June 24, 2010
Merit Network, Inc. has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to solicit bids from organizations who wish to provide fiber-optic cable, OSP fiber closures, and requisite attachment hardware and accessories for the REACH-3MC fiber build project. Proposals will be received until July 15, 2010 at 4:30 p.m. (EDT).
Merit has been awarded a grant by the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA) Broadband Technologies Opportunities Program (BTOP) as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). The purpose of the grant will be to fund the engineering and construction of nearly 1000 miles of fiber-optic cable in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, which will include both aerial and underground.
This RFP is for fiber-optic cable and accessories only. The bid response should include the necessary hardware required to deploy the OSP fiber infrastructure for the project. The only exception to this are the nuts and bolts required for pole attachments, which will be supplied by the construction contractors.