·         Before the listed deadlines, all Questions and Bids must be submitted using the on-line IFCB system. Bids submitted before the bid deadline outside of this system will be disqualified. If for some reason the system is down before the respective deadline, please email your bid to info@crwconsulting.com or fax it to 918.445.0049. Bids or questions submitted in this fashion will be disqualified if the on-line system is active at the time of submission.

·        For all requested services and/or products listed on this IFCB: proposals that include generic/encyclopedic price lists will be considered non-responsive and will be disqualified.

·         Bidder must agree to participate in USF Program (AKA “E-rate”) for the corresponding funding year.

·         Please include the correct Service Provider Identification Number (SPIN) on your bid.

·         By submitting a bid, bidder certifies that the bidder does have a valid (non-red light status) SPIN for the E-rate program at the time of submission. Should the Applicant discover that the bidder is on red light status, or if the FCC classifies the bidder as on red-light status before work is performed and invoices are paid, the contract will be null and void and the applicant will have no payment obligations to the bidder.

·         Bidder is expected to provide the lowest corresponding price per E-rate rules.  See https://www.usac.org/e-rate/service-providers/step-2-responding-to-bids/lowest-corresponding-price/ for details.

·         Contracts must not prohibit SPIN changes.

·         Bidder must agree to provide the Applicant the choice of discount methods (SPI or BEAR).

·         Bidder will be automatically disqualified if the District determines that the bidding company has offered any employee of the District any individual gift of more than $20 or gifts totaling more than $50 within a 12 month period. This does not apply to the recent FCC exemptions of the Gift Rule for the COVID pandemic.

·         All contracts awarded will be contingent upon E-rate funding and final board approval.  The applicant may choose to do all or part of the project upon funding notification.

·         All contracts awarded under this IFCB bidding process may be voluntarily renewed by the applicant, upon written notice to the provider, for five consecutive one year terms. Please include this language in your final contract.

·         All applicable fees, surcharges, and taxes must be identified on the bid. E-rate rules require the applicants to evaluate the price of eligible goods and services that will be listed on the 471 application during the competitive bidding process. Fees and surcharges that apply but are not listed on the bid will be the responsibility of the bidding company, should their bid be awarded.

·         If there is a request for Internal Connections (Category Two) equipment, or Category One equipment listed on this IFCB the applicant will accept bids for functionally equivalent equipment.

·         The winning vendor will be required to complete the USAC approved Item 21 template for the project within 7 working days after notification that the vendor has won the bid.

·         E-rate rules require applicants to evaluate the cost of eligible goods and services, and to cost-allocate out the amount for ineligible services from their funding request. If your company will be bidding internet access service, please identify the amount to be cost-allocated out for the ineligible services – email service, web hosting, content filtering, or other bundled ineligible services.

·         INTERNET ACCESS DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR: Any and all installation charges must be identified on your bid. If you submit a bid indicating that installation charges may apply without listing those charges, we will consider your bid incomplete and disqualify your bid.

·         INTERNET ACCESS DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR: Bids submitted for services to an incorrect address will be disqualified.

·         INTERNET ACCESS DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR:  Vendors who wish to bid must attend one of two mandatory site visits. Vendors who submit a bid but have not attended a meeting will be disqualified.

·         DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR INTERNAL CONNECTIONS: The applicant will not accept bids from manufacturers of equipment deemed a national security threat by the Federal Communications Commission. The list of prohibited equipment is available here: https://www.fcc.gov/supplychain/coveredlist. Vendors that submit bids that include these manufacturers will have their bids disqualified.

·         DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR INTERNAL CONNECTIONS: Vendors must complete and include the C2 Cover Page with their bid. Bids received without the cover page will be disqualified.

·         DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR INTERNAL CONNECTIONS: Applicant will not accept bids for refurbished equipment. Any bids containing refurbished equipment will be disqualified.

·         DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR INTERNAL CONNECTIONS: Service providers are required to bid an entire Project A, Project B, Project C, Project D, or Project E.  Bids for individual components of a single project will be disqualified.

·         DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR INTERNAL CONNECTIONS PROJECT D & PROJECT E: It will be the bidder’s responsibility to provide documentation about the compatibility requirements listed in this IFCB. Vendors that submit bids without documentation demonstrating the required compatibility listed in this IFCB will have their bids disqualified, unless that vendor has bid the preferred make/model number listed.

·         DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR BMIC: Service providers are required to bid the entire maintenance Project F or Project G.  Bids for individual components of a single project will be disqualified.

·         DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR BMIC: Vendors must complete and include the C2 Cover Page with their bid. Bids received without the cover page will be disqualified.

·         DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR BMIC: Maintenance bids listing only an hourly rate and not a monthly or annual total will be disqualified.  Vendors quoting an hourly rate are required to also a) confirm that you have the ability/expertise to maintain all of the equipment listed and b) propose a number of hours at a particular rate monthly to properly maintain the entire list of equipment.  Bids that contain only hourly rates, without confirmation that the company can service the list of equipment, or without a monthly total will be disqualified.

CATEGORY ONE

MANDATORY SITE VISIT

Vendors wishing to submit bids for Category One Internet Access must attend one of two mandatory site visits. The site visits will be held on 11/30/23 and 12/05/23. Both will begin at 9am. Vendors will meet at Carl Junction Junior High School, 306 Keeney Street, Carl Junction, MO 64834. Bids from vendors who did not attend either of the site visits will be disqualified.

