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Request for Proposals (RFP) ADDENDUM

Addendum Number: 1 Date of Addendum: July 15, 2020

Proposal Due Date and Time: Friday, July 24, 2020; 4:00 p.m. Central Time

Revised Due Date and Time: Same as above. No change

Agency: Department of Public Safety (DPS); State Fire Marshal (SFM)

Title: Risk Assessment & Data Analytic Services (SWIFT Event #2000010974)

SCOPE OF ADDENDUM / QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

The following are questions received by 12:00 p.m. Central Time on Tuesday, July 14, 2020, and their corresponding answers.

Please read this addendum in its entirety. Information about Addendum 2 which will be issued no later than 4:00 p.m. Central Time on Friday, July 17, 2020, is identified at the end of the Q&A section.

1. Question: Is there a data source for the items listed inside the demographic section?

DPS Response: DPS is expecting the respondent to identify as many data sources for demographic information as possible.

2. Question: SFM is looking for a qualified vendor who can compile incident and demographic data acquired from a variety of state resources …

We would like to confirm that “compile” means to get the data that is already collected and bring it to a centralized place?

DPS Response: SFM only collects Minnesota Fire Incident Reporting System (MFIRS) data. There may be other fire incident data available of which SFM is unaware of such as tribal data and myriad sources of demographic data. It will be up to the respondent to identify other data sources.

3. Question: Assuming the information is Question #2 is correct, does the data that needs to be retrieved exist in electronic format?

DPS Response: The above is not correct. SFM can, however, provide MFIRS data electronically. There may be other agencies collecting data that needs to be discovered. It is unknown if that data is available electronically.

4. Question: How many data sources are there?

DPS Response: Unknown

5. Question: What are the various data sources?

DPS Response: SFM only collects MFIRS data. There may be other fire incident data available of which SFM is unaware such as tribal data and myriad sources of demographic data. It will be up to the respondent to discover other data sources.

6. Question: CRA task #1, acquiring the required incident and demographic data. Does SFM know what data is required? Or is the intent to obtain all the data that is available?

DPS Response: The intent is to gather all the data that is relevant and necessary in order to accomplish objectives of the project.

7. Question: For the task "compile incident and demographic data acquired from a variety of state resources," does the State track and have access to incident data or will it be the responsibility of the vendor to acquire this data?

DPS Response: SFM has access to MFIRS. Other data will be the responsibility of the vendor.

8. Question: For the Personal and Community Risk Assessments, what is the occurrence of these reports?

DPS Response: Currently there are no reports on personal and community risk assessments. This project will help to create this resource and should be updated at regular intervals to ensure that the assessment is timely and relevant.

9. Question: Risk assessment is a broad term. The State has included Personal Risk Assessment, Community Risk Assessment and Risk Mapping Tool as items to be included in the statewide risk reduction plan. However, “analyzing the data and assessing its risk” usually includes network scanning and risk from cybersecurity. Does the State need these aspects of risk assessment included as well?

DPS Response: SFM’s focus of risk assessment is residential fire risk including the risk of property damage, injury and death.

10. Question: What format and delivery method are required for the Personal and Community Risk Assessments?

DPS Response: SFM is looking for creative ideas on the format and delivery methods. All technology must comply with MNIT requirements. See the attached security document.

11. Question: What are the software requirements established by MNIT? Where can we find this document?

DPS Response: Please see the attached security standards.

12. Question: Besides the SFM, what is the estimated number of fire departments that would be using the Data Analytics?

DPS Response: The State has 775 fire departments but not all of them will be using the data analytics. It is anticipated that SFM will be using them the most and sharing with many of the departments. There may also be other fire prevention educators using the data.

13. Question: Are you looking for your information to be public or internal?

DPS Response: The information should be available to Minnesota’s 775 fire departments and public educators. It is not anticipated this will be public information directly, only through the public educators. All information retrieved and shared, however, is subject to Minnesota’s Government Data Practices Act, Minnesota Statutes Chapter 13.

14. Question: How applicable do deliverables need to be for fire departments vis-à-vis communities?

DPS Response: Deliverables should be available to Minnesota’s 775 fire departments and public educators. It is not anticipated this will be public information directly, only through the public educators. All information retrieved and shared, however, must comply with Minnesota’s Government Data Practices Act, Minnesota Statutes Chapter 13.

15. Question: What is the maximum number of concurrent users the Knowledge Sharing solution must support?

DPS Response: Unknown

16. Question: What is the maximum number of concurrent users the GIS mapping tool must support?

DPS Response: Unknown

17. Question: What GIS Software does the state currently use?

DPS Response: Esri ArcGIS Enterprise environment

18. Question: Has SFM started GIS mapping and is it looking for help in finishing OR GIS map the data that is retrieved?

DPS Response: SFM is looking to map the retrieved data.

19. Question: Can the platform be cloud-based? If so, must it be in the government cloud?

DPS Response: Yes it can be cloud based and does not have to be in the government cloud. Data, however, must meet the State security standards. See the attached security standards.

20. Question: Is the platform to be used by other government agencies?

DPS Response: Yes. Local fire departments will be using the platform.

21. Question: Is the platform to be used by citizens?

DPS Response: No

22. Question: How applicable do deliverables need to be for fire departments vs communities?

DPS Response: Deliverables should be available to Minnesota’s 775 fire departments and public educators. It is not anticipated this will be public information directly, only through the public educators.

23. Question: As far as geocoding incident data, do you collect longitude/latitude or addresses?

DPS Response: Longitude/latitude

24. Question: Does SFM use predictive analytics models today?

DPS Response: No

25. Question: What systems are used to process / store the data?

DPS Response: Image Trend Elite is SFM’s existing platform to store MFIRS data.

