Utah Public Procurement Place U3P #USBE-CC27271-ACW

Assistive-technology equipment for Utah students with visual impairments

The Utah State Board of Education is seeking student assistive-technology equipment for the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind. - Buyer: Utah State Board of Education (USBE), for the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind (USDB); no specific office is identified. - Proposed supplier: Sterling Adaptives. Other vendors named in the market research are Sweetman Systems and Dot Inc. - OEMs: HumanWare (BrailleNote and Explore 8), LVI America (MagniLink ZIP), and Dot Inc. (Dot Pad). - Requested equipment: 4 BrailleNote EVOLVE 32 units (FGBE-0001); 1 BrailleNote EVOLVE QT32 QWERTY 16GB unit (no part number stated); 2 Explore 8 Portable CCTV magnifiers (FGEX-1016); 3 MagniLink ZIP Full HD systems (MLZ-FHD13-US); 3 batteries (MLZ OPTION B); 3 HDMI/USB connection boards (OPTION C; also listed as MLZ OPTION C); 4 AC adapters (MLZ-B103); and 1 Dot Pad Braille Display (DOTPAD). - Attachment quotations also list shipping fees for HumanWare, LVI America, and Dot Pad products. The BrailleNote quotation includes a $1,000-per-unit trade-in credit for eligible BrailleNote Touch Plus 32 units, subject to return conditions. - Notable requirements: the notice cites proprietary hardware/software integrations and exclusive Utah distribution and service arrangements for HumanWare and LVI America products. The MagniLink ZIP systems include three years of total warranty coverage; the BrailleNote EVOLVE units include a one-year warranty. - Estimated purchase value is $48,543, with $530 in freight stated separately.

Description

The Utah State Board of Education intends to award a contract to Sterling Adaptives without a standard procurement process for assistive technology equipment for students, including HumanWare BrailleNote EVOLVE devices, Explore 8 magnifiers, and LVI MagniLink ZIP systems and accessories. The notice cites the vendors’ proprietary products and Sterling Adaptives’ exclusive authorized distribution arrangements in Utah as the sole-source justification. The stated estimated contract value is $48,543, with $530 freight. This is a notice of intent to award, not a request for proposals, bids, or quotes; vendors may submit challenges through the Utah Public Procurement Place Portal by November 18, 2026.

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