Loren Data's SAM Daily™

FBO DAILY ISSUE OF AUGUST 01, 2002 FBO #0242
SOURCES SOUGHT

70 -- Mainframe Processing

Notice Date

7/30/2002
 

Notice Type

Sources Sought
 

Contracting Office

Department of Agriculture, Farm Service Agency, USDA, FSA, KCAO, ASD, P. O. Box 419205, Kansas City, MO, 64141-6205
 

ZIP Code

64141-6205
 

Solicitation Number

Reference-Number-KC-2002-TSD-02
 

Response Due

8/9/2002
 

Point of Contact

Jerry Shead, Contract Specialist, Phone 816-926-6106, Fax 816-926-1782,
 

E-Mail Address

jwshead@kcc.usda.gov
 

Description

This is a Request for Information to locate potential sources for mainframe processing with guaranteed 24 hour/day, 365 day/year processing "up" time for the Farm Service Agency (FSA) - an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The Government Points of Contact (POC) is Dale Carpenter or Delia Downer, at USDA, FSA, 6501 Beacon Drive, Kansas City, Missouri 64133. FSA has a need for mainframe processing with zero downtime or 24 hour/day, 7 day/week guaranteed operations. Zero downtime applies to all disk-based FSA mainframe systems that currently use three IBM 390 mainframes. The majority of these systems are COBOL based batch processes that access many varieties of data structures from VSAMs to Informix or DB2 databases. Current backups of primary data require about 81,000 tape cartridges. Migrated data, which consists of data not accessed in the past 45 days and very large data sets, requires about 300,000 tape cartridges. The standard for new development is Java using IBMs Visual Age for Java for implementation on Websphere. New messaging systems have been implemented using IBMs MQ Series messaging. To accomplish these goals, FSA requires: (1)Disk Storage redundancy (I.E., RAID 1 or RAID 5) for all disk-based data. (2)Real-time processor fail-over for all local processors. (3)Remote processor and disk fail-over to occur within microseconds (near real-time) of the primary processor failure. (4)Telecommunications fail-over to maintain the link between the primary and secondary processing centers. (5)All levels of fail-over should be relatively invisible to FSA users, I.E., near zero disruption in processing throughput. The missions of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Farm Service Agency (FSA) include stabilizing farm income, helping farmers conserve land and water resources, providing credit to new or disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, and helping farm operations recover from the effects of disaster. In accomplishing these missions, FSA disburses up to $30 billion annually through the Federal Reserve System. FSA was set up when the Department of Agriculture was reorganized in 1994, incorporating programs from several agencies, including the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service (ASCS), the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC - now a separate Risk Management Agency - RMA), and the Farmers Home Administration (FmHA). Though its name has changed over the years, the Agency's relationship with farmers goes back to the 1930s. At that time, Congress set up a unique system under which Federal farm programs are administered locally. Farmers who are eligible to participate in these programs elect a three- to five-person county committee, which reviews county office operations and makes decisions on how to apply the programs. This grassroots approach gives farmers a much-needed say in how Federal actions affect their communities and their individual operations. After more than 60 years, it remains a cornerstone of FSA's efforts to preserve and promote American agriculture. More details about each of the supported programs may be found at: http://www.fsa.usda.gov/pas/publications/facts/pubfacts.htm. Only firms that currently possess the above processing and service capabilities are invited to respond to the RFI. Responses should include: (1) Two (2) copies of all technical documentation, limited to twenty (20) pages, which address each of the above described characteristics and any other important technical aspects of the product. (2) Commercial price list or GSA schedule for license and maintenance fees software. (3) Points of contact (including name e-mail address, phone number and fax number) from three customers currently using the identified product. This is an RFI and not a request for comments or a request for proposals. Nothing shall be construed herein or through the RFI process to commit or obligate the Government to further action as a result of this RFI. Firms responding to this RFI shall bear all risk and expense of any resources used to provide the requested information, all information submitted in response to this request shall become the property of the Government and shall not be returned to the submitter. To be considered, responses must be received with ten (10) calendar days of the publication of this announcement. Written responses to this notice are to be directed to Delia Downer, USDA, FSA, 6501 Beacon Drive, Kansas City, MO 64133. TELEPHONE INQUIRES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.
 

Place of Performance

Address: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Farm Service Agency, 6501 Beacon Drive, Kansas City, Missouri 64133

Zip Code: 64133

Country: USA
 

Record

SN00128213-W 20020801/020730213334 (fbodaily.com)
 

Source

FedBizOpps.gov Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)

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