3.1.doc

AO/E/ICTF/Mobile-Telephony-Services/011/07

European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training

Thessaloniki, 18/09/07PRO/2007/562

OPEN INVITATION TO TENDER

AO/E/ ICTF /Mobile-Telephony-Services/011/07

“Mobile Telephony Services – MTS”

Dear Sir/Madam,

We thank you for the interest you have shown in this tender.

The purpose of this tender and additional information necessary to present a tender can be found in the attached Tendering Specifications.

You should note however the following important points concerning the submission of a tender and its implications.

1. Tenders should be submitted in one of the official languages of the European Union.

2. Tenders may be submitted:

a) either by post or by courier service to be dispatched not later than 29/10/2007 in which case the evidence shall be constituted by the date of dispatch, the postmark or the date of the deposit slip, to the following address:

European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop),Procurement ServiceFor the attention of Mr G. ParaskevaidisPO Box 22 427GR – 55102 ThessalonikiGreece

(b) delivered by hand not later than 17:00 on 29/10/2007 to the following address:

European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop),

Procurement ServiceAttention of Mr G. Paraskevaidis Europe 123,GR-57001 Thessaloniki-Pylea Greece

In this case, a receipt must be obtained as proof of submission, signed and dated by the official in the above mentioned Service who took delivery. Cedefop is open from 9.00 to 17:00, Monday to Friday. It is closed on Saturday, Sunday and Cedefop holidays.


3. Tenders must be submitted strictly adhering to the following:

The outer envelope or parcel should be sealed with adhesive tape and signed across the seal and carry the following information:


CEDEFOP No: AO/E/ICTF/Mobile-Telephony-Services/011/07

‘Mobile Telephony Services – MTS’

Name of tenderer

NOT TO BE OPENED BY THE INTERNAL MAIL SERVICE

The outer envelope must contain three inner envelopes, namely, Envelope A, B and C. The content of each of these three envelopes is clearly described in point 6 of the attached tender specifications.

4. Tenderers must ensure that their tenders are signed by a duly authorised representative and perfectly legible so that there can be no doubt as to words and figures.

5. Submission of a tender implies acceptance of all the terms and conditions set out in this invitation to tender, in the specifications and in the draft service contract. The tenderer’s own general or specific terms and conditions, as amended by any favourable terms put forward in the context of his tender (proposed Service Level Agreement and financial offer), apply as provided for in Article I.11 of the draft framework contract. The totality of those clauses is binding on the tenderer to whom the contract is awarded for the duration of the contract.

6. The opening of tenders will take place at Cedefop on 12.11.2007, 11.00 hours (local time). Each tenderer may be represented at the opening of tenders by one person. The name of the person attending the opening must be notified in writing by fax (Fax No +30 2310 490 028) or by e-mail ([email protected]) at least one working day prior to the opening session.

7. Contacts between the contracting authority (Cedefop) and tenderers are prohibited throughout the procedure save in exceptional circumstances and under the following conditions only:

Before the final date for submission of tenders:

At the request of the tenderer, the Cedefop Procurement Service may provide additional information solely for the purpose of clarifying the nature of the contract. Any request for additional information must be made in writing by fax (fax No +30 2310 490 028) or by e-mail ([email protected]).

Request for additional information received less than five working days before the closing date for submission of tenders will not be processed.

The contracting authority may, on its own initiative, inform interested parties of any error, inaccuracy, omission or any other clerical error in the text of the call for tender.

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Any additional information, including that referred to above, will be published on Cedefop’s website. Please ensure that you visit regularly the site for updates.

After the opening of tenders:

If clarification is required or if obvious clerical errors in the tender need to be corrected, the contracting authority may contact the tenderer provided the terms of the tender are not modified as a result.

8. This invitation to tender is in no way binding on Cedefop. Cedefop’s contractual obligation commences only upon signature of the contract with the successful Tenderer.

9. All costs incurred in preparing and submitting tenders are borne by the tenderers and cannot be reimbursed.

10. Up to the point of signature, the contracting authority may either abandon the procurement or cancel the award procedure, without the candidates or tenderers being entitled to claim any compensation. This decision must be substantiated and the tenderers notified.

11. All tenderers will be informed in writing of the results of this tender procedure.

Yours sincerely,

George Paraskevaidis

Head of Finance & Procurement

Attached: tendering specifications

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AO/E/ ICFT /MobileTelephonyServices/011/07

“Mobile Telephony Services – MTS”

Tendering specifications

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Table of contents

INTRODUCTION TO CEDEFOP........................................................................................................... 7

1. OVERVIEW OF THIS TENDER................................................................................................8

1.1. DESCRIPTION OF THE CONTRACT.............................................................................................81.2. DURATION OF THE CONTRACT.................................................................................................81.3. PLACE OF DELIVERY OR PERFORMANCE...................................................................................81.4. VALIDITY OF TENDERS............................................................................................................81.5. VALUE OF THE CONTRACT......................................................................................................81.6. GUARANTEE........................................................................................................................... 81.7. MAIN TERMS OF FINANCING AND PAYMENT.............................................................................8

2. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS...............................................................................................9

2.1. SUBJECT MATTER................................................................................................................... 92.1.1. Mobile voice services........................................................................................................ 92.1.2. Mobile data services (GPRS, HSDPA, Blackberry)...........................................................92.1.3. Supply of voice centric mobile devices and accessories as a result of the annual subsidy policy (headsets, etc…)................................................................................................................... 92.1.4. Hotline 24h/7d for end user support in the fields of contract administration and mobile devices handling............................................................................................................................. 92.1.5. Electronic billing information according to the format requested in ANNEX I...................9

2.2. CURRENT SITUATION.............................................................................................................. 92.2.1. Mobile Voice Services.....................................................................................................112.2.2. Mobile data services.......................................................................................................112.2.3. Hotline Support............................................................................................................... 112.2.4. Numbering plan............................................................................................................... 11

