THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes; it does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP. Furthermore, those who respond to this RFI should not anticipate feedback with regard to its submission; other than acknowledgment of receipt – IF a request for an acknowledgement is requested by the submitter. This RFI does not commit the Government to contract for any supply or service. DHS is not at this time seeking proposals. Responders are advised that the U.S. Government will not pay any cost incurred in response to this RFI. All costs associated with responding to this RFI will be solely at the interested party’s expense. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future RFP. The information provided in this RFI is subject to change and is not binding on the Government. All submissions become the property of the Federal Government and will not be returned. 1.0 DESCRIPTION For over 20 years, GSA has offered “full service” contracts delivering telecommunication services such as Voice, Data and Internet to government agencies on a variety of contracts to include Networx, Washington Interagency Telecommunication System 3 (WITS3) and Local Service Agreements (LSAs). These contracts provide a wide variety of local and long-distance communication services to hundreds of USCG locations, both CONUS and OCONUS. In May 2023, these contracts will expire, and GSA has announced the agency will no longer provide a full-service offering. Government agencies, to include USCG, are required to find adequate replacement of these expiring contracts and transition all services to new contracts and carriers by the deadline of May 2023. In addition, USCG is consolidating all non-GSA voice services acquired from Local Exchange Carrier’s (LECs) and transitioning them under the same contract award. The vendor awarded a contract for this effort would manage and support local telecommunication services critical to the support and operational missions of the USCG. Local Telecommunication Services are those services provided by Local Exchange Carriers (LECs), GSA and the like. GSA’s full-service contracts and LECs deliver local voice, data, PBX, CENTREX, video conferencing, Internet, and other telecommunications services to every USCG Unit at both CONUS & OCONUS locations and consists of over 60,000 circuits & services. Services are provided to USCG locations within GSA-owned properties (Federal Bldgs), USCG owned and leased properties and/or properties controlled or owned by other government agencies (Navy, Air Force, etc). USCG requires “like-for-like” replacement or comparable transformation of services at all its locations in addition to ordering, provisioning, billing, inventory management, 24/7 customer service support for life-cycle management and a fully functional and robust management portal. The contractor shall be required to provide services in all service areas such as engineering, provisioning, implementation, documenting, and supporting all local USCG telecommunications services at all locations. The contractor shall supply services that support USCG technical missions such as but not limited to business processes, organizational strategy consulting, technical project management, coordinating and facilitating technical requirements, and analysis of telecommunications billing information. 1.1 PURPOSE OF THIS RFI The USCG is seeking information from potential service providers that can provide the capabilities listed below: Provide voice and data service capabilities currently supplied by GSA Networx, WITS & Regional contracts as well as services received directly from Local Exchange Carriers. See Section 2.1 below for summary list of services and USCG Inventory (attached) Primary goal is to transition services “like-for-like” (~95% expectation) Secondary, alternative plan is to transform to new technology should like-for-like not be an option in some locations (~5% expectation) Provide ordering, billing, provisioning, management, trouble reporting, incident response, oversight and full life-cycle management support (see Section 2.2) for services delivered to USCG. Provide robust web-based Business Operation System or Management portal which allows the capability of USCG personnel to view, order and manage services within vendor ordering, billing and inventory systems. Incident response and troubleshooting support procedures, processes & capabilities. 2.0 REQUIRED CAPABILITIES 2.1 Voice Services 2.1.1 Legacy analog and digital voice services: • Analog/Digital Voice Services • Circuit Switch Data Services (CSDS) • Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) • Long Distance Primary Interexchange (or IntraLata) Carrier (LD PIC) service • CENTREX Services • Toll Free Service (TFS) • Direct-Inward-Dial (DID) • Internet Protocol Voice Service (IPVS) • Circuit Switched Voice Service (CSVS) 2.1.2 Audio Conferencing Services (ACS) Audio Conferencing Service (ACS) enables CG Units/Commands to engage in multipoint audio conference calls. 2.1.3 Video Conferencing Service (VCS) Video Conferencing Services (VCS) enables two or more geographically dispersed CG Units/Commands to engage in multipoint video conference calls. This is a ‘bridging’ service only and should not be confused with video conferencing equipment or circuits. 2.1.4 Internet Protocol Service/Commercial Internet Internet Services provide connectivity to the Internet via “Dirty Internet” connections at various bandwidths and speeds. WIFI Networks broaden the reach of an Internet connection so they are considered an extension of an Internet connection and in larger installations, in a campus environment, will require vendor management & support. 2.1.5 Private Branch Exchange (PBX) Services A private branch exchange (PBX) is a telephone exchange or switching system that serves a private organization and performs concentration of central office lines or trunks and provides intercommunication between a large number of telephone stations in the organization. GSA currently provides PBX services to some USCG locations that will need equivalent or alternative replacement. 2.1.6 Private Line Service (PLS) Point-to-Point or Point-to-Multipoint Private Line Service provides dedicated, reliable full-duplex bandwidth for customer-specific data networks and mission critical applications. This service’s wide range of line speeds and reliability options allow customers to meet an array of diverse requirements, including various voice, data, video, and multimedia communications. 2.1.7 Contact Center Service (CCS) Contact Center Service enables a business division within an organization to manage customer interactions. Contact centers use various types of advanced technology to help resolve customer issues quickly, to track customer engagements, and to capture interaction and performance data. A contact center is a central point from which all customer interactions across various channels are managed. Their primary purpose is to provide customers with efficient and effective technical support, customer service and assistance. 