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D -- TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES SOL 9TE-CG-97-0042 POC Jo Ann Lew, Contracting Officer, (415) 522-4550. The United States Coast Guard, Maintenance and Logistic Command Pacific, requests information/comments from industry about replacing a Coast Guard-owned radio system with a telecommunications services contract. The BACS (Bay Area Communications System) is a private network consisting of a government-owned analog microwave radio system and dedicated private lines to connect various Coast Guard installations in Northern California. BACS provides circuits for control of radio transmitters, control of radar systems, transmission of radar data, transmission of video signals, alarm circuits, dedicated data circuits for the Coast Guard Data Network (CGDN), voice circuits, and intercom capabilities between remote sites. The Coast Guard must replace the system by December 1998 because the radio frequencies used by the system have been reallocated for commercial use. The Coast Guard is interested in determining whether the existing government-owned system could be replaced by a services contract with a single vendor. The Coast Guard is also interested in evaluating alternative technologies that would meet their needs. For this reason, the Coast Guard is not specifying any particular technology solution to meet their needs. The RFI consists of a general description of the project and drafts of Section C, Technical Specifications; and Section M, Evaluation Criteria. Interested parties are invited to submit a five to ten page prospectus outlining their approach to providing the desired services including a preliminary network design and approximate cost. Interested parties may also submit comments on any portion of the draft RFP when it is available. This is not a solicitation, it is for planning purposes only. The Coast Guard does not intend to award any contract on the basis of this RFI or otherwise pay for information submitted. The Coast Guard is not obligated to respond to comments. The Coast Guard will not provide any information beyond what is provided in the RFI and its attachments. For more detailed information on the requirements for the BACS replacement system, please submit a written request for the RFI and attachments to the contracting officer. Requests for the RFI may also be submitted by FAX to (415) 522-4538. (0070)

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