2.3. EXPECTED SERVICES............................................................................................................. 122.3.1. Mobile Voice Services.....................................................................................................122.3.2. Mobile Data Services......................................................................................................122.3.3. Mobile devices and Subsidy policy..................................................................................132.3.4. Flat-fee roaming charges – “Eurotariff”.........................................................................132.3.5. Hotline Support............................................................................................................... 132.3.6. Electronic Billing Format................................................................................................142.3.7. Network........................................................................................................................... 142.3.8. Service Level Agreement (SLA).......................................................................................142.3.9. Supporting Documentation for the expected services.......................................................15

3. SPECIFIC INFORMATION CONCERNING PARTICIPATION TO THIS TENDER..........16

3.1. EXCLUSION CRITERIA............................................................................................................163.2. SELECTION CRITERIA............................................................................................................. 173.3. LEGAL POSITION................................................................................................................... 18

4. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONCERNING PARTICIPATION TO THIS TENDER...19

4.1. PARTICIPATION OF CONSORTIA..............................................................................................194.2. SUBCONTRACTING................................................................................................................ 19

5. EVALUATION AND AWARD PROCEDURE..........................................................................20

5.1. TECHNICAL EVALUATION......................................................................................................205.2. TECHNICAL PROPOSAL..........................................................................................................205.3. FINANCIAL EVALUATION.......................................................................................................21

6. INFORMATION ON PRESENTATION AND CONTENT OF TENDER...............................22

6.1. ENVELOPE A - SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS...............................................................................226.2. ENVELOPE B – TECHNICAL PROPOSAL...................................................................................226.3. ENVELOPE C – FINANCIAL PROPOSAL....................................................................................22

ANNEX A - CONTRACT NOTICE....................................................................................................23

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ANNEX B - DRAFT FRAMEWORK CONTRACT...........................................................................24

ANNEX C - DECLARATION ON EXCLUSION CRITERIA...........................................................25

ANNEX D - LEGAL ENTITY FORM................................................................................................26

ANNEX E - FINANCIAL IDENTIFICATION FORM.......................................................................27

ANNEX F - TABLE-QUESTIONNAIRE............................................................................................28

ANNEX G - FINANCIAL OFFER FORM.........................................................................................30

ANNEX H - SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT.................................................................................32

ANNEX I - ELECTRONIC BILLING FORMAT..............................................................................36

ANNEX J - GLOSSARY OF TERMS.................................................................................................37

ANNEX K - check-list of mandatory documents....................................................................................38

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INTRODUCTION TO CEDEFOP

The European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop) is an agency of the European Union. Created in 1975 with a tripartite Governing Board, it provides services for the European Commission, the European Union Member States and the social partners as well as for the associated countries of Norway and Iceland. The candidate countries are also associated with its activities.

As the European Union’s reference centre for vocational education and training, Cedefop provides policymakers, researchers and practitioners with information to promote a clearer understanding of developments and so enable them to take informed decisions on future action. Cedefop assists the European Commission in encouraging, at Community level, the promotion and development of vocational education and training.

The main tasks of Cedefop as defined in its founding Regulation are to:

compile selected documentation and analysis of data;

contribute to the development and coordination of research;

exploit and disseminate useful information;

encourage and support a concerted approach to vocational training development issues;

provide a forum for a wide and diverse audience.

Cedefop’s medium-term priorities for 2006-08 concentrate on the priorities set out in the Maastricht communiqué, which has been agreed by 32 countries, the European Commission and the European social partners:

a) ‘promoting the image and attractiveness of the vocational route for employers and individuals to increase participation in VET;

b) achieving high levels of quality and innovation in VET systems to benefit all learners and make European VET globally competitive;

c) linking VET with the knowledge economy’s requirements for a highly skilled workforce and especially, because of the strong impact of demographic change, the upgrading and competence development of older workers;

d) addressing the needs of the low-skilled (about 75 million people aged between 25 and 64 in the EU) and disadvantaged groups so as to achieve social cohesion and increase labour market participation.’

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1. OVERVIEW OF THIS TENDER

1.1. Description of the contract

The present call for tenders aims at acquiring mobile voice and data services as well as GSM subscriptions (devices and GSM fixed cellular terminals being the result of mobile operators’ subsidy policy), SIM cards and hotline services. The purpose is to achieve the widest possible geographical coverage in a transparent and cost effective manner.

The requested services are as follows:

(1) Mobile voice and data communications worldwide

(2) Provision of mobile voice or data centric devices as a result of the subsidy and yearly device renewal policy

(3) Hotline services for troubleshooting voice, data, device or contract problems. Also the service will cover on a minimum basis theft reporting, SIM renewals or tariff plan alterations

(4) Electronic billing information according to ANNEX I

1.2. Duration of the contract

The resulting framework contract shall enter into force on the date of signature of the last contracting party, and shall be valid for a period of 12 months, with a possibility of three (3) automatic renewals of twelve (12) months each.

1.3. Place of delivery or performance

Products as well as support services are to be delivered to CEDEFOP premises, 123 Europe, Pylea, Thessaloniki.

1.4. Validity of tenders

Tenderers must maintain the validity of their offers for at least 6 months following the tender submission date.

1.5. Value of the contract

The budget available for the required products and support services is estimated at 100,000 Euro over a period of four (4) years.

1.6. Guarantee

Any product to be acquired under this framework contract should be covered at least with a two year guarantee starting upon the signature date of the contract.

1.7. Main terms of financing and payment

Payments will be made 30 days after submission of invoices and at the conditions set out in the draft contract.

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2. TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

2.1. Subject Matter

Cedefop is looking to acquire the following products and services:

2.1.1. Mobile voice services1

Mobile-to-mobile national traffic = calls originating from CEDEFOP’s GSM phones and GSM fixed cellular terminals located in Greece to any mobile number.

Mobile international traffic = calls originating from CEDEFOP’s GSM phones located in Greece to any (mobile + fixed) international destination.

Mobile Roaming-In traffic = calls received by CEDEFOP’s GSM phones while abroad.

Mobile Roaming-Out traffic = calls originating from CEDEFOP’s GSM phones while travelling abroad.

2.1.2. Mobile data services (GPRS, HSDPA, Blackberry)

2.1.3. Supply of voice centric mobile devices and accessories as a result of the annual subsidy policy (headsets, etc…)

2.1.4. Hotline 24h/7d for end-user support in the fields of contract administration and mobile devices handling

2.1.5. Electronic billing information according to the format requested in ANNEX I

2.2. Current situation

The diagram below describes the current situation for all the traffic types that are concerned by this call for tenders.

