SSN_POST-NtworkCnctivity__Managed_Optical_Network_Backbone_Acq_1.pdf

United States Department of the Interior

INTERIOR BUSINESS CENTER

Washington, DC 20240

Network Connectivity – Managed Optical Network Backbone Acquisition

The Department of the Interior Acquisition Services Directorate (AQD) is issuing this Request for Information to determine businesses capable of providing all items listed within this request. AQD is executing this market research on behalf of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Cancer Institute (NCI), Center for Biomedical Informatics and Information Technology (CBIIT), Infrastructure Branch (IB).

Respond to this request no later than 5:00 PM ED July 15, 2026, providing the following information:

1. Company name, Point of Contact Information, System for Award Management (SAM) UEI.

2. Written confirmation that your company can provide the requirements within this announcement.

3. Confirm which NAICS you believe would apply to this acquisition.

4. Identify your company’s size standard in the NAICS you identified.

5. Identify any Authorized Reseller Status or subcontractors that would be involved in providing the requirement (if applicable).

6. Identify any established GWACs or GSA schedules applicable to the scope of this announcement.

7. Optional: Provide Market Research pricing on the requirements listed within this announcement.

Respondents should identify their socioeconomic status, including:

• Small Business

• Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB)

• 8(a)

• HUBZone

• Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB)

• Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB)

• Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB)

• Other

Responses should be emailed to Melissa_Onyszko@ibc.doi.gov and Patrick_Jackson@ibc.doi.gov with the email title “Network Connectivity – Managed Optical Network Backbone Acquisition.”

This RFI is being issued solely for market research information and acquisition planning purposes. It does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP in the future. This RFI does not commit the Government to a contract for any supply or service whatsoever. Furthermore, the Government is not at this time seeking proposals and will not accept unsolicited proposals. Responders are advised that the Government will not reimburse for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this RFI; all costs associated with responding to this RFI will be solely at the interested parties’ expense. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in a future RFQ, if one is issued.

Proprietary information and trade secrets, if any, must be clearly marked on all materials. All information received that is marked Proprietary will be handled accordingly. Please be advised that all submissions become Government property and will not be returned. All Government and contractor personnel reviewing RFI responses will have signed non-disclosure agreements and understand their responsibility for proper use and protection from unauthorized disclosure of proprietary information as described in 41 U.S.C. 423. The Government shall not be held liable for any damages incurred if proprietary information is not properly identified.

No telephone calls will be accepted requesting a bid package or solicitation. There is no bid package or solicitation. In order to protect the procurement integrity of any future procurement, if any, that may arise from this announcement, information regarding technical point of contact will not be given and no appointments for presentations will be made.

DRAFT SCOPE OF WORK

Overview

NCI seeks a **U.S.-based** managed optical network provider ("Contractor") to deliver and sustain a turnkey, end‑to‑end backbone service—covering fiber plant provisioning and the acquisition, configuration, deployment, monitoring, and on‑going maintenance and support of all equipment necessary to meet the requirements laid out in this SOW.

1.0 TITLE

Network Connectivity – Managed Optical Network Backbone Acquisition

2.0 BACKGROUND

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Cancer Institute (NCI), Center for Biomedical Informatics and Information Technology (CBIIT), Infrastructure Branch (IB), completed the buildout and migration phases of the NCI Fiber Network Backbone, establishing a unified infrastructure across Frederick, Rockville/Shady Grove, and Bethesda campuses.

3.0 SCOPE

The Contractor will operate and enhance the NCI Fiber Network Backbone to deliver continuous, secure, and future‑ready connectivity for NCI research and mission operations. The engagement covers:

24×7×365 Operations & Monitoring; Capacity & Engineering; Path Diversity & Resilience; Cloud Connectivity (AWS Direct Connect and GCP Interconnect via diverse Northern Virginia sites); Security & Compliance (end‑to‑end encryption; alignment with FISMA/NIST RMF and NIH security handbooks);

Documentation & Training; and Testing & Validation.

3.1 TASK ORDER REQUIREMENTS

CLIN 1 – BASE PERIOD: Managed Optical Network Backbone Service

• Program Management Plan (PMP): Deliver within 30 calendar days after award, detailing service management processes, escalation paths, **U.S.-based staffing plan**, risk management, communications, and reporting cadence.

• Fiber Plant Provisioning: The Contractor shall provision the fiber plant (design, procurement/lease, installation, turn‑up, documentation, and maintenance) necessary to meet backbone requirements and path diversity objectives.

