Wi-Fi/Switch Upgrade and UPS Installation

Vanguard Academy Charter, a Utah-based educational institution located in Salt Lake County, is issuing a Request for Proposal (RFP Solicitation #VAN 2026-01) for the complete redesign and installation of wireless infrastructure, network switches, uninterruptible power supplies (UPS), and firewall equipment across three West Valley City locations. The project encompasses Site 1 (Vanguard Academy Main at 2650 Decker Lake Lane), a 75,000-square-foot, two-story building with 55+ rooms requiring support for approximately 1,000 concurrent wireless devices with peak capacity of 450 devices in large gathering spaces; Site 2 (Vanguard Academy Lakepoint at 2835 Decker Lake Drive), a third-floor location requiring support for approximately 150 devices with 100-device peak capacity; and Site 3 (Vanguard Academy Middle School at 2691 Decker Lake Lane), a 46,000-square-foot, one-story facility with 40+ rooms requiring approximately 500 devices with 300-device peak capacity in shared cafeteria and meeting spaces. Vendors must replace existing Ruckus wireless access points and end-of-life Cisco SG500 network switches with modern, cloud-based managed solutions compatible with Meraki firewalls and featuring SD-WAN and Active Directory integration, with all work completed between July 1 and August 12, 2026. Required qualifications include mandatory USAC registration with current SPIN/498 IDs, completion of facility walkthroughs within 14 days of RFP publication, submission of detailed project timelines with clear milestones, and certification of ability to meet the August 12, 2026 deadline. The RFP evaluation process comprises three stages: Stage 1 mandatory pass/fail requirements for documentation and facility completion; Stage 2 technical scoring (75% of evaluation weight, 525 maximum points) across six weighted criteria including ability to meet requirements (25 points), compatibility with existing systems (25 points), solution features and quality (20 points), business impact and integration simplicity (15 points), value-added features and scalability (10 points), and vendor qualifications and experience (5 points) with a required minimum threshold of 75% (393.8 points) to advance; and Stage 3 cost evaluation (25% weight, 263 maximum points) calculated on a sliding scale favoring the lowest-cost proposer. Proposals are due 28 days after Form 470 posting on the USAC website, with questions submitted through the Utah Procurement Proposal Place (U3P) by 14 days after RFP opening, and contract execution prohibited until day 29 following posting.

The procurement documents do not indicate any set-aside designations or restrictions limiting competition to specific categories of organizations, including disadvantaged enterprises, suggesting this is open to all qualified vendors meeting USAC requirements. The project requires integration with existing Ruckus wireless infrastructure and replacement of Cisco SG500 network switches, indicating vendors must demonstrate compatibility with legacy systems during transition. The contract includes five years of hardware support, software licensing, and maintenance services with all solutions required to meet USAC E-Rate program requirements and strict quality-of-service standards including latency less than 20 milliseconds, packet loss less than 0.1%, and 99.99% network availability. Vendors must provide two cold spare access points and one cold spare switch as part of the deliverables. Pricing must include detailed cost breakdowns for implementation fees, hardware procurement (new equipment only, with no refurbished items permitted), ongoing transmission and maintenance fees, staff training, documentation, and contingency allowances; Vanguard reserves the right to reject bids exceeding USAC-awarded funding levels. While specific budget or award values are not listed in the procurement documents, the total overall cost derived from the required cost proposal form serves as the basis for cost evaluation and point allocation in the selection process.