LQ3 InfiniBAND CLUSTER

Fermi Research Alliance (FRA), operating under the Department of Energy's Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, is soliciting proposals for the procurement of a high-performance computing (HPC) cluster designated LQ3 InfiniBAND, which will consist of 52 InfiniBand servers, Lustre storage systems, and administrative nodes with detailed technical specifications. Vendors must submit firm-fixed-price quotations for the complete computing system, including all hardware components, physical installation, integration services, and a five-year warranty covering parts, materials, and onsite labor. The evaluation will follow a Lowest Price Technically Acceptable source selection process, with non-cost factors including conformance to procurement specifications, delivery terms (FOB Destination), vendor references, and warranty provisions. Required submittal documents include the completed RFQ Form RH-373289, Supplier Annual Representations & Certifications, PUR-466 Proposal Certifications, technical specifications (Exhibit A and Attachment A), cost proposals, and a Certificate of Insurance prior to award. The quotation closing date is March 6, 2026 at 2:00 PM EST, with proposals due to Ryan Hairston, Procurement Specialist IV, at hairston@fnal.gov, and the overall solicitation notice deadline is March 13, 2026.

This procurement carries no set-aside designation and involves no identified incumbent contractor. The system configuration requires 36 base compute servers with options for up to 12 additional servers, four Lustre Object Storage Servers, four Lustre Admin servers, and two AMD Metadata Servers, with each compute server featuring dual AMD EPYC Turin 9355 processors, 1,536GB DDR5-6400 ECC memory, and NVIDIA ConnectX-7 400Gb/s InfiniBand adapters. Vendors must deliver all equipment within 12 weeks of purchase order issuance and complete physical installation at the Fermilab data center with a 15-day acceptance test requiring no more than 5% downtime, with a four-hour response time for warranty service calls during business hours and defective system restoration within five business days. The work will be performed at Fermilab's data center in Batavia, Illinois 60510, under the existing prime contract DE 89243024CSC with the Department of Energy, and subcontractors must comply with comprehensive Environment, Safety, and Health requirements including DOE Worker Safety and Health Program standards and maintain required insurance coverage with Fermi Research Alliance, LLC as an additional insured.