RFI NO REQUEST FOR INFORMATION FOR SMART SAFE TECHNOLOGY FOR ARMORED CAR SERVICES

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1 Vendor Name: JACK BEACHAM, C.P.M., A.P.P. PURCHASING AGENT TARRANT COUNTY PURCHASING DEPARTMENT MELISSA LEE, C.P.M., A.P.P. ASSISTANT PURCHASING GENT RFI NO REQUEST FOR INFORMATION FOR SMART SAFE TECHNOLOGY FOR ARMORED CAR SERVICES RESPONSES DUE APRIL 30, :00 P.M. RFI NO

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS I. PURPOSE... 1 II. SCOPE OF INFORMATION... 2 III. BACKGROUND... 2 IV. RFI PROCEDURES... 3 V. RESPONDENT QUESTIONS... 4 VI. DISCLAIMERS... 5 VII. CONTACT WITH COUNTY DEPARTMENTS... 6 ATTACHMENT A: TARRANT COUNTY SERVICE LOCATIONS This Table of Contents is intended as an aid to respondents and not as a comprehensive listing of the RFI package. Respondents are responsible for reading the entire RFI package.

3 I. PURPOSE: A. Tarrant County is issuing this Request for Information (RFI) to further its understanding of currently available smart safe technology that could enhance the operation of cash-in-transit or armored car services. This is an exploratory process only, in order to assist Tarrant County in identifying new best practices trending now and in the future for cash management services, and armored transportation services, that can meet or exceed Tarrant County s needs as indicated herein. Tarrant County does not intend to purchase a service at this time. B. RFI Submission Date and Time: BY MAIL VIA US POSTAL SERVICE ORIGINAL AND THREE (3) COPIES OF COMPLETED RFIS MUST BE RECEIVED IN THE PURCHASING DEPARTMENT AT 100 E. WEATHERFORD, SUITE 303 FORT WORTH, TEXAS ON OR BEFORE APRIL 30, 2018 AT 2:00 P.M. BY COURIER, FEDERAL EXPRESS, UPS ORIGINAL AND THREE (3) COPIES OF COMPLETED RFIS MUST BE RECEIVED IN THE PURCHASING DEPARTMENT AT 100 E. WEATHERFORD, SUITE 303 FORT WORTH, TEXAS ON OR BEFORE APRIL 30, 2018 AT 2:00 P.M. C. Questions: 1. All documents relating to this RFI including but not limited to, the RFI document, questions and their responses, addenda and special notices will be posted under the RFI number on the Tarrant County website and available for download by interested parties. No documents will be faxed or ed after the initial Notice of Intent. It is the Respondent s sole responsibility to review this site and retrieve all related documents prior to the RFI due date. 2. Requests from interested Respondents for additional information or interpretation of the information included in the specifications and all questions should be directed in writing, via facsimile, to: ELIZABETH PIETZSCH, CPCM, SENIOR BUYER FAX: (817) The deadline for receipt of all questions is 12:00 (Noon), Fort Worth, Texas time, Wednesday, April 18, After the question deadline, all questions and their responses will be posted on the website and available for download by interested parties. PAGE 1 OF RFI NO

4 II. SCOPE OF INFORMATION: A. Tarrant County is seeking alternative options with short and long term technology alternatives that address their need for cash-in-transit services that are consistent with industry best practices. Tarrant County recognizes the need for a more dynamic and robust cash management system with cash-in-transit, or armored transportation services to grow with the current and future needs of Tarrant County. III. BACKGROUND: A. Tarrant County is currently under contract with Trinity Armored Security Inc. to provide Armored Car Transportation Services for sealed shipments from various County offices to JP Morgan Chase Bank, Cash Services DFW in Fort Worth, Texas and from office to office. B. Trinity is responsible for the pick-up of cash, checks, reports, documents, and change services and transfer to Tarrant County approved depository. Currently Tarrant County depository is JP Morgan Chase Bank, Cash Services DFW, presently located at Frye Rd., Fort Worth, Texas C. The Tarrant County Tax Department also uses this contract as a courier service to transport documents between the Sub-Courthouses to the downtown Motor Vehicle Tax Office. The documents are in large canvas bags which contain receipts and title work. The bags are picked up and dropped off during the pickup of the deposits at these locations. There is an additional drop off of the collected document bags at the downtown Motor Vehicle Tax Office each morning. D. Morning pick-ups are delivered to the bank for SAME business day deposit and transfer. Afternoon Pick-ups shall be delivered to the bank for next business day deposit. Deposits held overnight by the vendor must be kept in a secured and guarded location. E. There are currently approximately forty-seven (47) pick-up locations, Reference Attachment A, throughout Tarrant County. Currently, the pick-up times are very specific and are done on a daily basis, Monday through Friday with the exception of seven (7) locations which vary from 1-2 days per week. F. In an attempt to reduce costs, Tarrant County has implemented a program for consolidated pick-ups where other departments requiring service may take their deposit to a neighboring scheduled pick-up location or may leave their deposit with the department who is receiving service. This requires the guard to sign multiple books, rather than visit multiple locations within a building. PAGE 2 OF RFI NO