1 Portability for the current numbering plan must be considered9


CEDEFOP is currently receiving mobile telephony services from a Greek Mobile operator. Six (6) of the GSM mobile connections stand for SIM cards placed on GSM “gateways” (referred hereafter as antenna), which cover the needs of CEDEFOP premises for communication to mobile networks (mobile-to-mobile communications).

The annual traffic records presented above refer both to antennas and users. The current traffic follows the distribution model below:

55% of the overall GSM communication is distributed through the antennas, although this traffic represents only the 15% of the overall GSM costs.

45% of the overall GSM communication is distributed through the users although this traffic represents 85% of the overall GSM voice and data costs.

Fifty percent (50%) of the overall traffic refers to international calls to and from the European Union’s 27 countries (hereafter EU27). Eighty percent (80%) of the previously mentioned figure refers to international calls and roaming charges from CEDEFOP’s “hot spot” destinations: Belgium, Luxembourg, U.K., The Netherlands, France, Germany (hereafter EU6).

Wireless Internet connection through GPRS is also available for users. The data amount for each user’s subscription is subject to modification in the future according to the individual’s needs and requirements.

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[4] Mobile INTCalls to international destinations

[6] Mobile -OUTCalls made while abroad

[5] Mobile -Calls received while abroad

[2] Mobile INTCalls to international destinations

WORLD

GREECE

[4] Mobile Roaming-OUTCalls made while abroad

[3] Mobile Roaming-INCalls received while abroad

- Fixed to Mobile

[1] - Mobile to Mobile - Mobile to Fixed


Users’ GSM connections should be capable for roaming all over the World.

Users’ GSM SIM cards should be capable of connecting to the Internet wirelessly using the GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) protocol, 3G or Blackberry worldwide.

NB: The number of the overall GSM subscriptions may increase or decrease in the future, depending on the needs of the Centre during the contract period.

2.2.1. Mobile Voice Services

At present, approximately 19 handsets and GSM fixed cellular terminals and equal amount of SIM cards are used both for mobile voice and data services.

From January 2006 to December 2006 approximately 13Kcalls with 35Kminutes of mobile-originated traffic were recorded.

2.2.2. Mobile data services

For the time being, data traffic represents less than 10% of the overall mobile telecommunication costs, including corporate exchange email capabilities.

2.2.3. Hotline Support

It is expected that bilingual (Greek/English) hotline services to CEDEFOP will be needed on a 24/7 basis for end-user support in the fields of contract administration and mobile devices handling.

2.2.4. Numbering plan

CEDEFOP currently uses the following numbers:

6973808550-60

6978181170-71

6978480719-24

Please note that portability of the numbers in use is mandatory for the new framework contract.

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2.3. Expected Services

2.3.1. Mobile Voice Services

CEDEFOP is expecting to use GSM voice services for all the subscribers covered by the current contract. GSM protocol for voice services is expected to be provided, unless during the validity period of the contract, the provider migrates to UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) for voice communications.

Among others, the following basic voice services should be supported:

call forwarding,

call diverting,

conference call,

call barring capabilities,

call alerting for missed calls,

voice mailboxes,

data and fax services,

SMS, MMS

Tenderers are requested to provide over-the-air configuration for all of the above mentioned functionalities.

2.3.2. Mobile Data Services

CEDEFOP is interested in the transition to mobile data services using a push email mobile technology involving CEDEFOP push email exchange server capabilities. Optionally CEDEFOP may require the installation and customization of a Blackberry Exchange server dedicated to email, contact, task and calendar synchronisation. Through this service, CEDEFOP would like to provide to pre-selected users the following features and functionalities:

(1) Wireless access to the corporate email (receive, reply, read and forward email)

(2) Receipt of attachments (images, pdf, doc, xls, ppt)

(3) Wireless administration of email settings (Out Of Office Reply, Auto Signature, Mail Filters)

(4) Automatic synchronisation and administration of the corporate details (contacts, address book, calendar, tasks etc)

(5) Internet & Intranet access using GPRS or Blackberry connection method

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The provision of the service should be implemented using either a Blackberry Enterprise Server or MS Exchange 2003 push email capabilities (automatic synchronisation).

2.3.3. Mobile devices and Subsidy policy

An annual subsidy policy scheme is mandatory to be provided at the renewal of the contract. The subsidy shall be used for the acquisition of related hardware (Fixed mobile terminals – GSM gateways).

For your information, mobile communication devices and accessories were acquired in the past as a result of a subsidy policy. These devices were GSM SIM card based handhelds, including advanced devices such as i-mate, with a 1 year warranty period.

2.3.4. Flat-fee roaming charges – “Eurotariff”

Regulation (EC) 717/2007 foresees a reduction of roaming charges across Europe. Cedefop is expecting from tenderers to provide roaming charges lower or in the worse case equal to the prices of the Eurotariff summary table shown below:

Retail outgoing per minute €

Retail incoming per minute €

0.49 (2007)

0.46 (2008)

0.43 (2009)

0.24 (2007)

0.22 (2008)

0.19 (2009)

2.3.5. Hotline Support

The principles for the hotline support are drawn hereafter. The hotline service principles are not expected to change within the duration of the framework contract. Therefore, the description below applies to the expected situation as long as the contract between the successful tenderer and CEDEFOP is active.

(1) during 7days/24hours, a Hotline (telephone line) must be available from all over the world.

(2) the Hotline provides assistance and support to the end-users via telephone.

(3) the handling of equipments support includes: SIM cards configuration, GSM configuration (telephony features), GPRS/3G data/Blackberry configuration, data and voice coverage, available abroad operators etc.

(4) Change requests: on individual lines regarding voice and data tariff plans.

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(5) Theft reporting, SIM card blocking, device blocking (anti-fraud, anti-theft etc).

2.3.6. Electronic Billing Format

CEDEFOP wishes to use an electronic billing mechanism in which access to corporate bills is provided through the internet. The successful tenderer should work closely with the IT staff of CEDEFOP in order to finalise the electronic billing mechanism of a given format that can be post-processed by the ERP of the Centre as described in ANNEX I.

2.3.7. Network

Tenderers are required to provide full description of their network infrastructure capacity and redundancy stating in general the approximated number of base stations all over Greece.

Tenderers are required to provide description of network density by providing information on the population coverage (Greece) regarding GSM/3G voice and GPRS/3G data service.

Tenderers are invited to provide a roadmap related to the 3G coverage of Greece. They are also invited to describe the added value services (location based services, information channels, streaming video, etc) that is planned to be provided with full/partial 3G deployment.

Finally special mention should be made of mobile telephony network monitoring mechanisms, as well as incident alerts in case of network congestion/outages. You are invited to describe in particular the procedure (if any) through which Cedefop ICTF administrators will be alerted (informed) for foreseen or special network outages.

2.3.8. Service Level Agreement (SLA)

CEDEFOP is expecting to receive a high quality level of voice and data services as a result of this Agreement. If there are instances where there is a service outage, a penalty application scheme will be applied, as thoroughly described in the Service Level Agreement (ANNEX H).

Tenderers are encouraged to accept the proposed SLA but may offer their own schemes as well. The proposed SLA's will be evaluated for their correspondence and/or advantages compared to the scheme as proposed by Cedefop.

2.3.9. Supporting Documentation for the expected services

Tenderers will be evaluated for the above expected services by answering Annex F Questionnaire as also depicted in the table below.

No. Description

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1 Portability of the existing Numbering plan.

2 GSM for voice and GPRS/Blackberry for data communication.

3 Annual subsidy policy.

4 Electronic billing.

5 Capacity and redundancy of backbone infrastructure for voice and data.

6 Population coverage in Greece for GSM/3G voice and GPRS/Blackberry services.

7 Provide a list of countries where roaming for voice and data is NOT supported.

8 Call forwarding, call diverting, conference call, call barring capabilities, call alerting for missing calls, voice mailboxes, data and fax services, SMS.

9 Capabilities to set limitations (profiles), cost control, over-the-air configuration and technical solutions for handling private calls.

10 Anti-fraud and anti-theft mechanisms or capabilities to remotely block/destroy individual cards.

11 Billing scheme for roaming.

12 Company’s 3G evolution plan and added value services.

13 Provide a list of mobile devices brands supported under the subsidy policy.

14 Incident alert for network breakdowns.

15 Service Level Agreement (ANNEX H).

16 Customer support scheme.

17 Multilingual (at least Greek/English) hotline user support on a 24/7 basis.

18 ISO certification guaranteeing a quality assurance.

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3. SPECIFIC INFORMATION CONCERNING PARTICIPATION TO THIS TENDER

Tenderers must meet the exclusion and selection criteria and have the legal position to allow them to participate in this tendering procedure.

3.1. Exclusion criteria

Participation to this tender is only open to tenderers who are not in one of the situations listed below:

(1) bankrupt or being wound up, are having their affairs administered by the courts, have entered into an arrangement with creditors, have suspended business activities, are the subject of proceedings concerning those matters, or are in any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure provided for in national legislation or regulations;

(2) have been convicted of an offence concerning their professional conduct by a definitive court judgement;

(3) have been guilty of grave professional misconduct proven by any means which the contracting authority can justify;

(4) have not fulfilled obligations relating to the payment of social security contributions or the payment of taxes in accordance with the legal provisions of the country in which they are established or with those of the country of the contracting authority or those of the country where the contract is to be performed;

(5) have been the subject of a definitive court judgement for fraud, corruption, involvement in a criminal organization or any other illegal activity detrimental to the Communities’ financial interests;

(6) following another procurement procedure or grant award procedure financed by the Community budget, they have been declared to be in a serious breach of contract for failure to comply with their contractual obligations.

In addition to the above, contracts may not be awarded to tenderers who, during the procurement procedure:

are subject to a conflict of interest;

are guilty of misrepresentation in supplying the information required by the contracting authority as a condition of participation in the contract procedure or fail to supply this information.

Means of proof required:

The tenderer shall provide the self-declaration found in Annex C which states that none of the aforementioned grounds for exclusion applies to the tenderer.

Cedefop reserves the right to check the situation described in points 3) and 6).

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3.2. Selection criteria

The tenderer must submit evidence of their economic, financial, technical and professional capacity to perform the contract.

Economic & Financial capacity

Requirements

The tenderer must be in a stable financial position and have the economic and financial capacity to perform the contract.

Proof of economic and financial capacity may in particular be furnished by one or more of the following documents:

appropriate statements from the banks or evidence of professional risk indemnity insurance;

balance sheets or extracts from balance sheets for at least the last two years for which accounts have been closed (where publication of the balance sheet is required under the company law of the country in which the economic operator is established);

a statement of overall turnover and turnover concerning services covered by the contract during the last three financial years.

If the tenderer relies on the capacities of other entities (e.g. parent company), a written statement on the part of those entities must also be submitted, confirming that they will place the resources necessary for performance of the contract at the tenderer’s disposal.

In case tenderers are unable to furnish such documents, they are required to provide justification for non provision.

Technical and professional capacity

Tenderers are required to prove that they have sufficient technical and professional capacity to perform the contract and must therefore comply with the following criteria:

- ability to provide mobile telephony services on the whole Greek market

Evidence of the technical and professional capacity may be furnished on the basis of the following documents:

Proof of enrolment in the relevant professional register, as prescribed by the laws of the Member State where the tenderer is established;

Presentation of the organisational structure of the company;

Network map showing geographical coverage of the company’s existing infrastructure;

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License for the provision and the handling of mobile voice and data services in Greece as described in section 2 – Technical Specifications;

List of projects/contracts performed within the last three years, similar to the services as described in section 2 – Technical Specifications.

Tenderers who do not provide the documentation specified, or who are judged on the basis of the documentation provided not to fulfil the above specified criteria, will be excluded.

3.3. Legal Position

Tenderers are requested to complete the Legal Entity form found in Annex D and to provide the documents requested in the form. Tenderers must ensure to include the name and function of the individual(s) entitled to sign on behalf of the organisation in the case of contract award.

