IT Systems Refresh
2
REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
IT Systems Refresh
Introduction:
This is a Request for Information (RFI) only issued for conducting market research. Accordingly, this RFI constitutes neither a Request for Quote (RFQ), Request for Proposal (RFP), nor a guarantee that one will be issued by the Government in the future; furthermore, it does not commit the Government to contract for any services described herein. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is not, at this time, seeking proposals or quotes, and therefore, will not accept, review, or evaluate unsolicited proposals or quotes received in response hereto. This notice is not to be construed as a commitment on the part of the Government to award a contract, nor does the Government intend to pay for any information submitted because of this request. The Government does not reimburse respondents for any costs associated with submission of the information being requested or reimburse expenses incurred for responses to this RFI. The information provided may be used by VA in developing its acquisition strategy and Performance Work Statement (PWS) or Product Description (PD). Any information submitted by respondents to this RFI is strictly voluntary; however, any information received shall become the property of the Government and will not be returned to the respondent. Interested parties are responsible for adequately marking proprietary, restricted, or competition sensitive information contained in their response. This is a request for information and does not obligate the Government in any way, nor does it commit the Government to any specific course of action. Product information, brochures, part numbers, and/or other description information may be included with the submission.
Requirement:
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 21 is conducting market research to identify qualified sources capable of providing infrastructure modernization and expansion services for the VISN 21 Biomedical Information Technology (BioMed IT) environment. The purpose of this Request for Information (RFI) is to obtain industry feedback regarding the availability of commercial products, services, implementation approaches, and acquisition strategies capable of supporting the Government's requirements.
VISN 21 currently operates a standardized BioMed IT infrastructure supporting clinical systems, biomedical device integration, healthcare applications, and enterprise information technology services across multiple VA medical facilities. The existing environment primarily utilizes VMware virtualization technologies, Cisco Unified Computing System (UCS) infrastructure and Fabric Interconnects, and NetApp storage platforms. These systems support mission-critical healthcare operations and must continue to provide secure, reliable, and scalable services throughout the network.
The Government anticipates a requirement to upgrade and expand existing server, virtualization, networking, and storage infrastructure to address increased workload demands, improve operational resiliency, and support future growth associated with Department of Veterans Affairs modernization initiatives, including the Electronic Health Record Modernization (EHRM) program. For most VISN 21 facilities, the effort is expected to include upgrades to VMware ESX host infrastructure, Cisco Fabric Interconnect components, and NetApp storage environments to provide additional compute capacity, enhanced performance, improved redundancy, and lifecycle modernization of existing equipment.
Additionally, the Government anticipates establishing a new virtual machine (VM) infrastructure environment at the VA Pacific Islands Health Care System (Hawaii) utilizing an existing Government-owned NetApp storage controller. The objective is to align the Hawaii environment with the standardized architecture currently deployed throughout VISN 21 while maximizing the use of existing Government assets and minimizing implementation risk.
The anticipated requirement may also include professional services necessary to support planning, design validation, installation, configuration, migration, testing, optimization, documentation, knowledge transfer, and implementation support activities. The Government expects all proposed solutions to integrate with the existing VISN 21 architecture and support ongoing healthcare operations with minimal disruption to patient care systems and clinical services.
All proposed hardware, software, firmware, licensing, and professional services must comply with applicable Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Information and Technology (OI&T) standards, cybersecurity requirements, enterprise architecture policies, and applicable Federal information security requirements. Solutions should be compatible with existing VISN 21 operational environments and support future scalability, maintainability, and interoperability requirements.
The Government is particularly interested in obtaining industry feedback regarding recommended implementation approaches, anticipated manufacturer lead times, supply chain considerations, installation and migration strategies, performance risks, support requirements, and any innovative commercial practices that may improve project execution, reduce risk, or enhance overall mission outcomes.
The Government anticipates utilizing a competitive acquisition strategy and is considering the use of the NASA Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement (SEWP) Government-Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) as a potential acquisition vehicle. The anticipated requirement may be solicited as a Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP) procurement for commercial products and services.
Product Requirements:
Description
Brand Name or Equal
Quantity
Small Site Configuration ESX Host Server
Cisco UCS C240M8 server
12
Large Site Configuration ESX Host Server
Cisco UCS C240M8 server
16
Fabric interconnect switch
UCS Fabric Interconnect 6536
14
QSFPs 25G
CISCO 25G Module
112
QSFPs 40G
CISCO 40G Module
56
NVIDIA GPU
L4 (Brand Name only)
32
Storage Shelf and Disks
NetApp DS224C (Brand Name only)
2
Small Site: DDR5-6400-MHz (Optional CLIN)
Not Applicable
48
Large Site: DDR5-6400-MHz (Optional CLIN)
Not Applicable
80
Network Adapters (Optional CLIN)
Not Applicable
7
Installation (all Sites)
Not Applicable
1
NetApp Professional Services
NetApp PS
1
Questions:
1. Does your company have experience implementing VMware, Cisco UCS/Fabric Interconnect, and NetApp infrastructure in large healthcare or federal environments?
2. What contract vehicles are available to your company for this requirement (SEWP, GSA MAS, etc.)?
3. What teaming arrangements would be required to provide both equipment and professional services?
4. What are the current manufacturer lead times for the anticipated hardware components?
5. Are there supply chain risks that may affect delivery schedules?
6. What implementation approach would you recommend to minimize disruption to healthcare operations?
7. What performance period would you recommend for delivery, installation, migration, and acceptance?
8. Is an SDVOSB set aside appropriate for this requirement?
9. Are there any aspects of the requirement that may unnecessarily restrict competition?
10. Please identify any additional information the Government should provide in a future solicitation.
RESPONSE
Please provide your response no later than June 16, 2026 at 10:00AM to matthew.newell@va.gov and Kalil.ONeal@va.gov
Post RFI Phase
Based on market research results, the RFP/RFQ may be made available on SAM.gov, GSA MAS, or NASA SEWP. It is the responsibility of interested parties to regularly monitor the above for updates. The government will not provide hard copies of the solicitation once issued. Interested parties are responsible for monitoring the website and downloading the solicitation, its attachments, and any amendments from the internet site identified above when/if issued. All information regarding the procurement is provided herein, and no additional information shall be provided at this time.
