25-036 National Operations Management Centre (NOMC)

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 contract involves providing comprehensive technical support and maintenance for the Audio Visual (AV) video wall system at Uisce Éireann's National Operations Management Centre (NOMC). This service is critical for ensuring operational continuity across two sites: Dublin (primary) and Leixlip (secondary). The contractor must deliver 24/7/365 support, ensuring high availability and performance of the AV system.

Key activities include:

• Help Desk & Fault Reporting: Establish a single point of contact via phone or email for fault reporting. A Support Engineer must respond within agreed target times based on fault priority.

• Fault Resolution & SLAs: On-site attendance to restore service within 24 hours of initial contact. For Priority 1 (P1) incidents, on-site attendance and a path to resolution must be achieved within 8 hours.

• Updates & Maintenance: Provide media and documentation updates, with installations only occurring after prior agreement and thorough testing.

• Operational Protection: Ensure that work does not interfere with NOMC operations, requiring prior notification of potential operational impacts.

• System Additions: Review and include new equipment in the supported system by agreement during the contract term.

• Service Review & Reporting: Conduct quarterly service review meetings and submit reports covering performance against contract targets, particularly AV system availability and uptime.

• Annual Health Check: Perform an annual system health check with a report identifying optimization and development opportunities.

• Backup Testing: Conduct annual testing of a full system backup to confirm restoration capability, including Hiperwall configuration, SDN VLAN communications, AV hardware, IP configuration, and OS administration.

• Upgrade Notifications: Inform Uisce Éireann of relevant upgrades and new features.

Overall, the contractor must ensure a high level of service availability, proactive maintenance, and performance reporting.

3. Background & buyer context

Uisce Éireann is procuring these services to replace the existing NOMC Support and Maintenance Services Agreement (contract 18/011), which expires in September 2026. The procurement aligns with Uisce Éireann's strategic goal of enhancing operational efficiency and service delivery in water management. The need for this tender arises from ongoing challenges in maintaining high-quality water services and the necessity for reliable technical support for critical operational systems.

4. Eligibility & selection criteria

Bidders must meet the following minimum requirements to qualify for evaluation:

• Turnover requirement: Not specified for this tender.

• Insurance:

• Professional Indemnity: €6,500,000 for any one event.

• Employer's Liability: €13,000,000 for any one event.

• Motor Insurance: €6,500,000 for any one event in respect of property damage.

• 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.

Bidders must provide evidence of compliance with these criteria to be considered for further evaluation.

5. Award criteria & scoring

Bids will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

The evaluation will follow the Most Economically Advantageous Tender (MEAT) principle, focusing on both price and quality.

6. Submission requirements

Bidders must submit the following documents:

• Method statement / response document: Use the named template with specified page limits.
• CVs: Include CVs for key personnel, adhering to the specified page count.
• Pricing schedule: Format as per the named template.
• Case studies: Provide a specified number of case studies with a defined value range.
• Declarations: Include ESPD, Bona Fides, Tax clearance, and Conflict of Interest declarations.
• Mandatory site visit: If applicable, include details of the date and contact person.
• Submission portal: All submissions must be made through the eTenders platform, following specific format rules.

7. Key dates & process

8. Contract terms that matter

The contract will have a duration of 5 years, with the possibility of extensions of up to 1+1 years at the discretion of Uisce Éireann. Key terms include:

• Payment terms: Not specified in detail.
• Key SLAs/KPIs: Include response times for faults and service availability.
• Liquidated damages: Not specified.
• Termination clauses: Include provisions for early termination with notice.
• IP ownership: Not specified.
• Sub-contracting rules: Not specified.
• Parent-company guarantee or bond requirements: Not specified.

9. Risks, red flags & unusuals

Potential risks and concerns include:

• The absence of specified turnover and past experience requirements may lead to a wider pool of bidders, but could also raise concerns about the quality of submissions.
• The contract's reliance on high SLAs may pose challenges for bidders who are not accustomed to such stringent performance metrics.
• The lack of clarity around geographic constraints could lead to confusion regarding eligibility.

10. SME fit assessment

Small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that can credibly bid for this contract should possess:

• Relevant technical expertise in AV systems and maintenance.
• Sufficient insurance coverage as specified.
• The capacity to provide 24/7 support and meet stringent SLA requirements.

Consortium bidding is allowed, which may enable smaller firms to combine resources. The indicative bid-preparation effort is estimated at several days, depending on the complexity of the proposal. The presence of an incumbent provider may signal a competitive landscape, potentially impacting the probability of winning (Pwin) for new entrants.

11. Where to dig deeper

• Source RFT filename: 25-036 National Operations Management Centre (NOMC) - RFT_v_8.pdf
• eTenders CFT ID: not specified
• Contact email: [email protected]
• Important attachments:
• Appendix 10 — Financial Standing
• Appendix 11 — Form of Resources/Technical Ability Letter