• Equipment Lifecycle: The Contractor shall acquire, configure, deploy, monitor, patch, and sustain

(including RMAs and spares) all optical/network equipment required for the managed service.

• Domestic Service Delivery: The Contractor shall deliver services from **U.S.-located facilities**. The primary NOC/SOC, on-call operations, and escalation functions must be **U.S.-based**. No offshore service delivery or support is permitted without prior written authorization from the Contracting Officer (CO).

• Personnel & Staffing: The Contractor shall ensure **sufficient, qualified staff physically located within the United States** (e.g., optical/network engineers, operations analysts, security/compliance specialists, documentation/training) to meet contractual service levels and schedules for all periods of performance. Subcontractors, if used, must also be **U.S.-based**.

• Access & Data Handling: Remote access to Government systems or operational tooling shall originate from **U.S. network endpoints** only. Contractor shall not store, process, or transmit Government data outside the United States.

• Subcontracting & Flow-Down: The domestic service delivery, data residency, and access restrictions shall flow down to all subcontractors and suppliers engaged in performance under this

SOW.

• Service Levels: Meet or exceed the incident and performance SLAs defined in Section 4.0, including Priority 1 response within 15 minutes and post‑incident RFO within 2 business days.

• 24×7 Operations & Incident Response: Operate **U.S.-based** NOC/SOC‑integrated monitoring; respond to Priority 1 incidents within 15 minutes; restore service or implement approved workarounds; provide post‑incident RFO within 2 business days.

• Capacity Management & Enhancements: Maintain 10/40/100 Gbps ring links; engineer new diverse links (e.g., 2×100 Gbps Frederick–Bethesda; 2×10 Gbps GCP Interconnect from Rockville/Shady Grove and Frederick/ATRF to Northern Virginia); evaluate Rockville↔Bethesda 40→100 Gbps upgrades; roadmap future 400 Gbps support; deliver designs, MOPs, and validation test reports.

• Security & Compliance: Implement end‑to‑end encryption on all backbone connections; maintain

RMF artifacts; perform continuous monitoring consistent with NIH policies and NIST baselines;

coordinate with ISSO for assessments. All security operations and control monitoring shall be conducted from **U.S.-based** facilities.

• Cloud Interconnect Operations: Operate and optimize AWS Direct Connect (diverse Northern

VA sites) and deploy/manage GCP Interconnect links; ensure throughput, redundancy, and encryption. All interconnect management and monitoring activities shall be performed from **U.S.-based** facilities.

• Documentation, Training & Knowledge Transfer: Maintain as‑built diagrams, topology, fiber routes, spares inventories; update runbooks/SOPs; deliver training sessions at least semi‑annually and upon major changes. Training and knowledge transfer shall be conducted within the United States.

• Testing & Failover Exercises: Conduct scheduled failover drills; provide test plans, results, and remediation; certify RTO/RPO aligned to mission needs.

• Reporting: Monthly operations report (tickets, performance, capacity, incidents); quarterly modernization/roadmap update; annual security compliance summary.

CLIN 2 – OPTION PERIOD 1: Managed Optical Network Backbone Service

Rockville/Shady Grove and Frederick/ATRF to Northern Virginia); evaluate modernization/roadmap update; annual security compliance summary

CLIN 3 – OPTION PERIOD 2: Managed Optical Network Backbone Service

Rockville/Shady Grove and Frederick/ATRF to Northern Virginia); evaluate modernization/roadmap update; annual security compliance summary.

CLIN 4 – OPTION PERIOD 3: Managed Optical Network Backbone Service

Rockville/Shady Grove and Frederick/ATRF to Northern Virginia); evaluate modernization/roadmap update; annual security compliance summary

4.0 TYPE OF ORDER

This is a firm‑fixed‑price (FFP) task order.

5.0 SEVERABLE SERVICES

The services acquired under this task order are severable. Funds are available only for the line item to which they are obligated and may not roll over to other periods.

6.0 PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

One (1) 12‑month base period, plus three (3) 12‑month option periods, from date of award

7.0 PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

Services shall be provided remotely from the **Contractor’s U.S.-based facilities**. Onsite service shall be performed at the following backbone locations as required to continue operations:

Frederick — Fort Detrick (430 Miller Drive, Frederick, MD 21702) Frederick — ATRF (8560 Progress Drive, Frederick, MD 21701) Rockville — Shady Grove (9609 Medical Center Dr, Rockville, MD 20850) Bethesda — Buildings 10 and 12A (10 Center Dr, Bethesda, MD 20892; 12 Center Dr, Bethesda, MD 20892)

Two Northern Virginia sites supporting AWS Direct Connect.