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4. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONCERNING PARTICIPATION TO THIS TENDER

4.1. Participation of consortia

Groupings of suppliers (or consortia), irrespective of their legal form, may submit a tender on condition that it complies with the rules of competition. Such grouping (or consortium) must specify the company or person heading the project and must also submit a copy of the document authorising this company or person to submit a tender.

In addition, each member of the consortium must provide the required evidence for the exclusion and selection criteria. Concerning the selection criteria ‘technical and professional capacity’, the evidence provided by each member of the consortium will be checked to ensure that the consortium as a whole fulfils the criteria.

If awarded, the contract will be signed by the company or the person heading the project who will be vis-à-vis Cedefop the only contracting party responsible for the performance of this contract. Tenders from consortia of firms or groups of service providers, contractors or suppliers, must specify the role, qualifications and experience of each member or group.

4.2. Subcontracting

Any subcontracting must be approved by Cedefop, either by accepting the bidder’s tender, or, if proposed by the Contractor after contract signature, by an exchange of letters. The subcontracting will be accepted only if it is judged by Cedefop to be necessary to complete the project, and does not lead to distortion of competition. If awarded, the contract will be signed by the Tenderer who will be the only contracting party responsible for the performance of the contract.

The tenderer must indicate clearly in its methodology, which parts of the work will be subcontracted, and the identity of all subcontractors undertaking more than 10% of the work by value.

All subcontractors must meet the selection criteria ‘technical and financial capacity’ and provide the necessary evidence.

Where no subcontractor is given, the work will be assumed to be carried out directly by the bidder.

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5. EVALUATION AND AWARD PROCEDURE

Only the tenders meeting the requirements of the exclusion and selection criteria will have their technical and financial proposals evaluated in terms of quality and

price.

The contract shall be awarded to the tenderer submitting the tender that offers the best value for money (best quality-price ratio).

A quality-price ratio will be calculated for each tender by dividing the total points for quality by the total price, thus indicating which tender represents the best value for money.

5.1. Technical evaluation

The following technical award criteria will be applied to this tendering procedure and will be weighted according to the rates below:

Technical Evaluation Weighting Points

1) Technical functionalities of the service

45

2) Quality of the SLA 20

3) Electronic billing information 20

4) Proposed hotline support 10

5) Quality Assurance 5

Total Technical Score 100

Tenders scoring less than 60 (of a maximum of 100) points against the technical criteria, will not be considered acceptable and will therefore not have their financial proposal evaluated.

5.2. Technical proposal

The assessment of the technical quality will be based on the ability of the tenderers to meet the purpose of the contract as described in the technical specifications. To this end, tenderers must provide information requested in the table-questionnaire in Annex F, including all required mandatory elements. All questions must be answered.

NOTE THAT you have to provide justification for every single question of the table-questionnaire in your technical proposal. In case your proposal is not

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compatible with the MANDATORY requirements of the table-questionnaire (questions 1-4), your offer will not be further evaluated.

5.3. Financial evaluation

Only tenders scoring 60 points or more (of a maximum of 100) points against the technical award criteria will have their financial proposal evaluated.

The financial evaluation will be performed on the basis of the prices offered and will be calculated according to the following formula:

5.4. Financial proposal

Tenderers are requested to fill in the Financial Offer Form in Annex G and to submit prices for the pre-defined scenario reflecting the volume estimates of the Centre for the various requested services.

Please note that Cedefop’s estimates mentioned in Annex G are indicative and do not constitute any kind of legal obligation for the Centre.

For ease of simulation, the scenario is built upon the following underlying parameters:

- Coverage of the maximum duration of the contract (4 years)

- Fixed prices without possibility of adjustments.

For the purposes of appreciation of the specific offer made to Cedefop, tenderers are also requested to attach to their offer their usual draft agreement applicable at the time of submitting the tender.

Information concerning price

The prices must be fixed and not revisable except for any future Eurotariff reductions resulting from application of Regulation (EC) No 717/2007 by the European Parliament and the Council.

Prices must be quoted in Euro and include all expenses.

Under Article 3 and 4 of the Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Communities, Cedefop is exempt from all charges, taxes and dues, including value added tax (VAT). Such charges may not therefore be included in the calculation of the price quoted. The VAT amount must be indicated separately.

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6. INFORMATION ON PRESENTATION AND CONTENT OF TENDER

It is extremely important that tenderers present their tender in the correct format and provide all documents necessary to enable the evaluation committee to assess their tender. Tenderers should note the instructions indicated in the invitation letter of this tender.

In addition, below you will find details of the required documentation.

6.1. Envelope A - Supporting documents

One original and one copy of:

the checklist found in Annex K

the exclusion criteria declaration as requested in point 3.1 and standard template found in Annex C

the selection criteria documents as requested in point 3.2

the legal entity form as requested in point 3.3 and found in Annex D

a statement containing the name and position of the individual(s) entitled to sign the contract as requested in point 3.3

the financial identification form as found in Annex E

6.2. Envelope B – Technical proposal

One original signed unbound copy and four bound copies of:

the technical proposal providing all information requested in point 5.2 including information relevant to subcontracting as requested in point 3.2

6.3. Envelope C – Financial proposal

One original signed unbound copy and four bound copies of:

the financial proposal containing all information requested in point 5.4

22


ANNEX A

CONTRACT NOTICE

23


ANNEX B

DRAFT FRAMEWORK CONTRACT

24


ANNEX C

DECLARATION ON EXCLUSION CRITERIA

I ....................................................................... hereby declare that neither I nor the company:

(Company Name).......................................................................................................................

that I am representing are in any of the situations mentioned below:

a) is bankrupt or being wound up, is having his/her affairs administered by the courts; has entered into an arrangement with creditors; has suspended business activities; is the subject of proceedings concerning those matters; or is in any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure provided for in national legislation or regulations;

b) have been convicted of an offence concerning their professional conduct by a definitive court judgement;

c) has been guilty of grave professional misconduct proven by any means which Cedefop can justify;

d) has not fulfilled obligations relating to the payment of social security contributions or the payment of taxes in accordance with the legal provisions of the country in which he/she is established or with those of the country of the contracting authority or those of the country where the contract is to be performed;

e) have been the subject of a definitive court judgement for fraud, corruption, involvement in a criminal organization or any other illegal activity detrimental to the Communities’ financial interests;

f) following another procurement procedure or grant award procedure financed by the Community budget, he/she has been declared to be in serious breach of contract for failure to comply with his/her contractual obligations.

