EMA Radio

JENNIFER BERTINO-TARRANT
WILL COUNTY EXECUTIVE
KEVIN LYNN
PURCHASING DEPARTMENT DIRECTOR
P. 815-740-4712 County Office Building
F. 815-740-4604 302 N. Chicago Street
E. klynn@willcounty.gov Joliet, IL 60432
April 22, 2026
To Whom It May Concern:
You are invited to submit your sealed bid for the purchase of up to nine (9) existing point-to-
point microwave links. The actual number of links to be purchased will be determined based on
pricing received and availability of funds.
Complete bid specifications are included, which will act as the contract and must be filled out
and returned as such.
A 10% Bid Bond or Cashier's Check made payable to the Will County Treasurer MUST
accompany your bid, or it will not be considered. Money Orders or Company checks will
not be accepted.
Sealed bids will be received in the purchasing department, 2nd floor, Will County Office
Building, 302 N. Chicago St., Joliet, IL 60432, DUE NOT LATER THAN 10:00 A.M., "AS
SO INDICATED BY THE TIME STAMP CLOCK OF WILL COUNTY", WEDNESDAY,
MAY 13, 2026.
Bids will be publicly opened and read by the Will County Executive or her Representative at
10:05 A.M., WEDNESDAY, MAY 13, 2026, at the Will County Office Building, 302 N.
Chicago Street, 2nd Floor, Joliet, IL. 60432. You are welcome to attend the meeting.
Should you have any questions regarding this bid, please contact the Will County Purchasing
Department in writing at purchasing@willcounty.gov
We welcome your bid.
Sincerely,
Kevin Lynn
Kevin Lynn
Purchasing Director

ADVERTISEMENT OF BID
PURCHASE OF EXISTING POINT TO POINT MICROWAVE LINKS
WILL COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY, JOLIET, IL.
SEALED BIDS FOR THE PURCHASE OF UP TO NINE (9) POINT TO POINT MICROWAVE LINKS WILL
BE RECEIVED AT THE WILL COUNTY PURCHASING DEPARTMENT, WILL COUNTY OFFICE
BUILDING, 302 N. CHICAGO ST., JOLIET, IL 60432, UNTIL THE HOUR OF 10:00 A.M., WEDNESDAY,
MAY 13, 2026.
BIDS WILL BE PUBLICLY OPENED AND READ BY THE WILL COUNTY EXECUTIVE OR HER
REPRESENTATIVE AT 10:05 A.M., WEDNESDAY MAY 13, 2026, AT THE WILL COUNTY OFFICE
BUILDING, 302 N. CHICAGO ST., 2ND FLOOR, JOLIET, IL. 60432.
SPECIFICATIONS AND CONDITIONS OF THE BID ARE AVAILABLE AT www.demandstar.com OR
www.willcounty.gov AS WELL AS THE PURCHASING DEPARTMENT, 2ND FLOOR, WILL COUNTY
OFFICE BUILDING, 302 N. CHICAGO ST., JOLIET, IL 60432, (815) 740-4712 OR BY SUBMITTING
REQUEST VIA EMAIL AT purchasing@willcounty.gov
THE TENDERING OF A BID TO THE COUNTY SHALL BE CONSTRUED AS ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE SPECIFICATIONS. THE BIDDER ACKNOWLEDGES THE RIGHT OF
THE COUNTY OF WILL TO REJECT ALL BIDS, AND TO WAIVE NON-MATERIAL INFORMALITY OR
IRREGULARITY IN ANY BID RECEIVED IN WHOLE OR PART AS MAY BE SPECIFIED IN THE
SOLICITATION.
BY ORDER OF THE WILL COUNTY EXECUTIVE, JENNIFER BERTINO-TARRANT.
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INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS
PURCHASE OF POINT-TO-POINT MICROWAVE LINKS
WILL COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY, JOLIET, IL.
GENERAL SPECIFICATIONS
You are invited to submit your bid for the purchase of up to nine (9) point-to-point microwave links. The actual
number of links to be purchased will be determined based on the pricing and availability of funds. The County desires
to utilize point to point microwave equipment that operates in the 11 GHz band.
SEALED BIDS:
Sealed bids will be received in the Purchasing Department, 2nd floor, Will County Office Building, 302 N. Chicago
St., Joliet, IL 60432, not later than 10:00 A.M., Wednesday, May 13, 2026, "as so indicated by the time stamp
clock of Will County."
BIDS RECEIVED AFTER THIS TIME WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.
