HRB 2026 Bibliometric Tool

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

The Health Research Board (HRB) seeks a technology solution to support bibliometric analyses. The contract duration is an initial two years, with two one-year extension options, bringing the total potential contract length to four years. The indicative budget for this four-year period is €220,000.

The bibliometric tool must facilitate analysis across health and social care research publications and pre-prints. Key functionalities include:

• Data Sources:
• Access to all journals indexed in PubMed.
• Integration with ORCID.
• Linking to open access content.
• Desired access to additional databases such as clinical trials registers (Clinical Trials.gov, EU Clinical Trials Registry, International Clinical Trials Registry), conference proceedings, patents, Web of Science, grey literature (e.g., Overton), and global health research funder grant records.
• Search Functionality:
• Searching based on concepts extracted from abstracts.
• Searching results by funding agency acknowledgements.
• Consistent and correct assignment of outputs to individuals, irrespective of name format.
• Providing contact details for researchers.
• Facilitating conflict-of-interest checks (e.g., identifying joint publications or grants with potential peer reviewers).
• Using unique identifiers for institutions.
• Providing current researcher institution details.
• Filtering results by country.
• Desired functionality to indicate reviewer activity and relevance based on publication history and awards.
• Bibliometric Analysis:
• Overview of HRB's funded portfolio and publication outputs, classified using systems like HRCS, ANZRCS, and RCI.
• Tools for reporting and analysing publication outputs from HRB awards, funded researchers, and staff.
• Support for data visualisation.
• Open access monitoring of HRB-funded outputs, including breakdown by type and trend over time.
• Aggregation of policy influence (citations in policy documents) through linkages with other platforms.
• Output-specific information including year, type, research field, journal scores, citation impact, total/mean citations, field citation ratio, mean normalised citation score, top 10% metrics, and network/collaboration analysis.
• Desired output information on gender and a rank order of relevancy.
• System Requirements:
• Cloud-based SaaS model.
• GDPR compliant and accessible from various browsers.
• Compliance with European Accessibility Standards for ICT products and services.
• Minimum of 80 users, with scalability for user numbers.
• Privacy provisions for all HRB searches and uploaded documentation.
• HRB search data must not be used for other purposes, such as training algorithms.
• System Support and Training:
• Stability and reliability with defined RTO/RPO.
• Mature backup and disaster recovery processes.
• Cyber security and data protection (encryption, role-based access).
• Technical support from 09:00 to 17:30 GMT, Monday to Friday.
• Desired: ISO27001/SOC2 accreditation and SSO capability.
• Mandatory training for HRB staff during onboarding, including tailored sessions and pre-recorded materials.
• Service Level Agreements (SLAs):
• Availability and Uptime > 95%.
• Tiered fault response times (Critical < 1 hour, High < 4 hours, Low < 24 hours).
• Minimum RPO of 24 hours, RTO of 48 hours.
• Annual PEN and vulnerability testing.
• Cyber incident response policy.
• Monthly security vulnerability patching.
• Subcontractors must adhere to the same security standards.
• Completion of an annual SLA/DR questionnaire.
• Trial Licence: Tenderers must provide access details for eight temporary licences or one licence allowing eight concurrent users for evaluation.

3. Background & buyer context

The Health Research Board (HRB) is procuring a bibliometric tool to enhance its capabilities in analysing health and social care research. This procurement aligns with the broader objective of supporting effective and efficient research analysis within the organisation. The HRB manages an approximate €60 million portfolio, indicating the scale of research output that requires robust analytical tools. The tender process is being conducted under an open procedure, inviting all interested parties to submit tenders, with evaluation focused on demonstrating the required financial and technical capacity.

4. Eligibility & selection criteria

Tenderers must meet the following criteria on a pass/fail basis to be considered for evaluation.

• Turnover requirement: Not specified for this tender.
• Insurance:
• Employer's Liability: €13 million
• Public Liability: €6.5 million
• Certifications: Not specified as mandatory, but ISO27001/SOC2 is a desired system support requirement. Tenderers should specify operating under standards such as ISO 20000-1, ITIL.
• Past experience:
• Demonstrate successful delivery of three (3) comparable projects within the last three (3) years.
• Projects must involve features defined in the RFT and demonstrate providing a similar service to organisations in OECD countries.
• If relying on third-party resources, one project must be from that third party.
• Personnel: Not specified for this tender.
• Geographic / facility constraints: Not specified for this tender, beyond the requirement for services to organisations in OECD countries for past experience.

