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City of Texas City

Notice of Request for Information (RFI) For Design-Build Services

Mail to:
City of Texas City Purchasing Department 1801 9th Ave North Texas City, TX 77590

City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

Table of Contents
1 - NOTICE OF INVITATION ..................................................................................................... 3 2 - REQUIRED RESPONSE INFORMATION ............................................................................ 4 3 - SCOPE OF WORK ............................................................................................................... 5 Business Model ...................................................................................................................... 5 Technical Specifications ......................................................................................................... 5 Coverage Requirements ......................................................................................................... 6 Network Management, Maintenance and Support .................................................................. 7 Available City Assets .............................................................................................................. 7 4 - EVALUATION CRITERIA...................................................................................................... 8 Management Plan 20% .................................................................................................... 8 Technical Criteria 50% ..................................................................................................... 9 Project Schedule 30% ...................................................................................................... 9 Evaluation Process ................................................................................................................. 9 Initiative Timeline .................................................................................................................... 9 5 - EXHIBITS ............................................................................................................................10 1 - City of Texas City Mega Quadrant ....................................................................................12 2 - City of Texas City Garza Park ..........................................................................................11 3 - City of Texas City Bay Street Area ...................................................................................13 4 - Fiber Layout for City Buildings ..........................................................................................16

City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

1. NOTICE OF INVITATION
This is a Request for Information (RFI) for professional services. This project will be in title Texas City Municipal Wireless Design Build. The City of Texas City would like to invite your firm to please submit responses for the following Request for Information, until 5:00 PM, Central Standard Time, Monday, March 18, 2013. One copy of the proposal must be sealed, marked RFI 2013-276 TEXAS CITY MUNICIPAL WIRELESS DESIGN BUILD and delivered to: City of Texas City Purchasing Department 1801 9th Ave North Texas City, TX 77590 In addition to electronic copy submitted by email to: wifi@texas-city-tx.org, proposers must also submit one (1) hard copy response. Hard copies will be accepted in person, by United States Mail or by private courier service. If mailed, please note RFI Response for City of Texas City Municipal Wireless Design / Build on the exterior of the packaging. Nothing will be accepted by oral communication, telephone, or facsimile transmission. Responses may be withdrawn prior to the time set for closing. Any responses received after the time set for closing will be rejected and returned. A mandatory Bidders Pre-Conference will be held 9:00 A.M., Central Standard Time, Thursday, March 7, 2013 in the City Hall Conference Room located at 1801 9th Avenue North, Texas City, Texas. City of Texas City staff will review all responsive proposals. From this review a short list will be prepared. Interviews of these firms may be requested as well as evaluation of references. The top ranked proposer may be invited to provide additional information and/or individual presentations within (14) days of the RFI closing date. Final selection of the firm with which to negotiate will be by staff recommendation to the Texas City Municipal Wireless Steering Committee. The issuance of the RFI does not obligate the City of Texas City to enter into a contract for any services. All costs related to the preparation and submission of a proposal shall be borne by the firm preparing it.

City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

2. REQUIRED RESPONSE INFORMATION


In addition to an electronic copy submitted by email, one hard copy response is required. Furthermore, all responses should include the following basic information: 1. Responses to Technical Specification section of this document. 2. Outline of project approach, work timelines, and methodology for handling issues and change, and cost over-runs. 3. List of references with telephone numbers of similar size and scope of completed design-build. 4. Project design team description, including sub consultants, with related qualification and experience information. 5. Financial information including but not limited to setup and installation costs, run and maintenance costs as well as proof of bonding capacity. This request for qualifications describes the information needed for a Phase 1 submittal, under the State of Texas Government Code for Design-Build Contracts for Facilities by governmental Entities. After Phase I submittals and selection of Consultants for further evaluation, under Phase II, the City of Texas City may request additional information from the Consultant, including demonstrated competence, safety and durability considerations, feasibility of the project as proposed, ability of Consultant to meet the July 2013 deadline, namely the opening of the Texas City Municipal Wireless capability, costing methodology and other appropriate factors including the ability to expand to other areas of the City economically. The selected Design-Build firm will have the responsibility to provide the City of Texas City with a signed and sealed set of installation documents and as-built drawings at the conclusion of the project. In addition, the selected firm will provide payment and performance bonds for all work equal to the total project cost. This bond will not provide coverage for the portion of the design-build contract that includes design services only. All work, design and installation shall meet all requirements of the International Building Codes, NEC, Texas Accessibility Standards (TAS)/Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and be of the quality and type normally experienced in the installation of municipal wireless and industry standards associated with wireless systems. The City of Texas City will select the design-build firm that presents the best value for the City of Texas City, on the basis of the selection criteria and evaluation of the submittals.

