RFI Radio System Template REV BY100625.pdf

Yamhill County, Oregon

Request for Information

Yamhill County Public Safety Radio System

October 23, 2025

POINT OF CONTACT

Refer all questions to:

Brian Young-Emergency Manager

2050 NE Lafayette Ave, Suite B. McMinnville, OR 97128

(503) 434-7340 youngb@yamhillcounty.gov

RESPONSES DUE:

January 22, 2026 by 12:00 pm at 2050 NE Lafayette Ave, Suite B.

McMinnville, OR 97128

SECTION A – TABLE OF CONTENTS

COVER PAGE

A. TABLE OF CONTENTS

B. GENERAL INFORMATION

B.1 Introduction B.2 Schedule B.3 Single Point of Contact

C. AUTHORITY, OVERVIEW, AND OBJECTIVES

C.1 Authority and Method C.2 Overview C.3 Objectives C.4 Services Provided to C.5 Current System Configuration C.6 Assessment Report C.7 Presentation

D. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

D.1 System Type D.2 System Components D.3 Service Areas

E. RECQUIREMENTS AND EVALUATION

E.1 Requirements E.2 Qualifications E.3 Acceptance

F. DISCLAIMER

F.1 Disclaimer

G. List of Attachments G.1 Submitter Information Sheet

SECTION B – GENERAL INFORMATION

B.1 Introduction.

Yamhill County Sheriff’s Office (“County”) is issuing this Request for Information (RFI) for Public Safety Radio System seeking an independent informational assessment and evaluation of its current public safety radio system (the “System”) to assess (i) the System’s current performance, (ii) identify potential risks and deficiencies with the current System and (iii) receive recommendations to enhance System reliability, which can include recommendations on a frequency change(s), interoperability, and overall System effectiveness.

B.2 Schedule.

The table below represents a tentative schedule of events. All times are listed in Pacific Time. All dates listed are subject to change.

Event Date Time

Release Date 10/24/25 9:00 AM

Closing (RFI Due) 01/22/26 12:00 PM

B.3 Point of Contact.

The Point of Contact (POC) for this RFI is identified on the Cover Page of this RFI, along with the POC’s contact information.

All respondents shall direct communications related to any provision of the RFI, whether about the technical requirements of the RFI, response requirements, the RFI process, or any other provision only to the POC.

B.4 Response Submission. Responses must be received by the POC by the time and date stated for receipt in the RFI

SECTION C – AUTHORITY, OVERVIEW, AND OBJECTIVES

C.1. Authority and Method.

The County is issuing this RFI pursuant to an exclusion from the Yamhill County Public Contracting Rules. An RFI is not subject to competitive purchasing requirements because it does not invite offers from respondents and is not intended to result in a contractual agreement.

C.2. Overview Yamhill County (referred to herein as “Yamhill County” or “County”) is located in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. The County seat is McMinnville, about 35 miles southwest of Portland. The County has a population of about 109,000 residents. Yamhill County is a general law county with three elected Commissioners and 5 elected department heads. The remainder of the County falls under the supervision of the appointed County Administrator. Yamhill County employs approximately 700 employees and provides a myriad of services, including but not limited to, public health, adult, youth and family behavioral health services, roads, bridges, parks, fairgrounds, law enforcement, juvenile and adult corrections facilities.

In this RFI, the County is seeking information from respondents with expertise in public safety radio systems.

C.3 Objectives Assess Current System Performance:

• Evaluate System coverage and capacity within the service area.

• Analyze radio signal propagation characteristics and identify area of weakness.

• Assess the performance of voice and data communications.

• Assess the System’s compliance with relevant standards and regulations.

Identify Risks and Deficiencies:

• Identify potential System vulnerabilities and threats.

• Evaluate the adequacy of maintenance and support services.

• Assess the System’s interoperability with other public safety agencies.

Develop Recommendations for System Improvement:

• Develop recommendations to enhance System coverage and capacity, to include ways to improve in-building coverage (office buildings, hospital(s), stores, care facilities, etc…).

• Recommend upgrade and/or replacement to System hardware and software.

• Recommend improvements to System operations and maintenance procedures.

• Recommend strategies to improve System interoperability, resilience and that are P25 complaint.

• Develop a roadmap for implementing recommended improvements and maintenance schedules.

• Examine the feasibility and cost structures utilizing existing towers, existing licenses and/or licenses available to

Yamhill County to achieve improvements. Yamhill County currently holds 47 individual FCC licenses across multiple frequencies, including HF, UHF and VHF.

