Defence Online

Type of document: Contract Notice
Country: United Kingdom

UK-Bristol: Battle simulators.

Section I: Contracting Authority
I.1)Name, Addresses and Contact Point(s):
Ministry of Defence, Land Equipment, Training and Simulation Systems Programme (TSSP)
Abbey Wood, Elm 3b, Bristol, BS34 8JH, United Kingdom
Tel. +44 3067989470, Email: jake.palmer134@mod.gov.uk
Contact: Jake Palmer
Main Address:

Further information can be obtained at: As Above
Specifications and additional documents: As Above
Applications must be sent to: As Above

I.2)Type of the contracting authority and main activity or activities:
Ministry or any other national or federal authority, including their regional or local subdivisions

I.3) Main activity:
Defence

I.4) Contract award on behalf of other contracting authorities/entity:
The contracting authority is purchasing on behalf of other contracting authorities: No

Section II: Object Of The Contract: SERVICES
II.1)Description
II.1.1)Title attributed to the contract by the contracting authority/entity: Provision of Joint Fires Synthetic Trainer (JFST)
II.1.2)Type of contract and location of works, place of delivery or of performance: SERVICES
Service Category: 20

Region Codes: UK – UNITED KINGDOM
II.1.3)Framework agreements: Not Provided

II.1.5)Short description of the contract or purchase:
Battle simulators. Military electronic systems. Training and simulation in military electronic systems. Data storage services. Battle simulators.

The Army Headquarters Single Statement of User Need (SSUN) which Joint Fires Synthetic Trainer (JFST) will deliver against is: ‘The user requires an intuitive, accessible and immersive training capability to assist in the delivery of Joint Fires training for contemporary operations at Individual and Collective levels, in both the mounted and dismounted roles.’

A summary of the JFST requirement can be found in document “20171106-JFST-DPQQ-Industry Brief-O” as an attached Supporting Document to the DPQQ.

It is anticipated that the initial contract duration shall run for 5 years from April 2019 until end of March 2024. Also, that the Authority shall have irrevocable options to extend the contract up to a further 6 years until end of March 2030.

In issuing this Contract Notice and engaging with the Market, the Authority is not committing to carrying out any procurement in relation to the requirements stated in this Notice. If third parties are interested in engaging with the Authority in relation to the requirements stated here they must do so without sharing information that is protected by copyright or patents.

II.1.6)Common Procurement Vocabulary:
35740000 – Battle simulators.

35700000 – Military electronic systems.

80660000 – Training and simulation in military electronic systems.

72317000 – Data storage services.

II.1.7)Information about subcontracting:
The tenderer has to indicate in the tender any share of the contract it may intend to subcontract to third parties and any proposed subcontractor, as well as the subject-matter of the subcontracts for which they are proposed.
II.1.8)Division into lots: No
II.1.9)Variants will be accepted: No

II.2)Quantity Or Scope Of The Contract
II.2.1)Total quantity or scope (including all lots, renewals and options):
JFST Scope of Service:

JFST seeks to improve the training capability delivered to the Army – it will replace existing training capabilities currently provided by Distributed Synthetic Air Land Training 2 (DSALT2) and the immersive Close Air Support Simulator (iCASS) at Joint Forward Air Controller Training and Standards Unit (JFACTSU), as well as other obsolete and unsupported capabilities.
JFST will provide an immersive Joint Fires (JF) training capability, able to train JF integrators in both mounted and dismounted roles, across Land, Littoral and Air domains and at individual and collective levels. This simulated training environment will enable realistic and complex training that cannot be conducted live on the UK training estate, thus maintaining operational effectiveness.

It will enable continuation of simulated JF integration training following the obsolescence of current systems. The system is to be based on Army 2020 refine structures (), incorporating both mounted and dismounted JF integration capabilities, whilst capitalising on an open architecture and System of Systems Approach (SOSA) to enable flexibility in future upgrades, and future connectivity of wider Defence and international capabilities.

The requirement is to provide the training media, and associated support, to provide a series of scalable capabilities for each phase of the JF training pipeline designed to fit the needs of the training audience.

It should seek to adopt a ‘Building Block’ approach to provide a training capability at a number of locations. The required locations include Phase 3 career development establishments, at the Royal School of Artillery (RSA) and JFACTSU; the capability for individual and Collective Training (CT) levels 1&2 at Unit lines (up to 15 locations); a CT3 establishment that is supported by a Training and Management Team (TMT); and to have a mobilised capability to support Reserves training, support to live training exercises and potential to train on the Queen Elizabeth Class Carriers.

