Consortium Data Center Equipment and Licensing

Wayne County Regional Educational Service Agency (RESA) issued Request for Proposal #18-005-651 on behalf of a consortium of Michigan school districts, public school academies, and intermediate school districts to procure comprehensive data center equipment and software licensing. The RFP seeks vendors to provide VMware licensing products including vCenter Server Standard, vSphere Standard and Enterprise Plus editions, Essentials Plus Kit, Fusion, and Workstation Pro with multiple support and contract term options; blade servers compatible with HP BladeSystem c7000, Dell M1000e, and Cisco UCS 5108 enclosures featuring various Intel Xeon processor configurations and DDR4 RAM options; dual power supply 2U rackmount servers with similar processor and memory variations and 3-year or 5-year warranty options; enterprise iSCSI SAN storage solutions with minimum 4TB usable capacity expandable to 150TB or greater; Data Domain backup appliances (models DD2500 and DD2200) with maintenance services; data center switching solutions from Cisco or Extreme with redundant power supplies; 802.11ac wireless access points; VEEAM backup licenses; and specialized network hardware for Wayne RESA including Infoblox Trinzic 1415 appliances, Fortigate firewalls, F5 load balancers, and disaster recovery site equipment with specific Cisco and HP components. Proposals were due May 18, 2018 at 10:00 AM with bid opening scheduled for 10:15 AM the same day. All proposals must remain valid for 60 days from submission, with vendors required to be authorized resellers offering factory new equipment or clearly disclosing any alternatives. The evaluation committee will award to the most responsible vendor whose proposal is most advantageous considering cost, solution flexibility, vendor reputation, longevity, and financial condition. Non-selected vendors have three business days from notice of intent to award to file a formal bid protest.

Submission requirements include one original and two copies plus an electronic copy of all proposals, accompanied by a signature page, statement of qualifications, notarized ethical standards and conflict of interest affidavits, certificate of liability insurance, and assurances and certifications. Vendors must maintain workers' compensation insurance with $100,000 per person and $500,000 aggregate limits, commercial general liability of $1,000,000 per occurrence, professional liability coverage, and motor vehicle liability of $1,000,000 combined single limit. The RFP documentation does not specify set-aside designations or restrictions based on organizational type or disadvantaged enterprise status, nor does it identify incumbent vendors or existing contractors. Pricing should be submitted on a unit basis with manufacturer names and product numbers, with detailed narrative explanations of any variations from specifications to accommodate the varying needs of the 14 named consortium participants plus potential additional agencies. Wayne RESA retains the right to accept or reject proposals in whole or in part, request clarifications without price modifications, negotiate with the successful vendor, and withdraw the RFP at any time. No award value or budget range is specified in the procurement documents.