U.S. Information Agency, Office of Contracts, 301 4TH STREET SW, Room M27, Washington, DC 20547

59 -- DIGITAL SIGNAL PROCESSORS (SWITCHES) & CONTROLLING SOFTWARE SOL IA0300-S9234968-KSR DUE 091799 POC Contact Point/Contracting Officer: Karen S. Rose, M/KC, Contracting Officer, Telephone: (202) 205-9030; Facsimile: (202) 205-5466. E-MAIL: Click here to contact the Contracting Officer via, krose@usia.gov. The U.S. Information Agency intends to solicit, negotiate, and award a firm-fixed-price (FFP) contract on a non-competitive basis to Broadcast Information Technology Services, Inc. (BITS) to provide, install, maintain, and upgrade (if appropriate) the hardware (including spare parts) and controlling software for up to seven (7) commercially available Digital Signal Processors (i.e., DSP switches) that will be used at designated International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB) domestic (i.e., Florida) and overseas (i.e., Munich, Kuwait, Prague, etc.) transmitting station locations. IBB presently plans to initially procure two (2) DSP switches and associated spare parts, software, installation, maintenance, and possible upgrades in the base contract; and up to five (5) additional DSP switches and associated spare parts, software, installation, maintenance, and possible upgrades as unilateral IBB "options" to the base contract over a multi-year period. The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition that is applicable to this proposed procurement is FAR Subpart 6.302-1(a)(2), 41 U.S.C. 253 (c)(1), which states: "When the supplies or services required by the agency are available from only one responsible source, and no other type of supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements, full and open competition need not be provided for." The specific and unique functional requirements for the DSP switches and controlling software that necessitate this non-competitive procurement are stated herein as follows. The DSP switches shall have the capability to take stereo or dual-mono-channel Audio Engineering Society/European Broadcast Union (AES/EBU) digital inputs, splitting the channels into their individual digital mono-channel components, and switching the digital mono-channels and recombining them into newly formed stereo or dual-mono-channel AES/EBU outputs. The DSP switches shall have analog audio input capability and analog to digital conversion of the analog inputs into the AES/EBU standard. Analog audio inputs shall be switched digitally in the DSP switches, and the DSP switches shall have the capability to combine these analog audio inputs with AES/EBU digital inputs when forming new AES/EBU dual-mono-channel digital outputs. The DSP switches shall also have D1 serial digital video switching capability, and they shall be able to execute a minimum of 100 switches per second -- both audio and video switching combined. The DSP switches shall only function during operator defined times. A DSP switch that performs all connections at specific time intervals and reconnects an already established connection is not acceptable to IBB. The DSP switches shall be capable of operating at a variety of U.S. standard and international power specifications at both 50 and 60 Hertz. The DSP switches shall have redundant power supplies and redundant control logic cards. The DSP switches shall each have an external controller with user-friendly software that allows for industry-standard software user programs to be attached to the DSP switch data-structures and files for input/output manipulation. The capacity components for each DSP switch are different, based on their specific installation location. For the two (2) initial DSP switches to be procured in the base contract, the specific size (i.e., capacity requirements) are as follows: [Munich, Germany] -- Sixteen (16) digital video inputs; eight (8) digital video outputs; ninety-six (96) dual-mono-channel AES/EBU inputs; sixty-four (64) dual-mono-channel AES/EBU outputs; eighty-eight (88) analog audio inputs; and 36 analog audio outputs. [Kuwait] -- Ten (10) digital video inputs; ten (10) digital video outputs; ninety-six (96) dual-mono-channel AES/EBU inputs; forty-eight (48) dual-mono-channel AES/EBU outputs; twenty-four (24) analog audio inputs; and sixteen (16) analog audio outputs. The other DSP switches, that may be procured on a optional basis by IBB, will be sized (i.e., have capacity requirements) comparable to the two initially procured DSP switches. Please note that it is IBB's intent through this proposed procurement to "standardize" to the extent practicable the DSP switches used throughout IBB's worldwide broadcasting system; and therefore, the contractor for this procurement shall be fully capable of providing, installing, maintaining, and upgrading both the base contract and "optional" requirements of this proposed procurement, and possible additional future DSP switch requirements beyond this procurement at comparable prices and delivery/installation time frames. This Notice of Intent is not a request for competitive price quotations or proposals. However, other interested firms may express to the Government their interest in and technical capabilities/experience to respond to the above-stated DSP switch hardware/software requirements. Any such written expressions of interest and statements of technical capabilities/experience must be received by the Government by noon (12 a.m. EST), Tuesday, Friday, September 17, 1999 in order to be considered. Oral submissions will not be accepted. A final determination by the Government not to compete this proposed procurement, based upon any responses to this Notice, is solely within the discretion of the Government. Any information received from interested firms responding to this Notice will be considered by the Government solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive procurement. Any submissions or questions regarding this Notice or any requests for additional information shall be submitted in writing directly and only to the Contracting Officer, Ms. Karen S. Rose, via facsimile at (202) 205-5466. Any written expressions of interest or other information shall specifically reference this CBD Notice by its electronic submission date. This Notice is not a RFQ, RFP, or IFB. Posted 08/30/99 (W-SN374312). (0242)

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