DHS-R076 Carbondale Metro Ethernet SP

The Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology (DoIT) is soliciting proposals through Request for Quote (RFQ) DHS-R076 for the procurement of fiber-based, point-to-point Metro Ethernet transport services to provide wide area network connectivity between the Department of Human Services' Carbondale facility and multiple Illinois Century Network Points of Presence throughout the state. The primary A-end location is the DHS office at 2471 W Main Street, Carbondale, Illinois 62901, which requires 100 megabits per second of bandwidth delivered via fiber optic cable, with copper and wireless services explicitly prohibited. The service must connect to 15 designated Z-end locations at ICN POPs across Illinois, including major state facilities and university system locations in Springfield, Chicago, Rockford, Peoria, Champaign, Carbondale, and other strategic points throughout the state. Vendors must deliver service inside buildings to DoIT-designated telecom rooms at both end locations and terminate service on vendor-provided switches, with all submissions required to be electronic through BidBuy. The contract requires 99.98% availability or better based on a 30-day average, guaranteed synchronous bandwidth, and continuous 24/7/365 operation. Award will be determined based on total cost of ownership, calculated by multiplying the monthly recurring charge by the service term and adding non-recurring installation costs per site location, with all pricing required to be all-inclusive with no additional taxes, fees, surcharges, or pass-through charges permitted after award. The solicitation was posted on March 10, 2026, with a due date of March 26, 2026.

The solicitation documents do not identify any set-aside designations or restrictions on the types of organizations eligible to respond. No incumbent service provider currently serves the Carbondale DHS location, representing a new service initiative. Bidders who have executed a contract with DoIT within the past twelve months for similar products or services will have the negotiated terms and conditions from that existing contract automatically apply to this solicitation without further negotiation. Bidders must complete all optional line items for additional bandwidth tiers to be considered responsive, and failure to do so will result in bid rejection; however, optional line items will not factor into the award decision except in cases of tied bids but may be utilized during the service term at the agency's discretion. The RFQ documents provided do not specify the total contract value, budget range, or award amount for this procurement. The primary site contact is Matt Pennell, reachable at matt.pennell@illinois.gov or 618-300-8395, and the site contact phone number is listed as 618-614-3891, with the QSITE ID identified as DHS-R076.