RFP 27-26 TMS & CAT Platform

The City of Somerville, Massachusetts, is soliciting proposals under RFP 27-26 for a Translation Management System and Computer Aided Translation platform to support its Office of Language and Communications Access, with proposals due November 25, 2026 at 2:00 PM EST and questions due November 11, 2026 at 2:00 PM EST. The procurement is governed by Massachusetts General Law Chapter 30B and the City's standard contract general conditions.

The City seeks a system to manage multilingual translation for a population where 30% speak a language other than English at home. The City translated approximately 3 million words in FY26 and estimates 4,500 translated documents, with requests increasing fourfold over four years. Responses must address five requirement categories: System/Workflows/Automations, Training and Technical Support, Users/Roles/Permissions, Data Security, and Invoicing/Reporting/Analytics. Proposers must provide use case examples from government organizations of similar size and a video demonstration of no more than 15 minutes. Required integrations include Canva and Drupal. Vendors must comply with the Living Wage Ordinance, which sets a minimum hourly wage of $18.85 as of July 1, 2026, the Somerville Wage Theft Ordinance, the responsible employer ordinance, and OSHA citation disclosure requirements.

Pricing must include annual subscription costs, per-word rates at 3, 4, and 6 million words annually, per-user costs with a minimum of 20 users, AI usage, bitext generation, file conversion, Canva and Drupal integration, human translator pool rates if applicable, and onboarding, training, and technical support. Prices must remain firm for 90 days after proposal opening and for the full contract period. Sealed proposals require separate technical and price envelopes.

The contract period runs January 1, 2027 through December 31, 2027, with an optional two-year renewal and a mandatory 90-day trial period during which the City may terminate if requirements are not met. Proposals are evaluated against ratings of Highly Advantageous, Advantageous, Not Advantageous, or Unacceptable. Award is anticipated December 30, 2026.