Town of Hooksett Administration Department Dean E. Shankle Jr. December 15, 2017 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL RFP 17-19 Proposal for Telephone Service Acceptance Date: 10:00 a.m. Friday, January 19, 2018 Sealed bid proposals, plainly marked, Proposal for Telephone Service #17-19 on the outside of the mailing envelope as well as the sealed bid envelope, addressed to the Administration Department, Town Hall, 35 Main Street, Hooksett, New Hampshire, 03106, will be accepted until Friday, January 19, 2018 @10:00 a.m. when all bids will be publicly opened and read aloud. Bid packages may be obtained from the Town s web site: www.hooksett.org, by contacting the Administration Department at the above address, or by calling Nick Germain at (603) 485-8472. The Town of Hooksett reserves the right to reject any or all bids, to waive technical or legal deficiencies, and to accept any bid that it may deem to be in the best interest of the Town.
Inquiries Inquiries pertaining to the request for proposal must cite the RFP title and acceptance date and be directed to the Town Administrator, Dean E. Shankle Jr., at Dshankle@hooksett.org. Competition It is the Town s intent that this RFP shall permit competition. It shall be the respondent s responsibility to advise the Town Administrator, Dean E. Shankle Jr. at Dshankle@hooksett.org in writing if any language, requirement, specification etc., or any combination thereof, inadvertently restricts or limits the requirements stated in this RFP to a single source. Such notifications must be received not later than ten (10) days prior to the proposal acceptance date. Introduction The Town of Hooksett, NH seeks proposals from qualified telecommunications companies to provide telephone service and/or upgrades to the current telephone system. The Town of Hooksett is looking to streamline its telephone system to reduce costs and allow for future growth. This includes service using the Town s existing infrastructure or with infrastructure upgrades. Applicants may bid on all or part of this RFP and may submit multiple options for the Town to choose from. The Town reserves the right to select multiple vendors, multiple options from one or more vendors, and/or negotiate services with the winning bidder(s). Bidders must include a listing of all charges for services including installation charges, fees, applicable taxes and surcharges. Bids must state the term of the contract. Multiple bids for different terms (e.g. 1 year, 2 years, 3 years) are acceptable and encouraged. Each bidder must provide a proposed installation and cutover plan. Please describe how the solution is designed to tolerate hardware failures and describe how the solution ensures maximum system uptime. Description of Current Technology: The Town of Hooksett owns all the phones and POE switches. Town Hall - 35 Main Street One T1 line for VIOP (VIOP system is for Town Hall and Public Works) 23 Polycom phones (15 with voice mail; 8 without voice mail) 7 copper lines used for faxes/alarms; 1 for TTY line 2
Public Works 210 West River Road 5 Polycom phones (2 with voicemail; 3 without voice mail) 4 copper lines use for faxes/alarm Transfer Station 210 West River Road 3 copper lines for phones/faxes/alarm Parks Building 45 Main Street 1 copper line for phone Safety Center 15 Legends Drive 20 copper lines use for phones/faxes/alarm Fire Station 1 1 Riverside Street 3 copper lines for phone/faxes Old Town Hall 16 Main Street 5 copper lines for alarms Additional considerations include: Local and Long Distance service After hours support for the Safety Center System support for future growth The winning bidder will coordinate with other telecommunications vendors to ensure proper transfer of calling capabilities from old services to those delivered through this RFP. 1) Background The Town of Hooksett is home to an estimated 14,000 residents and is located in south-central New Hampshire. To meet the needs of the community, the Town must be able perform its duties while keeping costs at a minimum. Any savings realized by restructuring telephone services will help maintain or lower the tax rate to residents and businesses. 2) Specifications For each service bid on, applicants will provide a fee schedule detailing cost per call/cost per minute/cost per usage charges and all standard monthly charges per each service. Any setup, installation, and equipment charges should be listed separately, if applicable. Additionally, the bid should include costs to add and delete telephone lines as the Town may increase or decrease usage as needed. Proposals must also include hardware and software specifications where appropriate, proposed configuration of the system(s), and service fees. Proposals that include infrastructure 3
upgrades should include an estimate of when the Town will break-even as a result of yearly cost savings. 3) Vendor Qualifications Applicants must show that they have been in business for more than three (3) years and shall not be engaged in bankruptcy proceedings. Applicants must also provide a list of not less than three municipal customer references. 4) Instructions a) Submission Applicants will provide two (2) copies of their proposal in the proposal container. Pricing must be inclusive, clear, and concise, including such other information as requested or required. Be sure the proposal container is completely and properly identified. The face of the container shall indicate the bidder s name, the title of the RFP (Proposal for Telephone Services #17-19), and the acceptance date and time. Proposals must be received by the Town of Hooksett ON or BEFORE the hour specified on the acceptance date. Proposals may be either mailed to Dean E Shankle, Jr., Town Administrator, 35 Main Street, Hooksett, NH 03106 or hand delivered to the Hooksett Town Hall, 35 Main Street, Hooksett, NH, Attention: Dean E. Shankle Jr. Town Administrator. b) Reservation of Rights The Town of Hooksett reserves the right to reject all or any part of any or all proposals, to waive technical or legal deficiencies, and to accept any proposal that it deems to be in the best interest of Town. c) Firm Pricing Proposed fees must be firm for Town acceptance for 365 days from acceptance date of proposals. Pricing must be inclusive, clear, and concise, including such other information as requested or required. Pricing can then be modified by mutual agreement as to additional work and compensation. d) Basis for Award In reviewing proposals, the Town will carefully weigh: (1) Price. (2) Ability to meet Town needs. (3) Current customer references. (4) System capacity for future growth. (5) Any other qualifications/criteria as deemed appropriate by the Town Administrator. 5) Submission Requirements 4
The proposal should address all the points outlined in the request for proposals. The proposal should be prepared simply and economically, providing a straightforward, concise description of the firm s capabilities to satisfy the requirements of the request for proposals. Please include a clear table of contents at the start of the proposal with page numbers including the section and page number of the proposed bid pricing. While additional data may be presented, the following subjects and questions must be addressed: a) Name, address, telephone number, fax number, and e-mail address of the company. b) Name of contact person and telephone number for follow-up purposes. c) Narrative including the qualifications of the company and municipal experience. d) Narrative explaining hardware and software upgrades, if applicable. e) Has the company been in bankruptcy, reorganization or receivership in the last five years? If so please explain current status. f) Has the company been disqualified or terminated by any public agency or Town? If so please explain under what circumstances this disqualification or termination occurred. END OF REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL 5