City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

3. SCOPE OF WORK
This Request for Information is to obtain information and proposals for a qualified person or firm, hereafter referred to as Consultant, to build a public access wireless local area network (Wi-Fi) enabling the public to use laptop computers, smart phones, or other suitable portable devices to access the internet. Hereafter referred to as public wireless, this network will be built and provisioned by the winning bidder. The network will be funded, owned, operated and supported by the city. The network will provide wireless internet services within the public areas as defined in the scope of this RFI. The City of Texas Citys objectives are as follows: Stimulate economic development and increase competitiveness. Promote city-wide digital inclusion, especially in low-income communities. Augment numerous other activities, past and present, consistent with the Citys vision to be a premier location for families to live, work and play.

The Consultant will provide all professional design, build, oversight and related services necessary to complete the scope of work. The Consultant will develop the necessary design documents and provide full project administrative duties as necessary for the installation of the Texas City public wireless network.

Business Model
The preferred network model would be a privately owned Wi-Fi network operated, maintained, supported and upgraded at reasonable cost to the City of Texas City. The City envisions being able to sell advertising on the landing page where users are initially logged on and/or asked to agree to terms of service.

Technical Specifications
Each proposal is required to contain technical specifications. Questions regarding the specifications may be addressed by sending an email to: wifi@texas-city-tx.org. The following is a list of the desired features sought by the City of Texas City: 1. The proposed system should be extensible and scalable; able to support additional capacity, users and functions. The city desires to see proposals which incorporate phased deployment approaches in accordance with the rollout schedule included in Exhibit 1 of this solicitation. 2. The proposal should contain provisions and/or explanations on how future features and/or applications can be added. 3. It is expected that equipment may need to be mounted on rooftops, street poles and wall mount surfaces. The Consultant will be expected to install outdoor equipment according to current city codes and applicable federal and state laws and regulations.
5 City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

4. Equipment should be able to withstand the rigors of normal Texas City weather (wide ranging temperatures, intense heat, strong winds and heavy precipitation). 5. Access points should be protected against power surges, electrical spikes and lightning. 6. Battery backup and/or solar power backup for network equipment. Eight hour interval is desired. 7. Wireless services are expected to aggregate wireless traffic back to an Internet Point of Presence (POP). Exhibit 4, Fiber Layout for City Buildings, illustrates the current network topology. Consultant should note that some equipment may be at or near bandwidth capacity. Recommendations for equipment upgrades are expected. 8. Mechanisms for fault tolerance should be in place to eliminate/mitigate single points of failure for components of the system. Reliability of 98% is desired, allowing approximately 14 hours for unplanned outages and scheduled downtime per month, total. There is some flexibility in this requirement and proposers are encouraged to explain other reasonable uptime service level commitments which may offer a best value to the City.

Coverage Requirements
While targeted coverage areas include the following locations, the City is interested in the potential to expand or deploy wireless internet services which could cover substantially the entire city. Therefore, in addition to addressing the specific hotspot areas indicated below, proposers are encouraged to also propose or explain an option for deploying over the entire city, perhaps via WiMax or other technologies. Should the Consultant recommend a phased approach, targeted hotspot areas and acceptable deployment phases are indicated. # 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 8 Area Garza Park The Doyle Convention Center (within Mega Quadrant) The Lowry Center (within Mega Quadrant) The Nessler Splash Pad (within Mega Quadrant) The Moore Memorial Public Library (within Mega Quadrant) City Hall (within Mega Quadrant) The pavilion within Nessler Park (within Mega Quadrant) Carver Park The 6th street business district (incl. Sanders Vincent) The Bay Street Park Areas at the Texas City Dike Phase 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 4 4

Maps of deployment locations are included as exhibits to this RFQ.

City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

1. Consultant should describe potential deployment approaches and related costs for incremental coverage deployments in phases. 2. The proposed system is to include connectivity for Laptops (support for standard laptop wireless devices), smart phones, tablet computers and other handheld devices in an easy and simple manner. Any proprietary mechanisms should be defined and identified in the proposal. 3. Indoor coverage within the city facilities identified in the Mega Quadrant is expected at 98% of all interior areas.

Network Management, Maintenance and Support


1. The Proposer will describe all network management, upgrade and maintenance requirements, required skillsets and related effort, and provide an estimate of annual costs (total cost of ownership).

Available City Assets


The City of Texas City will make available existing assets for the implementation of wireless networking equipment. 1. The City of Texas City owns the light poles and traffic signals within the city limits. 2. Installations of equipment on City assets must be according to current City codes and applicable federal and state laws and regulations. 3. Although a detailed installation/mounting plan for equipment is not needed with the submission of the proposal, the city will require such a plan for installation on assets prior to installation (the timeframe of such a plan is negotiable). A general proposed plan will be required to be included with the proposal. 4. The city will work with the vendor in order to help expedite the permitting process. The City of Texas City permit fees are waived. 5. The Proposer will need to submit details regarding the proposed wireless access points that are to be installed on the light poles and will be required to submit documentation and/or plans as to how these will affect wind load requirements. An explanation is also desired on acceptable wind loads. Prior installations may be cited.

