Laois County Council Framework for Provision of Building Supplies 2024

AI-generated analysis of the documents. Check the official notice and any amendments for current submission details.

1. At a glance

2. Scope of Work

Laois County Council ran this procurement for “Laois County Council Framework for Provision of Building Supplies 2024” as an operational contract requiring implementation and sustained service execution. The extracted pack showed qualification-stage material with references to later ITT technical depth; practical activity therefore centred on building, integrating, and operating the specified service stack with compliant reporting and handover obligations where stated. Constituent activities and named work elements in the supplied extracts:

• The Contracting Authority requires building, construction, hardware, electrical, plumbing and similar supplies, and invites tenders for the supply of these products, which the Contracting Authority may purchase from time to time, as required.
• The Contracting Authority invites tenders for a Framework Agreement for the supply of these materials/supplies, which may be purchased from time to time, as required. It is envisioned that there will be an ongoing requirement for building supplies to support LCC housing maintenance activities for the duration of the framework.
• A significant element of the Contracting Authority’s activities involves responsive maintenance works, including responding to urgent, emergency and humanitarian issues which are not planned in advance. The CA does not maintain extensive stores of building and related materials, and does not propose to delay the provision of these services by relying solely on deliveries, or excessive travel to the successful Tenderer’s premises, to secure supplies when required. Consequently, The Contracting Authority requires that
• [1. Request For Tenders - LCC Building Supplies 2024.docx] not planned in advance. The CA does not maintain extensive stores of building and related materials, and does not propose to delay the provision of these services by relying solely on deliveries, or excessive travel to the successful Tenderer’s premises, to secure supplies when required. Consequently, The Contracting Authority requires that supplies are available for collection, within a reasonable distance of the CA’s premises, and during normal business hours.
• The closing dates for queries and tender submission are given on the cover page of this document, and on the eTenders notice. In the event of an extension of the tender deadline, this will be notified via the eTenders platform.
• The indicative budget for the Framework is in the range of €50,000-€150,000 per annum. It is emphasised, however, that this figure is provided strictly for indicative purposes only as there is no guaranteed expenditure under the framework agreement. This is an estimate only, and does not form part of the Framework. The spend is subject to satisfactory Framework performance, demand for the Contracting Authority’s services, and available funding.
• [1. Request For Tenders - LCC Building Supplies 2024.docx] there is no guaranteed expenditure under the framework agreement. This is an estimate only, and does not form part of the Framework. The spend is subject to satisfactory Framework performance, demand for the Contracting Authority’s services, and available funding.
• If, following the award of any contract under this framework agreement, the Framework Member cannot, for whatever reason, deliver the required services to the satisfaction of the Contracting Authority; the Contracting Authority reserves the right to award the contract to the next highest scoring tenderer emerging from the process at any time during the contract tender validity period.
• The Contracting Authority requires the successful Tenderer to nominate a dedicated contract manager who will act as the main point of contact for the duration of the framework. This person shall have the authority to deal with all matters in relation to contracts and be responsible for the satisfactory delivery of the supplies/services required. The duties of the contract manager will include the following:
• Proactively discuss with the Contracting Authority ways of improving efficiency regarding service delivery in general and providing suggestions for improvement and cost savings.
• The successful Tenderer will also provide account management services including the following;
• Where the successful Tenderer provides an online ordering service, they shall provide access to this for the CA’s individual account contacts as required. Non-binding monetary references in the source were treated as context only and were not used as qualification thresholds.

3. Background & buyer context

The buyer context reflected a formal Irish public-procurement route, with pre-qualification used to control entry into the tender stage.

• It is the policy of the Contracting Authority to promote participation by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) on a fair and equal basis.
• The indicative budget for the Framework is in the range of €50,000-€150,000 per annum. It is emphasised, however, that this figure is provided strictly for indicative purposes only as there is no guaranteed expenditure under the framework agreement. This is an estimate only, and does not form part of the Framework. The spend is subject to satisfactory Framework performance, demand for the Contracting Authority’s services, and available funding.
• [1. Request For Tenders - LCC Building Supplies 2024.docx] there is no guaranteed expenditure under the framework agreement. This is an estimate only, and does not form part of the Framework. The spend is subject to satisfactory Framework performance, demand for the Contracting Authority’s services, and available funding.
• The Contracting Authority reserves the right at its sole discretion to terminate any Framework where, due to matters outside its control, including but not limited to, increased costs arising from any changes in the Customs Union, which render the commercial arrangement uncompetitive, changes to public policy, legislation, or adverse changes to funding available.