26. Question: What is the format (i.e. file layout) of the data being collected?

DPS Response: See Response to Question #27

27. Question: Can we get sample data of the data that is available?

DPS Response: The entire reference manual can be downloaded at: . NOTE: it is 512 pages (+/-) so be careful before hitting print.

It can be downloaded into a spreadsheet (like Excel) if it is a flat file structure or into a database format if it is more relational in nature.

Our annual “Fire in Minnesota” shares current data and can be found here:

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28. Question: What are the types of incident data we would be working with?

DPS Response: See answer to question above. There may be more types of incident data that we are not aware of including tribal and others.

29. Question: Can we provide links and examples of similar work?

DPS Response: Yes as long as they are included in the body of the response.

30. Question: Does SFM have predictive analytics tools in place today?

DPS Response: No

31. Question: Is the State open to both SaaS/Subscription (hosted) and Perpetual solution offerings? Given the importance of current and up-to-date data for this initiative, many clients find that a SaaS/Subscription model best incorporates the ongoing contractor work needed to ensure this is achieved.

DPS Response: Yes as long as it meets the security standards set forth by the State. Please see attached document.

32. Question: Does the State of Minnesota have a relationship with AWS or Azure (or both)?

DPS Response: State IT staff has access to Microsoft 365 File Share. DPS staff do not have access to cloud based sharing.

33. Question: Can the State provide a description of the technical environment in which the new platform will operate?

DPS Response: The platform will have to comply with State IT specifications and DPS will be relying on State IT staff for guidance on the best platform.

34. Question: Should the Vendor include the cost of software in the bid?

DPS Response: Yes. The cost should be included in the cost proposal and excluded from the technical proposal.

35. Question: Predictive models require support and updating, Is SFM open to a support agreement to provide this on-going support for models that are developed?

DPS Response: Yes. A copy of the respondent’s standard maintenance agreement should be included in the technical proposal and the suggested pricing should be identified as a separate item in the cost proposal.

36. Question: Will the vendor provide administration and maintenance of the tool or just training to State personnel to administer the tool?

DPS Response: The respondent should address both approaches in the technical proposal and the suggested pricing of each approach should be identified as separate items in the cost proposal.

37. Question: For the task "compile incident and demographic data acquired from a variety of state resources," does the State track and have access to incident data or will it be the responsibility of the vendor to acquire this data?

DPS Response: SFM has access to MFIRS data but acknowledges there may be more incident related data that it is not aware of.

38. Question: How often are you looking to have information updated and is there a minimum?

DPS Response: SFM has not yet identified a standard.

39. Question: Is there any incumbent working on this contract?

DPS Response: No.

40. Question: Can we claim the preference points (60 points) by subcontracting with a veteran owned firm in State of MN?

DPS Response: No.

41. Question: Do you want us to fill and return the event detail document with the technical proposal?

DPS Response: Yes. Completion of the event detail is automatically required by the SWIFT system.

42. Question: The event detail document states “In order to participate in this event YOU MUST BE REGISTERED as a bidder.” Are you talking about the registration on the Swift portal?

DPS Response: Yes. Respondents should register as soon as possible in SWIFT. Guidance and HelpDesk information is identified on page 7 of the RFP.

43. Question: What labor categories, description, experience level and education does the State anticipate as a minimum requirement for the performance of tasks included in this RFP?

DPS Response: SFM doesn’t have a minimum requirement in the context of the question.

44. Question: Under the QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE section do we have to provide the resumes of the personnel or just the contact information?

DPS Response: Yes. Please refer to Section 4 #2 on page 8 of the RFP.

45. Question: Has the State conducted any reviews of the top knowledge sharing software solutions?

DPS Response: No reviews have been conducted

46. Question: Current technical team?

DPS Response: SFM manages the technical components of the data and the State’s IT personnel oversee the IT trechnology.

47. Question: What will the cost structure of the contract be? (e.g. time and materials, fixed price, etc.)

DPS Response: Please refer to Attachment C on page 15 of the RFP.

48. Question: Objective 1: Compile incident and demographic data acquired from a variety of state resources. Approximately how many different sources of data will there be?

DPS Response: It will be the responsibility of the vendor to identify sources other than MFIRS.

49. Question: What kind of format(s) will the sourced data be?

DPS Response: Unknown. SFM is expecting respondents to make recommendations in their proposals.

50. Question: What is the approximate percentage of structured vs. unstructured data?

DPS Response: Unknown

51. Question: Will the vendor selected for this contract be responsible for identifying all the data sources?

DPS Response: Yes. SFM has access to MFIRS data only.

52. Question: How frequently will the data sets need to be refreshed for ongoing analysis?

DPS Response: SFM has not yet established the frequency.

53. Question: How much of the Demographic Data do you envision being included in the Incident Data? Is there an interest in correlating factors between the personal and community risk assessments, or is the intent to only have two distinct risk assessments for SFM.

DPS Response: The intent is to have a comprehensive risk assessment, not 2 separate data sets. Limited demographic data is available in the incident data.

54. Question: For the personal and community risk assessments, approximately how many causal risk factors and/or specific factors will be analyzed and then reported on (if known)?

DPS Response: The intent is to gather all the data that is relevant and necessary in order to accomplish objectives of the project.

55. Question: Will causal risk factors be weighed equally, or is the intent to have weighted risk factors of varying degrees for scoring?

DPS Response: Ultimately, they may be weighted or not. SFM is looking to identify what causes some residents to be at more risk of dying in a fire or having a fire in their home versus their neighbors or why one community has more risk than another. SFM anticipates some factors may weigh more heavily in that equation than others.

