Four Network Providers Open Bids for Operational Management Tools

Request for Proposals will be received until April 16 at 5 p.m. (EDT)

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C., March 14, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- MCNC, the private, not-for-profit operator of the North Carolina Research and Education Network (NCREN), announced today that it is leading a Request for Proposals (RFP) process on behalf of three additional state/regional research and education networks for identifying  appropriate vendor(s) whom can provide carrier-class operational management tools and services.

The four participants who co-developed this RFP include: BCNET, MCNC, OneNet, and WiscNet.

The participating organizations are looking for vendor(s) who provide carrier-class operational management tools service offerings and will be willing to work closely with each participating organization to develop and expand operational management tools technology and capabilities beyond that of a standard vendor-customer relationship.

Solutions must include or be capable of integrating with operational management tools that provide capabilities in the following functional areas: configuration management; discovery and automation; active and passive monitoring; event management; custom workflow; performance management; inventory and asset control; incident, problem, request and change management; API integration; custom reporting and metrics; and support, training and other professional services, respectively.

Proposals will be accepted in electronic format only, and should be submitted to MCNC Chief Financial Officer Patricia Moody at [email protected]. Vendors assume all risk of email delivery. The firm deadline for submission is April 16, 2012, at 5 p.m. EDT. Late proposals will not be accepted or reviewed.

All inquiries and questions related to this RFP must be directed in writing to the Operational Management Tools Review Committee at [email protected]. All questions must be asked by 5 p.m. EDT on March 28. All questions will be considered public, and answers will be posted online at http://www.mcnc.org/omt/rfp/questions.html. Questions asked after the aforementioned deadline will not be answered. Information about the project including registration for the RFP is available online at http://www.mcnc.org/omt/rfp/.

"Operational management tools are critical to the operations of each of the participating organizations," said Carla Hunt, manager of MCNC's Knowledge and Information Systems. "The participating organizations developed this proposal together in order to aggregate demand and to learn from one another. As a result, we believe we have a stronger request for proposals."

MCNC reserves the right to modify any information presented in this RFP as information becomes available.

Finalists may be contacted by mid-May. Contract award(s) are expected to be given no later than Aug. 31, 2012.

About Participating Organizations

BCNET
BCNET is a not-for-profit, shared IT services organization that collaborates with its higher education members to explore and evaluate leading-edge information technology services to accelerate research, collaboration, learning and innovation. BCNET's high-capacity, advanced fibre optic network infrastructure provides a common and powerful platform to deliver services to support research and the strategic objectives of higher education institutions. Owned, governed and funded primarily by its members and government, BCNET is guided by clear, member-defined principles that provide a framework for the types of projects or services it will undertake. Proposed services share the common goal of reducing members' costs, minimizing technology duplication and improving efficiencies, while meeting the collective mandate of its members. Sixty-eight research and higher education institutions connect to BCNET, including federal and provincial research labs, federal cultural institutes, provincial health centres, universities and research institutions; another 72 colleges and schools connect to BCNET through the Provincial Learning Network. Visit www.bc.net/.

MCNC & NCREN Community
MCNC is an independent, non-profit corporation. MCNC's main focus is to operate the North Carolina Research and Education Network (NCREN). For a more than a quarter century, NCREN continues to provide advanced Intranet and Internet connectivity to a constantly expanding number of Community Anchor Institutions throughout North Carolina. Today's users of NCREN include all 17 institutions of the University of North Carolina System, all 58 North Carolina Community Colleges, all 115 K-12 public school districts as well as a growing number of K-12 charter and private schools, the majority of the state's private colleges and universities, several non-profit and public health care facilities, and a number of the state's premier research institutions. NCREN also serves as the Internet gateway network for all state employees. MCNC currently is working on a $144 million expansion of NCREN scheduled to be completed by summer 2013. This initiative has been labeled the Golden LEAF Rural Broadband Initiative. Visit www.mcnc.org or follow @MCNC.

OneNet
OneNet is Oklahoma's internet service provider (ISP) for education, government, healthcare, research and nonprofit organizations. OneNet is a division of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education and is operated in cooperation with the Oklahoma Office of State Finance. OneNet is unlike any other ISP in the country. Through a partnership between the State of Oklahoma and private telecom companies, OneNet provides comprehensive, high-speed access for Internet applications, videoconferencing, distance learning, telemedicine and more. Visit www.onenet.net/.

WiscNet
WiscNet is a non-profit association chartered to foster education, research, and public service among public and private organizations in Wisconsin. WiscNet provides high-speed digital communications, including network access and supporting services. Members include the University of Wisconsin System, the Wisconsin Technical College System, private colleges, school districts, libraries, local and state government, and public service and related agencies. Visit www.wiscnet.net/.

Editorial Contacts
MCNC Communications Hotline: (919) 248.4105
Noah Garrett, NGC Communications, on behalf of MCNC: (252) 423.1277 or [email protected]

SOURCE MCNC