Vendor Questions and Answers - B-33225.docx
DOCX document 24 KB Posted
- Attached to
- State Directory Services IFB
- Solicitation number
- 23-448DOIT-TELEC-B-33225
- Issued by
- St. Clair County, Illinois
About this file
This document contains vendor questions and answers for the State Directory Services IFB (Invitation for Bid) 23-448DOIT-TELEC-B-33225 issued by the State of Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology (DoIT). The IFB requires a vendor to provide a fully managed directory assistance and information services function for the State, including staffing, equipment, and transport facilities. The IFB indicates there is an estimated annual call volume of 36,000 calls and vendors must be able to process up to 25,000 call attempts per month. Vendors must be able to integrate their services with the State's DMS-100 telephone switch located in Springfield, IL. The bid is due by 10:00 AM CST on 10/10/2023 and the State intends to award the contract as soon as possible after the protest period.
Regarding pricing, the IFB states that vendors must provide pricing as requested with no deviations. The incumbent vendor information and current contract details are available through public sources such as the Illinois Comptroller's State Contract database. The IFB does not specify requirements around wait times, hold times, or percentage of calls to be answered by live operators, but outlines penalties for not meeting the stated requirements.
View the file
Other files
| File | Type | Posted |
|---|---|---|
| IPG Active Registered Vendor Disclosure - Formerly Forms B - v.23.3~2.docx | DOCX document | |
| IFB - State Directory Services - B-33225~1.docx | DOCX document | |
| Vendor Disclosure - Formerly Forms A - v.23.3~4.docx | DOCX document |
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Text version
State Directory Services IFB
23-448DOIT-TELEC-B-33225
Vendor Q & A – Addendum #1
1. Page 8 of the Contract indicates “Vendor must design and equip its services to integrate to the State's DMS100 switch located in the AT&T Central Office in Springfield, IL.” Can you describe the nature of this integration? If this is for call transfers, can calls be transferred into 10 digit telephone numbers or is some other switch integration required?
Answer: The DMS-100 is a member of the Digital Multiplex System (DMS) product line of telephone exchange switches manufactured by Northern Telecom. Designed during the 1970s and released in 1979, it can control 100,000 telephone lines.[1]The purpose of the DMS-100 Switch is to provide local service and connections to the PSTN public telephone network. It is designed to deliver services over subscribers' telephone lines and trunks. It provides plain old telephone service (POTS), mobility management for cellular phone systems, sophisticated business services such as automatic call distribution (ACD), Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN), and Meridian Digital Centrex (MDC), formerly called Integrated Business Network (IBN). It also provides Intelligent Network functions (AIN, CS1-R, ETSI INAP). It is for connection to local service connection to PSTN. There is no other switch gear integration required.
2. The BidBuy Pricing section indicates there is a quantity of 360,000 calls. Is this number an annual quantity or a total contract quantity?
Answer: It is used as an estimation for evaluation purposes.
3. Would the State entertain paying a one-time set up fee to help cover technology startup costs and initial agent training?
Answer: The pricing for this section is set, no further fees would be entertained.
4. What is the current average wait time for phone calls? What is the current average handle time for phone calls and other types of communications? What is the current average after-call work time for operators? What is the current average connect time for an extended call?
Answer: Handle times would depend on what the customer is requesting from the Operator. We do not have data regarding average after call work time and average connect time. The State handles approximately 442 calls per month from the 217 area code, 990 from the 312 area code, and call to the Governors office average 192 a month..
5. Will the vendor provide a toll free number or a local DID for calls to route into?
Answer: Refer to section 1.3 of the solicitation document.
6. Is the current Vendor eligible to participate in this Bid?
Answer: Any responsive and responsible vendor that can meet the requirements set for in this IFB is eligible to participate in this bid.
7. Please reconfirm the due date for this procurement by providing it in response to answers to questions.
Answer: The bid due date is before 10:00 AM CST on 10/10/2023.
8. Why has this bid been released at this time?
Answer: This has no relevance on the ability of vendors to provide a bid for this solicitation.
