Inactive

This is a sources sought. The purpose of this notice is to conduct market research and obtain information from qualified potential offerors. No formal solicitation document exists at this time. The Go... This is a sources sought. The purpose of this notice is to conduct market research and obtain information from qualified potential offerors. No formal solicitation document exists at this time. The Government is not obligated to, nor will it pay for or reimburse any costs associated responding to this sources sought synopsis request. This notice shall not be construed as a commitment by the Government to issue a solicitation or ultimately award a contract, nor does it restrict the Government to a particular acquisition approach. The Government will in no way be bound to this information if any solicitation is issued. Looking for Internet Service Providers that are able to provide Guest WI-FI Network for a base year with 4 option years for the Audie L. Murphy VA Hospital, 7400 Merton Minter, San Antonio, Texas 78229. SCOPE OF WORK/SPECIFICATIONS DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES The Contractor shall provide all materials, tools, and equipment necessary to provide Internet Service Provider (ISP) for the Guest WI-FI Network that will be facilitated by the Electronics Shop located at the Audie L. Murphy Medical Center, San Antonio, TX as defined in the Scope of Work (SOW). The Internet Service Provider (ISP) will also need to be completely separated from the OIT VA Network to ensure safety and security of the OIT and Guest Network. Internet Service Provider will need to provide Fiber Demarcation point in Audie L. Murphy and required modem SERVICES The Contractor will provide: All equipment and materials must be new, not refurbished, not rebuilt, nor 3rd party substitutes are acceptable. Provide all materials, tools, and labor for total project scope. Provide 5 Static IP Addresses Provide Dedicated Business Class Fiber Internet Access @ minimum 100 Mbps Internet hand-off: Fiber Above ceiling and interstitial cabling will be suspended in new J-hooks through-out the facility Suspension points should be adequately spaced so that cabling is neat, tight, and does not droop in excess of 3 inches at any point No cabling will lie directly on top of ceiling tiles or light fixtures at any point No cabling will be draped over or wrapped around any existing piping Zip-ties or other pressure ties will not be used all cabling shall be bundled with Velcro (type or brand) straps only Provide installation of all cabling and fiber components required herein Provide trash removal and clean-up of all debris through-out project duration Provide project management, oversight, planning, and technical support throughout the upgrade process. Specific Tasks, Details, and Locations Main Distribution Closet for Fiber Demarcation (DEMARC) will be in E220-AMH-SA Fiber Pathway Underground from edge of VA Property to inside the building via interstitial spaces Follow all specific VA requirements as detailed below for earthwork, cabling, construction, etc. Dedicated Internet Access Requirements Service Availability: 99.99% (End to End) Mean Time to Restore: Within 4 hours Latency: 45ms Jitter: <2ms Packet/Frame Loss: <0.1% 500 Mbps minimum speed, 5 Static IP Addresses, Fiber Demarcation (Tested and Certified) and Modem provided by ISP. Troubleshooting and Repair Any problems with the system must be isolated and repaired by the Contractor. The Contractor will trouble shoot the hardware, software, and communications equipment to determine the best method of repair. If problems are found, the Contractor shall contact the appropriate and authorized maintenance organization or company and track the trouble call until it is resolved. Contractor Responsibilities During the term of this contract, the Contractor will provide support at the Customers request and will use its best efforts to provide prompt software support services to the Customer by telephone. The Contractor will provide telephone support to Customers between the hours of 8:00 am and 5:00 pm Central time, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays recognized by the VA. The Contractor will use its best efforts to respond promptly to all inquiries by the customer within one (1) hour of notification that service is required. Reliability The Contractor shall be responsible for maintaining the operation of the hardware and all infrastructure. The Contractor shall provide service availability with an expected 98% uptime. The Contractor shall determine the wireless physical requirements such as spectrum support and user density (bandwidth), antenna diversity (signal quality), and availability requirements within coverage areas during the site survey and with agreement from each facility. Using the information agreed upon from the site survey, the contractor shall provide sufficient bandwidth to provide internet service that meets facility usage requirements while performing normal internet functions (e.g., streaming video, email, network searches). Contractor shall provide Quality of Service (QoS) capability that manages access, bandwidth, groups and users. The Contractor shall provide to COR a monthly Quality Management Plan. The plan shall address and describe, for the prior month for each facility, the percentage of service availability, the number of service calls needed and the resolution of the calls, the amount of time taken to resolve the calls, as well as any user complaints and the Contractor action taken on those user complaints. Maintenance and Support