RFI Questions Responses 10 16 2020.pdf

Virtual Computer Platform RFI Questions

1. Whether companies from Outside USA can apply for this?

(like, from India or Canada) – The company must be registered through SAM.

2. Whether we need to come over there for meetings? - Depends

3. Can we perform the tasks (related to RFP) outside USA?

(like, from India or Canada) – To early to make that determination

4. Can we submit the proposals via email? – Yes, proposals can be submitted via email

5. Are you looking for a COTS package or one that is specifically developed for you? COTS

6. Would this be a set aside for a Native American owned company? 100% Small Business

7. Will your organization going to be seeking end-points to work with your telework software solution? It is too early to make that determination.

8. Is this a new requirement? If not, who is the incumbent? This is a new requirement.

9. Has IHS forecasted a budget for this requirement? If so, what is that budget? No budget has been forecast. This effort is exploratory to determine if a viable solution is available.

10. The RFI references the capacity to manage 60 contracts per year. Is IHS looking for the vendor to support contracts management as well as maintaining the Virtual Computer Network?

Yes to contract management but not manage a virtual network.

11. Is IHS requiring a FedRAMP authorized solution? Yes as well as GDPR, PIPEDA,

12. Will IHS require HSDP-12 / PIV in the Virtual Computer Network? Grantee’s/ contractors would not need PIV log in.

13. Will this environment need to support VOIP? no

14. Will this environment need to support TEAMS or any other third-party communication solutions? No.

15. Is there a list of required application that will need to be accessed within this environment?

We want to be able to export to MS Office products.

16. Will IHS require any dictation within this environment? No

17. What operating systems will be required within this environment? Windows 10

18. Any preferred virtual machine software provider of your choice none

19. Any budget constraint you have budget has not been identified.

20. Your estimated time to procure the software this would depend on if a COTS package is available

Virtual Computer Platform RFI Questions

21. Preference of a technology partner for services? Since this will be web based solution the provider would need to be FEDRAMP approved.

22. Does the customer already have end-points? I.e., laptops, desktops, etc yes

23. Is this an on-prem, hybrid, or cloud environment? We are exploring all options

24. Is the customer looking to stand up VMs? No

25. What protocol is the customer considering for connection? PCoIP, Blast Extreme, Remote Desktop Protocol, etc Web-based or remote desktop

26. Does the customer have a Cloud solution provider? AWS, GCP, Azure, etc no but must be FedRamp

27. Is there a need for additional vCPU or VGPU or CPU or GPU support if on Prem? no

28. If on Prem, what does the back end infrastructure look like? Servers, Switches, Storage Arrays? All of the above.

29. What is the purpose? The purpose of the system is move the tribal contracting process into a paperless system. They system will manage the financial, workload, contract and communications related to tribal contracts. Companies seeking to contract with the government will not have access. There are systems in place for the federal procurement processes.

30. What is the negotiation process between the federal government and tribal staff?

a. Renewal notification – letter

b. Financial table preparation

c. Proposal submission – from Tribal contractors / awardees

d. Proposal review

e. Negotiations

f. Award

g. Routine communication

h. Workload tracking for services to tribal programs

i. Audit review / resolution process

j. Contract reconciliation

k. Contract closeout

31. What other challenges does this solution seek to remedy? The purpose of this RFI is to explore options to move the tribal contracting into a paperless process. The processes will essentially remain unchanged. The paper portion of the process is what we are looking to convert. The solution will assist with the conversion from paper to electronic and the management of internal processes and workload tracking.