9. When is the anticipated contract start date?
Answer: We intend to start the contract as soon as we can come to an agreement with the awarded vendor after the contract is awarded and after the protest period passes.
10. Are bidders permitted to deviate in any way from any manner of quoting fees you may be expecting? For example, if there is a pricing page in the RFP, can bidders submit an alternate fee structure? If there is no pricing page in the RFP, do you have any preference for how bidders should quote fees or can bidders create their own pricing categories?
Answer: Vendors must provide pricing as requested in the IFB with no deviation.
11. Please describe your level of satisfaction with your current or recent vendor(s) for the same purchasing activity, if applicable Answer: This has no relevance on the ability of vendors to provide a bid for this solicitation.
12. Has the current contract gone full term?
Answer: This is public information. Please refer to P-457, P-41040 in BidBuy.
13. Have all options to extend the current contract been exercised?
Answer: This is public information. Please refer to P-457, P-41040 in BidBuy.
14. Who is the incumbent, and how long has the incumbent been providing the requested services?
Answer: This is public information. Please refer to P-457, P-41040 in BidBuy.
15. How are fees currently being billed by any incumbent(s), by category, and at what rates?
Answer: This is public information. Please refer to P-457, P-41040 in BidBuy.
16. What estimated or actual dollars were paid last year, last month, or last quarter to any incumbent(s)?
Answer: This is public information. Please refer to P-457, P-41040 in BidBuy. Fees paid for P-41040 are publicly available on the Illinois Comptrollers State Contract data base.
17. Is previous experience with any specific customer information systems, phone systems, or software required?
Answer: This is not a requirement listed in this IFB. Vendor must be able to meet the requirements listed in the IFB.
18. What is the minimum simultaneous inbound call capacity?
Answer: Per Section 1.2 of the IFB, “Vendor shall be able to successfully process up to 25,000 attempts per month and be able to effectively meet the requirements and expectations of the contract --regardless of a potential increase or decrease in actual call volume.” Also, see Penalties under section 1.2.
19. What is the maximum wait time? What is the maximum hold time?
Answer: Neither wait time or hold time are listed requirements in this IFB, and therefore this neither has any relevance on the ability of vendors to provide a bid for this solicitation. Please see Penalties under section 1.2
20. What percentage of inbound calls must be answered by a live operator?
Answer: This is not a requirement listed in this IFB. Vendor must be able to meet the requirements listed in the IFB.
21. What percentage of calls must be resolved without a transfer, second call, or a return call? What is the maximum percentage of calls that can be terminated by the caller without resolution? Is there a minimum or maximum number of operators and supervisors?
Answer: These are not requirements listed in this IFB. Vendor must be able to meet the requirements listed in the IFB.
22. What is the required degree of dedication for the call center? (Can call centers work on other contracts at the same time as this one)? What is the required degree of dedication for the operators? (Can operators work on other contracts at the same time as this one)?
Answer: These are not requirements listed in this IFB. Vendor must be able to meet the requirements listed in the IFB.
23. What are the recording and storage requirements for non-phone communications?
Answer: This is not a requirement listed in this IFB. Vendor must be able to meet the requirements listed in the IFB.
24. What information is to be included in call logs?
Answer: Vendor must be able to meet the requirements listed in the IFB.
25. What was your average monthly call volume over the past year?
Answer: The average yearly volume is 36,000 calls.
26. Over the past year, what is the percentage of calls received in English versus non-English? Over the past year, what percentage of calls received were in Spanish?
Answer: The State does not have this data available. Vendor must be able to meet the requirements listed in the IFB.
27. What time of day, days of the week, or times of the year do calls typically peak?
Answer: The State does not have this data available. Vendor must be able to meet the requirements listed in the IFB.
28. Will a remote / cloud-based solution be considered?
Answer: This is not a requirement listed in this IFB. Vendor must be able to meet the requirements listed in the IFB.
29. What is the current number of seats for operators and supervisors at your existing call center?
Answer: This has no relevance on the ability of vendors to provide a bid for this solicitation. Vendor must be able to meet the requirements listed in the IFB.
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