Objectives

The primary objective is to appoint a competent service provider to supply and deliver enterprise-grade server hardware for the Head Office/Provincial Office. This procurement aims to strengthen computing capabilities, support current and future business operations, and replace out-of-warranty equipment within an existing Microsoft Hyper-V virtualization environment.

Scope

The scope encompasses the supply and physical delivery of one (1) enterprise 1U rack-mounted server. The successful bidder must deliver the equipment to the designated provincial office address within one month of receiving an official order. Pricing must be inclusive of all applicable taxes, including VAT, and remain valid for sixty days from the closing date. Payment will be processed within thirty days of invoice submission.

Technical Requirements

Bidders must meet or exceed the following minimum hardware specifications:

• Chassis: 1U rack-mounted, supporting up to ten 2.5-inch SAS/SATA hot-plug drive bays, with sliding rail kit included.
• Processors: Two (2) Intel Xeon 6 Performance 6515P (2.3 GHz, 16 cores/32 threads, 72 MB cache, 150W, DDR5-6400 optimized).
• Memory: Four (4) 64 GB DDR5-6400 RDIMMs (dual-rank), configured for 6400 MT/s operation.
• Primary Storage: Five (5) 2.4 TB SAS ISE hard drives (12 Gbps, 10K RPM, 512e, 2.5-inch hot-plug).
• RAID Controller: PERC H365i Front DCMS dedicated RAID controller.
• Boot Storage: Two (2) 960 GB M.2 SSDs configured in BOSS RAID 1.
• Network: Broadcom 5719 Quad Port 1GbE Base-T Adapter (OCP 3.0 NIC +Sec).
• Fibre Channel: Dual-port 32 Gbps FC HBA or dual-port 25GbE SFP28 adaptor (2 ports) with optical transceivers.
• Expansion: Gen5 PCIe riser with two x16 low-profile slots and OCP 3.0 network expansion.
• Power: Two (2) 1100 W hot-plug redundant 1+1 power supplies (100–240 VAC, Titanium efficiency).
• Cooling: High-performance 1U fans rated for dual-processor operation.
• Maintenance & Support: Basic Next Business Day hardware support for thirty-six months, including onsite service and a twenty-four-month support extension.
• Management: Enterprise out-of-band remote management controller (iDRAC10 Enterprise 17G license).

Skills Requirements

The tender does not mandate specific personnel certifications or individual skill sets. Instead, it requires organizational competence demonstrated through strict vendor qualification criteria. Providers must prove they are authorized OEM partners for the proposed equipment, possess the logistical and financial capacity to fulfill government procurement standards, and maintain compliance with national supplier databases and tax regulations.

Key Terms and Special Conditions

Several regulatory and contractual terms require careful attention:

• SITA Transversal Contract Registration: Bidders must be pre-qualified vendors on the State Information Technology Agency (SITA) RFB 1183 transversal contract list. This ensures alignment with national ICT procurement frameworks and standardized vendor vetting.
• OEM Partnership Certification: Suppliers must submit official documentation (certificate or letter) confirming their authorized partnership level with the original equipment manufacturer, ensuring genuine parts and warranty coverage.
• PPPFA Preference System: Evaluation follows an 80/20 split, allocating eighty points to price and twenty points to specific socio-economic goals: gender ownership (6), black ownership/no franchise rights (2), disability (3), youth (3), and Eastern Cape locality (6).
• Local Economic Development (LED): Successful contractors must prioritize sourcing goods from Eastern Cape manufacturers/distributors where feasible and commit to employing fifty percent of staff from the project ward to stimulate regional economic growth.
• CSD Registration: Mandatory registration on the National Treasury’s Central Supplier Database is required prior to submission, serving as the official repository for all state supplier information.
• Joint Ventures/Consortiums: Allowed if accompanied by a signed agreement designating a lead member responsible for all communications and legal commitments, with all partners holding active CSD registration.