Maintenance and support will begin after the installation and testing is complete and accepted by the VA site. Maintenance and support will be provided throughout the option year periods, if exercised by the Government. The Contractor shall provide 24 hours /365-day user support through a call center. The wireless Internet access shall be available to a user on a 24x7x365 except during periods of scheduled maintenance. Provide the ability for the VA to send failed items back to the Contractor for replacement. Maintenance shall be scheduled during off peak hours. The Contractor shall provide 24 hours/365-day on-call technical support through a call center. The Contractor shall provide on-site support when required by the VA. The Contractor shall provide a 3-hour response time for trouble tickets entered through the technical support call center. The Contractor shall physically respond onsite within 24 hours for issues that require onsite support. The Contractor shall provide quarterly utilization reports for each physical location facility. The utilization report shall address and describe, for the prior month, for each facility, the typical usage of access points, amount of network traffic, security issues, peak simultaneous connections and recommendations for any areas that require upgraded bandwidth based on report data. Contractor shall notify the COR at a minimum two hours prior to any onsite scheduled or repair work. GENERAL INFORMATION Hours of Operation Normal hours of operation are Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm CST, excluding holidays. All services shall be performed during normal hours of coverage unless requested and approved by the COR. Federal and National Holidays observed by the VAMC are: National Holidays Federal Holidays New Year's Day Labor Day Memorial Day Thanksgiving Day Christmas Day M L King's Birthday Columbus Day President's Day Veterans Day Independence Day Also included would be any other day specifically declared by the President of the United States to be a National Holiday. When a holiday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday shall be observed as a legal holiday by U.S. Government agencies. When a holiday falls on a Saturday, the preceding Friday shall be observed as a legal holiday. FACILITY POINT OF CONTACT VA Contact Person: ______________________________________________ Contractor Telephone Number(s) of Service Department: _210 617 5300 ext. 16712__ Additional Charges There shall be no additional charge for time spent at the site (during or after the normal hours of coverage) awaiting the arrival of additional FSE and/or delivery of parts. COMPLIANCE WITH SECURITY REQUIREMENTS Identification All contractors working at S shall be fingerprinted prior to being allowed to work on campus. Contractor ID badges can be obtained from PIV office typically 3-5 days after approved SAC form is received and fingerprints clear. ID badges are required for contractor employees working at Audie L. Murphy Medical Center. Parking It is the responsibility of the Contractor to park in the appropriate designated parking areas. Information on parking is available from the VA Police Section. The VAMC will not validate or reimburse for parking violations from the Contractor under any conditions. Smoking, Weapons, and VA Regulations Smoking is prohibited inside any building at the VAMC. Possession of weapons is prohibited. Enclosed containers, including tool kits, shall be subject to search. Violations of the VA regulations may result in citation answerable to the United States (Federal) District Court, not a local district, State, or Municipal court. TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS The Contractor shall deliver the hardware, software and services necessary to provide public wireless guest internet access that meets the following requirements: The Contractor shall provide public wireless access points supporting wireless protocols of 802.11 b, 802.11 g, and 802.11 n. The Contractor shall perform a site visit to test for Radio Frequency (RF) interference and to identify optimum installation locations for access points. Contractor reviews FCC licensing for wireless medical technology systems (WMTS) registered with the VA Medical Center to ensure non-interference. This may include the analysis of building floor plans, inspection of the facility, and interviews with VA Information Technology (IT) management. The Contractor shall provide a site survey to include the effective range boundary and the minimum signal to noise ratio needed to support the wireless system. The VA will review the site survey with the ability to approve or reject prior to commencement of the project. The contractor will provide coverage maps of the system design and the installation design of the solution for each individual site. Each individual site design shall be based on the site survey conducted across all buildings and floors that are to receive wireless coverage. The Contractor shall collaborate with medical centers to prevent potential interference with medical center s wireless access. If there is conflict for wireless spectrum or physical space, the needs of the VA shall take precedence over guest access. Due to the potential for interference of the VGIA with the medical center wireless infrastructure install and/or upgrade, the access power output is recommended not to exceed 25 mW with a minimal number of APs in the coverage area. After installation, all power levels and non-overlapping channel choices shall remain static. The Contractor shall adhere to the standards