Request for Proposal
Commissioning of Specialist Applied-Skills Programmes (SAPs) for CITB
Return date for Proposal
Thursday 20 July 2017 by 1400 hours
Date of issue: 10/07/17
CITB Reference: B/17/06/1666
2
CONTENTS
SECTION 1 INFORMATION FOR PROVIDERS
Introduction 1
Corporate Background 1
Commission Required 2
SECTION 2 INSTRUCTIONS TO PROVIDERS
General 4
Preparation of Proposal 4
Rejection of Proposal 4
Submission of Proposal Documents 4
Clarification Requests 5
Proposal Validity 5
No Bid 5
Timescales 6
Evaluation & Award Criteria 6
Terms & Conditions 9
SECTION 3 PROPOSAL RESPONSE
Part A 8
Part B 10
Form of Proposal 12
Commissioning Certificate 13
Redaction Schedule 15
2
INTRODUCTION
Section 1 – Information for Suppliers
1. Introduction
The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) is seeking to commission Training Provider/s to provide the following specialist applied-skills programmes :
· Road Safety Marking;
· Diamond Drilling and Sawing; and
· Resin Flooring.
Provision for these courses covered within this commission is expected for registrations until the end of 2017
This programme offering of three Lots is a precursor to the revised arrangements under the CITB’s Grant reform programme. Further Lots post 31st December 2017 for Specialist Applied-skills Programmes (SAP) will also be scored against wider financial criteria taking into account the type of the programme, industry needs / priorities and the actual training deliverables both specialist and generic and the assessment required via CITB’s revised funding model.
2. Corporate background
CITB is Europe’s largest Construction Training College, with its Head Office and residential training centre based at Bircham Newton, Norfolk.
CITB has approximately 1300 employees located in its head office in Bircham Newton in Norfolk and at thirteen remote sites across the UK with a significant mobile workforce working from home.
CITB is the Sector Skills Council and Industry Training Board for the construction industry and its mission is to achieve a fully skilled and professional UK construction industry, working safely, adding value and delivering sustainable development. CITB is responsible for:
· Assessing the skills and manpower needs of the industry
· Ensuring there are enough new recruits entering the workforce
· Ensuring that enough training is carried out to meet the skills needs
· Encouraging the industry to improve its performance
CITB works in partnership with CITB Northern Ireland and the Construction Industry Council (CIC), as the Sector Skills Council for Construction.
Further information on the role and function of CITB can be found on the organisations web site: www.citb.co.uk including the strategic plan for 2012-17 http://www.citb.co.uk/do
3. Services required
CITB requires one or more Training Providers to provide the specialist Applied Skills training as set out in the Lots below. The Apprenticeship Scheme is available upon application, please email
Lot 1 Road Safety Marking;
Lot 2 Diamond Drilling and Sawing;
Lot 3 Resin Flooring
Providers should state clearly within their proposals which Lot(s) they are bidding for.
As stated earlier, this pilot programme of three Lots is a precursor to the work contained within CITB’s Grant reform programme. The purpose of this pilot programme is to provide up to £3,000 per candidate in respect of delivering against the objectives detailed in the relevant Service Level Agreement per programme for starts up to and including 31st December 2017.
Further Lots post 31st December 2017 will also be scored against wider criteria taking into account course evaluation, the type and nature of the programme in respect of industry needs / priorities and the actual training deliverables both specialist and generic through CITB’s revised funding model.
Section 2- Instructions to Providers
1. General
1.1. These Instructions are designed to ensure that all providers are given equal and fair consideration. It is important therefore that you provide all the information asked for in the format and order specified. Please contact Roger Miller () if you have any doubt as to what is required or will have difficulty in providing the information requested.
2. Preparation of Proposals
2.1. Providers are solely responsible for the costs and expenses incurred in connection with the completion, preparation and submission of their proposal and all other stages of the selection and evaluation process. Under no circumstances will CITB be liable for any costs or expenses borne by providers and/or their sub-contractors, suppliers and/or advisers in this procurement process.
3. Rejection of Proposals
3.1. CITB reserves the right to disqualify any provider if any material misrepresentation is made in any part of its proposal and/or in any other information submitted by that provider and/or if that provider does not inform CITB of any change in circumstances.
4. Submission of Proposal Documents
4.1. The provider should include the following in their proposal as failure to do so could result in their proposal being rejected:
· A completed provider response (from Section 3 Part A & B)
· A completed Form of proposal
· A completed Proposal Certificate
4.2. Proposals must be submitted as follows: ONE electronic copy to the following mail address – and clearly marked “Specialist Applied-Skills Provision” within the subject box.
4.3. Proposals must be received no later 1400 hours on Thursday 20 July 2017 PLEASE NOTE: No extension of time will be allowed and any proposals received after this deadline may be disregarded and not considered further unless, at its sole discretion, CITB chooses to extend any deadline, whereupon all providers will be informed of the new deadline.
4.4. Providers are strongly advised to allow sufficient time to ensure receipt of any proposal before the deadline stated above. The risk of non-receipt or late receipt by CITB of any quotation is entirely at the providers’ risk.
4.5. In order to ensure a fair process, all proposals received will be opened in a single dedicated session.
5. Clarification Requests
5.1. Any queries or clarifications in connection with this opportunity should be submitted to no later than 1600 hours on Friday 14 July 2017. Reasonable endeavours will be made to answer queries within 24 hours of request.
5.2. Any query or point of clarification raised by a provider that is deemed by CITB (in its absolute discretion) to be of general interest to all providers will be communicated together with the response to all providers.
6. Proposal Validity
Your proposals must remain open for acceptance for a minimum period of not less than 30 days. A proposal valid for a shorter period may be rejected.
7. No Bid
If you do not wish to submit an offer, please confirm you will not be quoting by emailing . On no account must this document be passed to any third party.
8. Timescales
Set out below is the proposed timetable for this project. This is intended as a guide only and, while CITB does not intend currently to depart from this timetable, it reserves the right to do so at any stage:
Event / DateIssue of Request for Proposal / Monday 10 July 17
Deadline for receipt of Clarification Requests / 1600, Friday 14 July 17
Proposal Submission Deadline / 1400, Thursday 20 July 17
Start of Proposal Evaluation Period / Friday 21 July 17
Award Decision notified to all Suppliers / w/c 24 July 17
Contract Start Date / w/c 31 July 17
9. Evaluation and Award Criteria
Proposals will be evaluated on the basis of the most economically advantageous proposal submitted from the perspective of CITB as further described below.
Please note, this pilot exercise provides up to £3,000 per candidate for the successful suppliers for each lot. Suppliers are asked for each bid to set out the cost of the provision of the programme per candidate and the amount of grant that is to be claimed.
The decision on the contract award will be made by an evaluation panel consisting of Specialist Apprenticeship Officers and other CITB personnel and their evaluation will be restricted solely on the contents of the response to this request for proposals.
The scores will be awarded out of 10, with 0 being the lowest and 10 being the highest. The definitions of each level of scoring are set out in the Table below:
Score / Definition0 / Non-compliant response
The provider has not provided any relevant information to respond to this question. .
1 / Unacceptable response
The response from the provider is partially compliant, but there are serious deficiencies in the response offered. This indicates there would be serious difficulties or inability to deliver the Services required
3 / Unsatisfactory response
The supplier’s response is partially compliant, with shortfalls in the response offered. This indicates that not all the requirements of the commission would be met and there would be difficulty in delivering the overall services.
5 / Acceptable response
The response is acceptable and appears compliant. This indicates that all the basic requirements of the commission would be delivered.
7 / Good response
The supplier’s response is compliant clearly indicating that the supplier can deliver the entire requirement and the solution offers some limited benefits beyond the stated requirements.
10 / Excellent response
The response is compliant, indicating that the supplier has a comprehensive understanding of the commission requirements and will meet the mandatory requirements and also provides significant additional benefits beyond the stated requirement.
Scores will be awarded by a panel appointed to evaluate all proposals. Members of that panel will use their reasoned professional judgment when attributing scores as to the merits of each response.