INTERNET ACCESS

The district is requesting bids for a new internet connection terminating at 306 Keeney Street, Carl Junction, MO 64834.  Vendors should submit bids for 2GB, 3GB, 5GB, and 10GB bandwidths.  The district prefers a five year contract term.  Bids should also include the following:

·         Fiberoptic handoff.

·         253 usable public, static IP addresses (/24 network). 

·         Indicate on your bid if you own the entire circuit for Internet Access or if you must lease a portion (the last mile) from a separate provider.

·         Indicate on your bid any network resiliency measures, methods, or technologies used to provide continuous network operation.

·         If currently providing network services to the district, indicate if the new connection will be delivered over the same or different network path.

E-rate rules require applicants to evaluate the cost of eligible goods and services, and to cost-allocate out the amount for ineligible services from their funding request. If your company will be bidding internet access service, please identify the amount to be cost-allocated out for the ineligible services – email service, web hosting, content filtering, or other bundled ineligible services.

INTERNET ACCESS DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR:  Vendors who wish to bid must attend one of two

mandatory site visits. Vendors who submit a bid but have not attended a meeting will be disqualified.

INTERNET ACCESS DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR: Any and all installation charges must be identified on your bid. If you submit a bid indicating that installation charges may apply without listing those charges, we will consider your bid incomplete and disqualify your bid.

INTERNET ACCESS DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR: Bids submitted for services to an incorrect address will be disqualified.

CATEGORY TWO

INTERNAL CONNECTIONS

Carl Junction Schools is seeking bids to replace network switch hardware, wireless access points, and firewall. The District currently utilizes Aruba Networks switches and Aruba controller-based wireless hardware. The district utilizes a Palo Alto Networks firewall.

The district is seeking bids to replace a Palo Alto Networks firewall, add an additional Palo Alto Networks firewall, and all necessary licensing. The firewalls will operate in an active/active configuration with both sites concurrently operating. The District is seeking bids to include initial configuration of the active/active firewall configuration and Panorama management software. Bids for Palo Alto Networks firewall hardware are to include a 5-year subscription for Premium Support in addition to 5-year subscriptions for Advanced URL Filtering, Advanced Threat Prevention, and Advanced WildFire. URL Filtering, Threat Prevention, and WildFire are not E-rate eligible services.

All proposals must maintain compatibility and support with existing Aruba wireless hardware including Aruba wireless controllers, Aruba access points, Aruba network switches, Aruba transceivers, and other network equipment and cabling. All proposals are to include required items to comprise a usable solution including materials, mounting hardware, licensing, activation, initial configuration, testing/certification, and any other related fees. Please indicate any deviations or recommendations in your bid.

IC PROJECT A (FIREWALL)

Please include initial configuration for two firewalls in your bid.  No other installation, activation, or initial configuration is needed.

NOTE: We are requesting firewall support and subscriptions on this IFCB, which sometimes may be categorized as BMIC or MIBS by USAC (the BMIC and MIBS boxes on the 470 have been checked to cover this scenario).

IC PROJECT B (EDU-210)

IC PROJECT C (EDU-220)

IC PROJECT D (SWITCHES)

No installation, activation, or initial configuration is needed.

NOTE: We are requesting switch licenses on this IFCB, which sometimes may be categorized as BMIC or MIBS by USAC (the BMIC and MIBS boxes on the 470 have been checked to cover this scenario).

COMPATIBILITY REQUIREMENT – PROJECT D

Switches and transceivers mut be compatible with existing Aruba/HPE switch infrastructure.

DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR INTERNAL CONNECTIONS PROJECT D & PROJECT E: It will be the bidder’s responsibility to provide documentation about the compatibility requirements listed in this IFCB. Vendors that submit bids without documentation demonstrating the required compatibility listed in this IFCB will have their bids disqualified, unless that vendor has bid the preferred make/model number listed.

IC PROJECT E (WAPs)

No installation, activation, or initial configuration is needed.

NOTE: We are requesting WAP licenses on this IFCB, which sometimes may be categorized as BMIC or MIBS by USAC (the BMIC and MIBS boxes on the 470 have been checked to cover this scenario).

COMPATIBILITY REQUIREMENT – PROJECT E

Wireless equipment must be fully compatible with existing Aruba wireless controllers.

DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR INTERNAL CONNECTIONS PROJECT D & PROJECT E: It will be the bidder’s responsibility to provide documentation about the compatibility requirements listed in this IFCB. Vendors that submit bids without documentation demonstrating the required compatibility listed in this IFCB will have their bids disqualified, unless that vendor has bid the preferred make/model number listed.

BASIC MAINTENANCE OF INTERNAL CONNECTIONS

The District is seeking a manufacturer’s support contract.

BMIC PROJECT F (FIREWALL)

BMIC PROJECT G (WIRELESS)

DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR BMIC: Service providers are required to bid the entire maintenance Project F or Project G.  Bids for individual components of a single project will be disqualified.

DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR BMIC: Vendors must complete and include the C2 Cover Page with their bid. Bids received without the cover page will be disqualified.

DISQUALIFICATION FACTOR BMIC: Maintenance bids listing only an hourly rate and not a monthly or annual total will be disqualified.  Vendors quoting an hourly rate are required to also a) confirm that you have the ability/expertise to maintain all of the equipment listed and b) propose a number of hours at a particular rate monthly to properly maintain the entire list of equipment.  Bids that contain only hourly rates, without confirmation that the company can service the list of equipment, or without a monthly total will be disqualified.