56. Question: Does SFM require explainable/interpretable predictive models?

DPS Response: SFM needs the models to be easily understood by an audience with a wide background. The fire service in Minnesota is made up of individuals with broad backgrounds and educational levels. SFM needs it to be easy to understand and used by the fire service.

57. Question: Is the intended audience of the reporting internal or external, or potentially both?

DPS Response: Both

58. Question: Can you describe the users/personas that will use the solution?

DPS Response: Those who use this data will primarily be fire prevention educators and fire department personnel.

59. Question: Is a SaaS or an on-premise solution preferred by the SFM and the State of Minnesota’s Department of Public Safety?

DPS Response: The solution must meet the security standards set forth by the State’s IT agency. Please see attached document.

60. Question: Can you please provide MNIT’s information sharing platform software requirements?

DPS Response: Please see the attached security document.

61. Question: What are the current database/data-processing related technologies in use that we could potentially expand upon?

DPS Response: DPS has an “Esri ArcGIS Enterprise environment

62. Question: Does the cost of the solution require the inclusion of costs to import data from external sources such as fire incidents, inspections, parcel data, census, geographic data, etc.

DPS Response: SFM is looking at residential fire cause and demographics so yes, excluding inspections.

63. Question: How does SFM plan to use the platform when incidents happen – what actions will be taken for false-positives/true-negatives?

DPS Response: Unknown

64. Question: Does SFM require a data sharing/security subject matter expert on the project team to provide guidance on the governance of sensitive information and it’s use in decision making platforms? Or is this domain expertise readily accessible within SFM?

DPS Response: This expertise is available within SFM.

65. Question: Do you currently have solutions in place (data or processes) that address any of the four objectives of the project?

DPS Response: SFM is looking for solutions to the objectives. There is no process in place at this time.

66. Question: Please describe the roles of individuals from SFM that will be part of this project.

DPS Response: Two fire and life safety educators and four data specialists will be active participants in the project.

67. Question: What user adoption practices does SFM have planned to ensure the solution?

DPS Response: SFM will be working with the vendor and team to develop best practices to ensure the solution.

68. Question: While SFM will collaborate with the vendor for maintenance, how is SFM staffed to maintain and govern the solution? Maintain oversight and responsibility for data flows, quality of data, etc.

DPS Response: SFM has a professional team of data experts to assist with the data flow process.

69. Question: How is SFM equipped through people, process and technology to potentially add new data sources that could be considered as required after the solution is delivered?

DPS Response: SFM works with IT staff and its data team for data-related issues.

70. Question: Models require periodic maintenance to account for changes in data trends as more data is collected. This includes new fire incidents, false alarms, inspections, changes to property, etc. Does SFM want vendors to incorporate maintenance of models?

DPS Response: SFM is open to vendor maintenance. Since this project focuses on residential fire incidents, false alarms, changes to property and inspections would not apply. SFM updates its fire incident data annually. Other information should be updated as it is available.

71. Question: Is the state limiting the demographic data to state or federal resources only or will commercially available data sets be authorized?

DPS Response: Commercially available data sets will be authorized. All information retrieved and shared, however, is subject to Minnesota’s Government Data Practices Act, Minnesota Statutes Chapter 13.

72. Question: Is the incident data limited to fire department responses or will there be access to police and other emergency response data be available or supplied?

DPS Response: It will be the responsibility of the vendor to gather data outside of MFIRS data.

73. Question: Is the data being collected and analyzed to be strictly limited to fire response data?

DPS Response: No. The risk assessment is focused on residential fire incidents overlaid with myriad demographics.

74. Question: Where will the fire incident data be collected from (individual jurisdictions or the state NFIRS extract)?

DPS Response: Fire incident data will be collected from MFIRS and any other source of fire incident data available to include tribal and other potential residential fire incident data.

75. Question: Are federal lands, tribal nations or other non-state or non-local jurisdictions included in this?

DPS Response: Yes.

76. Question: What is the minimum and maximum years of data that will be expected of the data set?

DPS Response: Ten years of data is expected for analysis.

77. Question: Will city, county, or state building information be made available or will the vendor be responsible for finding this data source?

DPS Response: This is a residential fire incident analysis. All data outside of MFIRS data will be the responsibility of the vendor to obtain.

78. Question: Will city, county, or state infrastructure information be made available or will the vendor be responsible for finding this data source?

DPS Response: The vendor will be responsible for finding this data source.

79. Question: Will GIS formatted jurisdiction or infrastructure map files be available to the vendor?

DPS Response: Basic jurisdictional information can be found here: Infrastructure information may be kept by local jurisdictions. Collecting that data, however, will be the vendor’s responsibility.

80. Question: What is the state’s expectation of data and analytic portability?

DPS Response: The data and analytics should remain fluid and updatable over time.

81. Question: What is the smallest geographical demographic that the fire marshal’s office expects in the data?

DPS Response: The smallest demographic should be each census tract.

82. Question: Are there state fire marshal information technology standards or requirements that would need to be considered when selecting a platform?

DPS Response: Technology must meet State IT requirements. Please see attached document.

83. Question: How many users will there be for the data platform or how widely accessible will the data platform need to be?

DPS Response: The State has 775 fire departments. Fire prevention educators will also need to access the data.

84. Question: Will the public need or be given access to the data analytic platform?

DPS Response: No although all information retrieved and shared is subject to Minnesota’s Government Data Practices Act, Minnesota Statutes Chapter 13.

85. Question: Is the expectation from the state fire marshal’s office to have the vendor complete all analytical elements or do they desire the ability to create their own analytical questions?