• Identify potential for System growth using existing licenses to allow for additional users.

• Identify System tools that allow for communications though cloud based (apps) and/or satellite service(s).

Required system performance standards within Yamhill County are to be met as follows:

• 90% area reliability within the urban regions of Yamhill County, using a portable radio at the hip, on-street, and with a perceived Delivered Audio Quality (DAQ) of at least 3.4

• 95% area reliability within the urban regions of Yamhill County, using an in-vehicle mobile radio, and with a perceived Delivered Audio Quality (DAQ) of at least 3.4

• 80% area reliability within the rural regions of Yamhill County, using a portable radio at the hip, On-Street, and with a perceived Delivered Audio Quality (DAQ) of at least 3.4

• 85% area reliability within the rural regions of Yamhill County, using an in-vehicle mobile radio, and with a perceived Delivered Audio Quality (DAQ) of at least 3.4

C.4 Services to be Provided To.

• City of Amity Law Enforcement

• Amity Fire District

• Carlton Fire District

• City of Carlton Law Enforcement

• Dayton Fire District

• City of Dayton Law Enforcement

• Lafayette Fire Department

• City of Lafayette Law Enforcement

• City of McMinnville Law Enforcement

• McMinnville Fire District

• City of Sheridan Law Enforcement

• Sheridan Fire District

• City of Willamina Law Enforcement

• West Valley Fire District

• City of Yamhill Law Enforcement

• Yamhill Fire Protection District

• Yamhill Communications

• Yamhill County Sheriff Office

• Yamhill County Community Justice

• Yamhill County Public Works

• Grand Ronde Tribal Emergency Services

• McMinnville Water and Light

C.5 Current System Configuration:

The current System is an analog, narrow band UHF system operating in the 465 MHz frequency. There are five (5) channels, LAW, FIRE, OPS1, OPS2, and OPS3. The System is a conventional, QS2 simulcast system initially installed in 2010. There are approximately 170 mobile radios and 240 portable radios on the System.

Radio Coverage within Yamhill County:

Yamhill County provides a challenging geographical mix of conditions for radio coverage. Within the Yamhill County boundary there are urban, rural, and agricultural areas.

Yamhill County has chosen to adopt the generally accepted Delivered Audio Quality (DAQ) rating set forth by TIA in TSB-88, using industry standard definitions of audio quality under specific characteristics of radio type and placement.

The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA), in TIA/EIA Technical Service Bulletin TSB-88 defines the delivered audio quality, which is a numeric rating of speech intelligibility, as shown below:

Delivered Audio Quality (DAQ) Levels:

DELIVERED AUDIO QUALITY NUMERIC RATING

DAQ 1.0

DAQ 2.0

DAQ 3.0

DAQ 3.4

DAQ 4.0

Unusable. Speech present but not understandable.

Speech understandable with considerable effort. Requires frequent repetition due to noise/distortion.

Speech understandable with slight effort. Requires occasional repetition due to noise/distortion.

Speech understandable without repetition. Some noise/distortion present.

Speech easily understood. Occasional noise/distortion present.

C.6 Data Collection:

• Review of System documentation (e.g., System design plans, maintenance records, user manuals, licensing)

• Interviews with key personnel (e.g., System administrators, dispatchers, end-users)

• On-site inspections of System equipment

• Drive tests to assess System coverage and performance

• Data analysis of System performance metrics

C.7 Analysis and Evaluation:

• Analyze collected data to identify system strengths and weaknesses.

• Evaluate system performance against established benchmarks and industry best practices.

• Assess the potential impact of identified risks and deficiencies.

• Develop alternative solutions and evaluate their feasibility and cost-effectiveness

C.8 Assessment Report:

Respondent shall provide a comprehensive report that includes:

• Executive summary of key findings and recommendations.

• Detailed assessment of System performance, including coverage maps, signal strength data, and performance metrics.

• Identification of risks and deficiencies, including potential impacts and mitigation strategies.

• Recommendations for System improvements, including cost estimates, implementation timelines.

• Cost structure and reasonable payment options for County funding of project.

• Cost structure and reasonable payment options for investor funding of project.

• Supporting documentation, including data analysis, maps, and photographs.

C.9 Presentation:

A presentation summarizing the key findings and recommendations to relevant stakeholders.

SECTION D – ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

D.1 System Type:

Five (5) UHF (450 MHz) Simulcast System channels and VHF Fire paging on ten (10) towers, three (3) of which are owned by the County.

