Attachment A - Scope and Specifications - Pages 1-59.pdf

Attachment A – Scope and Specifications

ITB Ethernet Connections Solicitation # 3000022827

1.0 SCOPE

1.1 DESCRIPTION OF EQUIPMENT, SYSTEM, OR SERVICE TO BE PROVIDED

By Statute (La. R.S. 39:141) the State of Louisiana, Office of Technology Services (OTS) shall act as the sole centralized customer for the acquisition, billing and record keeping of all telecommunications systems or telecommunications services provided to the Executive Branch of Louisiana State government which includes all executive departments, certain elected officials, boards and commissions (http://www.doa.la.gov/pages/default.aspx). As such, OTS is soliciting bid responses to provide point-to-point Layer 2 Ethernet data communications circuits between specific State agencies.

The State intends to make one, two, three, or four awards on a per route basis.

1.2 NON-EXCLUSIVE CONTRACT

Any resulting Contract shall be non-exclusive and shall not in any way preclude OTS from entering into similar contracts and/or arrangements with other vendors or from acquiring similar, equal or like goods and/or services from other entities or sources.

1.3 GUARANTEE OF QUANTITIES OR CONTRACT USE

Quantities that may be used in this bid document are for informational purposes only. The State does not guarantee that these quantities shall be purchased from the Contract.

2.0 BID RESPONSE PREPARATION/SUBMITTAL INSTRUCTIONS

2.1 DEFINITIONS

Bid Document – for the purposes of this document, is defined as the document used to solicit bids and means an Invitation to Bid (ITB).

Bid Response – for purposes of this document, is defined as the document submitted by a vendor in response to an ITB.

Bidder – for purposes of this document, is defined as a person who submits a bid in response to an ITB.

Contract – A legal binding agreement between the State and the awarded Bidder(s).

Contractor – means any person having a Contract with a governmental body.

ITB – Invitation to Bid.

May/Can – denotes the advisory or permissible action.

OSP – means the Office of State Procurement.

OTS – means the Office of Technology Services.

Solicitation # 3000022827

OTS Project Manager – may mean an employee of OTS, or an OTS-designated representative; i.e., an employee of another state agency other than OTS who has been assigned as project manager to a specific project.

Shall/Will/Must – denotes a mandatory requirement.

Should – denotes a desirable action.

State – the State of Louisiana.

2.2 CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Release Bids and Blackout Period Begins: June 5, 2024 Deadline to Receive Written Inquiries: June 20, 2024 ______________ Deadline to Answer Written Inquiries: July 11, 2024_______________ Bid Opening Date and Time July 25, 2024 @ 10:00 AM Central Time (Bid Submission Deadline):

NOTE: The State of Louisiana reserves the right to revise this schedule. Revisions before the Bid Submission Deadline, if any, will be formalized by the issuance of an addendum to this bid document. Revision after the Bid Submission Deadline, if any, will be by written notification to the eligible Bidders.

2.3 ITB INQUIRIES

The State shall not and cannot permit an open-ended inquiry period, as this creates an unwarranted delay in the procurement cycle and operations of our agency customers. The State reasonably expects and requires responsible and interested Bidders to conduct their in-depth bid review and submit inquiries in a timely manner.

An inquiry period is hereby firmly set for all interested Bidders to perform a detailed review of the bid documents and to submit any written inquiries relative thereto. Without exception, all inquiries MUST be submitted in writing by an authorized representative of the Bidder, clearly cross-referenced to the relevant solicitation section. All inquiries must be received by the Inquiry Deadline date set forth in Section 2.2 Calendar of Events of this ITB. Only those inquiries received by the established deadline shall be considered by the State.

Inquiries received after the established deadline shall not be considered.

Inquiries concerning this solicitation shall be delivered to the State’s contact person, Krystal Frank, for this solicitation by mail, express courier, e-mail, or hand:

Office of State Procurement Attention: Krystal Frank 1201 North Third St.

Claiborne Bldg., Suite 2-160 Baton Rouge, LA 70802

E-Mail: Krystal.Frank@la.gov Phone: (225) 342-4672

Only the person identified above or their designee has the authority to officially respond to the Bidder’s questions on behalf of the State, including during the Blackout Period. Any communications from any other individuals are prohibited and not binding to the State.

A copy of all such inquiries should also be delivered to:

Office of Technology Services Attention: Tristan Babin P.O. Box 94280 Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9280

E-Mail: Tristan.Babin2@la.gov

An addendum will be issued and posted at the Office of State Procurement LaPAC website, to address all inquiries received and any other changes or clarifications to the solicitation.

Thereafter, all ITB documents, including but not limited to the specifications, terms, conditions, plans, etc., will stand as written and/or amended by any addendum. No negotiations, decisions, or actions shall be executed by any Bidder as a result of any oral discussions with any State employee or State consultant. It is the Bidder’s responsibility to check the LaPAC website frequently for any possible addenda that may be issued. The Office of State Procurement is not responsible for a Bidder’s failure to download any addenda documents required to complete an Invitation to Bid.

Any person aggrieved in connection with the solicitation or the specifications contained therein, has the right to protest in accordance with La. R.S. 39:1671. Such protest shall be made in writing to the Director of State Procurement at least two (2) days prior to the deadline for submitting bids.

NOTE: LaPAC is the State’s online electronic bid posting and notification system resident on State Procurement’s website https://www.doa.la.gov/doa/osp/. In that LaPAC provides an immediate e-mail notification to subscribing Bidders that a solicitation and any subsequent addenda have been let and posted, notice and receipt thereof is considered formally given as of their respective dates of posting.