outlined by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA-101 Life Safety Code). SECURITY The contractor shall provide public security for the guest internet access and private security for the vendor provided equipment. The Contractor s solution shall provide for Layer I air gapped isolation to provide isolation from any other network within each facility. The Contractor shall provide for the physical security of Contractor equipment, as needed. VA shall provide the Contractor with escorted access to the wiring closets. The Contractor shall provide a captive portal page with usage agreements for acknowledgement at the time of login with information on the program, rules and restrictions and usage agreements. If no agreement acknowledgement is received from the user, access shall be denied. [Users of the guest access must acknowledge that they are aware of the risk of using a public network] The Contractor s solution shall provide ability for updated content filtering for internet access. For public access provided in non-domiciliary/residential settings, implement advisory banners, security solutions, and logging for all VA-provided, public Internet access. For domiciliary settings, implement user agreements, advisory banners, access controls including user name and password, and logging for all VA-provided, public Internet access. Utilize a content filtering solution for monitoring on all VA-provided public Internet access. Log files must be maintained for a one-year period. Facility can implement these services through their existing Internet service provider and the service provider must be able to provide log file as requested for investigation. Required MOU for an air gapped network will be signed by contractor. Security Issues will be included in the Quarterly Utilization Report specified in Section 4. DEFINITIONS/ACRONYMS Acceptance Signature VA employee who is authorized to sign-off on the ESR, which indicates that the PM has been concluded or is still pending completion, or that the Emergency Repair has been accomplished or is still in a pending status. Authorization Signature the COR s signature; indicates that the COR accepts work status as stated on the ESR. CO Contracting Officer COR Contracting Officer s Representative VAMC Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center Information Systems Officer, Information Protection The contractor will/will not have access to VA Desktop computers nor will they have access to online resources belonging to the government while conducting services. If removal of equipment from the VA is required, any memory storage devices, such as hard drives, solid state drives and non-volatile memory units will remain in VA control and will not be removed from VA custody.  Privacy Officer The contractor will/will not have access to protected Patient Health Information (PHI) nor will they have the capability of accessing patient information during the services provided to the VA and if removal of equipment from the VA is required, any memory storage devices, such as hard drives, solid state drives and non-volatile memory units will remain in VA control and will not be removed from VA custody.  All research data available for Contractor analyses is de-identified. Records Manager Records Manager: Citations to pertinent laws, codes and regulations such as 44 U.S.C chapters 21, 29, 31 and 33; Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552); Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a); 36 CFR Part 1222 and Part 1228. Contractor shall treat all deliverables under the contract as the property of the U.S. Government for which the Government Agency shall have unlimited rights to use, dispose of, or disclose such data contained therein as it determines to be in the public interest. Contractor shall not create or maintain any records that are not specifically tied to or authorized by the contract using Government IT equipment and/or Government records. Contractor shall not retain, use, sell, or disseminate copies of any deliverable that contains information covered by the Privacy Act of 1974 or that which is generally protected by the Freedom of Information Act. Contractor shall not create or maintain any records containing any Government Agency records that are not specifically tied to or authorized by the contract. The Government Agency owns the rights to all data/records produced as part of this contract. The Government Agency owns the rights to all electronic information (electronic data, electronic information systems, electronic databases, etc.) and all supporting documentation created as part of this contract. Contractor must deliver sufficient technical documentation with all data deliverables to permit the agency to use the data. The NAICS code for this procurement is 517311 Wired Telecommunications Carriers, Small Business Size Standard is 1,500 employees. Responses to this sources sought notice should include the following: Name and address of company, business size (large or small): identify whether or not firm falls into any of the following socioeconomic categories- 8(a), HUBZone, Service Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business, Veteran-Owned Small Business, etc. Provide a brief description of qualifications and any other pertinent information which demonstrates your ability to meet above requirement. Subject line must reflect: Guest WI-FI Network Audie L. Murphy VA Hospital. All responses shall be submitted in writing no later than 4:00 PM CST, Monday June 24, 2019 to the attention of: Ross Futch via email at: ross.futch@va.gov