5 G. Tarrant County as a whole continues to grow and with that growth there exists more and more congestion in and around the Dallas/Fort Worth Metropolitan area which is making it more difficult for the Armored Vehicle Drivers to arrive at ALL locations in the time slots required on the current contract. This results in missed stops and late stops, in which the vendor is charged a monetary penalty. IV. RFI PROCEDURES: A. Respondents must submit their responses by the date, time, and at the location specified on page one (1) of this RFI. Respondents may be invited to present and discuss their submissions. Respondents will be notified of the specific date and time of their presentation, should this occur. Tarrant County reserves the right to invite all or some Respondents. B. Tarrant County recognizes that considerable effort will be required in preparing a response to this RFI. However, please note this is a request for information only, and NOT a request for services. The Respondent shall bear all costs for preparing this RFI. 1. Content and Format a. Tarrant County expects concise, detailed, point-by-point responses to each of the RFI response items identified in Section V of this RFI. Tarrant County is not interested in brochures or boilerplate responses. Instead, responses should clearly define Respondent s proposed solution(s) and how they would meet or exceed the Tarrant County s business requirements. Any issues or exceptions to the Tarrant County s requirements should also be identified and explained. b. A comprehensive, detailed equipment list including, software, and any other items required for successful implementation for the proposed solution should be provided. All equipment identified in the response must be commercially available and in general distribution. c. The response should define all services that would be required by the proposed solution. The response should also include: 1) The Respondent s understanding of the services by addressing Tarrant County s business requirements; 2) The proposed solution s ability to expand and evolve to Tarrant County s other departments in a phased in approach and also meet all of the service and performance requirements identified in this RFI. PAGE 3 OF RFI NO

6 2. Multiple responses will be accepted from a single Respondent, provided each response is comprehensive, and would meet the requirements of Tarrant County. Please place in separate envelopes and clearly mark responses as Response #1, Response #2, etc. V. RESPONDENT QUESTIONS: A. The following questions will help Tarrant County collect information and perspectives of smart safe technology and approaches used in its handling of cash-in-transit services, purchase vs. lease, full maintenance service, cash replenishment, and cash-processing. Tarrant County requests that vendor responses provide concise, detailed, point-by-point responses to the questions identified in this section. 1. What is smart safe technology and how does it work, specifically? a. Tarrant County has multiple departments with multiple bank accounts in one location. Do you recommend a safe for each or a shared safe in the building? b. If a safe is shared with multiple departments, what methodology is used to track each department s deposit for reconciliation purposes? c. How are multiple deposits made by a department on the same day handled? d. What is the process for handling currency that the smart safe will not accept (i.e. torn bills, potential counterfeit bills)? e. How are fund discrepancies reconciled and disputes resolved? f. What is the process for handling bulk coin deposits? g. What is the process for handling non-cash tender (i.e., checks, money orders,)? h. What is the process for handling change orders? i. Are there limits, as to how much money can be deposited in a single safe or a single day? If so, what are those limits? j. What reporting capabilities do your smart safes offer (provide samples)? 2. What type of equipment would be required to handle deposits in various forms (cash, check, coin, money order)? 3. What are the pros and cons of owning versus leasing this type of technology? PAGE 4 OF RFI NO

7 4. Does this smart safe technology have turnkey operations available (turnkey includes the equipment: hardware & software, installation, and maintenance)? 5. What is your turnaround time for repairs on equipment that has malfunctioned? 6. How soon are deposits credited to account after depositing into your smart safes? 7. How and when is a deposit receipt issued? 8. Once a deposit is made, who is responsible for funds? 9. Has your organization been awarded any contract(s) that incorporate smart safe technology? If so, who are your customers? 10. Do you currently have any government customers using smart safes? If so, who are they? 11. Describe your security measures used for picking up the cash deposited in your safes? 12. Does the safe have physical security features that suppress attempts to access or move the safe by force? 13. How is data transmitted from the safe to the vendor? 14. Describe how the smart safe is secured from inappropriate access. Username and password? Is role based security used? 15. What is your recommended approach and timelines for implementing your proposed solution(s)? Is the recommended approach based on greatest financial benefit, integration or usability benefit? Approaches such as stand-alone project, phased, integrated, or combination. 16. Is there any other technology in the cash-in-transit services available that Tarrant County should consider? VI. DISCLAIMERS: A. Tarrant County s request is for information purposes only and is not obligated in any way to use any information received. Respondents responding to this RFI will not be compensated in any way. Also, participation in the RFI will not enhance any Respondent s chances of receiving future awards from Tarrant County. Similarly, not responding to this RFI will not be a detriment to any Respondent when competing for future awards. This RFI is not a prerequisite to any competitive procurement process. PAGE 5 OF RFI NO

8 VII. CONTACT WITH TARRANT COUNTY DEPARTMENTS: A. In order to maintain the integrity of the process of this RFI, as well as the integrity of any future Request for Proposals for the purchase of the same or similar services, contact of any type regarding this RFI shall be limited to only the Tarrant County Purchasing Department or authorized employees. Failure to honor this requirement could jeopardize Respondent s future award eligibility. PAGE 6 OF RFI NO