Framework Agreement for Property Management Services

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

This tender seeks to establish a Framework Agreement for Property Management Services, with an estimated value of €22,871,380, potentially rising to €26,302,086 over its duration. The framework will cover property management across Leinster, Munster, and Connacht/Ulster. Three initial contracts will be awarded alongside the framework.

The scope of services is broad and includes, but is not limited to:

• Mobilisation: All necessary activities to prepare for the commencement of services.
• Asset Management: Development and maintenance of asset registers.
• Facilities Management System: Development and maintenance of a computer-aided facilities management (CAFM) system.
• Maintenance Planning: Development of annual maintenance plans.
• Planned Preventative Maintenance (PPM):
• PPM of buildings, facilities, plant, and equipment.
• Landscaping maintenance.
• Winterisation activities, all in accordance with the annual maintenance plan.
• Includes cleaning and pest control.
• Corrective Maintenance:
• Repair of buildings, facilities, plant, and equipment as required to ensure continued operation.
• Includes cleaning and repair of vandalism damage.
• Bus Stop Maintenance:
• Planned and corrective maintenance of bus stops, including platforms, shelters, and bus poles and flags.
• Includes cleaning and repair of vandalism damage.
• Record Keeping: Maintenance of all necessary records and reports.
• Demobilisation: All necessary activities to prepare for the handover of services to a subsequent supplier.

The services are to be provided to achieve performance standards detailed in the Contract. The specific extent of services at each property will be defined in tender documents for call-off contracts.

3. Background & buyer context

The National Transport Authority (NTA) is a statutory body operating under the Department of Transport. Established by the Dublin Transport Authority Act 2008 and expanded by the Public Transport Regulation Act 2009, the NTA's functions include procuring public transport services, managing integrated ticketing, developing public transport networks, licensing bus services, managing rural transport programmes, and providing bus and cycling infrastructure.

This procurement is being conducted under the open procedure, as per S.I. No. 286/2016, the European Union (Award of Contracts by Utility Undertakings) Regulations 2016. The NTA is seeking to establish a framework agreement for property management services to support its operational requirements across Ireland. The framework will have a duration of 8 years, with initial contracts awarded for 3 years, extendable by 1 year.

4. Eligibility & selection criteria

Tenderers must meet specific minimum requirements to be considered for this framework. These include:

• Turnover requirement: Not specified for this tender.
• Insurance: Tenderers must confirm they can acquire the following minimum insurance levels:
• Employer's Liability: €13 million each and every claim, unlimited any one period of insurance.
• Public Liability: €6.5 million each and every claim, unlimited any one period of insurance.
• Professional Indemnity: €2 million each and every claim, unlimited any one period of insurance.
• 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.

Tenderers must declare that no grounds for exclusion under Regulation 57 of SI 284 of 2016 apply, or that sufficient reliability measures have been taken. They must also provide information regarding their position with regard to sanctions.

5. Award criteria & scoring

The Framework Agreement will be awarded to the five highest-scoring tenderers who meet minimum qualification criteria. For contracts awarded under the Framework Agreement, the award criteria will be a combination of Quality and Price. The weighting for these criteria can vary for different contracts, with Quality ranging from 0% to 60% and Price from 40% to 100%. The specific weightings will be indicated in the invitation to tender for each call-off contract.

The Authority may attach different weightings to these criteria for different contracts.

6. Submission requirements

Tenderers must submit a comprehensive tender comprising a Quality Submission and a Pricing Submission.

• Method statement / response document: The Quality Submission will be based on responses to requirements set out in Section 6.5, comprising completed Annex 2 Part E and Part F of the ITT. Specific page limits are not stated.
• CVs: Not specified for this tender.
• Pricing schedule: The Pricing Submission (Volume 5 of the Tender Documents) must be completed by the Tenderer.
• Case studies: Not specified for this tender.
• Declarations:
• Annex 2 Part C for declarations regarding exclusion grounds and sanctions.
• Bona Fides, Tax clearance, and Conflict of Interest declarations are implicitly required through compliance with the ITT and relevant regulations.
• Mandatory site visit: A site visit is scheduled but the date is to be confirmed during the tender period.
• Submission portal: Tenders must be submitted via the eTenders website. Specific formatting rules for the submission portal are not detailed but adherence to the eTenders system requirements is implied.