I, the undersigned, understand that contracts may not be awarded if during the procurement procedure the individual/company/organisation mentioned above:

is subject to a conflict of interest;

is guilty of misrepresentation in supplying the information required by the contracting authority as a condition of participation in the contract procedure or fail to supply this information.

Signature:

Date:

25


ANNEX D

LEGAL ENTITY FORM

(to be downloaded, depending on the nationality and legal entity of the tenderer, from the following website)

http://europa.eu.int/comm/budget/execution/legal_entities_en.htm

26

http://europa.eu.int/comm/budget/execution/legal_entities_en.htm


ANNEX E

FINANCIAL IDENTIFICATION FORM

(to be downloaded, depending on the nationality of the tenderer, from the following website)

http://europa.eu.int/comm/budget/execution/ftiers_en.htm

27

http://europa.eu.int/comm/budget/execution/ftiers_en.htm


ANNEX F

TABLE-QUESTIONNAIRE

MANDATORY REQUIREMENTS Brief response or reference

Weighting Factor

1. Do you support portability for the existing Numbering plan of CEDEFOP?MANDATORY

YES

Reference .........

2. Do you support GSM for voice and GPRS/Blackberry for data transfer?MANDATORY

YES

Reference .........

3. Do you provide an annual subsidy policy for the renewal of the mobile devices?MANDATORY

YES

Reference .........

4. Do you support invoicing in written and electronic (web based) format?MANDATORY

YES

Reference .........

SERVICE TECHNICAL FUNCTIONALITIES (45) Brief response or reference

Weighting Points

5. Provide detailed documentation describing the capacity and redundancy of your backbone infrastructure for voice and data.

YES NO

Reference .........

5

6. Provide a detailed description regarding the overall population coverage in Greece for GSM/3G voice and GPRS/Blackberry services.

YES NO

Reference .........

3

7. Provide a list of countries where roaming for voice and data is NOT supported.

YES NO

Reference .........

2

8. Do you support call forwarding, call diverting, conference call, call barring capabilities, call alerting for missing calls, voice mailboxes, data and fax services, SMS?

YES NO

Reference .........

5

9. Do you support capabilities to set limitations (profiles), cost control, over-the-air configuration and technical solutions for handling private calls?

YES NO

Reference .........

3

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10. Do you have specific anti-fraud and anti-theft mechanisms or capabilities to remotely block/destroy individual cards?

YES NO

Reference .........

2

11. Do you have flat fee billing scheme for roaming? YES NO

Reference .........

10

12. Can you provide a written statement regarding your company’s 3G evolution plan and added value services?

YES NO

Reference .........

5

13. Provide a list of mobile devices brands supported under the subsidy policy.

YES NO

Reference .........

5

14. Do you support incident alert for network breakdowns? YES NO

Reference .........

5

SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT QUALITY (20) Brief response or reference

Weighting Points

15. Have you included in your technical proposal a Service Level Agreement with which you commit (at least) to the requirements set out in ANNEX G?

YES NO

Reference .........

20

ELECTRONIC BILLING FORMAT (20) Brief response or reference

Weighting Points

16. Have you included in your technical proposal a sample of your electronic billing system according to the requirements presented in ANNEX I?

YES NO

Reference .........

20

PROPOSED HOTLINE SUPPORT SCHEME (10) Brief response or reference

Weighting Points

17. Please provide description of your customer support scheme in terms of prompt and professional activation of services to subscribers and effective handling of specific individual requests.

YES NO

Reference .........

5

18. Do you provide multilingual (at least Greek/English) hotline user support on a 24/7 basis?

YES NO

Reference .........

5

QUALITY ASSURANCE (5) Brief response or reference

Weighting Points

19. Is your company ISO certified guaranteeing a quality assurance policy in the fields of prompt and professional activation of services to subscribers, maintenance of a high level of customer satisfaction, preventive measures and disclosure of unauthorised use of network services as well as regular monitoring of service utilisation and collection of receivables and provision of services with the application of state-of-the-art technologies that ensure reliability and security?

YES NO

Reference .........

5

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ANNEX G

FINANCIAL OFFER FORMThe financial proposal should indicate price per item for each of the products and services indicated in the tables 1 and 2. The tenderers must present a detailed breakdown of the price offered.

TABLE 1- Financial Offer Form 1ST Year

No. PROBABILITY OF

AQUISITION (%)

Item/Service Quantity Price/unit (€)(4) Subtotal

1 100 Portability cost 19 lines

2 100 Voice Tariff Plan fee for a 300 minutes free time1 (1st year)

19 lines

3 100 GPRS tariff plan fee for 25MB free data2

6 lines

4 100 GPRS unit price 500MB Price/KB

5 100 Mobile-to-mobile voice calls (average price of all operators)5

30000 mins Cosmote (...Price/min)Vodafone (...Price/min)TIM (...Price/min)Q Telecom (...Price/min)

6 100 Calls received while abroad (average price)5

5000 mins EU27 (...Price/min)USA (...Price/min)

7 100 Calls to international destinations (average price)5

5000 mins EU27 (...Price/min)USA (...Price/min)

8 100 Calls made while abroad (Please consider as assumption that all calls are directed to a Greek mobile operator of your choice)5

3000 mins EU27 (...Price/min)USA (...Price/min)Greece (...Price/min)

9 50 Other cost (please identify)

10 50 Blackberry tariff plan fee for 25MB free data3

5 lines

11 50 Blackberry unit price 500MB Price/KB

12 50 Blackberry Enterprise Server Software (BES v4.0 for up to 5 users)

13 50 CAL for BES (users software licenses)

5 licenses Price for software license/year

30


14 50 Software installation & configuration

15 50 Software upgrade Price/year

16 50 Blackberry Handheld Acquisition cost (specify model)

5 devices


TOTAL COST FOR THE 1st YEAR

(1) In case such voice tariff plan is not available, time and prices are going to be normalized.

