REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Action on Agreement with Dasher Technologies, Inc. to Provide and Implement an Enterprise Data Storage Solution
Report
COUNCIL PILLAR
Deliver and Enhance High Quality Efficient Services and Infrastructure
BACKGROUND
The City has two main data centers: City Hall and the Police Department, in support of citywide and departmental computing needs. This includes mission critical business applications such as public safety Computer Aided Dispatch, Financial Management, Payroll, Utility Billing, and citizen facing services.
The current storage solution is over 10 years old and is at end of life (EOL). The storage devices are currently supported by a third-party vendor with limited support options available. In addition, over the past several years, data storage demands with various business applications has increased. The existing storage capacity cannot be increased. Due to the mission critical nature of the City’s enterprise data storage solution, a new storage solution is required.
DISCUSSION
Pursuant to City Code Section 2.105.330, a formal Request for Proposals (RFP) was conducted as the solicitation method for this procurement, with the final award recommendation based on “best value.” The factors considered in the evaluation were quality and completeness of proposal, firm experience, technical capability, and cost.
The RFP for an enterprise data storage solution, including professional and technical services, was published using the City’s e-procurement platform. A total of five proposals were received from the following firms:
- AHEAD Inc. (Dell EMC Unity)
- Dasher Technologies (HPE Nimble Storage)
- ePlus Technology Inc. (NetApp)
- Presidio Networked Solutions Group, LLC (Pure Storage)
- Zones, LLC (HPE GreenLake)
Proposals were individually evaluated by a three-member team comprised of one representative from the Information Technology Department and two outside representatives from the City’s technical support contractor, Unisys. AHEAD, Dasher Technologies, and Presidio Networked Solutions Group were asked to participate in oral interviews to introduce their key personnel who would be assigned to the project and to provide an overview of the proposed solution, migration process, and ongoing support.
Staff recommends awarding the agreement to Dasher Technologies for having submitted the best value proposal. Their solution is the lowest cost, providing state of the art analytics and hardware. In addition, their implementation and migration strategy is best aligned with the city’s needs, resulting in the least downtime for the City’s mission critical applications. The overall solution strengthens the City’s technology infrastructure providing updated technology, security, and growth to meet the evolving business needs citywide
Under the proposed agreement, Dasher Technologies will provide storage hardware and professional services for project planning, system implementation, configuration, testing, training, and five-year support services. In addition, the proposed agreement includes a detailed scope of services, project plan, compensation schedule with payments for professional and technical services tied to the successful completion of key deliverables.
Pricing for professional services, system implementation, and ongoing maintenance and support are fixed for the initial five-year term of the agreement, with maximum compensation not-to-exceed $304,587, including a 10% contingency amount of approximately $27,700.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
The action being considered does not constitute a “project” within the meaning of the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15378(a) as it has no potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.
FISCAL IMPACT
Funding for equipment, services, maintenance, and software support costs for the contract ($276,887) and the contingency ($27,700) is available in the Consolidate and Upgrade Servers project in the General Government Capital Fund. The ongoing maintenance and support costs of approximately $24,000 annually, for the five-year term (total of approximately $120,000) are included within the total contract amount of $276,887 noted above. Ongoing costs beyond the five-year term will be incorporated into future budgets, subject to appropriation of funds.
COORDINATION
This report has been coordinated with the Finance Department and City Attorney’s Office.
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council agenda on the City’s official-notice bulletin board outside City Hall Council Chambers. A complete agenda packet is available on the City’s website and in the City Clerk’s Office at least 72 hours prior to a Regular Meeting and 24 hours prior to a Special Meeting. A hard copy of any agenda report may be requested by contacting the City Clerk’s Office at (408) 615-2220, email clerk@santaclaraca.gov <mailto:clerk@santaclaraca.gov> or at the public information desk at any City of Santa Clara public library.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
1. Authorize the City Manager to execute an agreement with Dasher Technologies, Inc. to provide and implement an enterprise data storage solution for an initial five-year term, with maximum compensation not-to-exceed $304,587.
2. Authorize the City Manager to exercise up to five one-year options to extend the term of the agreement after the initial term, subject to the appropriation of funds.
Staff
Reviewed by: Gaurav Garg, Director of Information Technology/CIO
Approved by: Rajeev Batra, City Manager
ATTACHMENTS
1. Agreement with Dasher Technologies, Inc.