To receive email notification Bidders must register in the LaGov portal. Registration is intuitive at the following link:

https://lagoverpvendor.doa.louisiana.gov/irj/portal/anonymous?guest_user=self_reg

Help scripts are available on the Office of State Procurement’s website under Vendor resources at the following link:

https://www.doa.la.gov/doa/osp/vendor-resources/

2.4 BLACKOUT PERIOD

The Blackout Period is a specified period of time during a competitive sealed procurement process in which any Proposer, Bidder or their Agent or Representative is prohibited from communicating with any State employee or Contractor of the State involved in any step in the procurement process about the affected procurement. The Blackout Period applies not only to State employees, but also to any Contractor of the State. “Involvement” in the procurement process includes but may not be limited to project management, design, development, implementation, procurement management, development of specifications, and evaluation of proposals for a particular procurement. All solicitations for competitive sealed procurements will identify a designated contact person, as per Section 2.3 of this ITB. All communications to and from potential proposers, Bidders, vendors and/or their representatives during the Blackout Period must be in accordance with this solicitation’s defined method of communication with the designated contact person. The Blackout Period will begin upon posting of the solicitation. The Blackout Period will end when the Contract is awarded.

In those instances in which a prospective Bidder is also an incumbent Contractor, the State and the incumbent Contractor may contact each other with respect to the existing Contract only. Under no circumstances may the State and the incumbent Contractor and/or its representative(s) discuss the blacked-out procurement.

Any Bidder, Proposer, or State Contractor who violates the Blackout Period may be liable to the State in damages and/or subject to any other remedy allowed by law. Further, failure to comply with these requirements may result in the proposal’s disqualification.

Any costs associated with cancellation or termination will be the responsibility of the proposer or Bidder.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Blackout Period shall not apply to:

1. A protest to a solicitation submitted pursuant to La. R.S. 39:1671;

2. Duly noticed site visits and/or conferences for Bidders or Proposers;

3. Oral presentations during the evaluation process; or

4. Communications regarding a particular solicitation between any person and staff of the procuring agency provided the communication is limited strictly to matters of procedure. Procedural matters include deadlines for decisions or submission of proposals and the proper means of communicating regarding the procurement, but shall not include any substantive matter related to the particular procurement or requirements of the ITB.

2.5 THIS SECTION INTENTIONALLY BLANK

2.6 PRE-BID SITE INSPECTION

It is recommended that all Bidders submitting a bid response perform a pre-bid site inspection. The site visit is expressly intended to provide Bidders with the opportunity to determine the degree of difficulty involved with completing the project. To schedule an inspection, the Bidder may contact Clifton Riley at telephone number (225) 219-4862.

2.7 NUMBER OF COPIES SUBMITTED

For online submission:

Each Bidder shall submit one signed, searchable original response in .pdf format. The signed, searchable original technical response should be provided as one file and the financial response should be submitted as a separate file.

For hard copy submission:

Each Bidder shall submit:

One signed original response.

One “searchable” electronic copy on two separate USB flash drives. The searchable electronic copy should be provided as one file.

The Bidder should submit the following:

Three additional copies of the bid response.

2.8 DELIVERY OF BID RESPONSES

This bid document is available in electronic form at the Office of State Procurement’s LaPAC website: https://wwwcfprd.doa.louisiana.gov/osp/lapac/pubMain.cfm

It is available in PDF format or in printed form by submitting a written request to the ITB Coordinator with the Office of State Procurement. Contact information for this ITB Coordinator is provided in Section 2.3 of this ITB. This document is NOT available electronically in WORD format.

It is the Bidder’s responsibility to check the Office of State Procurement LaPAC website frequently for any possible addenda that may be issued. The Office of State Procurement is not responsible for a Bidder’s failure to download any addenda documents required to submit a response to this ITB.

Bidders are hereby advised that the Office of State Procurement (OSP) must receive bid responses at its physical location by the date and time specified in Section 2.2 Calendar of Events of this ITB.

Bid responses may be mailed or delivered by hand or courier service to the Office of State Procurement’s physical location as follows:

1201 North Third Street Claiborne Building, Suite 2-160

Important - - Clearly mark outside of envelope, box or package with the following information and format:

Bid Document Name: Ethernet Connections

File Number: 92949 , Solicitation Number: 3000022827

Bid Opening Date and Time: July 25, 2024 @ 10:00 AM Central Time

Bidders should be aware of security requirements for the Claiborne building and allow time to be photographed and presented with a temporary identification badge.

The Bidder is solely responsible for ensuring that its courier service provider makes inside deliveries to the Office of State Procurement physical location. The Office of State Procurement is not responsible for any delays caused by the Bidder’s chosen means of bid delivery. The Bidder is solely responsible for the timely delivery of its bid response. Failure to meet the bid opening date and time shall result in rejection of the bid response.

OR

Bid responses may be submitted online by accessing the link on page one of the Invitation to Bid.

NOTE: Bidders who choose to respond to this ITB online via the vendor portal are encouraged to not submit a written bid response as well.

Bidders are hereby advised that due to the nature of the internet, the State of Louisiana cannot guarantee that access to the LaGov or LaPAC websites will be uninterrupted or that e-mails or other electronic transmissions will be sent to you or received by us. The Office of State Procurement is not responsible for any delays caused by the Bidder’s choice to submit their bid response online. The Bidder is solely responsible for the timely delivery of its bid response. Failure to meet the bid opening date and time shall result in rejection of the bid response.

All bid responses shall be received by the Office of State Procurement no later than the date and time shown in Section 2.2, Calendar of Events.

NOTE: FAX, EMAIL OR ANY OTHER ELECTRONIC SUBMISSIONS ARE NOT

ACCEPTABLE.

2.9 JOINT BID RESPONSES

A joint bid response (two or more Bidders quoting jointly on one bid response) may be submitted, and each participating Bidder shall sign the joint bid response. If the Contract is awarded to joint Bidders, there shall be one Contract issued to the joint Bidders. Each joint Contractor shall agree to take necessary action to ensure that all the obligations of the Contract are met. Specifically, in the event the State determines that one or more of the joint Contractors has not met the obligations under the Contract, the other joint Contractor shall take necessary actions to ensure that the obligations of the Contract are met at no additional cost to the State and with the understanding that if a replacement Contractor is utilized, the replacement Contractor shall comply with all terms and conditions of the bid document and Contract. Further, in the event the State requires a performance guarantee, the joint Bidders shall submit a single performance guarantee issued in the names of all joint Bidders. In the event any of the joint Contractors do not meet the performance requirements, the State shall have the option to make claim up to the limit of the guarantee. The joint Contractors shall also designate, in writing, one Contractor that shall function as the single point of contact concerning all matters relating to the Contract. The State assumes no responsibility or obligation for the division of orders or purchases among the joint Contractors. If submitting a joint bid response, the Bidder should complete the form in Section 7.2.1 (Joint Bid Response).

2.10 BID OPENING

Any vendor who would like to view the opening of this Bid can access the following link, at the date and time of this Bid opening.

https://doa-ospla.zoom.us/j/2697438343

This link will provide you with live audio and video access to this Bid opening. The link will be live at 9:45 AM (Central Time) on the date of Bid opening.

NOTE: ONLY THE NAMES OF THE BIDDERS SUBMITTING BID RESPONSES SHALL

BE IDENTIFIED ALOUD. NO OTHER INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THE BID

RESPONSE SHALL BE RELEASED OR DISCLOSED.

2.11 SIGNATURE AUTHORITY

The Bidder should indicate in Section 7.2.2 (Signature Authority) which of the following applies to the signer of this bid. Evidence of signature authority shall be provided upon the State’s request.

1. The signer of the bid is either a corporate officer who is listed on the most current annual report on file with the Secretary of State or a member of a partnership or partnership in commendam as reflected in the most current partnership records on file with the Secretary of State. A copy of the annual report or partnership record must be submitted to the Office of State Procurement before Contract award.

2. The signer of the bid is a representative of the Bidder authorized to submit the bid as evidenced by documents such as corporate resolution, certification as to corporate principal, etc. If this applies a copy of the resolution, certification, or other supportive documents should be attached to Section 7.2.2 (Signature Authority).

3. The Bidder has filed with the Secretary of State an affidavit or resolution or other acknowledged/authentic document indicating that the signer is authorized to submit bids for public contracts. A copy of the applicable document must be submitted to the Office of State Procurement before Contract award.

4. The signer of the bid has been designated by the Bidder as authorized to submit bids on the Bidder’s vendor registration on file with the Office of State Procurement.

2.12 BID RESPONSE VALIDITY

All bid responses shall be considered valid for acceptance until such time an award is made, unless the Bidder provides for a different time period within their bid response. However, the State reserves the right to reject a bid response if the Bidder’s acceptance period is unacceptable and the Bidder is unwilling to extend the validity of its bid response.

2.13 PRIME CONTRACTOR RESPONSIBILITIES

The selected Contractor shall be required to assume responsibility for all items and services offered in their bid response whether or not it produces or provides them. The State shall consider the selected Contractor to be the sole point of contact with regard to contractual matters, including payment of any and all charges resulting from the Contract.

2.14 USE OF SUBCONTRACTORS

Each Contractor shall serve as the single Prime Contractor for all work performed pursuant to their contract. The Prime Contractor shall be responsible for all deliverables referenced in this ITB. This general requirement notwithstanding, Bidders may enter into subcontractor arrangements. Bidders may submit a bid in response to this ITB, which identifies subcontract(s) with others, provided that the Prime Contractor acknowledges total responsibility for the entire Contract.

If it becomes necessary for the Prime Contractor to use subcontractors, the State urges the Prime Contractor to use Louisiana vendors, including small and emerging businesses, a small entrepreneurship or a veteran or service-connected disabled veteran-owned small entrepreneurship, if practical. In all events any subcontractor used by the prime contractor should be identified to the State Project Manager.

Information required of the Prime Contractor under the terms of this ITB, is also required for each subcontractor and the subcontractors must agree to be bound by the terms of the Contract (See Section 3.1.1 Bidder Qualifications). The Prime Contractor shall assume total responsibility for compliance.

3.0 ITB REQUIREMENTS

3.1 BIDDER REQUIREMENTS

A. COMPLIANCE WITH CIVIL RIGHTS LAWS

By submitting and signing this solicitation, the Bidder agrees to abide by the requirements of the following as applicable: Title VI and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended by the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972, Federal Executive Order 11246, the Federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, the Vietnam Era Veteran’s Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974, Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, the Fair Housing Act of 1968, as amended, and Bidder agrees to abide by the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Bidder agrees not to discriminate in its employment practices, and shall render services under any Contract entered into as a result of this solicitation, without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, veteran status, political affiliation, disabilities, or age in any matter relating to employment. Any act of discrimination committed by Bidder, or failure to comply with these statutory obligations when applicable, shall be grounds for termination of any Contract entered into as a result of this solicitation.

B. BIDDER’S CERTIFICATION OF NO FEDERAL SUSPENSION OR DEBARMENT

By signing and submitting any bid for $25,000 or more, the Bidder certifies that their company, any subcontractors, or principals are not suspended or debarred by the General Services Administration (GSA) in accordance with the requirements in OMB Circular A-133 and is not on the List of Parties Excluded from Federal Procurement or Nonprocurement Programs promulgated in accordance with E.O.s 12549 and 12689, “Debarment and Suspension” as set forth in 24 CFR part 24.

B.1 CONTINUING OBLIGATION

If the Bidder’s bid response results in a Contract, the Contractor has a continuing obligation to disclose any suspensions or debarment by any government entity, including but not limited to the General Services Administration (GSA). Failure to disclose may constitute grounds for suspension and/or termination of the Contract and debarment from future contracts.

A list of parties who have been suspended or debarred can be viewed via the internet at https://www.sam.gov

C. RIGHT TO PROHIBIT AWARDS OR PROCUREMENT

Issuance of this ITB in no way constitutes a commitment by the State to award a Contract.

The State reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids submitted or to cancel this ITB if it is in the best interest of the State to do so. Further, the State reserves the right to cancel or decline to enter into a Contract with the successful Bidder at any time after the award is made and before the Contract receives final approval from the Division of Administration, Office of State Procurement.

In accordance with the provisions of La. R.S. 39:2192, in awarding contracts after August 15, 2010, any public entity is authorized to reject a bid from, or not award the Contract to, a business in which any individual with an ownership interest of five percent (5%) or more, has been convicted of, or has entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to any state felony or equivalent federal felony crime committed in the solicitation or execution of a contract or bid awarded under the laws governing public contracts under the provisions of Chapter 10 of Title 38 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes of 1950 or the Louisiana Procurement Code under the provisions of Chapter 17 of Title 39.

In accordance with the Louisiana law, all corporations (see La. R.S. 12:262.1) and limited liability companies (see La. R.S. 12:1308.2) must be registered and in good standing with the Louisiana Secretary of State in order to hold a purchase order and/or a contract with the State.

3.1.1 BIDDER QUALIFICATIONS

The Bidder shall have been in the business of providing Ethernet Services for a minimum of five years. The Contractor’s staff or subcontractor’s staff shall be fully qualified to provide the services necessary for proper performance of the contract.

The Bidder shall provide with their response relevant information concerning their qualifications to perform work under the contract including proof of project of similar size, names, and contact information of the companies and the number of years contracted with the companies. The State will use the information received to determine Bidder qualifications. The Bidder should provide the required documentation in Section 7.2.3 (Bidder Qualifications).

3.2 TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

3.2.1 ROUTES – GROUP ONE

The State is soliciting responses to provide dedicated full-duplex symmetrical point-to-point Ethernet service for the following routes at the following speeds:

Bidder must provide the required speeds listed below for any route bid.

The Bidder may offer other speeds with costs in addition to those listed below for any route bid.

Required Speeds:

10 Mbps, 100 Mbps, 500 Mbps, 1 Gbps.

The Bidder may choose to bid on any of the routes listed below.

The routes are as follows:

1. LSUHSC-Shreveport, 1501 Kings Hwy, Room G-112, Shreveport, LA 71103 TO

Alexandria State Office Building, 900 Murray Street, Alexandria, LA 71301

2. LSUHSC-Shreveport, 1501 Kings Hwy, Room G-112, Shreveport, LA 71103 TO McNeese State University, 700 E. McNeese St., Lake Charles, LA 70607

3. Department of Public Safety, 8001 Independence Blvd., Baton Rouge, LA 70806 TO Lallie Kemp Medical Center, 52579 Highway 51 South, Independence, LA 70443

4. Department of Public Safety, 8001 Independence Blvd., Baton Rouge, LA 70806 TO Center For Advanced Learning and Simulation, 2021 Perdido St., New Orleans, LA 70112

5. State of Louisiana Information Services Building, 1800 North 3rd Street, Baton Rouge, LA 70802 TO Geographic Solutions, 2850 Interstate Dr., Lakeland, FL 33805

6. Department of Public Safety Data Processing Center, 8001 Independence Blvd., Baton Rouge, LA 70806 TO Geographic Solutions, 2850 Interstate Dr., Lakeland, FL 33805

7. LSUHSC Resource Building, 433 Bolivar St., Room 719, New Orleans, LA 70112 TO Dartpoint BTR1 Data Center, 7127 Florida Blvd, Baton Rouge, LA 70806

8. LSUHSC Resource Building, 433 Bolivar St., Room 719, New Orleans, LA 70112 TO Dartpoint Data Center BTR2, 7139 Florida Blvd, Baton Rouge, LA 70806

9. LSUHSC Resource Building, 433 Bolivar St., Room 719, New Orleans, LA 70112 TO LSUHSC-Shreveport, 1501 Kings Hwy, Room G-112, Shreveport, LA 71103

3.2.1.1 PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS GROUP ONE ROUTES

The Bidder should include in their bid a statement of their ability to meet the required performance parameters on the form located in Section 7.1.7 Performance Parameters – Routes – Group One.

