ORDINANCE approving and authorizing agreements between City of Houston and (1) CDW GOVERNMENT, LLC, and (2) NETSYNC NETWORK SOLUTIONS, INC to provide Products, Software, Maintenance, and Professional Services relating to Cisco-Branded Equipment for Houston Information Technology Services; providing a maximum contract amount - 3 Years with 2 one-year options - $51,393,143.00 - General, Enterprise and Other Funds 

Request for Proposals received on March 16, 2023, for P11-T32494 - Approve an ordinance awarding contracts to (1) CDW Government, LLC (CDWG) and (2) Netsync Network Solutions (Netsync) in the maximum contract amount of $51,393,143.00 to provide products, software, maintenance, and professional services relating to Cisco-branded equipment for Houston Information Technology Services and various departments.

Specific Explanation:

 The Chief Information Officer and the Chief Procurement Officer recommend that City Council approve an ordinance awarding a three (3) year contract with two (2) one-year renewal option years for a total term of five (5) years to (1) CDW Government, LLC (CDWG) and (2) Netsync Network Solutions in the maximum contract amount of $51,393,143.00 to provide products, software, maintenance, support, and professional services relating to Cisco-branded equipment for Houston Information Technology Services (HITS) and various departments. This maximum contract amount request is intended to cover the initial term of the agreement and HITS plans to return to City Council for additional spending authority for the remaining agreement renewal terms.

 Cisco is the City of Houston’s standardized platform for network data, voice communications, and compute infrastructure. Contractors will provide products, software, maintenance, and support relating to Cisco-branded equipment. Contractors will also provide services, including installation services, managed services, and other professional services for the network, network security, voice, contact centers, compute (servers/storage), data center, and collaboration infrastructure. The scope of work requires the contractors to provide all labor, material, and supervision necessary to perform this support.

The Request for Proposal (RFP) was advertised in accordance with the State of Texas bid laws and as a result, proposals were received from CDWG, Netsync, and DataVox, Inc. The Evaluation Committee consisted of employees from Houston Airport Systems, Houston Public Works, and HITS.

The proposals were evaluated based upon the following criteria:
1. Responsiveness of Proposal
2. Technical Competence
3. Price Proposal

CDWG and Netsync received the highest overall scores and were deemed the best qualified to perform the requirements as outlined in the RFP.  Contracts awards is as follows:

This item will be presented to the Transportation, Technology, and Infrastructure Committee on September 7, 2023.

M/WBE Participation:
This contract was awarded with a 12.00% M/WBE participation goal. Below is a breakdown of participation by each vendor.

CDWG submitted a MWBE participation plan calculating to 12% MWBE participation.

Netsync submitted a MWBE participation plan calculating to 12% MWBE participation.

Pay or Play:
The proposed contract requires compliance with the City’s “Pay or Play” Ordinance regarding health benefits for employees of City Contractors. In this case, CDWG and Netsync have elected to do both, to pay into the Contractor Responsibility Fund and to provide health benefits to eligible employees in compliance with City policy.

Hire Houston First:

Hire Houston First does not apply to this expenditure, because it may involve the use of federal funds and is subject to specific procurement rules of the federal government.

Fiscal Note:

• Funding for this item is included in the FY2024 Adopted Budget. Therefore, no Fiscal Note is required as stated in the Financial Policies.

• No Fiscal Note is required on grant  funds.
  
  

_________________________________         _____________________________________

Jedediah Greenfield                                          Lisa Kent

Chief Procurement Officer                               Chief Information Officer

Finance/Strategic Procurement Division       Houston Information Technology Services

$33,221,893.00- Central Service Revolving Fund (1002)
$  4,750,000.00 - General Fund (1000)

$  2,261,250.00 - Federal Government Grant Fund (5000)

$  4,060,000.00 - HAS Revenue Fund (8001)

$  7,100,000.00 - Water & Sewer System Operating Fund (8300)

$51,393,143.00 - Total