Sealed bids will be publicly opened and read aloud by the Will County Executive or her representative at 10:05
A.M., Wednesday, May 13, 2026 at the Will County Office Building, 302 N. Chicago St., 2nd Floor, Joliet, IL
60432.
Bids must be made in accordance with the instructions contained herein.
Bid forms shall be completely filled out either typewritten or in ink. The complete set of Contract Documents
shall be submitted with the proposal, with ONE (1) ORIGINAL, TWO (2) COMPLETE COPIES CLEARLY
MARKED AND A DIGITAL COPY ON AN ELECTRONIC STORAGE DEVICE.
Proposals shall be submitted on the forms furnished by the County of Will in a sealed package, plainly marked,
with the bidder's name, address, and the notation:
SEALED BID: 2026-71 EMA RADIO MICROWAVE LINKS
QUESTIONS DUE: 12:00 P.M., Wednesday, May 6, 2026
ADDENDA RELEASE: 12:00 P.M., Friday, May 8, 2026
BIDS DUE: 10:00 A.M., Wednesday, May 13, 2026
Bids shall be addressed to the Will County Purchasing Department, Will County Office Building, 302 N. Chicago
St., Joliet, IL 60432.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Specifications are attached hereto and incorporated herein.
PURCHASE AGREEMENT:
Bidder agrees and understands that the purchase of point-to-point microwave links is subject to a mutually acceptable
purchase and sale agreement, which shall include, seller's indemnity, warranty for the hardware, and other material
terms, including:
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The bidder shall provide five (5) complete sets of equipment service manuals for each type of equipment provided.
At a minimum, service manuals must include all information required to troubleshoot and repair each and repair
each system component down to the lowest field replaceable component level.
The bidder shall be responsible for all costs of shipping, storage, and other transportation required for all equipment
to be purchased.
Ownership/title to the equipment will pass to the County of Will upon completion of installation at the County
Facilities.
SIGNATURE OF BIDS:
The signature on bid documents shall be that of an authorized representative of bidder. An officer of or agent
of the offering bidder who is empowered to bind the bidder in a Contract shall sign the proposal and any
clarifications to that proposal. The County of Will bears no responsibility in determining whether signer is so
authorized. Each bidder, by making his bid, represents that he has read and understands the bidding documents.
Any bid not containing said signed documents shall be non-conforming and shall be rejected.
BIDDING PROCEDURES:
1. All bids must be prepared on the forms provided by the County and with ONE (1) ORIGINAL, TWO (2)
COMPLETE COPIES AND ONE ELECTRONIC COPY ON A DIGITAL STORAGE DEVICE, CLEARLY
MARKED, in accordance with the Instructions to bidders.
2. A bid is invalid if it has not been deposited at the designated location prior to the time and date for receipt of
bids indicated in the Advertisement for bids or prior to any extension thereof issued to the bidders.
3. Unless otherwise provided in any supplement to the Instructions to bidders, no bidder shall modify, withdraw
or cancel his bid or any part thereof for sixty (60) days after the time designated for the receipt of bids in the
Advertisement for bids.
4. Changes or corrections may be made in the bid documents after they have been issued and before bids are
received. In such cases a written addendum describing the change or correction will be issued by the County
of Will to all bidders recorded by the County of Will as having received the bidding documents and will be
available for inspection wherever issued. Such addendum shall take precedence over that portion of the
documents concerned and shall become part of the bid documents. Except in unusual cases, addendum will be
issued to reach the bidders at least five (5) days prior to date established for receipt of bids.
5. Each bidder shall carefully examine all bid documents and all addenda thereto and shall thoroughly familiarize
themselves with the detailed requirements thereof prior to submitting a proposal. Should a bidder find
discrepancies or ambiguities in, or omissions from documents, or should they be in doubt as to their meaning,
they shall, at once, and in any event, not later than seven (7) days prior to bid due date, notify the County of
Will, who will, if necessary, send written addendum to all bidders. The County of Will will not be responsible
for any oral instructions. All inquiries shall be directed to the Will County Purchasing Department, in writing,
to purchasing@willcounty.gov. After sealed bids are received, the bidder will make no allowance for
oversight.
REJECTION OF BIDS:
The bidder acknowledges the right of the County of Will to reject any and all proposals for cause and to waive non-
material informality or irregularity in any bid received.
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NO BIDS:
Those who wish not to bid this project please return your bid plainly marked "NO BID" or send email of same to
retain company name on bidders list. If you choose not to reply company your name will be removed and no future
bids will be automatically sent.