D.2 System Components:

Closed loop microwave system on 10 towers, Tait 8100 base stations, repeaters, tri-band mobile radios, tri-band portable radios, dispatch consoles, and control stations.

D.3 Service Area:

The service area for Yamhill County is the entirety of the County, which extends into neighboring counties (Washington, Clackamas, Marion, Polk, Lincoln, and Tillamook).

The County is divided into two general geographic areas: a smooth valley area in the southern and eastern parts that is used for farming and contain most cities and communities, and a hilly or mountainous area in the western and northern parts. Elevations range between 150 feet on the Willamette River to 3522 feet at Trask Mountain, located in northwest Yamhill County. The Amity Hills and Red Hills lie near Amity and Dundee, respectively.

The lowest point within Yamhill County is on the bottomland east of Newberg where the Willamette River enters Clackamas County. The valley floor rises gradually from 150 feet elevation to more than 300 feet in the southern end of the County.

The UHF simulcast radio system currently in use throughout the County is designed to provide converge to 95% or more of the populous areas of the County. The only real coverage holes exist in West County where there are no residences and little recreational use. This area may be filled in with stand-alone repeaters over time to provide coverage as funding permits. The other problematic coverage area is in the greater Dayton area. Radio coverage in this area, which extends south to the county line, is inadequate and many times incoming and outgoing transmissions are unreadable or unsuccessful.

Yamhill County’s System is extensive in terms of geographic area covered and the number of links contained within the microwave system. The System was assembled with refurbished microwave equipment that is approximately 30 year old technology. This has created some reliability issues, a lack of security, a limited ability/bandwidth to communicate and interoperate with our regional partners, and a lack of alarm and control features. The County will soon need to look at replacing the microwave system in a phased approach, so that it can be funded in a sustainable way and the most critical links can be replaced first. In terms of priority, this has become a critical project that needs to be addressed in the near term.

SECTION E – REQUIREMENTS AND EVALUATION

E.1 Requirements.

• The respondent shall provide regular progress reports to the Yamhill County Sheriff.

• The respondent shall submit a draft assessment report for review and comment.

• The respondent shall incorporate feedback from Yamhill County into the final report.

E.2 Qualifications.

• The respondent shall have demonstrated experience in the assessment and evaluation of public safety radio system.

• The respondent shall possess relevant industry certifications (e.g., P25 Certified Professional).

• The respondent shall address all comments and concerns raised by Yamhill County during the review process.

E.3 Acceptance.

• The assessment report shall be accepted by Yamhill County upon review and approval.

• The respondent shall address all comments and concerns raised by Yamhill County during the review process.

SECTION F – DISCLAIMER

F.1 The respondent may need to make adjustments to the scope of work based on the specific findings and circumstances encountered during the assessment.

SECTION G - PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION; EVALUATION AND USE OF INFORMATION

G.1 Submittals Subject to Oregon Public Records Law. Information submitted in response to this process will become public records under Oregon law and will be subject to disclosure to any person or organization that submits a public records request.

Respondents acknowledge that any submitted materials may be disclosed in its entirety to any person or organization making a records request, except for such information as may be exempt from disclosure under the law. If submittal contains any information that is considered trade secret under ORS 192.345(2), that information must be marked with the following:

“This data constitutes a trade secret under ORS 192.345(2) and shall not be disclosed except in accordance with the Oregon Public Records Law, ORS 192.”

The Oregon Public Records Law exempts from disclosure only bona fide trade secrets, and the exemption from disclosure applies only “unless the public interest requires disclosure in the particular instance.” ORS 192.345(2). Note that cost or price information must be open to public inspection.

If the County receives a records request, including subpoena, covering information the respondent believes is covered by an applicable public records exemption, it is the respondent’s responsibility to defend and indemnify the County for any costs associated with establishing such an exemption.

G.2. Response Evaluation. Responses will be reviewed by the County to determine if proceeding with a procurement is in the County’s best interest, taking into account potential cost savings, gained efficiencies, product functionality, suitability for a particular purpose, available suppliers, and other factors as applicable.

G.3 Use of Information. Information submitted in response to this request for information or information obtained through discussions with interested parties may be used to:

• Determine availability of potential suppliers,

• Create budget estimates,

• Guide existing programs or current work,

• Incorporated into a future procurement,

• Discarded and not used.

THIS REQUEST FOR INFORMATION ALONE WILL NOT RESULT IN AN AWARD OF A CONTRACT OR PURCHASE.

Delivered Audio Quality (DAQ) Levels: