ECA - AO 10/2103/11 - Mobile Communications Annex A Tender Specifications

CALL FOR TENDERS

N10/2103/11

Mobile Communications

TENDER SPECIFICATIONS

Table of Contents

1.Description of the Call for Tenders......

2.Services covered by the Call for tenders......

2.1.Mobile Communications......

2.2.Alarm Management System......

3.PARTICIPATION IN THIS CALL FOR TENDERS......

3.1.EXCLUSION CRITERIA......

3.2.SELECTION CRITERIA......

3.3.AWARD CRITERIA......

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1.Description of the Call for Tenders

Procedure / Open call for tenders
Publishing authorities / The Courtof Auditors of the European Union (hereafter referred to as "the Court"), itself represented by its Information Technology Directorate (DIT).
Purpose / This call for tenders aims for the signature of a Framework contract for the supply of mobile communications services and associated equipment to the Court in Luxembourg.
Lots / This public contract will be treated as one lot only.
Contracts / The Court will sign a Framework contract on its own behalf. Framework contracts do not constitute orders. Orders are placed by specific agreements (“purchase order”).
Duration of Framework contract / Four years.
Place of delivery / Luxembourg.
Volume / Estimated volumes of material and services to be supplied every year are given in Annex A.3. However, in view of the nature of a Framework contract,no commitment can be given concerning actual order quantities.
Variants / No variants are permitted.
Subcontracting / Permitted. Subcontractors and their share in the contract should be clearly identified in the offer.

Annexes to the present Tendering Specifications:

  • Annex A.1: Numbering Plan
  • Annex A.2: Geographic Areas
  • Annex A.3: Volumes
  • Annex A.4: Service Level Agreement

2.Services covered by the Call for tenders

2.1.Mobile Communications

2.1.1.Network

The Court requires highquality mobile communications services. The requirements are expressed in terms of voice and data communications quality, unimpeded access to the home network and uninterrupted communications inside the home network.

The Contractor must in particular ensure that sufficient capacity and coverage is guaranteed in those areas where the highest density of communications is expected.

The Court’s buildings require extensive indoor access and capacity, especially in the car parks and in some offices and places located in the basements. The work related to the installations needed to ensure the required access and capacity needed shall be carried out by the Contractor. Costs to cover the works will be invoiced separately in accordance with the price offered in the FinancialTender.

An on-site visit is recommended: plans of the basements and other places will be distributed at this occasion.

Tenderers are kindly asked to contact the Court to agree on a date to organise this visit, in writing (fax (+352) 4398-46375) or email (). This visit must take place no later than 6 days before the deadline to submit tenders.

The Court might require that transmission infrastructure, or parts of it, be shared with other operators, if technically feasible.

2.1.2.Roaming

Mobile communications must be possible to and from all the Member States of the European Union and virtually any urban area in the world.

Information on the coverage by roaming agreements should be available in the form of maps. These maps should be available in electronic form and accessible via Internet and be updated as the coverage and the roaming agreements evolve. Information should also be provided on possible alternatives when GSM accessibility is not available. If the Court organises a mission, it should then be possible to investigate the possibility of mobile communications beforehand. If not offered in electronic form, the information should be offered in another readable way.

If GSM coverage offered by the tenderer in a certain geographic area is insufficient or not available, the Contractor should suggest an alternative. If an existing alternative is not accessible via the Framework contract, the Court might invoke the nonexclusivity clause in the contract.

2.1.3.Provision of phones and USB sticks, support and maintenance

The object of this call for tenders is not only to provide access to mobile communication services, but also to provide phones, USB sticks and other associated hardware. As a general principle, phones and USB sticks will be purchased. The rental of equipment will only be considered in exceptional circumstances, such as for countries with incompatible networks or for special short-termevents.

Thetenderermust advise the Courton the selection of phonesand USB sticks and make a pre-selection that deserves a label of professional quality.A list of at leastfive (5) models from the category of “Standard” phones and five (5) models from a category labelled “Smartphone” (3G, e-mail, office documents) should be established and two (2) models from a category labelled iPhone© or equivalent.

This list can take the form of bundles.

The available phones and USB sticks should be of professional quality.
A handset should always be delivered with a protective carryingpouch.

In order to keep pace with technical evolution, the handsets in the internal catalogue will be updated regularly (everysix (6) months)by models from equivalent categories and equivalent price ranges. The Court will veto all models that will not comply with these requirements.

The tenderer must describe an insurance scheme for the replacement of lost, stolen or broken phones that the Court may decide to subscribe for a limited set of specific phones.

In principle, phones and accessories will be delivered in a batch to the Information Technology Directorate’s central stock. It should, however, be possible to request delivery to another location in Luxembourg. In this case it might be necessary to provide some instruction and configuration support to the recipient of the equipment. When this additional service is required it should be provided without any additional cost and this will be clearly indicated on the purchase order.