City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

4. EVALUATION CRITERIA
Proposals shall be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria: 1. Responsiveness to the needs of the City, both in service and in the scope of the services offered. 2. Company profile and background including, but not limited to, financial stability, industry reputation and leadership, experience with public sector projects (similar scope) 3. The degree to which the proposal meets or exceeds the terms of the Request for Information. 4. Network design including, but not limited to, sustainability, network capacity, design, speed to implement, support for open access, reliability, durability, roaming capabilities, device support, security, commitment to performance service standards, strategy to use emerging technologies as well as scalability and adaptability. 5. Technical equipment used in design including, but not limited to, stability, industry presence, technology, upgradeability, features, functions and technical companys financial stability. 6. Cost of proposal. 7. Ability to meet stated service requirements. 8. Past performance and experience. The following evaluates the proposals:
Management Plan 20%

1. Management Plan or Organization Identify the design-build team submitting the proposal, including the name and address of the contact person representing the same, and also the names of the other firms for individuals included in the proposal. 2. Resumes of Key Professional and Managerial Personnel Resumes shall clearly identify the role that the professional and managerial personnel played in the previous design and installation projects within the last (2) years. 3. Quality Assurance Plan Provide a plan identifying how quality control will be implemented through the design and installation process. Emphasis must be placed on proper WiFi elements. 4. References Provide a list of at least (3) three similar projects (project name, description of services provided, contact person, address and phone number) for each team member for projects similar in nature and completed with at least two (2) years.

City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

Technical Criteria 50%

1. The proposer shall include with the proposal detailed descriptive literature for the equipment being offered listed in the proposal. Such literature must provide information on electrical wiring needs, space requirements, mounting options and all technical data required for a full evaluation. If technical literature provided is not sufficient for the City to evaluate the proposal, the City may request additional literature. 2. Design Analysis Submit any pertinent design analysis that demonstrates understanding of the project. 3. Installation Methods and Materials Submit a list and description of typical installation materials and methods that will be utilized on this project. 4. Best Value Design and Installation Demonstrate that the proposed design and installation methods best meet the project objectives within the established budget.
Project Schedule 30%

1. Design Schedule and Ability to Meet Schedule Provide a design schedule and demonstrate the design professionals ability to meet that schedule. 2. Installation Schedule and Ability to Meet Schedule Provide an installation schedule and demonstrate the firms ability to meet that schedule. 3. Length of Installation and Design Schedule Identify a timeline-line and work plan that best meets that need, taking into consideration normal seasonal and weather conditions.

Evaluation Process
1. Selection Committee will evaluate all proposals based upon the criteria above. 2. A short-list may be developed in case of multiple proposals. The number of proposals that will be included in the short list will depend upon the number of quality proposals which best meet the goals and objectives of the city. 3. Once the short-list has been identified, the team may contact the Proposer in order to clarify information within the proposal. 4. Consultant included in the short-list may be invited to present their proposed solution to the city and selected staff/management. 5. The city will solicit information from references that are provided in the proposal.

Initiative Timeline
February 18, 2013 March 7, 2013 March 18, 2013 May 6, 2013 July 4, 2013 RFI Issue Date Mandatory Bidders' Conference Proposals Due Issue Contract Deployment Go Live

City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

5. EXHIBITS
As described above, the City desires to deploy free public wireless internet access at the following locations:

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City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

5.1.

City of Texas City Garza Park

Garza Park, 3300 Magnolia Drive, Texas City, TX 77590 is shown below to provide locational context. The city would be mainly interested in providing public wireless access within the areas bounded in yellow.
Figure 1: Garza Park - Future Public Wireless Deployment

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City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

5.2.

City of Texas City Mega Quadrant

The city desires that public wireless be available within substantially all of the area bounded by Palmer Highway (Farm to Market 1764), 5th Ave N., and 14th and 21st streets. This Mega Quadrant includes approximately 3.6 million square feet and would encompass the library, stadium area, (potentially excluding the high school), swimming pool, park, Lowry Center, the Nessler and civic centers, pavilion, playing fields, and city hall.
Figure 2: City of Texas City "Mega Quadrant"

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City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

5.3.

Carver Park

Carver Park, 6415 Park Avenue, Texas City, TX 77590The city envisions wireless internet access at the Carver Park areas, shown below.

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City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

5.4.

City of Texas City, 6th Street Business District, including Sanders-Vincent Center

The city envisions wireless internet access along the 6th Street Business District, including the Sanders-Vincent Center, as shown below.

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City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

5.5.

City of Texas City Bay Street Area

The city envisions wireless internet access at the Bay Street Park areas, shown below.

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City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

4 - Fiber Layout for City Buildings


Illustrated below is the current network layout of fiber supporting city facilities.
Figure 3: City of Texas City Fiber Network

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City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

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City of Texas City Municipal Wireless RFI

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