Network Switches - Jones Wheat Primary School

The Decatur County School System is issuing a Request for Proposals (RFP) to upgrade network switches and battery backup units at Jones-Wheat Primary School located at 1401 E. Shotwell Street in Bainbridge, Georgia. The procurement requires the replacement of existing Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise network switches with seven 48-port network switches featuring PoE support, 10Gbit/s SFP+ ports, and stacking functionality, along with direct attached stacking cables, SFP+ transceivers, CAT6 patch cables, and nine 1500VA uninterruptible power supplies. The selected vendor must perform all installation and configuration work using in-house licensed personnel, provide perpetual management licenses without cloud-based service requirements, offer manufacturer warranty coverage during the funding year, deliver on-site warranty service, and maintain an engineer within four hours of Bainbridge for service calls. Evaluation criteria are weighted as follows: pricing at 40 percent, technical qualifications at 30 percent, in-area engineer capability at 20 percent, and prior E-Rate experience with DCBOE at 10 percent. The RFP was released on February 13, 2026, with proposals due by March 16, 2026, at 2:00 PM EST; vendors may schedule site visits by contacting Jason Logue, Director of Technology, at jlogue@dcboe.com.

All vendors must meet specific federal and state certification requirements, including debarment certification, E-Rate service provider certification, and federal work authorization compliance under Georgia law, and must submit a SPIN number with their bid. The project is funded entirely through the E-Rate program for the 2026-27 funding year, contingent upon receipt of a Funding Commitment Decision Letter from the Schools and Libraries Division (SLD). Vendors must accept Service Provider Invoice (SPI) billing methodology, whereby they bill DCBOE only for the local matching funds portion and invoice the SLD for the non-discount amount. No set-aside designations for disadvantaged enterprises are specified in the RFP documentation. The procurement is replacing existing Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise infrastructure, requiring integration with current network architecture across two main distribution frames and four intermediate distribution frames. No specific budget range or award value is disclosed in the available documentation.