ensure performance remains at acceptable levels such as; 99.9999% up-time, minimal latency and jitter, and 99.5% packet delivery success rate. Vendors should also describe capabilities surrounding issue management, escalation, and resolution. Managed Services and Lifecycle Support: Vendors should address their ability to provide ongoing operational, lifecycle support for all equipment, whether leased from the vendor or government furnished. Operational, lifecycle support includes return merchandise authorization (RMA) for equipment, travel to mission locations when necessary and ability to provide specialty equipment (i.e., corrosion resistant antennas and pole mounts, de-icing systems, etc.) to combat regional environmental and weather related concerns; if applicable to the solution. Help Desk Services: Vendors should address their ability to provide 24/7/365 help desk coverage for all locations on the network. Escalation and coordination capabilities with the NOC should be captured. Help Desk Services should follow industry best practices and include a ticketing system accessible by staff for issue tracking purposes. Innovation: The vendor should address their ability to provide innovative network connectivity related products and services. That is, constantly be looking for innovative technologies, processes, procedures, tools, managerial approaches, etc. to ensure the network connectivity solution provides the best value and service to help the agency meet its global mission. Unsupported Regions, Missions, or Locations: The vendor should provide a list of locations (from the list in Appendix A) that they would be unable to support per the network connectivity requirements in this RFI. For example, if there are certain countries or cities, where the vendor cannot provide services to missions, then the vendor should list those locations. Appendix A - The tables below provide the breakdown of the three USAID VSAT networks and the missions contained within each network. USAID would like for the vendor to state whether or not these minimum requirements can be met at each location listed. Table 1 Network One Network 1: Africa TDMA (14 Sites) Location CR CIR In CIR Out Burst In Burst Out •1. Abuja, Nigeria 8:1 384Kbps 192Kbps 512Kbps 256Kbps •2. Conakry, Guinea 8:1 256Kbps 128Kbps 512Kbps 256Kbps •3. Harare, Zimbabwe 8:1 256Kbps 128Kbps 512Kbps 256Kbps •4. Kinshasa, Dem Rep of Congo 8:1 256Kbps 128Kbps 512Kbps 256Kbps •5. Lilongwe, Malawi 8:1 256Kbps 128Kbps 512Kbps 256Kbps •6. Maputo, Mozambique 8:1 256Kbps 128Kbps 512Kbps 256Kbps •7. Cotonou, Benin 8:1 192Kbps 128Kbps 512Kbps 256Kbps •8. Cairo, Egypt 8:1 128Kbps 64Kbps 512Kbps 256Kbps •9. Pretoria, South Africa 8:1 128Kbps 64Kbps 512Kbps 256Kbps •10. Cairo, Egypt DR VSAT 25:1 N/A N/A 512 Kbps 256Kbps •11. Chisinau, Moldova 25:1 N/A N/A 512Kbps 256Kbps •12. Pristina, Kosovo 25:1 N/A N/A 512Kbps 256Kbps •13. Rabat, Morocco 25:1 N/A N/A 512Kbps 256Kbps •14. Windhoek, Namibia 25:1 N/A N/A 512Kbps 256Kbps Table 2 Network Two Network 2: Asia, Europe, and Middle East TDMA (4 Sites) Location CR CIR In CIR Out Burst In Burst Out •1. Almaty, Kazakhstan 1:1 256Kbps 128Kbps 512Kbps 256Kbps •2. Colombo, Sri Lanka 25:1 N/A N/A 512Kbps 256Kbps •3. Hanoi, Vietnam 25:1 N/A N/A 512Kbps 256Kbps •4. Tel Aviv, Israel 25:1 N/A N/A 512Kbps 256Kbps Table 3 Network Three Network 3: SCPC Sites (dedicated point-to-point) (5 sites) Location CR Dedicated Uplink/Downlink CIR •1. Asuncion, Paraguay 1:1 384K/384K 384K/384K •2. Baku, Azerbaijan 1:1 192K/192K 192K/192K •3. Dili, East Timor 1:1 1024K/1024K 1024K/1024K •4. Juba, South Sudan [1] 1:1 3072/3073 3072/3074 •5. Baghdad, Iraq 1:1 2048K/2048K 2048K/2048K [1] South Sudan has a Hot Standby in place as well.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/AID/OP/WashingtonDC/SOL-CIO-15-000003/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: Contractor's site and overseas at USAID missions worldwide, United States
- Record
- SN03602358-W 20141224/141222234310-f0002399061f3c1846a0628ab0155cd2 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
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