DPS Response: SFM anticipates collaborating with the vendor on the analytical questions.

86. Question: Is there a preferred format for a community risk document, such as the Commission on Fire Accreditation International’s Community Risk Assessment and Standards of Cover or the National Fire Protection Association’s NFPA 1300?

DPS Response: While SFM is not currently expecting to follow a standard, its does want to ensure that it considers national standards such as NFPA.

87. Question: Is the community risk assessment to be only a computer based analytic, only a written document, or a combination of the two?

DPS Response: The risk assessment should be a computer-based document. SFM staff can create a written document from the data provided.

88. Question: Will the vendor be required to cover publishing costs for any publicly available documents?

DPS Response: Yes.

89. Question: During the expected term of the contract is there an expectation to update any formal community risk documents (other than general analytic or use instructions)?

DPS Response: No

90. Question: Are there certain proven risk determination methodologies that the state has developed and will be following for this project, or is the expectation for the vendor to, in conjunction with the fire marshal’s office, create statistical and other data models to determine risk?

DPS Response: It is expected that the vendor and SFM will create statistical and data models together.

91. Question: With respect to Goal 1 ‘Compile Incident and Demographic Data’, does the SFM and Minnesota fire departments have a standardized and consistent data structure for incident data collection attributes listed in Section 2 currently being collected across the state?

DPS Response: SFM collects data through MFIRS. Other fire incident and demographic data collection will be the vendors responsibility.

92. Question: If the data is being collected in a standardized manner and format, what resolution is the data currently being collected. For example, does the state currently collect ‘Structural Type’ or ‘Residential Occupancy Type’ for each building in the state or is it collected instead at the generalized block group (or larger) level?

DPS Response: We do not collect structure data on all buildings in the state. When there is an incident building information is within the report. Building type and occupancy would need to be found in other data sets.

93. Question: If not being collected currently, would the SFM office request the creation of a complete data collection and monitoring system for each organization across the state to compile, monitor, and assess the incident and demographic data attributes listed in Section 2 in a standardized manner?

DPS Response: ImageTrend is currently available statewide for fire incident reporting, however we do not have demographic attributes incorporated with this software. This would be an ideal system.

94. Question: Is the Department of Public Safety currently a member / participant within the ArcGIS Online for Organizations (AGOL) within the State of Minnesota’s Environmental Systems Research Institute (Esri) Enterprise License Agreement (ELA) through the Minnesota IT Services Geospatial Information Office?

DPS Response: Yes. The Department of Public Safety is a participating agency of the Enterprise License Agreement (ELA) through the Minnesota IT Services Geospatial Information Office.

95. Question: Has this effort been attempted in the past and what were the results?

DPS Response: No. This effort has not been attempted in the past by SFM.

96. Question: Given MN.IT’s centralization efforts on enterprise software, are there preferred software solutions (e.g. Tableau, ESRI’s GIS online) within the IT enterprise you wish to have the contractor integrate their solution into?

DPS Response: SFM does not have “preferred software” as long as it is compliant with State IT regulations.

97. Question: Will the data platform need to be hosted by the state and managed within the state network?

DPS Response: Please review the RFP. SFM is willing to consider it being hosted by the vendor or installed locally as long as it meets State IT parameters. Please see attached document.

98. Question: Are the plans to use the data sharing platform for continuous live/automated updates or periodic snapshots?

DPS Response: SFM updates its data annually. Other information should be updated as it is available.

99. Question: Is there interest or need to integrate with FEMA and USFA reporting and data?

DPS Response: No, but our MFIRS is based off of the National Fire Incident Reporting system but using ImageTrend Elite locally. Our intent is to use Minnesota data to create a Minnesota model.

100. Question: Is there a requirement to integrate with ImageTrend data automatically to continuously update the data sharing platform?

DPS Response: SFM updates it data annually. information should be updated as it is available.

101. Question: Is there a maximum budget for the project?

DPS Response: SFM has a tentative budget established but it is not yet finalized.

102. Question: The RFP notes, “This project will result in a statewide data-driven community risk assessment (CRA).” Recognizing that the four tasks in the RFP are prerequisites to but not sufficient for completing a CRA, what timeline does the SFM anticipate for completing the CRA?

DPS Response: The CRA must be completed within the 2-year timeframe outlined in the RFP.

103. Question: Has the SFM previously completed a CRA? If so, is a copy available for review?

DPS Response: No. The SFM has not previously conducted a comprehensive CRA.

104. Question: The RFP says this contract will “support the State’s effort to perform comprehensive analyses that identify relationships and patterns among residential fires, fire fatalities, and causal risk factors of populations affected by fires.” What resources will the SFM be devoting to this effort? In other words, will the vendor be supplementing a state team?

DPS Response: The SFM will provide our MFIRS data and staff. The vendor will be supplying additional data analytics for the comprehensive risk assessment. In that respect yes, the vendor will both be supporting and guiding the state team.

105. Question: Attachment C, second paragraph, indicates that responders must submit hourly rates for the personnel identified. We understand this to mean that the Cost Proposal is on a time-and-materials basis and that responders need to provide a rate card for the labor categories we propose. Will the SFM confirm or correct our assumption?

DPS Response: That is correct. Please refer to Attachment C on page 15 of the RFP.

106. Question: Is there a page limit to the response?

DPS Response: No

107. Question: Are full resumes required for all team members? If yes, which part of the proposal should they be submitted with?

DPS Response: Yes. Resumes should be submitted. Please refer to Section 4 #2 on page 8 of the RFP.