5. Award criteria & scoring

The contract will be awarded based on the Most Economically Advantageous Tender (MEAT), determined by a combination of qualitative and cost criteria. Qualitative criteria are assessed first.

A minimum score of 60% is required for each of criteria A, B, C, and D to be considered acceptable. Responses scoring less than 60% in any of these criteria are ineligible. The lowest cost tender that meets all minimum qualitative requirements receives maximum cost score.

6. Submission requirements

Tenderers must submit their responses electronically via the eTenders postbox facility. The submission must include:

• Tender Response Document (TRD): This mandatory template must be used without personalisation.
• Pricing Schedule: Included within the TRD.
• Declarations:
• Declaration of Bona Fides.
• Declaration regarding compliance with statutory obligations.
• European Single Procurement Document (ESPD) - electronic or attached.
• Declaration regarding the International Procurement Instrument and Russian sanctions.
• Evidence of Capacity: Information demonstrating financial and technical capacity as required in Section 4.
• Trial Licence: Access details for eight temporary licences or one licence for eight concurrent users.
• ICT Security and Hosting Checklist: To be completed within the TRD.
• Mandatory Requirements Checklist: To be completed within the TRD.
• Sample Contract Terms and Conditions: Tenderers must indicate acceptance.
• Clarification Documents: Tenderers must monitor eTenders for any issued clarifications.
• Zip File: Recommended for uploading the response to protect file integrity.

7. Key dates & process

8. Contract terms that matter

• Duration: Initial 2-year term, with two one-year extension options, totalling a maximum of 4 years.
• Payment Terms: Not specified in the provided extract, but standard prompt payment directives will apply.
• SLAs/KPIs: Minimum availability >95%, tiered fault response times, defined RPO (24 hours) and RTO (48 hours), annual DR testing, annual PEN testing. Contract management activities are non-billable.
• Liquidated Damages: Not specified in the provided extract.
• Termination: The Contracting Authority reserves the right to terminate if costs become uncompetitive due to external factors (e.g., Customs Union changes). Termination will follow contract terms.
• IP Ownership: Not specified in the provided extract.
• Sub-contracting: Subcontractors must adhere to the same security standards. If a subcontractor's value exceeds 10% of the contract, they must not be subject to prohibited economic operator regulations.
• Guarantees/Bonds: Not specified in the provided extract.

9. Risks, red flags & unusuals

• Indicative Budget vs. Contract Value: The indicative budget of €220,000 over four years (€55,000 per year) is relatively low for a sophisticated bibliometric tool, especially considering the detailed functionality and SLA requirements. This suggests a potential risk of underestimation or that expenditure is not guaranteed.
• Qualitative Weighting: The significant weighting of qualitative criteria (75%) over cost (25%) indicates a strong preference for functional alignment and service quality. This means a technically superior bid is more likely to succeed, even if not the cheapest.
• Minimum Qualitative Scores: The requirement for minimum scores (60%) in each qualitative criterion (A-D) means a bid must perform adequately across all areas, not just excel in one.
• Trial Licence Requirement: The mandatory provision of eight trial licences for evaluation adds an administrative and resource burden for bidders.
• No Guaranteed Expenditure: The contract explicitly states "no guaranteed expenditure," meaning the HRB may not spend the full indicative budget.

10. SME fit assessment

This tender is likely open to specialist software providers or established bibliometric service companies. Given the technical requirements, cloud-based SaaS model, and detailed analytical functions, a small Irish business would likely need to:

• Form a consortium: Partner with other SMEs or larger entities to meet the technical and potentially financial capacity requirements.
• Possess specific expertise: Have demonstrable experience in developing or providing bibliometric analysis tools, data integration, and cloud-based solutions.
• Meet insurance and experience criteria: Secure the required insurance levels and demonstrate three comparable projects within the last three years.

The bid preparation effort would be substantial, requiring detailed responses to functional requirements, support plans, and cost proposals. The "lowest cost tender that also meets all the minimum requirements of the qualitative award" suggests that while cost is a factor, it is secondary to meeting the qualitative thresholds. The HRB's focus on functionality and support implies a preference for proven solutions over unproven ones.

11. Where to dig deeper

• Source RFT Filename: [HRB 2026 Bibliometric Tool RFT.pdf]
• eTenders CFT ID: Not specified in the provided extract.
• Contact / Clarification Portal: Via the eTenders platform.
• Key Attachments:
• Tender Response Document (TRD)
• Appendix 1 – Sample Contract Terms and Conditions
• ESPD Template