As a minimum, the service shall meet the following performance parameters:

Availability of 99.99% or greater Packet loss of 0.1% or less Latency of 30 ms or less RTT Jitter of 20 ms or less Support Minimum Ethernet frame size of 9000 bytes unfragmented.

3.2.2 ROUTES – GROUP TWO

Ethernet service for the following routes at the following speeds:

Bidder must provide the required speeds listed below for any route bid.

The Bidder may offer other speeds with costs in addition to those listed below for any route bid.

Required speeds:

500 Mbps, 1 Gbps, 5 Gbps, 10Gbps.

The routes are as follows:

1. Information Services Building, 1800 N 3rd St., Baton Rouge, LA 70802 TO Dartpoint

Data Center, 601 Milam St., Shreveport, LA 71101

2. Information Services Building, 1800 N 3rd St., Baton Rouge, LA 70802 TO LSUHSC Resource Building, 433 Bolivar St., Room 719, New Orleans, LA 70112

3. Information Services Building, 1800 N 3rd St., Baton Rouge, LA 70802 TO University of Louisiana at Lafayette (ULL), Stephens Hall, 201 St Mary St., Room 316, Lafayette, LA 70503

4. Department of Public Safety, 8001 Independence Blvd., Baton Rouge, LA 70802 TO Dartpoint Data Center, 601 Milam St., Shreveport, LA 71101

5. Department of Public Safety, 8001 Independence Blvd., Baton Rouge, LA 70802 TO LSUHSC Resource Building, 433 Bolivar St., Room 719, New Orleans, LA 70112

6. Department of Public Safety, 8001 Independence Blvd., Baton Rouge, LA 70802 TO University of Louisiana Lafayette (ULL), Stephens Hall, 201 St Mary St., Room 316, Lafayette, LA 70503

7. Dartpoint Data Center, 601 Milam St., Shreveport, LA 71101 TO LSUHSC Resource Bldg., 433 Bolivar St., Room 719, New Orleans, LA 70112

8. Dartpoint Data Center, 601 Milam St., Shreveport, LA 71101 TO University of Louisiana at Lafayette (ULL), Stephens Hall, 201 St Mary St., Room 316, Lafayette, LA 70503

9. University of Louisiana Lafayette (ULL), Stephens Hall, 201 St Mary St., Room 316, Lafayette, LA 70503 TO LSUHSC Resource Building, 433 Bolivar St., Room 719, New Orleans, LA 70112

3.2.2.1 PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS GROUP TWO ROUTES

performance parameters on the form located in Section 7.1.8 Performance Parameters – Routes – Group Two.

As a minimum, the service shall meet the following performance parameters:

Availability of 99.99% or greater Packet loss of 0.1% or less Latency of 15 ms or less RTT Jitter of 10 ms or less Support Minimum Ethernet frame size of 9000 bytes unfragmented.

3.2.3 ROUTES – GROUP THREE

Ethernet service for the following routes at the following suggested speeds:

The Bidder may bid the speeds listed below, and/or other speeds with costs that they are able to provide for each route bid.

Suggested speeds:

100 Mbps, 250Mbps, 500Mbps, 1Gbps

The routes are as follows:

1. Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) Traffic Management

Center, 10 Veterans Memorial Blvd., New Orleans, LA 70124 TO DOTD CSC, 1821 S.

Alex Plaisance Blvd., Golden Meadow, LA 70357

2. Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) Traffic Management Center, 10 Veterans Memorial Blvd., New Orleans, LA 70124 TO DOTD LA 1 Toll Bridge, 24173 LA 1, Leeville, LA 70357

3.2.3.1 PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS GROUP THREE ROUTES

performance parameters on the form located in Section 7.1.9 Performance Parameters – Routes – Group Three.

As a minimum, the service shall meet the following performance parameters:

Availability of 98.99% or greater Packet loss of 0.2% or less

Latency of 35 ms or less RTT Jitter of 25 ms or less Support Minimum Ethernet frame size of 1500 bytes unfragmented

3.2.4 EQUIPMENT

The Contractor shall provide all equipment necessary to fulfill its contractual obligations.

3.2.5 NETWORK INTERFACE

The Bidder shall provide diverse customer network interface handoff capabilities as required by the State, including, but not necessarily limited to, 1000Base-LX, 1000Base-SX, 100Base-FX, 100Base-TX, 10GBase-SR, and 10GBase-LR.

3.2.6 HELP DESK SERVICES

The Contractor shall provide 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year help desk services including, but not limited to, general technical assistance on customer ordering processing, customer trouble reporting, trouble ticket tracking, and other service related technical support.

All help desk services shall be based within the United States.

3.2.7 NETWORK MONITORING AND REPORTING

The Contractor shall provide 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year monitoring services including, but not limited to, service interruptions and network performances, availability, latency, packet loss, and jitter.

3.2.8 ADDITIONAL PROVISIONING PROCESSES

The Contractor shall provide processes to accommodate moves, service configuration changes, and order expedites which may be used by the State in the utilization of the resultant contract.

3.3 EQUIPMENT/SERVICE PROVISION REQUIREMENTS

3.3.1 DELIVERY

See Section 3.3.2.2, Implementation Plan, for delivery requirements.

3.3.2 IMPLEMENTATION

3.3.2.1 INTERFACE WITH COMMON CARRIER

The Contractor shall be responsible for all arrangements to interconnect the service proposed to the Common Carrier system and provide the customer demarc (UNI) interface.

The Contractor shall coordinate all such arrangements with the OTS Project Manager.

