Smart Vending Equipment - Canteen

The Colorado Department of Corrections is requesting proposals for high-security automated "Smart Cooler" vending equipment for correctional facilities statewide under RFP 2027000008, with written inquiries due July 23, 2026 and proposals due August 18, 2026. Offerors must comply with Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) standards, undergo NCIC background checks, and meet comprehensive insurance requirements including $1,000,000 minimum general liability and $1,000,000 protected information liability coverage.

The scope centers on AI-vision Smart Cooler vending systems delivering 24/7 refrigerated fresh food and beverage access with 99% or higher transaction accuracy. Offerors must provide hardware with frozen, refrigerated, and room-temperature storage capacity; proprietary management software with inventory tracking and dynamic pricing; payment processing integration with PCI DSS compliance; and 24/7 technical support. Warranty requirements are 3-year limited coverage for compressor/cooling systems and 1-year full replacement for electronics and AI hardware. All software operations and storage must be U.S.-based. Offerors must submit structured tiered pricing schedules for volume thresholds of 5–10 units, 11–25 units, and 25+ units, with pricing firm for 24 months from pilot launch. The RFP strongly prefers all-inclusive pricing bundling software licensing, system support, maintenance dashboards, and future software updates into upfront hardware costs, minimizing recurring SaaS fees.

The Phase 1 pilot contract runs October 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, with renewal options for up to four additional one-year periods, not to exceed five years. CDOC reserves the right to award to multiple offerors and negotiate with selected vendors. Evaluation criteria include hardware security and AI technology, software and management platforms, maintenance and warranty, cost-effectiveness, vendor responsibility based on financial and personnel resources, and past performance. Offerors must demonstrate at least three relevant projects from the past five years and submit evidence of financial standing. Proposals must be submitted electronically through bidnetdirect.com and include Statement of Work response, required offeror information, W-9, price proposal, contract performance disclosure, and non-conflict of interest certification. Questions are due July 23, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. MST, with responses posted July 28, 2026. Notice of intent to award is estimated July 31, 2026.