Report to Mayor and City Council
Tuesday, April 02, 2024
Consent
SUBJECT:
Title
CONSIDERATION OF APPROVAL OF CONTRACT FOR IT EQUIPMENT WITH IMPEX TECHNOLOGIES, INC. (CITY COUNCIL)
Body
I. SUMMARY
On December 14, 2023, the Purchasing Division released an Invitation for Bids IFB (No. 23-27) for IT Equipment and managed services. The IT equipment includes a pair of Palo Alto firewalls with required software, and a Nutanix Cluster including hardware, software and related installation services. The Palo Alto firewalls with required software subscriptions are required to filter and classify network traffic to support the City’s network security. The Nutanix Cluster is a hyperconverged infrastructure platform providing availability and resource scheduling for CPU, RAM, network utilization, and delivery of tiered storage to enable applications to run in the City’s on-premised private or public clouds, all operated as a single cloud. The procurement of these products and services is required for the City’s network and server environment.
The IFB closed on December 28, 2023, and four (4) bids were received, from qualified resellers for both products. IMPEX Technologies, Inc. was selected as the recommended vendor to provide the IT equipment based on demonstrated competence, the professional qualifications necessary for satisfactory performance of the required services, and a fair and reasonable price.
II. RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
1. APPROVE a contract with IMPEX Technologies, Inc. for hardware, software, maintenance and support for an amount not to exceed $233,717.97 for a total term of 3 years; and
2. AUTHORIZE the Mayor to execute the contract after approval as to form by the City Attorney.
Body
III. ALTERNATIVES
TAKE another action the City Council deems appropriate.
IV. BACKGROUND
The City of Carson is in the process of upgrading its network and server environment to replace aging servers that are unable to operate critical workloads and continue to secure the City’s network traffic.
On December 14, 2023, the Purchasing Division released an Invitation for Bids IFB (No. 23-27) for IT Equipment and managed services. The IT equipment includes a pair of Palo Alto firewalls with required software, and a Nutanix Cluster including hardware, software and related installation services.
The bid opening was held in the City Clerk’s Office on December 28, 2023. There were four (4) bid responses, detailed as follows:
Acachi LLC with a bid of: $189,247.87
IMPEX Technologies, Inc. with a bid of: $233,717.97
Questivity Inc. with a bid of: $382,981.81
Smart It Pros Inc. with a bid of: $424,909.29
A temporary IT Equipment Committee was formed to evaluate, interview, and rank the bidders. While Acachi LLC submitted the lowest bid, the bid was incomplete and therefore, was deemed non-responsive. Instead, IMPEX Technologies, Inc. was chosen by the City’s Internal IT Equipment Committee as the recommended vendor. Staff’s due diligence determined that IMPEX Technologies, Inc. meets all IFB requirements, City’s contractual terms and conditions, and the selection was made in compliance with Section 2611(c) of the City’s Purchasing Ordinance which permits the City to award professional services contracts based on demonstrated competence, the professional qualifications necessary for satisfactory performance of the required services, and a fair and reasonable price. IMPEX’s proposed costs were reasonable and within the City’s budget at $55,145.75 for equipment costs, $2,500.00 for installation costs, software licenses cost of $64,756.30, and 3-Year maintenance costs of $111,315.94, for a total cost of $233,717.97.
V. FISCAL IMPACT
The cost associated with the 3-year contract with IMPEX Technologies, Inc. is not to exceed the amount of $233,717.97. The equipment cost of $55,145.75, installation cost of $2,500.00, software license cost of $64,756.30, and first annual maintenance cost of $37,105.32 for a total of $159,509.37 are included in the current Information Technology & Security Department FY2023-24 budget. The Information Technology & Security Department will include the annual maintenance cost of $37,105.31 for the second and third year of maintenance in the proposed 2024-25 fiscal year and subsequent year.
VI. EXHIBITS
1. Contract with IMPEX Technologies, Inc. (pgs. 4 - 36)
Prepared by: Gary Carter, Director, Information Technology&Security Department