Request for Proposal: ALCF Artemis Compute Cluster

This solicitation, issued by UChicago Argonne, LLC on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy for Argonne National Laboratory, seeks firm fixed-price proposals for the acquisition, installation, and five-year maintenance and support of the ALCF Artemis Compute Cluster. The cluster comprises 36 high-performance compute nodes featuring at least 128 physical CPU cores each with confidential computing capabilities, substantial DDR5 memory, SSD and RAID-protected storage, dual Ethernet connections, and advanced NVIDIA Bluefield-3 networking adapters. The system will operate as a Kubernetes and virtualization platform, integrated with existing Argonne Leadership Computing Facility infrastructure, though the Kubernetes software distribution itself is excluded. Proposals are evaluated primarily on technical merit—including hardware, software licensing, installation, and support—followed by business/management factors on a pass/fail basis, and lastly price in a best-value trade-off approach rather than lowest-price rule. The contract includes comprehensive requirements for packaging, marking, inspection, and acceptance at Argonne’s Lemont, IL campus, with risk of loss transferring to the Laboratory only upon final acceptance. The solicitation mandates adherence to federal acquisition regulations and DOE-specific directives, including strict cybersecurity standards, workforce site access protocols, and safety compliance consistent with OSHA and DOE worker health standards. Proposers must complete detailed representations and certifications (ANL-70B) to ensure regulatory compliance, including small business status and conflict of interest declarations. Payment terms require electronic invoicing, with various accepted payment methods including checks, ACH, and credit cards. The contract also contains specific provisions for contractor personnel accountability, insurance coverage with defined limits, and options for spare parts procurement. Proposal submissions must consist of three separate electronic parts—technical, business management, and cost/price—and be received by June 5, 2026. The contractual technical representative, Court Atkinson, serves as the primary point of contact for inquiries and submission.