3.3.2.2 IMPLEMENTATION PLAN

Within 30 calendar days of receipt of an OTS approved order, the Contractor shall prepare and submit to the OTS Project Manager for review and approval a service implementation schedule. The schedule shall include a milestone plan to show the orderly progression of events and cutover of the service, i.e., site survey, equipment delivery, installation of cable and equipment, notification to OTS confirming completion date, circuit testing, service cutover, circuit performance, delivery of documentation, and satisfactory service acceptance. The preceding shall be expressed as dates, not as increments of time.

Installation shall not begin until an implementation schedule has been received and approved by the OTS Project Manager. The implementation plan shall show the completion date for the service availability, as agreed to by the Contractor, agency, and the OTS Project Manager. The delivery and service completion dates shall be within the installation interval described in Section 3.3.3.2 from the Contractor’s receipt of the approved order. The Contractor shall work with the agency to verify a successful cutover.

3.3.3 INSTALLATION

MINIMUM SERVICE PERIOD. There shall be a minimum service period of no more than 30 consecutive calendar days. After the minimum service period expires, the State may terminate service at any service location without penalty or further obligation. Termination of service at any location shall not be deemed a cancellation of the Contract and shall not impact service to other subscribing locations.

3.3.3.1 PRE-INSTALLATION MEETING

Upon request by the State, the Contractor shall be required to attend a pre-installation on-site meeting with representatives of the user-agency and OTS before the project commences at no cost to the State.

3.3.3.2 INSTALLATION INTERVAL

The Contractor shall complete the installation within 120 calendar days of receipt of an approved order.

3.3.3.3 SITE RESTORATION

The Contractor shall be responsible for restoring the worksite to its original condition.

3.3.3.4 TEST REQUIREMENTS

The Contractor shall conduct performance test upon installation and service restoration using standard test procedures. The Contractor shall provide test results upon the State’s request.

3.3.4 SERVICE CUTOVER

The Contractor shall notify the agency and the OTS Project Manager when the service is complete and ready for connection of agency equipment. The Contractor shall work with the Agency during the service cutover to validate satisfactory performance.

3.4 CUSTOMER SERVICE

A trouble reporting service shall be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, including nights, weekends, and holidays, via an 8XX number at no cost to the State.

The Contractor shall submit to OTS a trouble reporting procedures list within 20 calendar days after award of Contract. The list shall include, but is not limited to:

Names and telephone numbers for supervisors or managers over helpdesk;

List of information required to properly report trouble including a Contractor specific circuit identifiers/descriptions and where that information may be found.

OTS shall be responsible for reporting all trouble requests to the Contractor. The Contractor shall provide OTS with its trouble reporting and escalation procedures. The escalation report shall contain contact names, phone numbers, and email addresses. The Contractor shall be responsible for notifying OTS of resolutions of trouble reports and for notifying OTS of major failures and providing status reports in intervals as required for the specific problem until the problem is resolved.

Failure on the part of the Contractor to resolve reasonable user complaints and to provide an acceptable grade of service may result in cancellation of the Contract.

3.5 SERVICE LEVEL REQUIREMENTS

The Contractor shall preventatively and proactively maintain, repair, replace, and/or upgrade system components (including parts and labor) at no additional cost to the State to ensure compliance with the service level requirements as detailed in the section for each respective Route Group: Group One, Section 3.2.1.1, Group Two Section 3.2.2.1, Group Three Section 3.2.3.1 (Performance Parameters). Service level requirements shall be based on a 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year timeframe.

The Contractor shall provide notifications for both scheduled and emergency service-impacting maintenance. The notification shall include the reasons, start time, duration time, customer impact, and other pertinent information.

The Contractor shall provide advance notifications 72 hours minimum for scheduled maintenance.

The Contractor shall provide advanced notifications 30 minutes minimum for emergency maintenance.

3.6 SERVICE RESPONSE AND RESTORATION

The Contractor shall provide the contracted service and maintain the service performance levels as required in the document during the term of the Contract. The Contractor shall repair or replace defective parts as necessary to provision for the contracted service. The restored service shall meet all performance requirements as detailed in the section for each respect Route Group: Group One, Section 3.2.1.1, Group Two Section 3.2.2.1, Group Three Section 3.2.3.1 (Performance Parameters).

The Contractor shall notify the State of the outage, the affected facilities, and the projected restoration time and shall honor all required response times and repair times.

The Contractor shall guarantee a problem response time of ½ hour or less from the earliest of the following:

1. The time the system first registers the problem, or

2. The time the State reports the problem.

The Contractor shall respond to the problems by using appropriate procedures and technologies, including but not limited to, remote diagnostics and administration or the dispatch of trained technicians on site.

Service outages that last longer than four hours may incur performance penalties in accordance with Section 6.2.14.2 (Liquidated Damages). The Bidder should describe its service repair and restoration processes, including but not limited to, resources and abilities to respond to system and/or electronics failures, fiber cuts and other service disruptions, service restoration time objectives under different types of service disruptions, service uptime objectives, and relevant past service uptime and restoration performance data.

The Bidder should provide the requested information in Section 7.2.4 (Service Restoration).

3.7 OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY SERVICES (OTS) REQUIREMENTS

The Contractor shall comply, as applicable, with OTS Information Security Policy as described in Appendix 8.2 OTS Information Security Requirements. The Contractor’s platform shall be accessible from the State’s network, via internal connectivity or via virtual private networks.

The Proposer should confirm that it has read and will comply with OTS’ Information Security Policy. The Proposer should use the form in Section 7.2.5 (Security – Office of Technology Services) to affirm its compliance and provide the required information.

