Enterprise Network Switch with PoE+ (Power over Ethernet)

Questions & Answers / Clarifications

This document provides responses to vendor questions regarding Solicitation No. 19TH2026Q0017 for Enterprise Network Switches with PoE+.

• Shipping Costs: Shipping costs must be included as a separate CLIN. Quotations must indicate the point of origin and include firm-fixed price shipping charges under DDP (Delivery Duty Paid) Door-to-Door terms. The offeror is responsible for all shipping, customs clearance, demurrage, and other related charges to the destination. If the origin is outside Thailand, all associated costs must be included.
• SFP Modules: For CLIN 5, while the solicitation specifies the switch brand and model, it does not explicitly state the brand for the SFP modules. Cisco recommends using Cisco-branded transceivers for stability and full vendor support, and advises against using Cisco-compatible (third-party) SFP modules due to potential compatibility issues and lack of full support from Cisco Systems.

This Q&A document clarifies requirements related to shipping cost inclusion and the brand of SFP modules, which may impact how bidders prepare their quotations and pricing. Bidders should refer to SECTION 1, STATEMENT OF WORK for further details on requirements.

Solicitation / RFP / RFQ

This is a Request for Quotations (RFQ) for an Enterprise Network Switch with PoE+ (Power over Ethernet). The U.S. government intends to award a contract/purchase order to the responsible company submitting an acceptable offer at the lowest price.

• Enterprise Network Switch with PoE+ (Power over Ethernet)

• Must be Trade Agreements Act (TAA) compliant and not manufactured in the People's Republic of China.

• Specific technical requirements include: 48-port, L3-managed, stackable switch with at least 580 Gbps switching capacity, 480 Gbps stacking bandwidth, and 431.54 Mpps forwarding rate. Port configuration should support 36 x 2.5GBase-T (UPOE) ports and 12 x 100/1000/2.5G/5G/10G (UPOE) ports. Must support various routing protocols (OSPF, BGP, etc.), remote management protocols (SNMP, CLI, NETCONF, etc.), 128-bit AES encryption, and essential features like Trunking, QoS, 802.1x authentication, etc.

• Compliance with IEEE standards (802.3, 802.1Q, 802.1p, 802.3af, 802.3at, etc.).

• Equipment must be newly manufactured, unused, and not refurbished.

• Minimum remaining life cycle of three (3) to five (5) years from the date of shipment.

• Include all required licenses, subscriptions, and support services.

• Minimum one (1) year hardware warranty with local technical support and Next Business Day (NBD) hardware replacement.

• Contract type: Purchase Order

• Payment: Firm fixed price

• Period of Performance: Equipment delivery within 45 calendar days from contract award. Hardware warranty and support for a minimum of one (1) year. Licensing and subscriptions for three (3) years from delivery and acceptance.

• All prices are in Thai Baht.

• Quotations due by March 23, 2026, at 15:30 PM (Bangkok time).

• Submit quotations electronically to soontare@state.gov.

• Subject line: "Quotation Enclosed-RFQ#19TH2026Q0017 – Enterprise Network Switch".

• File format: MS-Word 2007/2010, MS-Excel 2007/2010, or Adobe Acrobat (pdf).

• File size limit: 30MB per file; multiple emails allowed if necessary.

• Required submissions: SF-1449, Section 1 (Pricing), additional information as required in Section 3, and Cybersecurity Supply Chain Risk Management (C-SCRM) Questionnaire.

• Evaluation: Comparative evaluation utilizing FAR 13 procedures, considering technical, past performance, and price. Offers must meet basic standards to be eligible for award.

• Offerors must be registered in the SAM (System for Award Management) database.

• No specific set-aside is mentioned, acquisition is listed as "UNRESTRICTED".

• Direct questions regarding this service by no later than 15:30 PM (Bangkok time) on March 16, 2026, to soontare@state.gov.

• Incomplete quotations will not be accepted.

• Quotations must be in English.

Form / Attachment / Pricing Sheet

This document is a Cybersecurity Supply Chain Risk Management (C-SCRM) Questionnaire. It requires vendors to provide specific information regarding their organization's C-SCRM practices and policies. This questionnaire is intended to help the government assess the vendor's approach to managing risks within their supply chain.

• Section 1: Contact Information: Requires the vendor's company name, primary Point-of-Contact (POC) details (name, title, phone, email).
• Section 2: Vendor Risk Management Plan: Asks about the organization's practices for identifying supply chain threats, mapping suppliers to these threats, and having written C-SCRM requirements in supplier contracts. It also inquires about verifying supplier compliance.
• Section 3: Physical and Personnel Security: Inquires about policies for background checks, procedures to prevent tampering of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) equipment, and insider threat awareness training for employees.

Vendors must complete this questionnaire by providing responses in the designated 'Vendor Response' column. The government may request documentation to validate these responses. Failure to adequately address C-SCRM requirements could impact a vendor's ability to be considered for the opportunity.