Automated Commercial System (ACS) Re-Engineering

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION to obtain information pertaining to the requirement described herein and to identify firms with expressed capability to fulfill a requirement in support of the U. S. Customs and Border Protection Agency's Cargo Systems Program Office (CSPO), Office of Information and Technology Automated Commercial System (ACS) Re-Engineering project. This notice is for planning purposes only, and does not constitute an Invitation for Bids, a Request for Proposals, Solicitation, or Request for Quotes. 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 as a result of this notice. The Government does not reimburse respondents for any cost associated with submission of the information being requested or reimburse expenses incurred to interested parties for responses to this Request for Information. Any responses received should not take the form of a proposal nor will responses be used as a proposal. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency (CBP) is seeking to obtain information pertaining to the requirement described herein and to identify firms with expressed capability to fulfill a requirement. BACKGROUND: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is one of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) largest and most complex components with a priority mission of keeping terrorists and weapons out of the United States (U.S.). It also has a responsibility for securing and facilitating trade and travel while enforcing hundreds of U.S. regulations, including immigration and drug laws. ACS is a collection of complex business process applications used by CBP to track, control and process commercial goods and conveyances entering the United States for the purposes of enforcing import laws and regulations and for the purpose of collecting duties and taxes owed to the Federal Government. As such, the ACS FIPS 199 Security Impact categorization is High (Confidentiality), High (Integrity), and High (Availability). It is also classified as a federal financial system, requiring compliance with all applicable federal financial laws and regulations governing the safeguarding of financial data. The system operates 24-hours a day, seven days a week, and 365 days a year. It interfaces with Participating Government Agencies (PGAs) to electronically transfer data on import transactions for enforcement of additional federal laws and regulations and to collect import and financial statistics. Interfaces are also operational to other CBP systems for further processing or information sharing. ACS was originally introduced in 1984 and operates as an Online Application Processing (OLAP) and Decision Support System (DSS) system. The bulk of ACS operates off of an IBM 2094-S28 mainframe and is comprised of interrelated applications and databases using COBOL, the CA Datacom database management system, and IBM's Customer Information Control System (CICS). The CA Datacom database table layouts are similar to COBOL copybooks containing 'occurs' and 'redefines'. Also, the ACS applications, for the most part, utilize CA Datacom's high-performance record-at-a-time (RAAT) access method and do not use SQL. The system uses IBM Websphere MQ Series for internal and external interfaces. Today, ACS contains tightly coupled subsystems, which consist of over 4200 application programs that run on the mainframe. ACS consists of approximately 9 millions physical lines of code and uses 7000 MIPS, 2000+ transactions per minute, up to 6 million transactions per day and 200 jobs per night. ACS is used by approximately twenty-five thousand Government users throughout the country as well as approximately twenty-three thousand trade partners importing articles into the country, with a minimum of 4000 users online at any given time. Additionally, while ACS primarily operates on the mainframe, there are several applications using other technologies including Oracle Designer, JavaScript, MS-Visual Basic, Windows Server, IBM Websphere MQ, and Internet Information Service (IIS). OBJECTIVE: CBP is seeking to determine if there is a less expensive efficient hardware and database platform to operate and maintain the ACS system. CBP would like to migrate existing functionality, code and data to such a platform without negatively impacting system performance. Specifically, the respondents are to provide detailed well thought-out technical options and plans on: The means and methods to migrate the CA Datacom database to a modern database with minimal to no changes in the application code. This modern database must be supported by commodity platforms The means and methods to migrate the application code from the z/OS platform to a commodity platform with minimal to no changes in the application code. The means and methods to successfully complete functional, system integration and sub-system testing, as well as any other testing deemed prudent. The means and methods for application maintenance for the post-migration phase It is imperative that the migration not degrade the performance of ACS and not impact its operations and that of other systems working/interfacing with ACS. HOW TO RESPOND: Information provided in response to this RFI must be submitted in the form of an electronic "white paper". All documentation including the white paper, specifications, drawings, etc. shall be submitted in .pdf format. Please note that the collection of this data does not obligate the U.S. Government to the incorporation of the provided information nor does it obligate the Government to the procurement of the services. Proprietary information should not be included in the RFI response. Responses to this RFI will not be returned. The white paper document shall be limited to 20 pages. Government technical experts drawn from DHS CBP staff and other federal agencies may evaluate responses to this RFI. The Government may use selected support contractor personnel to assist in the evaluation. These support contractors will be bound by appropriate non-disclosure agreements to protect proprietary and source-selection information. The respondents should: Provide detailed descriptions of past performance and successes in migrating systems of similar size, complexity and criticality to ACS from the respective legacy platforms and databases. For each approach or option, please include: Pros and cons A Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) for cost An estimated timeframe Technical and non-technical assumptions Outline migration strategies that include specific steps, sequences and activities that need to be completed. Provide a recommendation on acquisition strategy and contract type. Responders are encouraged to avoid use of excessive marketing lexicon, submission of fancy brochures and other unnecessary sales literature. Responders are to describe in clear and concise language capabilities to meet the requirements of this RFI. Interested respondents are encouraged to respond to this notice. SUBMISSIONS ARE DUE: Submissions are due no later than 2:00 PM, Eastern Time, June 01, 2011. The capabilities response shall be e-mailed to: Monifa.Coleman@dhs.gov. Responses to the notice will not be returned, nor will there be any ensuing discussions or debriefings of any responses. Information provided in response to this notice will be used to assess alternatives available for determining how to proceed in an acquisition process. This notice is part of Government Market Research, a continuous process for obtaining the latest information on the commercial status of the industry. The information provided herein is subject to change and in no way binds the Government to solicit for or award a competitive contract. CBP will use the information submitted in response to this notice at its discretion and will not provide comments to any submission; however, the content of any responses to this notice may be reflected in subsequent solicitation. CBP reserves the right to contact any respondent to this notice for the sole purpose of enhancing CBP's understanding of the notice submission. This announcement is Government Market Research, and may result in revisions in both its requirements and its acquisition strategy based on industry responses. It is emphasized that this is a notice for planning and information purposes only and is not be construed as a commitment by the government to enter into a contractual agreement, nor will the government pay for information solicited.