4. Eligibility & selection criteria

• Turnover requirement — — use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.
• Insurance — — use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.; Selection Criteria №4 Insurances Tenderers must have the following minimum levels of insurance cover in place on commencement of the Framework: Employers Liability €13,000,000 Public Liability €6,500,000 Product Liability €6,500,000 Tenderers may satisfy this criterion by; Insurance Type Level required if successful Level required if successful Level in Place Details of Any Excess Renewal Date Employers Liability €13,000,000 €13,000,000 € Public Liability €6,500,000 €6,500,000 € Product Liability €6,500,000 €6,500,000 € AND AND AND AND A
• Certifications — not specified for this tender
• Past experience — not specified for this tender
• Personnel — not specified for this tender
• Geographic / facility constraints — not specified for this tender Additional binding lines surfaced in the deterministic extract:
• — use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.
• Selection Criteria №4 Insurances Tenderers must have the following minimum levels of insurance cover in place on commencement of the Framework: Employers Liability €13,000,000 Public Liability €6,500,000 Product Liability €6,500,000 Tenderers may satisfy this criterion by
• Insurance Type Level required if successful Level required if successful Level in Place Details of Any Excess Renewal Date Employers Liability €13,000,000 €13,000,000 € Public Liability €6,500,000 €6,500,000 € Product Liability €6,500,000 €6,500,000 € AND AND AND AND A
• AND I confirm that if successful, where the levels required under the contract/framework are higher than those currently in our possession Product Liability €6,500,000 €6,500,000 € AND AND AND AND A

5. Award criteria & scoring

6. Submission requirements

• Method statement / response document (template/page limits) — not specified in extract.
• CVs (page count, named roles) — not specified in extract.
• Pricing schedule (format/template) — expected at ITT stage.
• Case studies (number/value range) — client references/comparable project evidence was referenced.
• Declarations (ESPD/Bona Fides/Tax/COI) — ESPD/declaration/statement-of-confirmation language was present.
• Mandatory site visit — not specified in extract.
• Submission portal and formatting — eTenders portal and PDF electronic copies were referenced. Submission-related source lines:
• The Supplier shall submit invoices no later than 1 month from the date of the Pro-Forma
• Core Items are the items listed in the Pricing Schedule, for which tenderers are requested to submit a rate. It is expected that these Core Items will make up the majority of the supplies required under the Framework.
• Non-Core Items are supplies which the Tenderer normally offers for sale, but are not listed in the Pricing Schedule, which the Contracting Authority may require from time to time. Tenderers are invited to tender a discount rate, which will be applied to all Non-Core Items purchased under the Framework.
• It is a condition of the Agreement that all Non-Core Items purchased are subject to the tendered Non-Core Item Discount rate, and subsequent claims to exclude particular items from this discount rate will not be considered. The Contracting Authority may request evidence of the successful Tenderer’s pricing to demonstrate that this discount is being provided, from time to time over the term of the Agreement.
• The closing dates for queries and tender submission are given on the cover page of this document, and on the eTenders notice. In the event of an extension of the tender deadline, this will be notified via the eT
• The closing dates for queries and tender submission are given on the cover page of this document, and on the eTenders notice. In the event of an extension of the tender deadline, this will be notified via the eTenders platform.

7. Key dates & process

8. Contract terms that matter

Contract duration in the extract: 12 months. Payment cycle, SLA/KPI schedule, and penalty regime were not fully disclosed in the snippets unless listed below.

• Sector: Office Supplies & Equipment
• VERIFIED PHRASES (deterministic regex extract from the documents — treat as authoritative for numerical claims)
• e entitled to terminate the appointment of the Framework Member forthwith and without liability by giving notice at any time if:
• The Framework Member commits a material breach of any term or condition of this Framework Agreement, o
• 2 shall not relieve or discharge the Framework Member from any obligations which may have accrued prior to such termination
• Where the tax compliance status of the Framework Member changes at any point during the term of the Agreement, the Contracting Authority
• Where the financial standing of the Framework Member changes at any point during the term of the Agreement, the Contracting Authority
• Where the Framework Member fails to meet it’s statutory obligations at any point during the term of the Agre

9. Risks, red flags & unusuals

• Qualification gate: the deterministic extract included a turnover threshold line (— use these verbatim for insurance / turnover. If a category (insurance, turnover) has no entry here, treat it as 'not specified' for THIS tender.), which can materially narrow bidder pool composition.
• The two-step process (PQQ then ITT) shifted effort to compliance evidence early, with competitive scoring detail potentially deferred.
• Technical and contractual granularity appeared ITT-dependent, increasing ambiguity at qualification stage for non-incumbent bidders.

10. SME fit assessment

This competition looked most accessible to firms with established public-sector tender capability, documented financial capacity, and direct operational experience in the relevant service category.

• Credible bidder profile — mid-sized to large specialist with formal QA/compliance process.
• Consortium / sub-contracting — allowed or addressed in the extracts (Appendix references and reliance provisions).
• Indicative bid-prep effort — 6 to 12 working days for evidence collation, form completion, and review cycles at PQQ level.
• Pwin signal — strongest for bidders with reusable qualification artefacts, comparable references, and low-friction mobilisation capability.

11. Where to dig deeper

• Source RFT/PQQ filenames: 1. Request For Tenders - LCC Building Supplies 2024.docx, 3. Agreement Terms and Conditions - LCC Building Supplies 2024.docx, Schedule, for which tenderers are requested to submit a rate. It is expected that these.
• eTenders CFT / notice reference: not specified in extract.
• Clarification contact / portal: eTenders message portal (email not surfaced in extract).
• Key attachments to prioritise: Schedule, which the Contracting Authority may require from time to time. Tenderers are i, Appendix., Schedule will normally be available for collection..