IP Network Delay System

Request for Information for a Commercially Available IP Network Delay System 70Z04420RFI000002 Please see attachment 1 Disclaimer and Important Notes: This posting is a Request for Information (RFI) from interested vendors and is issued solely for informational and planning purposes. This posting is not a Request for Proposals or a Request for Quotations, and it is not considered a commitment by the Government to award a contract nor is the Government responsible for any costs incurred in furnishing information provided under this RFI. No basis for claim against the Government shall arise as a result from a response to this RFI or Government use of any information provided. Further, the Government is not at this time seeking proposals and will not accept unsolicited proposals. No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response to this RFI. The Government reserves the right to use any information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate, including using technical information provided by respondents in any resultant solicitation. Responses will assist the Government in determining the availability of potential solutions and commercial products in the market. At this time, no solicitation exists; therefore, do Not Request a Copy of the Solicitation. It is the responsibility of the potential offerors to monitor this site for additional information pertaining to this requirement. Requirement: The Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Coast Guard, Command, Control, and Communications Engineering Center (USCG C3CEN) requests information on the availability of commercial IP Network Delay Systems. The United States Coast Guard (USCG) monitors distress radio transmissions generated by vessels within range of unmanned remote sites in Alaska (see Attachment A: Network Delay ). Overlapping site coverage results in the reception of the same radio transmission at multiple remote sites. Figure 1: Network Delay Microwave, landline, or satellite links connect remote sites to central monitoring stations, resulting in broadcast of a near-real time and a delayed version of the radio transmission. The combined audio creates an echo that can make the distress call unintelligible. The Coast Guard’s existing system consists of Quantar and CODAN VHF radios at remote sites connected to a Motorola ASTRO 25 system. Network connections are commercial TDM T1 or DS3 circuits. Network delays are currently managed via a system designed to delay data at the DS0 level. The Coast Guard plans to migrate to IP radios and an all-IP network in the near future, but it cannot do so without an IP Network Delay System. Performance specifications are listed below. Interface Specifications Threshold Requirements Vendor Comment (Fails/Meets/Exceeds) 1.1 The Network Delay System shall operate on an all-IP network. Voice and radio control packets from IP radios will conform to the TIA-102.BAHA-A standard. 1.4 The Network Delay System shall utilize a STIG-hardened operating system. Performance Specifications Threshold Requirements Vendor Comment (Fails/Meets/Exceeds) 1.1.1 The Network Delay System shall provide a round trip delay measurement capability with an accuracy of +/- 1 ms The Network Delay System shall be capable of adding delays from 1-1000ms in 1ms increments. 1.2.1 The Network Delay System shall provide a capability to increase the latency of any connection for either transmit or receive paths. The Network Delay System shall tolerate transmission of unsquelched noise from analog radios without affecting other radio streams. The Network Delay System shall synchronize its internal clock with an external source. User Specifications Threshold Requirements Vendor Comment (Fails/Meets/Exceeds) 2.1 The Network Delay System shall provide user interfaces at central monitoring sites on the network. 2.2 The Network Delay System shall support CAC-based two-factor authentication. The Coast Guard requests information on 3rd party test data, if available, for network delay systems meeting the performance specifications listed above. CAPABILITIES BRIEF If your company is interested in this RFI, please provide a capabilities brief including: company name, address, phone, Point of Contact (POC), email, and phone, DUNS #, NAICS code, size of business, and any other pertinent information. The NAICS Codes for this solicitation are 515111 - Radio Networks, 334118 - Computer Terminal and Other Computer Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing, 423430 – Computer and Computer Peripheral Equipment and Software Merchant Wholesalers, and 541519 – Other Computer Related Services. Contractors doing business with the Government are required to register in the System for Award Management (SAM) database before they can be awarded a contract. A template containing the information for registration can be found at https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/ ADDITIONAL SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION Interested parties are encouraged to submit a response which supports the company's claim that it presently has the products that provide the technology, performance, functionality and form fit required to satisfy the requirements or submit a response which identifies areas in the system requirements that are technologically unachievable. The Coast Guard's requirement may be refined based on knowledge gained from RFI submissions. Specifically, any interested parties are requested to provide the following information: 1. Positive statement of your interest in this procurement. 2. Description of product that will fulfill this requirement. What type of products do you offer that might fill this requirement? (Describe system capabilities & performance, environmental specifications, physical dimensions, power requirements, and remote communications capabilities.) 3. Do you offer a commercial product that meets the requirement as stated? (Is this item under a current GSA Schedule or do you currently have a contract for this product/service with any other Federal Agency?) 4. Do you offer a commercial product that could be modified to meet this requirement? 5. Do you offer quantity or other discounts to your customers? 6. What are your warranty terms, if any? What is your standard warranty practice? Can you offer an innovative warranty approach that would cover the lag time from delivery to actual installation of the components? 7. Provide information for any additional charges for special packing and packaging and marking. 8. Are the items/services available on a commercial price list? If so, please provide the applicable price list(s). 9. What is your average delivery lead-time for this type of product? 10. Do you provide operation and maintenance manuals? 11. Provide a list of any proprietary data/components or embedded components for this product or data associated with this item. 12. Existing technical documentation and brochures are welcome as attachments, as well as product catalogs and price lists. 13. Provide information on prior Government and commercial purchases of the same type (pricing, performance, and customer satisfaction data). 14. What is your commercial practice for Technical Support? Comments/questions/concerns are encouraged and should be sent in writing to the Contract Specialist, Katherine Kearney at [email protected]. Upon receiving feedback, the Coast Guard will assess all input and its impact on the development of the final specifications. Responses must be no longer, than fifteen pages in length. Technical documentation and brochures, if included, do not count in the fifteen-page maximum. Submit your response by 2:00 PM EST on December 16, 2019 to [email protected].