The score for each of the Award Criteria will be calculated by adding together the scores for each Question within that Award Criterion.
All cost information provided must be exclusive of Value Added Tax but inclusive of all costs.
With regard to pricing, providers are asked to confirm what element of the grant they are seeking to claim per candidate. The lowest claim submitted will receive the full 10% available with remaining bids receiving scores as set out in the example below.
For a maximum cost award of 30%
Lowest quote from Supplier X of £10,000
Supplier Y price is £12,000
Supplier Z price is £15,500
Supplier X scores 30 marks as the lowest price;
Supplier Y scores 10,000 x 30 = 25%
12,000
Supplier Z scores 10,000 x30 = 19.35%
15,500
From the ranked suppliers, CITB will select the supplier who achieves the highest score.
Following evaluation of proposals in accordance with the procedures described in this Section 2, if CITB considers that none of the proposals are deemed satisfactory it reserves the right to consider alternative procurement options and to decline to award any Contract under this Procurement.
10. Terms and Conditions
Any contract awarded pursuant to this Request For Proposal will be subject to the standard CITB Flexible & Structured Funding Agreement.
SECTION 3 – Proposal Response – Part A
1.1 / Name of Provider
1.2 / Name of person completing this proposal (to whom all enquiries shall be directed)
1.3 / Address:
1.4 / Telephone Number:
1.5 / E-mail:
1.6 / Website address:
Project Specific Questions to Assess Technical and Professional Ability
LOT 1, 2, 3
Questions : / Weighting percentages1 / Could you identified your track record in delivering this or a similar type of programme / 30%
2. / Could you highlight your approach to quality assurance and on-programme learner management. / 20%
3 / Please provide a trainer profile to demonstrate current knowledge and experience of latest technology and techniques. / 15%
4 / Could you identify your training facilities and specialist equipment used to deliver this or a similar type of programme. / 15%
5 / Identify several employers within the sector that you have provided any form of training for and describe what was delivered, plus evidence satisfaction survey returns for said delivery. / 10%
PART B - Pricing Requirements (10%)
(£) per Candidate1 / Cost of Providing Specialist Applied-skills Provision within this programme*
*Cost to be deducted from charges to in scope registered employers per candidate
All cost information provided must be exclusive of Value Added Tax but inclusive of all costs,
Form of Proposal
To: CITB
Bircham Newton
King’s Lynn
Norfolk. PE31 6RH
Date: [Provider to insert date]
Proposal for Provision of Specialist Applied-Skills delivery
I/We hereby offer to provide the Services as defined within the above proposal in respect of which my/our proposal is subsequently accepted by the Customer.
I/We confirm that if our proposal is accepted we will if required, upon demand:
i. Produce evidence that all relevant insurances and compliance certificates with relevant legislation and policy are held and in force;
ii. Sign a formal contract document if required
We agree that my/our proposal shall constitute an irrevocable unconditional offer which may not be withdrawn for a period of not less than 90 days from the date hereof.
Unless and until a formal Contract is prepared and executed, this proposal, together with your written acceptance thereof, shall (subject to any period of standstill) constitute a binding contract between us.
We understand and acknowledge that CITB is not bound to accept any Proposal.
I warrant that I have all the requisite corporate authority to sign this Proposal.
Signed for and on behalf of [insert name of provider]:
Signature:
Name:
Date:
PLEASE NOTE – Failure to sign this Form of Quotation will result in the rejection of your Proposal.
Tendering Certificate
I / We declare that:
This is a bona fide Proposal, intended to be competitive, and that I/we have not (either personally or by anyone acting on my/our behalf):
1. fixed or adjusted the amount of the proposal or the rate and prices quoted by, under or in accordance with any agreement or arrangement with any other person;
2. communicated to any person other than CITB the amount or approximate amount or terms of my/our proposed proposal (except where the disclosure, in confidence, of the approximate amount of the proposal was necessary to obtain insurance premium quotations required for the preparation of the proposal);
3. entered into any agreement or arrangement with any other person that he shall refrain from tendering or as to the amount or terms of any proposal to be submitted by him;