108. Question: Does SFM anticipate that separate costs will be included for (cloud) data storage and hosting, or is the expectation that all these costs need to be included in hourly rates?

DPS Response: The cost of data storage and hosting should be identified separate from the hourly rates.

109. Question: Can SFM provide an estimate of the total number of State employee users who would need access to the Data Sharing Platform?

DPS Response: The 775 Minnesota fire departments and fire prevention educators will need access to the information.

110. Question: Has the SFM developed an estimated budget or level of effort estimate for this contract? If so, will the SFM share this estimate?

DPS Response: SFM has a tentative budget established but it is not yet finalized. SFM is not willing to share its tentative budget.

111. Question: The anticipated contract term is from October 1, 2020 to September 30, 2022. Can responders escalate the hourly rates for the second year (starting on October 1, 2021)?

DPS Response: Yes.

112. Question: Can SFM clarify how the support will differ in years 1 and 2?

DPS Response: It is anticipated that support will remain the same through the life of the project.

113. Question: Does the SFM already have the incident and demographic data referenced in the proposal? Or, will the vendor be responsible for identifying and finding these (both incident and demographic information) and additional sources of data?

DPS Response: SFM has MFIRS incident data only. The vendor will be responsible for identifying and finding any additional data.

114. Question: How many total years of incident data is available for ingestion?

DPS Response: Ten year of data is expected.

115. Question: What is the total approximate size of the incident data? In particular, how many Gigabytes is the incident data (approximately)? If that’s unavailable, is there an estimated number of rows for the data under consideration?

DPS Response: Size of the data and number of rows is undetermined.

116. Question: Assuming incident data is maintained by SFM, can SFM share one or two examples (anonymized if needed) for all the data fields that would be available to the selected consultant? For example, is “Cause” a selection from a standardized list of causes, or is it a narrative provided by the responding officer? Can SFM provide a field description for each of the incident data fields?

DPS Response: See response to Question #27.

117. Question: The RFP indicates that “four main tasks and deliverables are anticipated,” which include (1) required data, (2) information sharing platform, (3) analyzing data and assessing its risk, and (4) statewide risk reduction plan. Does SFM have specific requirements on the form of these deliverables and the milestones needed to finalize them – or should the proposer suggest the form of these deliverables?

DPS Response: The proposer should suggest the form of deliverables.

118. Question: The RFP states, “All software utilized for the information-sharing platform must meet requirements established by MNIT, the information technology department for the State of Minnesota.” Does SFM have a preference on whether the solution is a fully hosted platform-as-a-service (PaaS) model or a solution hosted within SFM’s and MNIT’s existing cloud infrastructure?

DPS Response: The platform must meet the requirements set forth by MNIT and be sustainable and accessible to the SFM. Please see the attached security standards.

119. Question: Will MNIT provide or reference specific requirements that apply to this RFP, and have these already been established, or will requirements be determined during the solution delivery process?

DPS Response: Please see the attached document outlining MNITs security standards.

120. Question: Is the risk analysis mapping tool strictly for the SFM and its employees as well as individual fire departments, or does SFM anticipate that members of the general public will have access to the risk analysis mapping tool?

DPS Response: The tool is not intended for public use.

121. Question: Will the information-sharing platform be limited to SFM and its employees and individual fire departments?

DPS Response: SFM staff, fire departments and fire prevention educators will have access to the platform.

122. Question: Does SFM currently use Esri software, such as ArcGIS, ArcMap, or Esri data management tools? If so, can you briefly outline your current GIS environment?

DPS Response: SFM currently utilizes Esri ArcGIS software. We use ArcGIS Desktop, ArcGIS Pro and hosts data in the DPS ArcGIS Online environment.

123. Question: Are static GIS maps also expected in the deliverables related to the analysis tasks?

DPS Response: Yes. The vendor can work with SFM staff on GIS details.

124. Question: How frequently or quickly are data updates expected to the risk mapping tool? We assume that near real-time updates are not anticipated, but can you confirm our understanding?

DPS Response: SFM updates its data annually. Other information should be updated as it is available.

125. Question: Does SFM currently use any risk mapping tools and solutions or information-sharing platforms for similar purposes as anticipated in this RFP? If so, can SFM provide information on the providers of those tools and platforms?

DPS Response: SFM does not currently use risk mapping tools or information sharing platforms.

126. Question: The cost form suggests the State would like to see hourly rates. We're assuming the State wants to execute this project as a "fixed-fee" project versus hourly (time and materials) contract. Can you please confirm how you'd like to see project cost information.

DPS Response: Please refer to Attachment C on page 15 of the RFP. Also see Question #105.

127. Question: With respect to fire occurrence records. While there are national sources for fire occurrence data, many still have completeness and quality issues. Does the State maintain their own records or repositories for fire incident / occurrence records or have preferred sources?

DPS Response: SFM currently uses Image Trend and NFIRS data.

128. Question: As related to ongoing hosting and support. Does the State wish to see estimated ongoing support costs for the platform, data maintenance etc?

DPS Response: Yes

129. Question: Does the State have an estimated budget for this project? Having this information helps us better understand how to approach the project.

DPS Response: See Question #110.

130. Question: In regards to task 1 in the scope, would the contractor be required to broker data access (i.e. NDAs/MOUs) discussion with the mentioned state resources or are the data in question publicly available from those state sources?

DPS Response: Any cost for data that is not publicly available should be included in the bid and any additional costs will not be incurred by SFM.

131. Question: Does SFM currently have any enterprise data repository? (i.e. data warehouse, enterprise GIS, or other data store) in which the resulting risk data would need to be integrated?