The JFST capability will provide coherence for the training audience as they gain familiarity with the systems and confidence as the training equipment matches the in-service equipment. JFST may require elements of Live, Virtual and Constructive (LVC) simulation rather than focusing on just the virtual space.

The JFST dependency and stakeholder lists are extensive and varied and it is anticipated that integration into existing, new and contemporary capabilities will form an extensive part of the project.

JFST will comply with The Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 (SDSR 15), Defence Policy for Simulation, Defence Strategic Direction, Defence Training and Education Coherence (DTEC), SOSA and Training Education Architecture (Land) (TEA(L)).
The MOD will provide all building infrastructure as Government Furnished Assets.

Contract Requirements:

Details of the contracted services will be confirmed at ITN.

It is currently envisaged that a single contract will be awarded for the provision of Equipment, Contractor Logistics Support (CLS), Post Design Services (PDS) and provision of a Training Management Team (TMT) for CT3 training.
The system shall facilitate the execution and real-time management of the synthetic environment and training events, manage security restrictions across different classification domains and also provide the ability to review each training event, enabling near real-time feedback for trainees.

In-service support covering areas such as technical support, system modification, and integration, simulation and modelling, security administration, system maintenance and repair, inventory management, configuration management, obsolescence management and system design management will be required.

The following training support has been identified:
• Train the Trainer (to train both the training delivery staff at the individual training establishments and at unit lines).
• Provision of Training Management Team (TMT) at CT3 Level including:
• Training Co-ordination (Pre Planning)
• Training Delivery
• Scenario Development
• Augmentation – Possible requirement for SQEP role players i.e. Air Crew, fixed wing and rotating.

It is anticipated the initial contract duration shall run for 5 years from April 2019 until end of March 2024. It is also anticipated that the Authority shall have irrevocable options to extend the contract up to a further 6 years to cover the lifespan of the JFST (Out of Service at end of March 2030).
Estimated value excluding VAT:
Range between: 20,000,000 and 80,000,000
Currency: GBP

II.2.2)Options: Yes
If yes, description of these options: Options will extend up to 6 years.
If known, Provisional timetable for recourse to these options:

Duration in days: 1 (from the award of the contract)

II.2.3)Renewals: Yes

II.3)Duration Of The Contract Or Time-Limit For Completion

Section III: Legal, Economic, Financial And Technical Information
III.1)Conditions relating to the contract
III.1.1)Deposits and guarantees required:
The Authority reserve the right to ask for an indemnity, guarantee or bank bond if the supplier does not meet the required standard for economic and financial standing. A Parent Company Guarantee may also be required dependent on the formation and financial standing of the contracting business.

III.1.2)Main financing conditions and payment arrangements and/or reference to the relevant provisions governing them:
The Contract and Services provided will be made against an agreed Payment Plan. Payment will follow delivery and acceptance of services.

Payment for Contractor Deliverables under the Contract shall be made via the Contracting, Purchasing & Finance (CP&F) electronic procurement tool. Financing and payment conditions shall be included in the ITN.

III.1.3)Legal form to be taken by the group of economic operators to whom the contract is to be awarded:
If a group of economic operators submits a bid, the group must nominate a lead organisation to deal with the Authority. The Authority shall require the group to form a legal entity before entering into the contract.

III.1.4) Other particular conditions to which the performance of the contract is subject, in particular with regard to security of supply and security of information:
The Authority reserves the right to amend any condition related to security of information to reflect any changes in national law or government policy. If any contract documents are accompanied by a Security Aspects Letter, the Authority reserves the right to amend the terms of the Security Aspects Letter to reflect any changes in national law or government policy whether in respect of the applicable protective marking scheme, specific protective markings given, the aspects to which any protective marking applies or otherwise.

A Security Aspects Letter will be issued with the tender documentation.

Information at CT3 Level is classified at UK SECRET. Candidates are required to have the necessary Personal Security Clearances (PSCs) and to have access to facilities with security clearance (Facility Security Clearance ‘FSC’s) e.g. on the List X register in the UK. Candidates which do not yet hold security clearance may obtain such clearance until 01 April 2019. This requirement will be detailed further at ITN.

The Cyber Risk Assessment for the procurement is LOW, as defined in DEFSTAN 05-138.