8.0 ONSITE SECURITY REQUIREMENTS

In the event of an onsite response, the Contractor shall sign in and be escorted by authorized staff. No access to Government data shall be provided; Contractor access is limited to underlying hardware

9.0 DELIVERY

Delivery shall occur within 60 business days of task order award. The Contractor shall provide the NCI Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) with tracking information to anticipate delivery. All shipping/handling (including FOB) and delivery/installation fees shall be included. Deliver to:

NCI/CBIIT, 9609 Medical Center Drive, Room 1‑W‑446, Rockville, MD 20850.

10.0 REPORT(S)/DELIVERABLES

All work described in the SOW is subject to final inspection and acceptance by the Government’s COR.

Services delivered to the COR will be deemed accepted 30 calendar days after delivery unless written approval or disapproval is issued within that period.

11.0 SECTION 508 ACCESSIBILITY

Products, platforms, and services delivered as part of this work that are ICT, or contain ICT, must conform to the Revised 508 Standards (36 C.F.R. § 1194.1 & Apps. A, C & D). Conformance shall be confirmed using HHS OS Factsheets & Reference Guides and verified through the HHS WCAG 2.0 Refresh Checklists; Contractors are encouraged to use instructional materials and checklists at GSA Section508.gov.

APPENDIX A – Network Topology & Sites

A.1 Overview & Design Intent The NCI Fiber Network Backbone is designed for high‑availability, diverse routing, and scalable bandwidth across Frederick, Rockville/Shady Grove, and Bethesda campuses with cloud interconnects in Northern Virginia. The backbone relies on redundant hardware and diverse fiber paths with 10/40/100 Gbps links (roadmap to 400 Gbps) and enforces end‑to‑end encryption, continuous monitoring, and failover exercises to meet mission RTO/RPO objectives.

A.2 Backbone Sites

Site Address Frederick — Fort Detrick 430 Miller Drive, Frederick, MD 21702 Frederick — ATRF 8560 Progress Drive, Frederick, MD 21701 Rockville — Shady Grove 9609 Medical Center Dr, Rockville, MD 20850 Bethesda — Building 10 10 Center Dr, Bethesda, MD 20892 Bethesda — Building 12A 12 Center Dr, Bethesda, MD 20892 Northern Virginia — AWS Direct Connect Site 1

(Address to be provided at award; diverse site)

Northern Virginia — AWS Direct Connect Site 2

(Address to be provided at award; diverse site)

A.3 Link Inventory (existing/planned) Origin Destination Capacity Qty Status Frederick — Fort Detrick

Bethesda (Bldg 10/12A)

100 Gbps 2 Planned/Build

Rockville/Shady Grove

Northern Virginia

(AWS/GCP)

10 Gbps 2 Planned/Build (GCP Interconnect)

Frederick/ATRF Northern Virginia

(AWS/GCP)

10 Gbps 2 Planned/Build (GCP Interconnect)

Rockville ↔ Bethesda

40→100 Gbps — — Evaluation/Upgrade Path

Campus Rings Inter‑campus 10/40/100 Gbps

— Existing/Operate

A.4 Resilience, Failover & Monitoring Backbone operations shall maintain diverse fiber routing and redundant hardware across all sites; conduct scheduled failover drills; and certify RTO/RPO targets. Monitoring integrates NOC/SOC with Priority 1 response within 15 minutes and post‑incident RFO within 2 business days.

A.5 Cloud Interconnects & Encryption Operate and optimize AWS Direct Connect via two diverse Northern Virginia sites; deploy/manage GCP Interconnect links from Rockville/Shady Grove and Frederick/ATRF to Northern Virginia. All interconnect traffic and backbone links shall enforce end‑to‑end encryption with FIPS‑validated ciphers;

RMF artifacts and continuous monitoring will be maintained per NIH/NIST policies.

A.6 Data Residency & Staffing All service delivery, monitoring, and security operations shall be performed from U.S‑based facilities.

Personnel and subcontractors must be U.S‑based; remote access to Government systems or tooling shall originate from U.S network endpoints only; Government data shall not be stored, processed, or transmitted outside the United States.

4.0 TYPE OF ORDER