PRIME CONTRACTOR CERTIFICATION:
Included in this bid package is a prime Contractor certification form. This form must be filled out, signed, and
returned with your sealed bid package or it will not be accepted.
WORDS AND FIGURES:
Where amounts are given in both words and figures, the words shall govern. If the amount is not written in words
the unit cost will take precedence over the extended price in case of a discrepancy in the multiplication.
BID SECURITY:
A 10% Bid Bond or Cashier's Check made payable to the WILL COUNTY TREASURER, shall accompany
each bid, attached to the front cover, as a guarantee that if the bid is accepted, a contract will be entered into.
Money Orders or Company checks will not be accepted. The Bid Bond or Cashier's Check will be returned to
the unsuccessful bidders after the Bid has been awarded and will be returned to the successful bidder upon receipt
of the Performance Bond, if applicable.
PERFORMANCE BOND:
A Performance Bond for the amount of the contract will be required from the successful bidder and shall be valid
throughout the life of the contract. The Performance Bond will be returned at the completion of the contract. If it
is difficult to acquire a Performance Bond by the time the contract is to commence, the County of Will shall accept
a letter notarized by the Insurance Carrier showing that such Bond is being processed at this time.
NON-DISCRIMINATION:
The bidder shall at all times observe and comply with any law, statute, regulation or the like relating in any way
to civil rights including but not limited to 775 ILCS 10/1, et seq.
DEFAULT:
In case of default by the successful bidder, the County of Will may procure the articles or services from other
sources and may deduct from the unpaid balance due the successful bidder any of its costs resulting from the
default, or may collect against the bond or surety for excess costs so paid, and the prices paid by the County of Will
shall be considered the prevailing market price at the time such purchase is made.
Will County reserves the right to cancel the contract if the bidder fails to perform the work required in the bid
specifications after efforts to resolve any problems that have been unsuccessful.
TYPES OF INSURANCE:
1. Statutory Workers' Compensation and Employers' Liability (EL) Insurance. The bidder shall procure
and maintain during the life of this Contract Workmen's Compensation Insurance as required by applicable
state law for all of his employees who would be engaged in work on the project. In case of any class of
employees engaged in any work on the project under this Contract is not protected under the Workmen's
Compensation Statute, the bidder shall provide adequate employer's liability insurance for the protection of
such of his employees as are provide Employer's Liability (coverage B) in the following amounts: of 1,000,000
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Bodily injury by accident - each accident; $1,000,000 Bodily injury by disease - each employee; and
$1,000,000 Bodily injury by disease - policy limit. The Employers Liability Limits may be combined with
either an Excess or Umbrella Liability policy.
2. Comprehensive General Liability Insurance. The policy shall include premises operations, products and
completed operations, broad form property damage, contractual liability, independent contractors, and personal
and advertising injury with minimum limits of $1,000,000 limit per occurrence for bodily injury and property
damage; $2,000,000 aggregate with defense outside the limits. Any aggregate limit must apply per project/per
location and must be unimpaired.
3. Comprehensive Automobile Liability Insurance. The policy shall be maintained for the duration of this
Agreement and shall, at a minimum consist of $1,000,000 per person and $2,000,000 per occurrence for Bodily
Injury and Property Damage.
4. Umbrella Liability: Coverage excess of general liability, auto liability and employers' liability in an amount of
at least $1,000,000 per occurrence with defense outside the limit.
5. Technology Errors & Omission: Coverage with limits of at least $1,000,000. Any retroactive date or prior
acts exclusion must predate both the date of this agreement and any earlier commencement of any services.
This coverage must be maintained for a period of 2 years after final completion of the work.
6. Conditions Applying to All Coverages:
(a) The bidder shall furnish the County of Will at the time of bidding, with certificates showing the type, amount,
class or operations covered, effective dates and dates or expiration of policies, which policies shall specifically
refer to the indemnity agreement. Such certificates shall also contain substantially the following statement:
"The Insurance covered by this Certificate will not be canceled or materially altered except after 30 days'
written notice has been received by all named insured." The named insured in these policies shall be: County
of Will, 302 N. Chicago St., Joliet, IL 60432.
Any bid not containing said proof of insurance shall be non-conforming and shall be rejected.
(b) All policies shall substitute the word "Occurrence" for "accident "for both bodily and property damage.
"Occurrence" shall be defined to mean an event or series of events or continuous or repeated exposure to
conditions, which unexpectedly cause injury or damage during the policy period.