(2) In case such data tariff plan is not available, data and prices are going to be normalized.

(3) In case such Blackberry data tariff plan is not available, data and prices are going to be normalized.

(4) In case that a service is provided free of charge, please indicate “FREE OF CHARGE” on the Financial Offer Form relevant field.

(5) In case that more than one price is indicated, and for scenario evaluation purposes, CEDEFOP will consider the average of the indicated prices.

TABLE 2- Financial Offer Form 2nd + 3rd +4th Years

Number

PROBABILITY OF

AQUISITION (%)

Item/Service Quantity Price/unit (€)(4) Subtotal

1 100 Voice Tariff Plan fee for 300 minutes free talk time1 (2nd year and forward)

19 lines

2 100 GPRS tariff plan fee for 25MB free data2 (2nd year and forward)

3 100 GPRS unit price 500MB Price/KB

4 100 Mobile-to-mobile voice calls (average price)5

30000 mins Cosmote (...Price/min) Vodafone (...Price/min) TIM (...Price/min)Q Telecom (...Price/min)

5 100 Calls received while abroad (average)5

5000 mins EU 27 (...Price/min)USA (...Price/min)

6 100 Calls to international destinations (average)5

5000 mins EU 27 (...Price/min)USA (...Price/min)

7 100 Calls made while abroad (Please consider as assumption that all calls are directed to a Greek mobile operator of your choice)5

3000 mins EU 27 (...Price/min)USA (...Price/min)Greece (...Price/min)


9 50 Blackberry tariff plan fee for 25MB free data3 (2nd year and forward)

10 50 Blackberry unit price 500MB Price/KB

11 50 CAL for BES (users software licenses)

5 licenses Price for software license/year

31


12 50 Software upgrade (if applicable)

Price/year


TOTAL COST FOR THE 2nd + 3rd + 4th YEARS

(1) In case such voice tariff plan is not available, time and prices are going to be normalized.

(2) In case such data tariff plan is not available, data and prices are going to be normalized.

(3) In case such Blackberry data tariff plan is not available, data and prices are going to be normalized.

(4) In case that a service is provided free of charge, please indicate “FREE OF CHARGE” on the Financial Offer Form relevant field.

(5) In case that more than one price is indicated, and for scenario evaluation purposes, CEDEFOP will consider the average of the indicated prices.

32


ANNEX H

SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT (SLA)

FOR MOBILE TELEPHONY SERVICES

7. PREAMBLE

In order to evaluate the quality of the tenderer’s offer in relation to Cedefop’s requirements, the tenderers are invited to establish a Service Level Agreement (SLA) that covers certain aspects of the services required.

A draft SLA, that includes minimum requirements with regard to the elements mentioned above, is presented hereafter. Tenderers are invited to either commit to meeting these minimum requirements or to suggest service levels that go beyond them and to include them into the draft SLA.

8. ROLES AND RESPONSABILITIES

8.1. Interfaces

Contact persons will be defined by both parties, and clearly identified with their names, e-mail addresses, and telephone numbers.

The tenderer will commit to provide at least 1 contact person with the following characteristics:

an account or service manager, who will be the interface for all commercial, contractual, technical and operational matters

CEDEFOP will provide at least 1 contact person with the following characteristics:

an administrative or service manager, who will be the interface for all contractual, billing, technical and operational matters

9. SERVICE AVAILABILITY AND METRICS

All the service properties concerned by this Service Level Agreement refer to the availability of the network in terms of voice and data services as well as end-users hotline satisfaction.

9.1. NETWORK – Mobile voice service availability

The Mobile Voice Service availability is defined by indicators that take into account all network infrastructure elements that intervene in the establishment of a qualitatively good outgoing or incoming mobile voice call on the tenderer’s network.

33


CEDEFOP is expecting to receive mobile VOICE service at minima for 99.8% of the month (maximum 2 hours network down-time allowed). Above this, a penalty will be applied according to § 10.

9.2. NETWORK – Mobile data service availability

The Mobile Data Service availability is defined by indicators that take into account all network infrastructure elements, including hardware and software failures at the IP layers (APN, SGSN, GGSN, DNS), that intervene in the establishment of a qualitatively good GPRS, Blackberry, HSDPA, EDGE connection on the tenderer’s network.

CEDEFOP is expecting to receive mobile DATA service at minima for 99.8% of the month (maximum 2 hours network down-time allowed). Above this, a penalty will be applied according to § 10.

9.3. HOTLINE – Numbers blocking

This is the delay between the reception of a validated request for the blocking of a number, and the time when the network has taken into account this blocking.

9.3.1. Metric measurement

The metric is measured in hours, for each request.

9.3.2. Target values and penalties

Metric type Target values Penalties

Delay to block a number

1 hour 100% of the communication costs induced after this delay

10. APPLIED PENALTIES

For any service interruptions above 2 hours (on a monthly basis), all monthly fees related to this service (voice and data) shall be waived and not be paid by the Centre. The penalty will be applied on the next invoice.

Below you will find example scenarios, analyzing the penalty enforcement.

EXAMPLE SCENARIO 1: Suppose that on April 2008, provider X has GSM network downtime of 3 hours due to congestion (caused by excessive use). Assuming that CEDEFOP has 20 GSM connections with the following tariff plans:

10 connections of 300mins free air = 30.00 € / connection monthly fee

10 connections standard = 5.00 € / connection monthly fee

According to the above scenario the Penalty applied to the following invoice will be:

PENALTY = 10 (connections) x 30.00 € (monthly fee) + 10 (connections) x 5.00 € (monthly fee) = 350.00 €

34


EXAMPLE SCENARIO 2: Suppose that on April 2008, provider X has GPRS data network downtime of 4 hours due to upgrade. Assuming that CEDEFOP has 10 GPRS connections with the following tariff plans:

5 connections of 15MB prepaid = 20.00 € / connection monthly fee



PENALTY = 5 (connections) x 20.00 € (monthly fee) + 5 (connections) x 50.00 € (monthly fee) = 350.00 €

EXAMPLE SCENARIO 3: Suppose that on April 2008, provider X has GPRS and GSM data network downtime of 5 hours. Assuming that CEDEFOP has 20 GSM connections and 10 GPRS connections with the following tariff plans:

10 connections of 300mins free air = 30.00 € / connection monthly fee

10 connections standard = 5.00 € / connection monthly fee




PENALTY = 10 (connections) x 30.00 € (monthly fee) +10 (connections) x 5.00 € (monthly fee) + 5 (connections) x 20.00 € (monthly fee) +5 (connections) x 50.00 € (monthly fee) = 700.00 €

All penalties are calculated in Euros.

