Proposal for IRDF Community Network Upgrade Grant
Revision 6 - 2/14/2008
1.0 Announcement to the FSILG Community
This e-mail was sent to the FSILG community on Februray 4th, 2008 announcing the project and inviting all FSILGs (Fraternities, Sororities, and Independent Living Groups) to participate. Here is the key text of the "what to do" section.
Every FSILG should take advantage of this opportunity - and soon. To participate, your FSILG must pick up a simple informational packet from the FSILG Cooperative (FCI) in W20-020A and return it before the end of February . There are 3 simple requests in the packet.
1. Prepare "as is" and "desired" network maps for your building. As explained in more detail later, all standard base requirements (including a new fire alarm radio) will be paid for by the IRDF.
(Note: See section 5.0 below for "Net Mapping Standards" and sample maps. The actual floor plans for your building are in your packet as well as in your FCI computer locker.)
2. Decide which, if any, additional related wiring/services you wish to have estimates and ultimately pay for. This list must be approved by undergrad and alumni officers. A list of possibilities is itemized in section 3.0 below.
(Note: See section 5.0 below for the chapter network contacts and options form. This form is also in your packet.)
3. Designate two or more responsible contact individuals. These could be the chapter's House Manager, the ILG Net Contact, and/or a responsible local alum. They will need to be available to show the network contractor around the house.
(Note: See section 5.0 below for the chapter network contacts and options form. This form is also in your packet.)
Please plan on having representatives of your chapter attend one of two currently scheduled information/question sessions.
* Wednesday, Feb. 13 9:15-10AM in 20 Chimneys (W20-306), right after the AILG breakfast, or
* Thursday, Feb. 21 7:15-8PM in Lobdell (W20-208)
Here is a PDF file of the Powerpoint slides that were shown at these informational sessions.
Packets will be available at these meetings but can be picked up earlier in the FCI Offices at W20-020A.
2.0 Purpose
The primary purpose of this contract is to ensure the residents of MIT’s FSILG community (Fraternities, Sororities, and Independent Living Groups) have uniformly high quality and well documented internal telecommunications wiring, enabling excellent computer network connectivity. Currently, all 41 FSILG residences are connected externally by MIT or Verizon-supported fiber optic links. The location of these residences is detailed in Appendix A.
Eight of these residences have had IRDF-funded wiring upgrades in 2007, but the majority are not up to current MIT standards. Appendix B contains the results of a very recent survey of the wiring in these properties. It is anticipated that all FSILGs will elect to participate in this project. The MIT standards are specified in Appendix C.
In addition to the primary purpose of upgrading the internal wiring, the
following are additional deliverables for each participating chapter:
* will be brought up to the latest wired and wireless standards, including the new 802.11N wireless standard.
* will receive, along with MIT’s IS& T, an up-to-date data package,
enabling much improved diagnostics for troubleshooting.
* will have all telecomm wiring done to the latest building code
standards.
* may elect to install a more advanced and reliable radio alarm service. The AES service would replace the two analog lines each house must now maintain
* will have a VOIP (Voice Over IP) capable backbone. (If it is used for VOIP, additional equipment is required).
* may optionally contract for additional related services at their
own expense, such as CATV wiring, or a VOIP switch. Installation of an intercom or
doorbell system may involve additional electrical work with another contractor.
Some of the justification of the project is provided on this link.
3.0 Contract Administration
MIT’s Information Services & Technology (IS&T) department will provide overall supervision, and be responsible for technical and quality control aspects of all work. Sufficient grant funds will be deposited in an account in advance of each of phase of the work. The bulk of these funds will be provided by the Independent Residence Development Fund (IRDF). The contract will be signed and overseen by the Association of Independent Living Groups (AILG), specifically by the AILG’s IT & Telecommunications Committee.
The funds and the contracts will be administered by the FSILG Cooperative, Inc. (FCI), a professional services and purchasing cooperative owned collectively by the FSILGs. The vendor selected for Phase 2 will be paid incrementally by the FCI as IS&T approves the work done in each FSILG. All payments to the vendor will come from the FCI. Final payment for completion of an FSILG chapter’s network upgrade would only be done after an IS&T quality sign off.
The IRDF will be the sole source of the funds for the RFP preparation work
(Phase 1 as described in Appendix E below).
The source funds for Phase 2 work will be both the IRDF and
the participating FSILGs, divided as follows: 1) All overhead line items will
be funded by the IRDF. 2) All the work needed to bring the wired & wireless
infrastructure up to the level specified in Appendix C below will be paid
by the IRDF. This will be by far the largest
amount of work. 3) The FSILG will provide – via the FCI - 100% of all funds for
additional Ethernet drops beyond the base level, plus any purely optional,
non-educational related services, such as CATV wiring, a VOIP switch, or installation
of an intercom or doorbell system.
4.0 Proposed schedule for 2008.
During January– stakeholder consultation, develop full proposal.
By end of January– form project team, hire phase 1 contractor to develop full
(phase 2) proposal and specification
Mid-to-late January – outreach & publicity to FSILGs, including segment at
IT 101 course on Jan 31.
February 13 – meeting to answer FSILG questions,
after AILG breakfast.
Starting February 13 – survey of houses. Some chapters may elect to do
additional work (e.g. Cable TV wiring), which will be paid for through the FCI
By end-of-March – complete phase 1 survey, including any optional items
desired by the FSILGs.
By mid-April – release RFP to vendor community (UCI, Aphonejack, etc.).
Schedule vendor information session and walkthroughs.
By end-of-April – Award contract. Approve rest of IRDF funds.
Late spring, summer, fall – FCI & vendor schedule work as available
The anticipated target for completing all work is the summer of 2009.
5.0 Supporting Documents
Here are some of the relevant documents that can help an FSILG in preparation. They are also in each of the FSILG packets.
1.
Net Mapping Standards to create FSILG "Existing" and "Proposed" network maps as an TXT file
2
And here are some documents relevant to the entire proposal planning process:
Appendix A – List of Properties as a PDF
file and as an EXCEL file.
Appendix B– Survey of Wiring in all the above properties as a PDF file and as an EXCEL file
Appendix C - Technical Specifications for Wiring work as a TEXT file
Appendix E - FSILG Cooperative Inc. Project Plan and Cost Estimates as a PDF file and as a TEXT file.