(c) All policies required should apply with a worldwide coverage territory to cover the sale of products worldwide
and suits brought worldwide.
(d) Any deductibles or self-insured retentions must be declared to and approved by The County of Will.
(e) Any changes to the coverages required must be authorized in advance by The County of Will and be
documented in writing.
(f) The certificate shall provide that 60 days prior written notice of cancellation be given to The County of Will
and its subsidiaries. The wording "endeavor to...but failure to do so shall impose no obligation or liability of
any kind upon the insurer, its agents or representatives" should be stricken from the Acord certificate form.
(g) Certificates for renewal policies must be issued 10 days prior to the renewal date.
(h) All liability policies for injury and property damage shall be issued on the "occurrence" form.
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(i) All coverages must be in a company approved to do business in the state and carrying a rating of at least A-
VIII by A.M. Best's. Coverages for subcontractors must have a carrier rating of at least A- VIII by A.M.
Best's.
(j) Vendor shall be responsible for assuring that all subcontractors are properly insured and maintain the same
coverages, terms, and conditions as required by this agreement.
(k) The County of Will reserves the right to increase or expand these requirements when it deems prudent.
CHOICE OF LAW AND VENUE:
Any cause of action related to this bid, or contract related thereto, shall be governed by the laws of the State of
Illinois without regard to conflict of law provisions. Venue for any cause of action related to this bid, or any
contract related thereto, shall be in the Twelfth Judicial Circuit, Will County, Illinois.
ILLINOIS FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT:
Any and all submissions to the County of Will become the property of the County of Will and these and any late
submissions will not be returned. Your proposal will be open to the public under the Illinois Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA) (5 ILCS 140) and other applicable laws and rules, unless you request in your proposal that
we treat certain information as exempt. We will not honor requests to exempt entire proposals. You must show the
specific grounds in FOIA or other law or rule that support exempt treatment. If you request exempt treatment, you
must submit an additional copy of the proposal with exempt information deleted. This copy must tell the general
nature of the material removed and shall retain as much of the proposal as possible. In the event the County of Will
receives a request for a document submitted, the County of Will shall provide notice to bidderas soon as
practicable. Regardless, bidder will be responsible for any costs or damages associated with defending your request
for exempt treatment. Furthermore, bidder warrants that County of Will's responses to requests for a document
submitted that is not requested to be exempt will not violate the rights of any third party.
Please be advised that if your proposal is accepted by the County of Will all related records maintained by,
provided to, or required to be provided to the County of Will during the contract duration are subject to FOIA. In
the event the County of Will receives a request for a document relating to bidder, its provision of services, or the
arranging for the provision of services, the County of Will shall provide notice to bidder as soon as practicable and,
within the period available under FOIA, bidder may then identify those records, or portions thereof, that it in good
faith believes to be exempt from production and the justification for such exemption, making reference to the
specific FOIA provision applicable without simply making a general claim that the information is "confidential,"
"proprietary," "exempt from disclosure," or the like. Regardless, bidder will be responsible for any costs or
damages associated with defending the request for exempt treatment. Furthermore, bidder will warrant that County
of Will's responses to requests for a document relating to bidder, its provision of services, or the arranging for the
provision of services, or the arranging for the provision of services, will not violate the rights of any third party.
Please be advised also that FOIA provides that any record in the possession of a party with whom the County of
Will has contracted to perform a governmental function on behalf of the County of Will, and that directly relates to
the governmental function and is not otherwise exempt under FOIA is considered a public record of the County of
Will for purposes of FOIA. 5 ILCS 140/7(2). As such, upon request by the County of Will (or any of its officers,
agents, employees or officials), the bidder shall provide to the County of Will at no cost and within the time frames
of FOIA a copy of any "public record" as required by FOIA and in compliance with the provisions of FOIA. After
request by the County of Will, bidder may then identify those records, or portions thereof, that it in good faith
believes to be exempt from production and the justification for such exemption, making reference to the specific
FOIA provision applicable without simply making a general claim that the information is "confidential,"
"proprietary," "exempt from disclosure," or the like. Regardless, bidder will be responsible for any costs or
damages associated with defending the request for exempt treatment.
