Outside Plant Audit

The City of Madison, Wisconsin, is seeking a vendor to conduct a comprehensive outside plant audit of the Madison Unified Fiber Network (MUFN), a citywide underground fiber optic infrastructure. The project involves performing detailed in-field audits of approximately 187 miles of underground routes, 2,327 handholes, 663 manholes, 132 city-owned connected facilities, and up to 200 splice enclosures. Key objectives include determining individual fiber usage, conduit occupancy, and collecting critical physical information such as cable lengths, equipment types, equipment locations, and digital documentation. Vendors must demonstrate a minimum of three years of experience in fiber optic cable audit and inventory services, pass criminal background checks, and provide financial capability documentation. The RFP was issued on May 23, 2018, with questions due by June 4, 2018, answers posted June 7, 2018, and proposals due June 20, 2018, at 2:00 PM CST. Deliverables will include comprehensive GIS datasets, splice schematics and matrices, termination panel diagrams, field inspection maintenance reports, and as-built documentation.

The contract will be structured with an annual work approach, with potential for future renewals. Local vendor preference will be applied to registered local suppliers, and the City of Madison is tax-exempt. Contractors with 15 or more employees engaging in aggregate annual business of $25,000 or more must comply with the city's affirmative action ordinance. Pricing must be submitted as an all-inclusive, not-to-exceed fixed fee, covering all direct and indirect expenses including travel, equipment, and materials. Vendors are required to maintain insurance, including $1,000,000 in commercial general liability coverage. While no specific budget range is mentioned, proposers must submit labor categories and hourly rates for project staff, including managers, technicians, engineers, and project managers, with estimated annual hours for each task category. No mandatory site visits or bidders' conferences are required, though proposers may be asked to attend meetings or site visits at their own expense.