DPS Response: We currently utilize Esri ArcGIS software. We use ArcGIS Desktop, ArcGIS Pro and hosts data in the DPS ArcGIS Online environment.

132. Question: Does SFM currently license any GIS or data visualization software that they would like to use during this project?

DPS Response: No. but SFM is willing to working with vendor recommendations.

133. Question: Is there a rough idea of how many users for this information sharing platform? Ex: full public access vs internal only vs internal and select mission partners

DPS Response: Minnesota has 775 fire departments. There are also fire prevention educators who would use this data.

134. Question: The SFM indicates that incident and demographic data will be acquired from a variety of state resources. Can the State provide a detailed list of data sources that are required to support the Risk Assessment project?

DPS Response: SFM will provide NFIRS data on fire incidents. Other data will be found by the vendor. SFM does not have a detailed list of what is available, that is part of this contract, to help us find the data.

135. Question: The SFM indicates that the information sharing platform must have the capacity to import data to assure the platform remains relevant and timely. Can the State clarify the role of the selected vendor in the acquisition of the targeted data? For example; will the State collect the data from the source systems and present it in a standardized format in order for the vendor to import the data into the CRA environment or is the vendor required to manage the data acquisition from each source system?

DPS Response: The vendor is required to manage the data acquisition from each data source system.

136. Question: Will all data sources be provided by SFM, including demographic data?

DPS Response: No

137. Question: Will there be multiple sources per data source type (i.e. incidents and demographic)?

DPS Response: Yes.

138. Question: What are the source systems for the data? Please provide a list of databases, file types, etc.

DPS Response: We are open to the vendor recommended source system. The source system must comply with the requirements set forth by MNIT. Please see attached safety standards document.

139. Question: What is the frequency of data updates?

DPS Response: SFM updates its data annuall0y. Other information should be updated as it is available.

140. Question: The SFM states that all software utilized for the information-sharing platform must meet requirements established by MNIT, the information technology department for the State of Minnesota. Does this mean that all software will be deployed and maintained on State infrastructure?

DPS Response: SFM is open to it being hosted by the vendor or installed locally as long as it meets MNIT parameters. Please see attached document.

141. Question: Does the SFM intend to include investigative data as part of the analytical data set? If yes, is there a requirement or desire to apply investigative analytics in addition to the broader insights supported by pattern, trend, and forecasting analysis? Investigation-level analytics would be used to uncover links or commonalities that exist between multiple investigations

DPS Response: MFIRS data regarding cause and origin will be part of the analytics.

142. Question: Is SFM looking for a hosted solution, or will this be installed and run by SFM?

DPS Response: We are open to it being hosted by the vendor or installed locally as long as it meets MNIT parameters. See attached security standards.

143. Question: Is SFM looking for a system that can grow into a single platform that would include incident management?

DPS Response: No. Incident management is not part of this project.

144. Question: How often do you plan to update your data-driven risk assessment and risk map? Will this be a daily, weekly, or other time-period update?

DPS Response: SFM updates its data annually. Other information should be updated as it is available.

145. Question: Will the selected vendor be expected to provide software, implementation services, or both?

DPS Response: Both

146. Question: “The initial tasks of the CRA will be: 1) acquiring the required incident and demographic data; and 2) creating the information sharing platform. The data character fields must include but may not be limited to the following:”

[Please define “acquire” in this context. Does the vendor need to find this data, and acquire rights to it; or will the SFM supply the data and then the vendor will integrate it into the proposed system?]

DPS Response: The vendor needs to find the data and acquire rights to it.

147. Question: Are there any other attachments associated with this RFP? The two attachments posted are:

SFM_Risk_Assessment___Data_Analytics_RFP.docx

Risk_Assessment___Data_Analytics_Services.pdf KDM

DPS Response: All attachment and exhibits corresponding to the RFP are identified in the “Table of Contents” on page 2 of the RFP.

148. Question: Is there another template for Attachment C – Cost Proposal, or is the single line item all that is requested for pricing? Is the vendor to provide a single line item price for the entire project? KDM

DPS Response: There is no template other than Attachment C-Cost Proposal. The responders are expected to submit a cost proposal that easily identifies the hourly rates, hosting fees, and maintenance and support fees.

149. Question: Is there a specific GIS platform that you would want to use for the solution, or can vendors choose an appropriate platform to meet the mapping requirement?

DPS Response: Any platform must meet the requirements of MNIT. Please see attached document.

150. Question: Are you looking for a predictive analytics solution for the personal risk assessment and community risk assessment points in task (4), or an analysis of historical trends and risks only?

DPS Response: SFM is looking for a predictive analytics solution.

151. Question: If you are looking for a predictive analytics model, how far into the future are you looking to be able to forecast / predict, and at roughly what level of geographic granularity?

DPS Response: We would like to predict as far out as is possible and practical for fire prevention education. Granularity should be by fire department response area at a minimum.

152. Question: In what year do the records that you want to transfer into the DW begin, and what is the frequency of data points (e.g. daily / monthly / annual)?

DPS Response: SFM would like to go back 10 years in research data and we have our data annually updated. Other information should be updated as it is available.

153. Question: What is the estimated volume/size of data annually?

DPS Response: Unknown

154. Question: Expected number of data viewers/consumers (internal & external)? Number of analytic developers?

DPS Response: Minnesota has 775 fire departments and additional fire prevention educators.

155. Question: Will this require public facing anonymous user portal or website?

DPS Response: No

156. Question: Will any existing infrastructure be allocated to the solution?

DPS Response: That will depend on the needs are of the vendor and availability within the state system.