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SUBMITTAL REQUIREMENTS:
Each of the following Products shall be submitted by the bid time mentioned herein in order that the bid will be
considered:
1. 10% Bid Bond or Cashier's Check
2. Signed Copy of Prime Contractor Certification
3. Signed and completed Bid Form
4. Signed and completed Receipt of Addenda Form
5. Proof of Insurance
6. Path analysis reports for the nine (9) paths listed.
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EMA RADIO MICROWAVE UPGRADE
Project Overview:
Will County seeks pricing to replace up to nine (9) existing point to point microwave links. The actual number of
links to be purchased will be determined based on the pricing and availability of funds. The County desires to
utilize point to point microwave equipment that operates in the 11 GHz band.
Three (3) of the existing point to point microwave links currently operate in the 11 GHz band and will be a like for
like replacement utilizing the existing dish antennas mounted on the radio towers. The remaining six (6) point to
point microwave links currently operate in the 4.9 GHz band and will be replaced with 11 GHz point to point
microwave equipment
Scope of Project:
The scope of this project includes the following services:
* Quoting the point to point microwave equipment based on the specifications below
* Providing path analysis reports for the nine (9) paths listed below
* Microwave system availability shall be defined by fade margins. The path analysis for the six (6) 4.9 GHz
point to point microwave links that will be converted to 11 GHz point to point microwave links shall show
a fade margin of 30 db.
* Equipment installation, antennas, and licensing to be provided by others.
Equipment specifications:
* Minimum 100 Mbps ethernet bandwidth. Options available for higher bandwidth.
* AES 128 bit / 256 bit encryption
* "Split mount" design featuring both an indoor and outdoor unit
* Minimum 3 SFP slots
* Minimum 2 RJ-45 10/100/1000 connections
* Indoor unit to operate on -48 VDC. 2 power connections preferred for redundancy.
* Indoor unit to be no larger than 1 rack unit tall
* Indoor unit preferred to be 12 rack width
* T1/E1 Requirements:
Quantity of 16 T1/E1 ports (16 x RJ 45) available in one module
o
T1/E1 Module to connect to IDU via fiber optic connection
o
Preferred to have T1/E1 connections as a separate module.
o
T1/E1 module be no larger than 1 RU tall
o
T1/E1 module preferred to be 12 rack width
o
External T1/E1 module to operate on -48 VDC.
o
Not all links will require T1/E1 connections. See link information below.
o
* Outdoor unit to have port to allow for RSL measurement
* Microwave link to be capable of the following modulations:
QPSK
o
16QAM
o
32QAM
o
64QAM
o
128QAM
o
256QAM
o
512QAM
o
1024QAM
o
2048QAM
o
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* Equipment to include an adaptive modulation feature
* Equipment to support both SNMP V2 and V3 Traps
* Web GUI for configuration, management, and monitoring
* Transmit power on ODU variable between 0 and 28 dBm
* Operating frequency range to be 10.7 - 11.7 GHz
* Transmit/Receive spacing to be 490/500 MHz
* RF channel bandwidth to be 10/30/40/80 MHz
* Emission Designator to include:
10MOD7W
o
30MOD7W
o
40MOD7W
o
60MOD7W
o
80MOD7W
o
* Ability to physically mount with existing microwave dishes preferred. Dishes are currently using Exalt
EX-s Series GigE ODU
Link Information:
Link Name FCC License Existing Frequencies T1/E1 Needed?
Information
Crete to Frankfort Station WQZD963, WQZD968 10.715 / 11.215 GHz No
73
Manhattan to St. Joseph's WQZD939, WQZD933 10.715 / 11.215 GHz No
Hospital
Plainfield to St. Joesph's WQZD939, WQZD943 10.895 / 11.385 GHz Yes
Hospital
Frankfort Station 73 to WSII637, WSJX576 4.9 GHz Yes
Laraway
Manhattan to Frankfort WSII584, WSII585 4.9 GHz Yes
116th
Manhattan to Laraway WSII585, WSII637 4.9 GHz Yes
Laraway to Frankfort WSII584, WSII637 4.9 GHz Yes
116th
St. Joseph's Hospital to WSII586, WSII594 4.9 GHz Yes
Lockport
Frankfort 116th to Monee WSII584, WSII592 4.9 GHz No
NOTE: An individual price is to be provided for each of the above links. The
number of links to be purchased will be determined upon the cost and available
funds.
NOTE: Additional details on microwave link can be found in attachment A.
NOTE: In addition to providing a price for each of the listed links, include "a la
carte" pricing for critical spare equipment. This includes, but is not limited to,
indoor unit and outdoor unit. The quantity of spare equipment will be determined
upon the cost and available funds.
Site Information:
Site Name Latitude Longitude ASR
Crete 41-25-16.9 N 087-38-39.1 W 1310165
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