2.1.8 Dark Fiber Service (DFS) Dark Fiber (DFS) is acquired as a facility and allows an agency the unconditional right to use a fiber route, which provides capacity such as a fiber pair in a fiber-optic cable or the entire fiber-optic cable. Agencies which acquire dark fiber may either provide their own optical electronics equipment or lease it from the contractor. Agencies which prefer not to design, implement, and manage their own optical networks can use Managed Network Services to design, implement, and manage optical networks to meet t unique mission requirements. 2.1.9 Managed Service Under the MNS offering, the contractor provides overall management of a USCG network infrastructure, including real-time proactive network monitoring, troubleshooting and service restoration. The contractor is the USCG’s single point of accountability for all networks managed under this service, including operations, maintenance, and administration activities. 2.1.10 Access Arrangements (AA) Access Arrangements (AAs) connect the service delivery point (SDP) at the agency location to a point of presence (POP) on an external network. The range of line speeds and reliability options shall allow the agency to satisfy diverse needs to access various networks. 2.1.11 Service-Related Equipment (SRE) When necessary, SRE is required to provision or activate a service. Various networking and security service-related equipment such as Switches, Routers, PBXs, Telephones, Servers, Security Appliances, Firewalls, Conferencing-Related Equipment, Microwave Systems, Free-space Optics Systems, Surveillance Systems, Sensors, Radio-related Equipment, VSATs, and Wireless Devices may be used to fulfill requirements. 2.1.12 Service-Related Labor (SRL) Service-Related Labor (SRL) is incidental to the services being implemented or supported. Labor for construction, alteration, and repair (if applicable) is only in scope as necessary to offer a complete telecommunications solution if it is integral to and necessary for the requirement being filled. 2.1.13 Cable and Wiring Service (CWS) Cable and Wiring Service (CWS) will be used to support a wide range of cable and wiring requirements to enable the USCG to meet mission critical responsibilities. Structured cabling installations typically include: entrance facilities; vertical and horizontal backbone pathways; vertical and horizontal backbone cables; horizontal pathways; horizontal cables; work area outlets; equipment rooms; telecommunications closets; and cross-connect facilities. CWS consists of contractor-provided connectivity using the appropriate cabling and wiring, related trenching, ducting, grounding, as well as lightning protection systems in accordance with USCG and appropriate standards. The site preparation work done by the contractor under this contract must conform to applicable federal, regional, and local codes, and must conform to accepted industry installation and construction practices. 2.2 LVS Support 2.2.1 Facilitator Functions – Project Manager The Contractor shall provide personnel to support the USCG’s initial transition from current telecoms contract and agreements to Contractor managed services. The Contractor shall guide the USCG through the initial transition of the entirety of the LVS transition to include porting of numbers, transition of services & circuits, SRE and cabling needs, and transformation to new technologies should it fit the situation. 2.2.2 Subject Matter Experts- The contractor shall provide subject matter experts and additional personnel to assist in the transition phase of the LVS transition. This team will be required to report any communication cable construction needs, ILEC central office coordination, and on premises equipment and service issues as they arise. The USCG desires the experts to have experience in all local voice services as mentioned in this RFI. 2.2.3 Life-Cycle Support- The contractor shall provide a PMO support team that will work with USCG to manage the full life cycle of all services transitioned to the contract and all new services ordered under the contract. At a minimum, support shall include ordering, provisioning, billing, inventory, and incident response. 3.0 RFI RESPONSE INSTRUCTIONS Each response shall: Describe ability to provide capabilities outlined in Section 2.0 above. This includes providing information about the company's qualifications and experience, from the company’s current capabilities to past performance. Explain pricing models & service arrangements available to the USCG for these services, as well as contract vehicles available to the USCG for procuring these services. Explain the duration necessary to transition USCG services off expiring GSA Networx, WITS & Regional contracts. Identify risks, assumptions and advise on where USCG can expedite the transition. Review current draft of USCG Local Voice Services (LVS) PWS (attached) and provide feedback on content and ability to meet requirements of identified. Only electronic submissions will be accepted. Electronic files larger than 5 MB shall be broken down into multiple files with no one file exceeding 5 MB. Each electronic submission shall include: The RFI number in the subject line. The maximum number of pages per submission shall be limited to 15 pages. Times New Roman, 12 inch Font and 1 inch margins. The file number and total files being submitted (e.g., File 1 of 4, File 2 of 4, etc.) in the subject line, if submission includes more than one electronic email. A Point of Contact (POC), phone number and email address of the person (in the body of the email) to be contacted regarding any correspondence between the Government and the Vendor. The POC shall be capable of addressing questions or issues associated with the submission and content of the RFI. Business Size applicable to the NAICS code: 517311. A brief summary of email content, vendor name and the firm’s mailing address. Interested parties having the expertise and capabilities are invited to submit detailed information discussing their capabilities to Mr. Don Lee via email at
[email protected], and Mr. Michael McFadden via email at
[email protected] by 11:00 PM Eastern Standard Time (EST) on September 02, 2021 . Proprietary information, if any, should be minimized and MUST BE CLEARLY MARKED. To aid USCG, please segregate proprietary information. Please be advised that all submissions become the property of the Federal Government, and will not be returned. Responses to this RFI may be reviewed by Government technical experts drawn from staff within DHS and other Federal agencies. The Government may use selected support contractor personnel to assist in the review. These support contractors will be bound by appropriate non-disclosure agreements to protect proprietary and source selection information. This action will be governed under DHS law enforcement sensitive guidelines.