4.0 PRICING SPECIFICATIONS

4.1 PRICING SPECIFIC TO THE BID DOCUMENT

4.1.1 ROUTES

The Bidder shall quote one-time installation rate and monthly rate for all speeds for each route it chooses to bid in Groups One and Two. The Bidder should quote one-time installation rate and monthly rate for the speeds listed and/or quote alternative speeds in Group Three. The price shall be inclusive of all costs to extend the circuit to the designated demarcation point.

For each additional speed the Bidder chooses to offer, it shall quote one-time installation rate and monthly rate for each route.

The quotes for additional speeds will not be part of the financial evaluation.

The Bidder should use the forms in Section 7.1.1, Routes – Group One, 7.1.2, Routes – Group Two, and Section 7.1.3, Routes – Group Three.

4.1.2 ADDITIONAL PROVISIONING

The Bidder shall quote one-time rates for moves, service configuration changes, and order expedites to accommodate additional provisioning.

The Bidder should use the forms in Section 7.1.4, Additional Provisioning – Routes – Group One, 7.1.5 Additional Provisioning – Routes – Group Two, and 7.1.6 Additional Provisioning

– Routes – Group Three.

4.1.3 REGULATED CHARGES, TAXES, AND OTHER CHARGES

The State requires a stable and predictable rate structure for the term of the contract. As such, the Bidder’s quoted unit rates for goods and services to be provided shall be inclusive of all service charges, applicable taxes, and FCC regulated charges that it intends to recover.

The State is exempt from paying State and local sales and use taxes.

A copy of OTS’s Certificate of Sales/Use Tax Exemption is included herein as Appendix 8.1 of the ITB.

Examples of taxes the State shall not pay are E911 tax, Property Tax Recovery, State Universal Service Fund, State and Local Sales and Use Tax, Intrastate Fee, Utility Usage Tax.

The State requires that the cost of all regulated charges that the Bidder intends to recover be included in the unit rates bid. As such, the Bidder should consider the possibility that certain regulated charges may increase during the contract term and should bid their unit rates accordingly. The State will not pay any new regulated charges or increases thereof during the contract term, including any contract renewals.

Examples of regulated charges that the Bidder may include in their quoted rates include, but are not limited to: Universal Service Fee (USF) and Telecom Relay Service Fee.

The Bidder shall not bill and the State shall not pay for any itemized regulated charges.

4.2 MISSING PRICE

All prices shall be quoted in accordance with Section 4.1, Pricing Specific to the Bid Document. Items are listed separately on forms in Section 7 in order for the State to be able to purchase each item separately. Any item marked as zero cost to the State shall be considered to be offered to the State at no charge. Any item left blank will be considered as “zero cost” to the State.

5.0 EVALUATION AND AWARD

5.1 GENERAL

5.1.1 NO AWARD

The State reserves the right to cancel or decline to enter into a Contract with the successful Bidder at any time after the award is made and before the Contract receives final approval from the Division of Administration, Office of State Procurement.

5.1.2 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

The State reserves the right to require additional information from Bidders and to conduct necessary investigations to determine responsibility of Bidders or to determine accuracy of bid response information. The additional information will be requested in the form of a clarification request by the ITB Coordinator. If additional information is requested, the Bidder shall furnish it within the State's stipulated deadline. Failure to do so may result in rejection of the bid response.

5.2 CRITERIA

5.2.1 ADMINISTRATIVE AND TECHNICAL COMPLIANCE

All bid responses received as a result of this bid document shall be subject to review for the purposes of selecting a Bidder to whom a Contract shall be awarded. No information shall be given out concerning the ultimate outcome while consideration of the award is in progress.

The successful Bidder(s) shall meet all mandatory administrative and technical requirements.

5.2.2 SPECIFIC CRITERIA (WEIGHTED)

Cost. Cost shall be the sole determining factor and shall carry a weight of 100%.

5.2.3 SIMULTANEOUS REVIEW

The functions described in this section may be performed simultaneously or in any order.

Once a determination is made that a bid response is non-compliant in any area, that bid response shall be disqualified from further consideration.

5.3 METHODOLOGY

5.3.1 MODEL

Cost shall be calculated by multiplying the unit price by the model quantities to obtain a total cost. The actual evaluation model shall be submitted to the Office of State Procurement prior to bid opening. This model shall become part of the file and shall be available to all Bidders after bid opening.

5.4 OTS RECOMMENDATION FOR AWARD

5.4.1 DETERMINATION OF SUCCESSFUL BIDDER

A recommendation for award may be made for the lowest responsive, responsible Bidder meeting all mandatory administrative and technical requirements of this bid.

5.4.2 WRITTEN RECOMMENDATION FOR AWARD

When OTS has completed the evaluation and a successful Bidder(s) has been determined, a written recommendation for award shall be forwarded to the Office of State Procurement for review.

5.5 AWARD

Upon review and approval of OTS’s recommendation for award, the Office of State Procurement (OSP) will issue a “Notice of Award” to the apparent successful Bidder(s).

6.0 CONTRACTUAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS

6.1 GENERAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS

6.1.1 TAXES

Bidders should be aware that any taxes levied upon the selected Bidder or their equipment shall be paid in accordance with current tax laws in effect at the time of the purchase by the State. Selected Bidders shall pay all other taxes or assessments, however designated, imposed or levied in connection with the Contract and shall be solely responsible for remitting such taxes or assessments to the appropriate taxing or collection agency.