2.1.4.Accessories

For every phone proposed, accessories should be offered. This may include high capacity batteries, with appropriate chargers, carrying pouches, interfacing equipment to a (portable) PC, earphones for hands-free use, etc.

2.1.5.Delivery and management tools

Place of delivery will beLuxembourg. TheCourthas a person responsible for Telecommunications whowill be in contact with the Contractor for delivery of phones, USB sticks, SIMcards and other accessories.

The Contractorwill deliver phones, USB sticks, SIMcards and other accessories to DIT. At a later stage theContractormay be required todeliver directly to the Court’s departments.

The configuration and management of SIM cards are important aspects of the service. The tenderer must guarantee that the delivery of SIM cards in batches can be done. The tenderer must also clearly explain how SIM cards and subscriptionsare managed.

2.1.6.Migration

The Court will have to migrate from the present situation (+200 GSM) to the new one.This means that every individual who currently has a GSM subscription will need to be informed of the changes in service the new contract induces.

The migration will be done as automatically as possible and without changes in numbers (number transfer).

Depending on the nature of the changes and the nature of the information, the tenderer should consider the provision of information in the form of a folder and/or a website and by staff that will visit individual users when required. The cost of these migration-related services is included in the migration cost per device as offered in the Financial Tender.

The Contractormust be able to help with the tasks related to the migration, the management of the SIM cards and the subscriptions.

Due to the fact that some existing subscriptions cover either twelve (12) or twenty-four (24) months, the migration of these subscriptions to the new contract must be completed within a period of time determined by the Court that can go up to a maximum of twenty-four(24) months after the signing of the Framework contract.

This implies that it shall possible to purchase phones without subscription for instance in the case of a lost or broken phone associated to a running legacy subscription.

2.1.7.Subscription features

The tenderer should describe the various subscriptions itcan offer to the Court. It should be clear which features are included and the advantages that each of them offers (mobile voice communications, mobile data communications, SMS, MMS, private/professionalprefix, etc.).

It must be possible to attribute specific subscription features to a particular end-user. The attribution of these different “Classes of Service” should be very easy;tedious checking and reprogramming of SIMcardsmust be avoided.

2.1.8.Training and support

The firsttimeinstruction and first level support to the end-user will be provided by the Court’s DIT. The tenderer should suggest a limited support and training scheme for DIT.

The tenderer can consider providing information and support using Internet or Intranet, and/or by providing Call Desks. Information and support should be available in at least French and English.

Support should be considered in the following circumstances: information to the end-user, technical support to the administrators of mobile communications and support for the end-user.

Costs for training and support offered are included in the price of other services and furniture and should not be invoiced separately.

2.1.9.Number reservation – Numbering plan – Number allocation

The Courtuses a Numbering Plan for the majority of its numbers (see Annex A.1). The Courtwants to keep this plan for future numbers.

Furthermore, the tenderer shall ensure that it is possible for a user to retain his mobile subscriber number in case he has to change his subscription.

2.1.10.Traffic Management

The tenderer should offer a Web-based interface for traffic management.

The Court should be able to control and “near-real-time” monitor the volumes, durations, costs and destinations of voice and data communication.

This control should be possible per number.

The Court should be able to set thresholds. These thresholds would apply to certain numbers and to certain types of communication (e.g. data).

2.1.11.Invoicing

In accordance with the Purchase and Delivery Process described in the Service Level Agreement (Annex A.4), invoices must be sent to the Accounting Department. The tenderer will indicate in detail which information is required in order to be able to produce detailed invoices that follow the guidelines below. These requirements by no means reflect a desire for a tailor-made invoicing system.

2.1.11.1.Price structure

The Court wishes to be invoiced on the basis of a simple flat rate corporate price structure. If a volume reduction were to be applied, it should not be calculated on individual subscriptions but on the entire volume.

2.1.11.2.Itemisation

In order to be able to produce statistics on call traffic, the itemisation of the invoice post must be consistent and meaningful. Different kinds of traffic must be easily identifiable e.g. mobile-originated, mobile-terminated, etc.The cost for roaming calls should be identifiable by country and operator. The country name should always be first – in English – followed by the operator name in full.

For roaming, it should be clearly indicated if a call has been partly or completely invoiced. If a call is partly charged on separate invoices, there should be some identifier linking these parts.

Invoice information should be clearly indicated. This applies particularly to the cost incurred by supplementary services.

The Contractorshould itemise the invoices in such a way that it would not be possible to invoice the same call twice (on consecutive invoices), or that, if such a mistake did occur, it would be easily detected.

2.1.11.3.Invoice formats

The Contractor should be able to produce one invoice for communications allowing clear distinction between professional and private communications. Those invoices must represent the real cost of communication (i.e. no calls are omitted; no calls are counted more than once, matching elements of roaming communications on different invoices, etc.)