157. Question: Are there existing tools or software that SFM or MNIT already have experience/exposure to (SQL Server, Visual Studio, R, Python, TSQL, Java, etc.) in terms of preferential solution design technologies?

DPS Response: SFM currently uses ImageTrend.

158. Question: Is there an expectation for weather-related data to be incorporated into this system?

DPS Response: Ideally, SFM is looking for factors which we can work to educate and change behavior but weather is not necessarily included.

159. Question: Is arson a factor in this dataset? Or are only accidental fires the ones in question?

DPS Response: Yes, all fire causes should be considered.

160. Question: There is nothing in the demographic data section that indicates number of firehouses within proximity to the incident. Is that a data point that is expected?

DPS Response: That is a relevant point. The location of fire departments can be found here Please note that there may be more than one hose per department.

161. Question: Will the information sharing platform and the data it contains be publicly accessible?

DPS Response: No

162. Question: If the information sharing platform is publicly accessible, will all data be public or will access to some data be limited?

DPS Response: N/A. The platform will not be publicaly accessible.

163. Question: Is it the intent of the SFM that the GIS mapping tool and its underlying contents be regularly updated and maintained after the conclusion of the project?

DPS Response: Yes, the platform should stay relevant and timely

164. Question: Is it the intent of the SFM that all data loaded into the Information sharing platform be available for viewing within the GIS mapping tool?

DPES Response: Yes

165. Question: Will statewide data on building permits and associated building construction data be made available?

DPS Response: That data will not be made available by SFM.

166. Question: Will fire department station locations, apparatus, staffing (fulltime paid, part time and volunteer), and response data be made available?

DPS Response: Some of this information is available through SFM and the Minnesota Board of Firefighter Training and Education but not all that data is readily available.

167. Question: How many communities is the State broken down into?

DPS Response: We have 775 fire departments and many departments have multiple fire stations.

168. Question: How granular or specific do you expect predictions and forecast models to be?

DPS Response: As specific as possible

169. Question: Are you seeking a well-rounded risk assessment or a fire risk assessment?

DPS Response: Residential fire risk assessment.

170. Question: Will offshore resources be acceptable for this response/work?

DPS Response: No

171. Question: What is the anticipated cost and length of the scope of work?

DPS Response: Unknown

172. Question: While our company will work with state resources, will the state resources be responsible for providing the data extract of Incident and Demographic data from various sources?

DPS Response: No

173. Question: Is NIFRS expected to be the main source of data? If so what/how many other data sources are expected?

DPS Response: No. It will be up to the vendor to find additional data sources, the number is unlimited.

174. Question: How often will the selected vendor receive incident and demographic data? Monthly, Weekly or Daily?

DPS Response: We have our data annually updated. Other information should be updated as it is available.

175. Question: How much of historic data is available when it comes to Incident Data? 5 years, 10 years or beyond?

DPS Response: Beyond

176. Question: Will the state resources be responsible for data quality of the source data being provided?

DPS Response: The State cannot guarantee the quality of data it receives from second or third parties.

177. Question: What is the expected data size of Demographic Data and Incident Data for residential fires and fire fatalities(number of incident reported per month or per day)?

DPS Response: Unknown for more information see Fire in Minnesota

178. Question: What kind of existing information sharing platform currently available at the state level?

DPS Response: None

179. Question: Can the State elaborate on the intended of use of the risk modeling in Section 2 (Task 3). E.g. is this to be used for route planning, communications/community engagement strategies, or insurance guidance?

DPS Response: Fire prevention and education

180. Question: Are any of the data sources considered to be Personally Identifiable Information (PII)?

DPS Response: No information is or should be personally identifiable.

181. Question: Assuming this the solution is a managed service, will it require 24/7 support or business hours?

DPA Response: This will not require daily management.

182. Question: Where is most of the data that needs to be ingested and analyzed housed today e.g. relational databases, spreadsheets, flat files, etc..?

DPS Response: SFM MFIRS data is housed in Image Trend.

183. Question: Roughly how much data per week does the solution need to ingest e.g. 0-1 GB, 1-5GB, 5-10 GB, 10-20GB, etc.. ?

DPS Response: Unknown

184. Question: Does the solution need to be HIPAA compliant?

DPS Solution: No

185. Question: How important is the ability for the solution to ingest new disparate data and rapidly translate this new data into actionable insights?

DPS Response: It is very important to have actionable insights.

186. Question: Will the solution require dashboards and reports to be tailored for specific personas, e.g. senior leadership v. general staff, if so, how many personas?

DPS Response: No

187. Question: How many concurrent users and users overall are anticipated to utilize the solution?

DPS Response: 775 fire departments and several fire prevention educators

188. Question: Is there a need for automaton and/or orchestration to be driven from the analytics and insights?

DPS Response: No

189. Question: Are there specific KPIs or metrics the solution needs to derive?

DPS Response: No

190. Question: How complete are the NFRIS incident reports being delivered by fire departments?

DPS Response: Fairly complete

191. Question: Is the Fire Marshal Division currently using any GIS system or technology

DPS Response: Yes

192. Question: Does the SFM manage and have access to all Demographic data categories as listed in the RFP? If not does the State anticipate acquiring third party data resources for this project?

DPS Response: No. The RFP is intended to result in a third party to provide the data resources.

193. Question: Does the SFM anticipate utilizing data currently managed by SFM resources and/or does the SFM anticipate having to compile data from other government entities during the project (e.g. City, County, TWP, etc?)

DPS Response: The vendor will need to compile data from other sources.

194. Question: What is a workforce certificate and where can we acquire that information?

DPS Response: As identified in the RFP Table of Contents, the workforce certificate is on page 17 of the RFP.

