RFP Mainframe Outsourcing

Agency:	State of Vermont
State:	Vermont
Type of Government:	State & Local
Category:	16 - Aircraft Components and Accessories
Posted:	Feb 12, 2024
Due:	Apr 16, 2024
Publication URL:	To access bid details, please log in.

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Department of Buildings and General Services

Office of Purchasing & Contracting

133 State Street, 5th Floor | Montpelier VT 05633-8000

802-828-2211 phone |802-828-2222 fax

http://bgs.vermont.gov/purchasing

Agency of Administration

SEALED BID

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

Mainframe Outsourcing

Expected RFP Schedule Summary:

ISSUE DATE

QUESTIONS DUE

ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS POSTED

RFP RESPONSES DUE BY

SELECTION NOTIFICATION

INDEPENDENT REVIEW COMPLETED

PROJECT STARTS

01/19/2024

02/02/2024

02/09/2024

04/16/2024

05/14/2024

TBD

PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT ALL NOTIFICATIONS, RELEASES, AND ADDENDUMS ASSOCIATED

WITH THIS RFP WILL BE POSTED AT:

http://www.bgs.state.vt.us/pca/bids/bids.php

THE STATE WILL MAKE NO ATTEMPT TO CONTACT INTERESTED PARTIES WITH UPDATED

INFORMATION. IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF EACH BIDDER TO PERIODICALLY CHECK THE

ABOVE WEBPAGEFOR ANY AND ALL NOTIFICATIONS, RELEASES AND ADDENDUMS

ASSOCIATED WITH THIS RFP.

STATE CONTACT:

TELEPHONE:

E-MAIL:

FAX:

Roland Ortiz

(802) 371-8987

roland.ortiz@vermont.gov

(802) 828-2222

1. OVERVIEW:

1.1. SCOPE AND BACKGROUND: the Agency of Digital Services (ADS), on behalf of the Agency of Human

Services (AHS), the Agency of Transportation (AOT), and the Department of Labor (DOL), hereinafter the

“State” is seeking to establish a contract with a single qualified company that can provide IBM Mainframe

Outsourcing to the State. The State’s existing Mainframes and Mainframe Applications are in the

Maintenance and Operation (M&O) phase of their lifecycles, and as a result this “lift and shift”

procurement will not include any material application development scope of work.

This RFP provides details on what is required to submit a Proposal for the Work, how the State will

evaluate the Proposals, and what will be required of the Contractor performing the Work. If a suitable

offer is made in response to this RFP, ADS may enter into a contract (the Contract) to have the selected

Vendor (the Contractor) perform all or part of the Work.

1.1.1. Executive Summary: In 2018, the State outsourced AHS\AOT mainframe operations to reduce

operational costs, decrease capital costs, improve operating performance and acquire innovative

ideas. In 2020 the contract resulting from the 2018 procurement was amended to add DOL’s

mainframe to the overall outsource solution. This RFP is being issued for the same mainframe

outsource services initially acquired in 2018 and extended in 2020, to remain in compliance with

Bulletin 3.5 that establishes the general policy and standards for soliciting, awarding, processing,

executing and overseeing contracts, as well as managing contract compliance.

In this RFP for Mainframe Outsourcing, the ability to reduce the State’s costs when consumption of

mainframe resources decreases is an important outcome. That is, several existing Mainframe

Applications have active modernization projects, so the State expects these applications to be

decommissioned during the term of the Contract.

Furthermore, the State’s current Mainframe Solution is mission critical to the services that the State

provides to its customers. As a result, it is even more important to ensure that any transition resulting

from this RFP is done on a timely basis and does not result in any interruption of service to the

customers that the State serves.

1.1.2. Procurement Schedule: Page 1 documents the critical pre-award events for the procurement. All

dates are subject to change at the State’s discretion.

CONTRACT PERIOD: The Contract arising from this RFP will be the period of implementation services,

plus up to five years for annual operating costs (maintenance and service). The State may consider an

option to include the ability to renew for up to two additional twelve-month periods.

SINGLE POINT OF CONTACT: All communications concerning this RFP are to be addressed in writing

to the State Contact listed on the front page of this RFP. Actual or attempted contact with any other

individual from the State concerning this RFP is strictly prohibited and may result in disqualification.

1.2. BIDDERS’ CONFERENCE: A bidders’ conference will not be held remotely at the date and time

indicated on the front page of this RFP.

1.3. QUESTION AND ANSWER PERIOD: Any bidder requiring clarification of any section of this RFP or

wishing to comment on any requirement of the RFP must submit specific questions in writing no later than

the deadline for question indicated on the first page of this RFP. Questions may be e-mailed to the point

of contact on the front page of this RFP. Questions or comments not raised in writing on or before the last

day of the question period are thereafter waived. At the close of the question period a copy of all

questions or comments and the State's responses will be posted on the State’s web site

http://www.bgs.state.vt.us/pca/bids/bids.php . Every effort will be made to post this information as soon as

possible after the question period ends, contingent on the number and complexity of the questions.

1.4. CHANGES TO THIS RFP: Any modifications to this RFP will be made in writing by the State through the

issuance of an Addendum to this RFP and posted online at http://www.bgs.state.vt.us/pca/bids/bids.php .

Modifications from any other source are not to be considered.

1.5. SOURCE OF FUNDS:

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Socioeconomic affirmative steps under 2 C.F.R. § 200.321 If using applicable federal funds

Socioeconomic affirmative steps under 2 C.F.R. § 200.321 affirmative steps must include at least the

following six steps:

1. Placing qualified small and minority businesses and women’s business enterprises on

solicitation lists;

2. Assuring that small and minority businesses and women’s business enterprises are solicited

whenever they are potential sources;

3. Dividing total requirements, when economically feasible, into smaller tasks or quantities to

permit maximum participation by small and minority businesses, and women’s business

enterprises;

4. Establishing delivery schedules, where the requirement permits, which encourage participation

by small and minority businesses, and women’s business enterprises;

5. Using the services and assistance, as appropriate, of such organizations as the Small Business

Administration and the Minority Business Development Agency of the Department of

Commerce; and

6. Requiring the prime/general contractor, if subcontracts are to be let, to take the same

affirmative steps as listed in numbers 1 through 5.

If a bidder requires assistance in preparing their proposal or needs guidance on socioeconomic

certifications, the bidder may contact the Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC). PTAC

specializes in helping small businesses navigate the documentation associated with State and Federal

procurement. Their website is: https://accd.vermont.gov/economic-development/programs/ptac

2. Current State Description:

2.1. Existing / Current State Environment: Data Center and Networking Overview: See Figure 1 for a high-level

current state data center and networking overview.

Figure 1: Current State High Level Data Center Environments

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Figure 1 is a conceptual view that abstracts away details that are not related to this procurement (e.g., the

State has a primary and secondary on-premises data center). State users log into a Mainframe Application

using terminal emulation software and Virtual Private Network (VPN) connection. State users that are

connected to the State Network can also print documents such as notices to secure printers at various

State offices. The Mainframe Solution interfaces with other State Solutions (e.g., Noticing Solution) and with

external organizations (e.g., IRS, SSA, State banks, etc…) using various file exchange protocols (e.g.

SFTP) and software tools (e,g., EntireX, Cyberfusion). See Appendix 6 for a listing of current solution

interfaces. The 95% monthly average Internet bandwidth utilization is approximately 8 megabits per

second (Mbsp).

2.2. Mainframe Solution Overview: For a more detailed view of the AHS\AOT and DOL mainframe solutions

see Appendix 1. The AHS\AOT mainframe is running IBM’s z/OS operating system, while the DOL

mainframe is running IBM’s VSE (Virtual Storage Extended) operating system. A listing of existing

hardware by mainframe solution can be found in Appendix 2 – Hardware Profiles. A listing of existing IBM

and third-party software used as part of the mainframe solution can be found in Appendix 3 – Mainframe

Software Profiles.

The State spent considerable time and resources in documenting the hardware and software profiles to

ensure accuracy but note that the State would expect a new Mainframe Outsource vendor to validate this

information to ensure accuracy and completeness.

2.3. State Mainframe Applications: Table 1 provides a listing of the main Mainframe Applications that are

currently running on the State’s Outsourced mainframe solutions.

Table 1. State Mainframe Application

Mainframe

Solution

AHS\AOT

DOL

Application Name

AHS-ACCESS

AOT-DMV

AOT-STARS

VABS

Application Description

AHS Healthcare and Economic

Services Enrollment and Eligibility

System

AOT DMV’s main CRM\ERP

solution

AOT Accounting Solution

DOL’s main benefits system (e.g.,

unemployment insurance)

Estimated MIPS

consumption

113 (75% of 150 total

MIPS)

4 (12% of 37, 113+37 =

150 total MIPS )

33 (88% of 37)

15 (of 34 total MIPS)

DOL

CAT

DOL’s Tax System

15 (of 34 total MIPS)

DOL

FARS

DOL Accounting Solution

4 (of 34 total MIPS)

2.3.1. ACCESS Application:

Since ACCESS (A Central Computerized Enforcement Service System) is the State’s largest and

most complex mainframe application, we will provide more details on its functionality. ACCESS is an

integrated system used to determine, track, and report eligibility for healthcare and economic benefit

programs.

The ACCESS application provides the following functionality:

• Case Management, Eligibility and Enrollment, and a Business Rules Engine

• Data warehouse, including version control and history records for all clients, benefit issuance

history;

• Master Person Index (MPI) which is shared among all programs supported by ACCESS;

• Identity verification and indexing;

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• Overpayment and underpayment remediation systems;

• Billing systems for Department Vermont Health Access (DVHA) Premium bills;

• Client correspondence systems for all programs containing automated and manual client

notifications;

• Overpayment and underpayment remediation systems;

• Reporting functionality for a large variety of online and external reports generated on a daily,

weekly, monthly, or annual basis which support these programs.

A component of ACCESS is a benefit issuance program supporting multiple payment types including

physical check, direct deposit, and EBT benefits in food or cash formats. ACCESS provides client

management, including but not limited to Client Sanctions, Worker case notifications, Automated

closures, Automated verification requests, Provider physician assignment and tracking, and built-in

warnings – including family violence. ACCESS contains accounting functionality to track money

received from clients, and money issued to clients.

ACCESS contains quality control processes including auditing, case sampling, and access auditing

logs (including full history of worker actions). ACCESS contains role-based permissions, where

access can be enabled to restricted/read only/full permissions, as well as restrictions based on

functionality, data sensitivity (such as FTI, SSA, PHI, PII), or on an individual case basis. ACCESS

has the capability to perform online immediate, or large-scale batch processing. ACCESS has built in

cost allocation features for the various programs it supports.

ACCESS resides on an IBM mainframe at the State’s outsourced mainframe hosting data center. It is

built on a zOS mainframe, and utilizes NATURAL as the programming language, and ADABAS as the

database. ACCESS was first deployed in 1983 and mainly leverages and utilizes Software AG

products such as, Adabas, EntireX, Natural, and Event Replicator. Software AG’s ADABAS data

management system is hard coded, proprietary, and considered a monolithic architecture. See

Appendix 2 and 3 for details on the State’s current state for both hardware and software.

Currently, the State’s M&O system development staff primarily support the ACCESS mainframe

application but the State’s current Mainframe Outsource partner has also provided limited ad hoc

application development support.

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TITLE	QUESTIONS DUE	ANSWERS POSTED	DUE DATE	NO POSTING AFTER
RFP Mainframe Outsourcing Bidder Response Form Appendices 1-8	02/02/2024 04:30PM	MF RFP Answers 12Feb2024. (02/12/2024)	04/16/2024 04:30PM

RFP Mainframe Outsourcing

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See also