7. Key dates & process

The Authority may amend this timetable.

8. Contract terms that matter

The Framework Agreement will have a duration of 8 years. Contracts awarded under the framework, including the three Initial Contracts, will be for an initial period of 3 years with an option to extend for up to 1 further year.

• Payment terms: Not specified for this tender.
• Key SLAs/KPIs: Performance standards are set out in the Contract. Specific SLAs/KPIs are not detailed in this section.
• Liquidated damages or penalty regimes: A performance deduction mechanism is mentioned, with an example calculation: Performance Deduction = (€10,000 x 0.01 x (9-4)) = €500, suggesting a link to maintenance fees and performance levels.
• Termination clauses: The Authority can terminate the framework agreement with 3 months' notice.
• IP ownership: Not specified for this tender.
• Sub-contracting rules: Not specified for this tender.
• Parent-company guarantee or bond requirements: Not specified for this tender.

9. Risks, red flags & unusuals

• Framework duration: An 8-year framework is substantial, requiring long-term planning and commitment from bidders.
• Call-off contract variability: Award criteria for call-off contracts can vary significantly in their Quality/Price weighting, meaning bidders must be adaptable.
• No guaranteed expenditure: The Authority makes no commitment to purchase services under the framework, and reserves the right to procure services outside of it.
• Potential for multiple contract awards: The framework will admit the five highest-scoring tenderers, but only three initial contracts will be awarded. This means some framework participants may not secure an initial contract.
• Tender qualification: Tenders must not be qualified in any way, including regarding the Framework Agreement or Contract terms. Any attempt to propose amendments could lead to rejection.

10. SME fit assessment

This tender is structured as a framework agreement with significant potential value, indicating it is likely to attract larger, established property management firms. The scope of services is comprehensive, covering planned and corrective maintenance, asset management, and facilities management systems.

• Who can credibly bid: Bidders should have a proven track record in large-scale property management, including experience with public sector contracts, robust asset management capabilities, and the capacity to manage multiple sites across different regions. Firms with established CAFM systems and experience in delivering planned and reactive maintenance for diverse property types, including public transport infrastructure like bus stops, would be well-positioned.
• Consortium/sub-contracting: The tender documents permit Tenderers to form Groups (consortia) where the minimum turnover requirement can be met by combining turnover. This suggests that SMEs could potentially participate by forming consortia with other businesses. Sub-contracting is not explicitly detailed as a strategy for SMEs in this section, but is a possibility within a consortium structure.
• Indicative bid-prep effort: Preparing a compliant tender for a framework of this scale, including detailed responses to quality criteria and pricing for initial contracts, would likely require significant effort, potentially spanning several weeks for a dedicated bid team.
• Pwin signal: The framework structure, admitting five participants, suggests a competitive process. However, the Authority's right to procure outside the framework and the variable award criteria for call-off contracts introduce uncertainty. The absence of specific turnover or experience requirements in the provided text might suggest a broader initial pool, but the scale of the framework and initial contracts implies a need for substantial operational capacity.

11. Where to dig deeper

• Source RFT filename: Property Management Services Framework ITT .pdf
• eTenders CFT ID: Not specified in the provided text.
• Contact email or clarification portal: Queries must be submitted via the messaging system on the eTenders website associated with this competition.
• Most important attachments:
• Volume 1: Invitation to Tender (including Annexes)
• Volume 2: Framework Agreement
• Volume 3: Contract
• Volume 4: Contract Schedules
• Volume 5: Pricing Document