195. Question: What is an equal pay certificate and how can that be acquired?

DPS Response: As identified in the RFP Table of Contents, the equal pay certificate is on page 18 of the RFP

196. Question: Is there a do not exceed limit to the budget for this project?

DPS Response: See Question #110 above.

197. Question: Can you provide your budget for this project?

DPS Response: See Question #110 above.

198. Question: Are there any concerns/considerations with cloud software as a service (SaaS) hosting of analysis content/data?

DPS Response: Cloud software must comply with the requirements set forth by MNIT. Please see attached document.

199. Question: Will the solution be installed in the cloud, if so, which provider is SFM considering?

DPS Response: We are open to cloud installation if it meets the MNIT requirements. Please see attached document.

200. Question: Can you provide the MNIT requirements?

DPS Response: Please see attached document.

201. Question: Is there a requirement for location of the solution: on-premises, cloud (Azure, AWS), or hybrid?

DPS Response: No. Please review the RFP for more information on this topic.

202. Question: Does the SFM or MNIT current utilize a cloud framework (Azure or AWS)?

DPS Response: Various departments use various cloud frameworks. SFM currently does not.

203. Question: Is NIFRS expected to be the main source of data? If so what/how many other data sources are expected?

DPS Response: We expect to use as many data sources as possible

204. Question: Does DPS/MN.IT have any preference when it comes to storage, analytics and visualization platform/software? i.e. Cloud vs. on-prem, AWS vs. GCP, Splunk vs. Tableau

DPS Response: We will leave this up to the vendor for guidance.

205. Question: Does the Department of Public Safety have a preferred GIS Solution in place currently? Would custom overlays (i.e. shape files) over an openly available map service (e.g. Google Maps) be sufficient?

DPS Response: • SFMD utilizes Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) data standards and Esri ArcGIS for its GIS software, but we are not specifically tied to any particular software or vendor.

206. Question: Is there an existing or preferred method for accessing and ingesting the data e.g. API, file drop, ODBC connector, other?

DPS Response: No

207. Question: • Is the incident data managed by the State geocoded or have X,Y location?

DPS Response: If they give us an accurate address, the latitude and longitude are populated into the data base for the incident of record.

208. Question: How does the SFM anticipate utilizing 2020 Census data as part of this project given the project's timeline?

DPS Response: SFM does plan using data from the 2020 census but that will depend on how soon that data is available.

209. Question: Part 1 of the scope is compiling incident and demographic data acquired from a variety of state resources. If you have already identified those resources, can you provide more detail on them? We understand that the fields are listed for Incident data and Demographic data, but exactly how many data sources are there, what are they, how much data volume, how many tables and fields and rows, etc?

DPS Response: SFM has not identified resources other than MFIRS data. It is up to the respondent to locate additional data sources that have not been identified.

210. Question: Can you provide examples of how you intend to use the GIS mapping when the project is finished?

DPS Response: SFM intends using the mapping system to identify areas in the state that are at a higher risk of residential fires than others. We will direct our fire prevention efforts towards the higher risk areas.

211. Question: Can you provide examples of how you intend to use the information sharing platform when the project is finished? Does there need to be a "front end" to the platform such that non-technical users can log into the platform and explore their data, or is the platform more of a data warehouse for analytics to be run on and to serve as a conduit for other systems to push and pull data to?

DPS Response: SFM intends using the information sharing platform to share information with fire departments and fire prevention educators. Non-technical users will have access to the platform.

212. Question: How many people will need access to the data? Will they only need access to the conclusions, such as the results of the models, or will they need to explore the data themselves? 

DPS Response: There are 775 fire departments in Minnesota who will need access to the data as well as fire prevention educators. They should have the ability to explore the data themselves.

213. Question: Is the Fire Marshal Division providing the individual level data sources, directing the vendor to identified data sources, or is the vendor expected to provide them? If the Fire Marshal is providing the date are there restrictions for the vendor to use that data?

DPS Response: It is the responsibility of the respondent to gather data other than MFIRS data that will be supplied by the SFM

214. Question: Is this RFP focusing on residential fires, or also fires that are initiated outside of the residence (e.g. wildfires, exposed power lines)?

DPS Response: Residential fires.

215. Question: Who will be the main users of the information sharing platform? Does the Fire Marshal Division have social scientists, data analysts or data scientists that will be working on this project? What is the level of engagement of SFM users with this project?

DPS Response: The main users will be fire departments and fire prevention educators. The RFP is for data analysis we have no scientists.

216. Question: Does SFM have an anticipated budget for this project?

DPS Response: SFM has a tentative budget established but it is not yet finalized. SFM is not willing to share its tentative budget.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

1. INFORMATION ABOUT THE STATE OF MINNESOTA’S “ENTEPRISE INFORMATION SECURITY POLICIES AND STANDARDS USAGE GUIDELINE” AND MINNESOTA’S “ENTERPRISE INFORMATION SECURITY PROGRAM STANDARD” WILL BE PROVIDED IN ADDENDUM 2 WHICH WILL BE ISSUED NO LATER THAN 4:00 P.M. CENTRAL TIME ON FRIDAY, JULY 17, 2020.

2. REVISIONS TO AND CLARIFICATION OF “ATTACHMENT C: COST PROPOSAL” WILL BE PROVIDED IN ADDENDUM TWO WHICH WILL BE ISSUED NO LATER THAN 4:00 P.M. CENTRAL TIME ON FRIDAY, JULY 17, 2020.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF ADDENDUM 1

This addendum shall become part of the RFP and must be returned with, or acknowledged in, the Proposal.

RESPONDER NAME:

SIGNATURE:

TITLE:

DATE:

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