10.1. Rounding off

Whenever mathematical functions are used for the metrics measurement or for the penalties calculation, it is required to keep at least 2 significant (first digit is non-zero) digits for all figures.

In other words, the 3rd digit should be rounded off to the superior value when > 2.

35


11. VALIDITY AND REVIEW PROCESS

The Service Level Agreement (SLA) shall enter into force after the signature of the framework contract.

The SLA shall remain valid until superseded by a revised SLA mutually agreed by both parties.

The SLA shall be reviewed for the first time one year after the signature of the framework contract, then subsequent reviews shall occur once a year, or whenever reasonably requested by either party.

A modification of the SLA shall be mainly motivated by the following reasons:

(1) to keep it up to date with respect to regulatory matters (e.g. new definitions or regulations published by the official regulatory bodies),

(2) to keep it up to date following a financial or technological benchmarking,

(3) to adjust target values or penalties which would have turned out to be inadequate or unsatisfactory.

12. EXCLUSION IN CASES OF FORCE MAJEURE

Whenever a service interruption could not be prevented (by installing redundant equipment) nor foreseen by any means, it is considered as “Force Majeure” and consequently no PENALTY is applied.

13. PLANNED INTERVENTIONS

Planned interventions are not considered as outages. However, and as the term itself implies, they must be planned upfront.

Planned interventions can be requested either by CEDEFOP or by the contractor, and must strictly respect the following limitations:

(1) a request must be submitted and notified to all parties at least 2 weeks in advance,

(2) planned interventions which cause “NO SERVICE” must never take place during working hours (09:00 – 18:00)

36


ANNEX I

ELECTRONIC BILLING FORMAT

On a monthly basis, reports related to the calendar month N must be provided both in written and electronic format (web based).

The reports must be provided online in an electronic format which is compatible with one of the following: Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access, csv format, txt.

The report for “electronic-billing” must contain at least the following fields and values:

Field Value Example/Format Field Length

Invoice Number Numeric value stating the invoice number 555505042007 16 characters longMobile Number calling

Numeric value stating the mobile number that is making the call

3069xxXXXXXX 12 characters long

Call start time Stating the time of the day that a voice call or a data transfer was initiated

YYYY-MM-DD hh:mm:ss

20 characters long

Call duration Stating the duration of a call. In case of a GPRS connection, this field indicates the data amount transferred

hh:mm:ss/1500kB 8 characters long

Number called Numeric value stating the line that received the call. In case of a GPRS connection, this field should be left blank

69xxXXXXXX/_blank 12 characters long

Called From This field indicates the operator from which the call was initiated. For domestic operators this field should be left blank. While roaming this field should indicate the operator abroad.

_blank/WIND 0-12 characters long

Service This field indicates the service involved and the operator that received the service:For voice calls:For data connections:For SMS/MMS:

Call to “Operator”Wireless InternetSMS/MMS

Up to 24 characters long

Call amount Service cost in Euros €€.cccc (e.g. 13.7234) 8 characters longAny other fields may also be available but the above mentioned are the minimum required.

The contractor is encouraged to work closely with the IT team of CEDEFOP in order to follow the given format for the electronic billing system which is crucial for the post processing of the data from CEDEFOP’s ERP system.

Tenderers are requested to attach a sample of the electronic billing system format in their technical proposal either in electronic or printout form.

NB: The format of the web based electronic billing mechanism must not be changed during the period of the framework contract. In case of any upcoming transition, the tenderer should notify CEDEFOP at least three months before, for all the upcoming changes on the e-bill format.

37


ANNEX J

Glossary of terms

The term GSM stands for Global System for Mobile Communications (cellular phone technology).

The term GSM equals to mobile.

The GPRS stands for General Packet Radio Service Communications (data transfer through GSM network).

The term HSDPA stands for High-Speed Downlink Packet Access and is a 3G mobile telephony protocol in the HSPA family, providing 1.8 Mbit/s or 3.6 Mbit/s in downlink.

The term 3G stands for 3rd Generation mobile telephony.

The term ERP stands for Enterprise Resource Planning.

The acronym INT stands for International.

38

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-Speed_Packet_Access

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communications_protocol

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_telephony

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3G


ANNEX K

CHECK LIST OF MANDATORY DOCUMENTS

The checklist must be used to ensure that you have provided all the documentation for this tender and in the correct way. This checklist should be included as part of your offer.

Please Tick the boxes provided

Mandatory documents to be included as part of the tender

Reference paragraph

Included If the document is not included, please provide an explanation for the reason

Envelope ‘A’ must contain One original and one copy of:

Yes No

This checklist exclusion criteria declaration(If applicable, including those of consortia)

3.1 & 4.1

selection criteria documents(If applicable, including those of consortia and relevant subcontractors)

3.2 & 4.1

legal entity form 3.3 name and position of the individual(s) entitled to sign contract

3.3

financial identification form 6.1

Envelope ‘B’ must contain

one original four copies of:

Technical proposal 5.2 SLA (Service Level Agreement) properly signed

ANNEX H

Envelope ‘C’ must contain

one original four copies of:

The Financial proposal 5.4

You should also ensure that:

your offer is formulated in one of the official languages of the European Union.

both the technical and financial proposals of the offer are signed by you or your duly authorised agent.

your offer is perfectly legible in order to rule out any ambiguity.

your offer is submitted in accordance with the envelope system as detailed in the invitation to tender point 3.

the outer envelope bears the information mentioned in the invitation to tender point 3.

39

Business

3.1.doc