Contract notice

 Contract notice - correction

 Invitation to tender

 Tender specifications

 Model contract

 Contract Award Notice

Please note that the following changes have been made to this call for tender:

Lot 1: 

The budget has been increased from €60,000 to €70,000

Lot 2:

The budget has been decreased from €100,000 to €90,000

The duration has been increased by one month from 10 to 11 months

Lot 3:

The duration has been increased by four months from 6 to 10 months

Question 1:
Will the kick off meeting be paid by ECDC as well?

Answer:
No, the tenderers costs for travel to ECDC for the kick-off meeting should be covered by the tenderer. The meeting can be held at ECDC premises and, thus, entails no cost for meeting facilities.

Question 2:
Does the proposal need to be physically in Stockholm on the 15th of July, or can it be poststamped on the 15th of July (before 16.00), with proof of this being faxed/sent to you with Annex IX

Answer:
The deadline for submission is the dispatch of the tender (not when it arrives). So the post stamp should be 15 July at the latest. Only if the tender is delivered by hand ECDC has to receive it by 16.00.

Question 3:
On page 7 you request fiancial andeconomic capacity doucments as well as technical and professional capacity documents, both as requested in section 3.2.2: could you please clarify where this section can be found?

Answer:
Please note that there is a typo and it should read Section 1.5 Selection criteria.

Question 4:
As international partners are encouraged, can signatures of these partners on the consortium agreement be sent by fax, or electronically? (in view of time constraints)

Answer:
Yes – we can accept copies of the agreements.

Question 5:
Re the deliverable in lot 1/part II of a scientific manuscript with the ECDC projectteam as co-authors: a few of our potential consortium partners expressed concern that the international rules for authorship might not permit such a claim, although of course the role of the sponsor should be acknowleged.

Answer:
The scientific manuscript is planned to be produced by the contractors in collaboration with one or several members of the ECDC project team. International rules for authorship, regarding the scientific contribution of all co-authors to one or more aspects of the publication, should be adhered to.

Question 6:
ECDC states: "One year renewal is already planned, and to be confirmed as indicated in Article I.2.5 of the model framework contract. The proposal is foreseen for the 3 years, for the budget available indicated in “Annex VII – Financial Proposal Form” The proposal should be submitted for the three year period, but more detailed offers for each year’s instalments will be requested from the contractor separately for each annual contract period."
 
This means we do not have to abide with the dates mentioned on page 14, which requires the project to be completed by November 2013, but that we can plan the project for a three year period?” 
 
Answer:
You find some clarifications about this procedure in section 1.12 of the tender specifications.

In specific, “a framework contract is for a precisely defined subject, but where the exact quantities and delivery times cannot be indicated in advance. It sets out a performance framework laying down the basic terms for the services that the contractor is prepared to provide, particularly the duration, subject, price, implementing conditions and quantities envisaged. The other basic elements of the contractual relationship are defined at a later stage in each specific contract.” So, under the larger framework contract, each specific contract will contain details of quantities of deliverables and timelines of performance for particular services to be provided. Signature of the framework contract imposes no obligation on the Centre to order services. Only the implementation of the framework contract through specific individual contracts is binding for ECDC.
 
This means that the awarded contractor would be signing a contract for Lot 1 part I and Lot 4 relative to Lot 1) to begin immediately at the start of the project, but would only be absolutely sure of the implementation of Lot 1 part II, Lot 2, Lot 3 and Lot 4 (relative to Lot1 part II, Lot 2, Lot 3), when there is budget confirmation by ECDC. This can be confirmed only annually after approval by the governing bodies of ECDC. So the tender describes ECDC’s intended plan and timeline, that needs final confirmation.
 
Concerning the timeline mentioned in the previous answer, the two years duration of the contract refers to the framework contract. A possible additional year of the framework contract would add to this.  The specific contract under the framework contract for Lot number 3 is foreseen to start in February 2013, when the initial two year framework contract would still be in place. The second sentence of Article 1.2.4 of the model contract clarifies that “The Contract shall continue to apply to such orders and specific contracts after its expiry, but no later than after six months.” This would mean that the Lot 3 specific contract would be valid until the planned end date of November 2013, within the first two years of the signed framework contract. If there will be an agreement with the contractor for an adaptation of the timelines that requires a one year extension of the framework contract, this possibility is foreseen in the specifications with a third year.
 
Question 7:
If we would apply and be successful, we would need to recruit someone. To make a balanced budget, we need to know whether this budget is intended for 2 years, or also for the expected renewals. Also, to recruit, we need to know whether or not we can offer a 2 year or 3 year contract.
 
Answer:
Regarding your question on recruitment contracts, the awarded contractor would be sure to have an actual implementation contract after confirmation of budget availability and signature of each relative specific contract.

Question 8:
The description of the systematic review in Lot 1 detailed the addressing "the testing strategies in the general population (excluding blood donors) and in selected subpopulations...".  Are screening of recipients of blood transfusion and blood products also excluded?  Also are screening of blood products excluded?

Answer:
We consider the screening of blood products to be out-of-scope for inclusion in this tender. While recipients of blood transfusion and blood products were not specifically listed as a sub-populations under the description of Lot 1 (section 1.2.2) , their inclusion may be justified as one of the “other relevant target groups identified through the systematic review” if epidemiological evidence supports their inclusion as a key sub-population for hepatitis B, C and/or HIV screening in the EU/EEA.