Notice Of Intent To Sole Source By:

Vendor Name:

Contract Amount:

200,000.00

Notice Publish Date:

May 23, 2023

Agency Procurement Manager:

Email:

Telephone:

The Agency hereby provides notice that it intends to enter into a sole source contract per S.C. Code Ann. §11-35-1560 with Vendor for the following supplies, services, information technology, or construction:

This is a (1) year Sole source with (4) automatically renewable (1) year Terms for a potential of (5) Years

Initial Term: 06/05/2023 – 06/04/2024 Potential Term: 06/05/2023 – 06/04/2028

The South Carolina Department of Corrections intends to Award a Sole Source to TalkTelio for the procurement of DetectTalk a turnkey Cellular Detection and Monitoring System that detects illegal cell phones in the possession of SCDC Inmates housed in SCDC Correctional Institutions. TalkTelio is currently being used at SCDC.

SCDC has viewed multiple correctional environment cellphone detection systems during the last several years. This included onsite demonstrations and testing in a SCDC correctional facility and inside correctional facilities of states other than SC. Many of the features and options presented by other Vendors are based on special mobile Apps installed on users “legal” mobile devices and on WLAN architecture with mobile connectivity, which transmit each of the device’s MAC addresses freely. Unauthorized mobile devices are not prevented from use. This falls short of eliminating the Inmates ability for unauthorized devices to establish calls, text and data communications. The detection and monitoring systems viewed by SCDC were not able to identify all of the different mobile cellular devices, and cellular hotspots. Vendor’s detection and monitoring equipment sensors are configurable by software only and monitor by means of spectrum analysis. Other Vendor’s sensors are slow to detect short signal burst, e.g. data packets from email. Day by day called phone numbers and SMSs are no longer the norm resulting in IP traffic and encrypted Point to Point communication becoming the standard (such as, WhatsApp, etc.) and the current data can no longer be grabbed by those software sensors.

DetectTalk/TalkTelio’s technology is the only product which monitors multiple bands simultaneously which can detect and monitor phone calls, texts and other data transmissions. It is the multiple band monitoring and expanded detection features that are required by SCDC. The other products may be similar but do not have the essential requirements needed by SCDC. This product will detect unauthorized cellular devices using a unique hardware technology that catches all packet bursts less than 2ms, e.g. data packets from email, VOIP, SMS, Data apps, and station updates. DetectTalk/TalkTelio is the only vendor found that monitors all band frequencies concurrently. Their technology is completely unique configurable by hardware, plus software resulting in a huge advantage in detection: the fastest speeds can detect cell phone in 1ms. Detect Talk/TalkTelio’s solution can monitor all configured (by hardware, NOT software- because the inferior technology is slow) frequencies at the same time. Other Vendor’s software solutions sweep through the cellular spectrum bands which results in failing to cover all bands concurrently. No other product on the market utilizes the same unique technology as DetectTalk to detect and monitor all cellular devices.

Agency's justification for a sole source procurement may be viewed or immediately obtained at:

http://webprod.cio.sc.gov/SCSolicitationWeb/solicitationAttachment.do?solicitnumber=5400025418

PROTESTS:
Any actual or prospective bidder, offeror, contractor, or subcontractor aggrieved in connection with the intended award or award of this sole source contract, shall notify the appropriate chief Procurement officer in writing of its intent to protest within five (5) business days of the date this notice is posted. Any actual or prospective bidder, offeror, contractor, or subcontractor who is aggrieved in connection with the intended award or award of this sole source contract and has timely notified the appropriate chief procurement officer of its intent to protest, may protest to the appropriate chief procurement officer in the manner set forth below within fifteen days of the date this notice is posted; except that a matter that could have been raised as a protest of the solicitation may not be raised as a protest of the award or intended award of a contract.
A protest must be in writing, filed with the appropriate chief procurement officer, and set forth the grounds of the protest and the relief requested with enough particularity to give notice of the issues to be decided. The protest must be received by the appropriate chief procurement officer within the time provided above. Days are calculated as provided in S.C. Code Ann. §11-35-310(13).

Any notice of intent to protest and protest must be addressed to the chief procurement officer:

Materials Management Officer

(a) by email to:

Protest-MMO@mmo.sc.gov

(b) by post or hand delivery to:

1201 Main Street, Suite 600, Columbia, SC 29201

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