6.1.2 COMPLIANCE WITH LAWS, REGULATIONS, CODES, AND ORDINANCES

The selected Bidder shall comply with all applicable provisions of federal and state statutes, laws, and regulations; parish and city codes or ordinances, specifically the National Electrical Code, Part 68 of the Federal Communications Commission's Rules and Regulations, tariffs or the Louisiana Public Service Commission, and all Louisiana laws and regulations regarding procurement including La. R.S. 37:2163. The selected Bidder shall be responsible for all licenses, permits, and inspection fees required.

6.1.3 CONTRACTOR RESPONSIBILITIES

The Contractor assumes responsibility for all items and/or services offered in their bid response whether or not the Contractor produces or provides them. Further, the State shall consider the Contractor to be the sole point of contact with regard to contractual matters, including payment of any and all charges resulting from the Contract.

6.1.4 GOVERNING LAW

All activities associated with this ITB and eventual Contract shall be interpreted under Louisiana Law, including but not limited to La. R.S. 39:1551-1736 (Louisiana Procurement Code) and La. R.S. 39:1751-1755 (Telecommunications Procurement Code), purchasing rules and regulations; executive orders; standard terms and conditions; special terms and conditions; and specifications listed in this ITB. Venue of any action brought with regard to all activities associated with this ITB process shall be in the Nineteenth Judicial Court, Parish of East Baton Rouge, State of Louisiana.

6.1.5 BID DOCUMENT AND BID RESPONSE INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

The provisions of the selected bid response and this ITB with all addenda shall be incorporated by reference in the Contract.

6.1.6 ORDER OF PRECEDENCE

In the event of ambiguity in the specifications, the order of precedence shall be the ITB and then the bid response.

6.1.7 WAIVER CLAUSE

Waiver of any breach of any term or condition of the Contract shall not be deemed a waiver of any prior or subsequent breach. No term or condition of the Contract shall be held to be waived, modified, or deleted except by the written consent of both parties.

6.1.8 SEVERABILITY

If any term or condition of the Contract or the application thereof is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other terms, conditions or applications which can be given effect without the invalid term, condition or application; to this end, the terms and conditions of the Contract are declared severable.

6.1.9 HEADINGS AND SECTION REFERENCES

The headings given to the paragraphs herein are inserted only for convenience and are in no way to be construed as part of the Contract or as a limitation of the scope of the particular paragraph to which the heading refers.

6.1.10 RIGHT TO AUDIT

The State Legislative auditor, federal auditors and internal auditors of the Division of Administration, or others so designated by the DOA, shall have the option to audit all accounts directly pertaining to the Contract for a period of five years from the date of the last payment made under the Contract or as required by applicable State and Federal law.

Records shall be made available during normal working hours for this purpose.

6.1.11 BIDDER’S COOPERATION

Any Bidder has the duty to fully cooperate with the State and provide any and all requested information, documentation, etc., to the State when requested. This applies even if an eventual Contract is terminated and/or a lawsuit is filed. Specifically, the Bidder shall not limit or impede the State’s right to audit or to withhold State owned documents.

6.2 CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION

6.2.1 CONTRACT TERM

The initial Contract shall be for a 36 month period from date of award.

6.2.2 RENEWAL TERM

Upon acceptance by the Contractor and approval by the State, the Contract may be renewed for two additional 12 month periods at the same prices, terms and conditions not to exceed 60 months total.

6.2.3 ORDERS

Written orders for state agencies shall be issued by OTS.

6.2.4 CHANGE ORDERS

Modifications to an initial order shall be made in writing by OTS and shall be known as a change order.

6.2.5 INVOICING

The Contractor shall submit itemized invoices for written orders issued and approved by OTS on a monthly basis and no later than the 10th day of the month. Failure to provide invoices by the 10th day of the month may result in non-payment of the invoice for that month.

All invoices shall include the written order number, contract number, invoice number, route and speed, contract pricing, and any other OTS numbers, as applicable. Invoices that do not comply shall be returned to the Contractor.

The Contractor shall provide the contract number assigned by the Office of State Procurement on all State invoices. The Contractor shall invoice each new contract as a separate account. Invoices related to the contract shall not be combined with invoices related to other contracts. Invoices combined with other accounts or contracts will not be paid and will be returned to the Contractor.

State invoices with incorrect amounts in part or in whole shall be returned to the Contractor and shall not be paid.

6.2.5.1 THIS SECTION INTENTIONALLY BLANK

6.2.5.2 THIS SECTION INTENTIONALLY BLANK

6.2.5.3 THIS SECTION INTENTIONALLY BLANK

6.2.5.4 ELECTRONIC BILLING

OTS uses an automated billing system to process invoices from its Contractors to produce a bill for its customers. Accordingly, the State prefers the Contractor to provide monthly electronic billing which is a direct reflection of all billable items noted in the monthly invoice.

If providing electronic billing, it shall be produced in a computer readable format that can be used as direct input each month to the State's billing system. Acceptable electronic billing solutions are data files made up of defined records. Each record represents specific billable information that matches the Contractor’s end of month paper based invoice. Acceptable data formats are character-separated value (.csv), delimited text (.txt) and Excel (.xls[x]).

Examples of unacceptable electronic billing formats are scanned images of the paper invoice, Optical Character Recognition (OCR) files, EDI, and Portable Document Format (PDF) files.

If providing electronic billing, the data shall be sent to the State via electronic media including CD, DVD or flash drive, or…