The records in the electronic invoice should indicate at least the name and the subscription number of the user. In addition to electronic invoices, invoices in paper form are required for legal reasons. It might not be necessary that these paper invoices contain call details.

Electronic invoices to the central administration are to be read into the Court’s information system. The requirements for these invoices are as follows:

  • The monthly invoices to the central department should be flat ASCII format files.
  • They should have a stable format; even if Excel format lists to the administrative units and to the individual users will be updated regularly; the ASCII file’s structure should be as stable as possible.
  • The structure must be well documented. The invoices must be structured in a format that allows easy analysis of the call data. Every item on the invoice must be efficiently labelled so that every cost factor can be easily identified. The invoices to the different levels (end-user, administrative unit, central administration) must be consistent. An example of an invoice, in electronic format, must be provided If changes are inevitable, they should be announced and documented at least one (1) month in advance.
  • At a later stage, the Contractor might be asked to provide invoices in an EDI or XML format.
  • Invoices should be presented periodically and without undue delay. This means that an invoice is expected at the same time every month.
  • The available call details should allow various analyses of traffic and cost to be performed.

2.1.12.Private and professional use – impact on invoicing

Tenderers shall propose a method that allows private calls to be distinguished from professional calls and to identify the person who made the call. In that case, this feature must be provided without any additional cost.

The tenderer should investigate if this goal could be achieved by the use of a PIN code, by the use of a suffix to the extension number or in any other way. The purpose is to allow users to identify their outgoing, and, if possible, their incoming calls as private, even when roaming.

2.1.13.Service Level Agreement (SLA)

A proposed SLA is included in Annex A.4. The tenderer isinvited to propose improvements in order to coverall aspects of the services of mobile communications. This is part of the awarding process.The Court expects thefinal SLA to be comprehensive, detailed and based on objective and measurable quality parameters.

The final SLA will form part of the contract and will be regularly monitored and updated. Amendments to this final SLA will be made by mutual agreement.

The Court may undertake to perform benchmarking measurements to any of the quality parameters that are mentioned in the SLA.

2.2.Alarm Management System

The Courtalso uses its GSM infrastructure to warn the security team and surveillance agents in case of fire, intrusion or any other alarm provided by the central alarm system. Therefore, outgoing SMS capacity and/or dedicated calls must be tailored to allow at least ten (10) communications at the same time.

3.PARTICIPATION IN THIS CALL FOR TENDERS

The competition is open to the operators that have the necessary skills and expertise for the provision of the requested services and the supply of the necessary equipment. These can be legal entities coming within the scope of the Treaties and any legal entityfrom a third country which has concluded a specific agreement in the area of public contractswith the European Union, under the conditions provided for in that agreement.

3.1.EXCLUSION CRITERIA

Tenderers are excluded from participating in a procurement procedure if:

a)they are bankrupt or being wound up, are having their affairs administered by the courts, have entered into an arrangement with creditors, have suspended business activities, are the subject of proceedings concerning those matters, or are in any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure provided for in national legislation or regulations;

b)they have been convicted of an offence concerning their professional conduct by a judgement which has the force of res judicata;

c)they have been guilty of grave professional misconduct proven by any means which the contracting authority can justify;

d)they have not fulfilled obligations relating to the payment of social security contributions or the payment of taxes in accordance with the legal provisions of the country in which they are established or with those of the country of the contracting authority or those of the country where the contract is to be performed;

e)they have been the subject of a judgement which has the force ofres judicata for fraud, corruption, involvement in a criminal organisation or any other illegal activity detrimental to the European Union's financial interests;

f)they are currently subject of the administrative penalty for being guilty of misrepresentation in supplying the information required by the contracting authority as a condition of participation in the procurement procedure or failing to supply an information, or being declared to be in serious breach of his obligation under a contract covered by the budget.

Evidence:

  1. Tenderers shall provide the declaration on honour (Annex C.), duly signed and dated, stating that they are not in one of the situations described above.
  2. The tenderer to whom the contract is to be awarded shall provide, within 10days preceding the signature of the contract, the evidence referred to in the following paragraph, confirming the declaration on honour.
  3. The contracting authority will accept, as satisfactory evidence that the tenderer to whom the contract is to be awarded is not in one of the situations described in points a), b) or e), an extract from the judicial record or, failing that, an equivalent document issued by a judicial or administrative authority in the country of origin or provenance, showing that those requirements are satisfied.
  4. The contracting authority will accept, as satisfactory evidence that the tenderer is not in one of the situations described in point d), a certificate issued by the competent authority of the Member State concerned.

Where no such document or certificate is issued by the country concerned and for other cases of exclusion referred to in cases c) and f) above, it may be replaced by a sworn or, failing that, a solemn statement made by the interested party before a judicial or administrative authority, a notary or a qualified professional body in his or her country of origin or provenance.

These documents or certificates must be valid on the closing date for receipt of tenders, and in any case, they must have been delivered less than twelve (12) months before this closing date.