All suppliers must complete a Supplier Assurance Questionnaire, via the Supplier Cyber Protection Service, to demonstrate their level of compliance against the required Cyber Risk Level. The reference number is RAR-PUS92825.

Tenderers must, as a minimum, have Cyber Essentials Plus and conform to the LOW DEFSTAN 05-138 controls.

If the tenderer cannot meet the level of security controls required by the contract start date it does not mean an immediate fail. The tenderer should submit a Cyber Implementation Plan (CIP) as part of their tender submission detailing the steps they would take to meet the necessary controls, together with associated timescales, details of any equivalent standards they have, or reasons why they are unable to comply.

For note, the requirement for compliance with the cyber security controls is being extended to apply throughout the Defence supply chain. Where the prime contractor intends to sub-contract any part of the requirement, they must assess the cyber risk for that sub-contract and ensure their supply chain has the appropriate controls, or an agreed implementation plan, in place prior to sub-contract award.

Some elements of the JFST training capability are currently provided by industry for the MOD.
III.1.5) Information about security clearance
Candidates which do not yet hold security clearance may obtain such clearance until:2019-04-01 00:00:00.0

III.2)Conditions For Participation
III.2.1)Economic and financial capacity:
Criteria regarding the personal situation of economic operators (that may lead to their exclusion) including requirements relating to enrolment on professional or trade registers.
The Authority will apply all the offences listed in Article 39(1) of Directive 2009/81/EC (implemented as Regulation 23(1) of the Defence and Security Public Contract Regulations (DSPCR) 2011 in the UK) and all of the professional misconducts listed at Article 39(2) of Directive 2009/81/EC (see also Regulation 23(2) in the DSPCR 2011) to the decision of whether a Candidate is eligible to be invited to tender.

A full list of these criteria are at

Candidates will be required to sign a declaration confirming whether they do or do not have any of the listed criteria as part of the pre-qualification process.

Candidates who have been convicted of any of the offences under Article 39(1) are ineligible and will not be selected to bid, unless there are overriding requirements in the general interest (including defence and security factors) for doing so.

Candidates who are guilty of any of the offences, circumstances or misconduct under Article 39(2) may be excluded from being selected to bid at the discretion of the Authority.

III.2.2) Economic and financial standing:
Criteria regarding the economic and financial standing of economic operators (that may lead to their exclusion)
(a) Appropriate statements from the economic operator’s bankers or where appropriate, evidence of relevant professional risk indemnity insurance;
(b) The presentation of balance-sheets or extracts from the balance-sheets, where publication of the balance-sheet is required under the law of the country in which the economic operator is established;
(c) where appropriate, a statement, covering the three previous financial years of the economic operator, of:(i) the overall turnover of the business of the economic operator; and (ii) where appropriate, the turnover in respect of the work, works, goods or services which are of a similar type to the subject matter of the contract.

Information and formalities necessary for evaluating if the requirements are met:
Evidence of appropriate professional risk indemnity; at least 2 years certified audited accounts in statutory form, profit and loss account and balance sheet; statement of overall turnover to be provided with DPQQ. A financial assessment will be undertaken on the supplier’s financial status. An overall pass / fail judgement will be made after considering areas such as turnover, profit, net assets, liquidity, gearing and capacity. This assessment will include the Parent company where applicable. An independent financial assessment obtained from a reputable credit rating organisation will be utilised as part of this process.
Minimum level(s) of standards possibly required: (if applicable)
The estimated average annual contract value is £10M. If the estimated average annual contract value is greater than 25% of the supplier’s turnover, the Authority reserves the right to exclude the supplier from being selected to tender except where the supplier provides, to the satisfaction of the Authority, evidence showing it has sufficient economic and financial capability, e.g. such evidence may include:
(1) Any additional information proving it has sufficient economic and financial resources to deliver the requirement; and
(2) State whether the supplier is willing to provide the Authority with an indemnity, guarantee or bank bond.
A financial assessment will be undertaken on the supplier’s financial status. An overall pass / fail judgement will be made after considering areas such as turnover, profit, net assets, liquidity, gearing and capacity. This assessment will include the Parent company where applicable. An independent financial assessment obtained from a reputable credit rating organisation will be utilised as part of this process.
III.2.3) Technical and/or professional capacity:
Criteria regarding the technical and/or professional ability of economic operators (that may lead to their exclusion)

(a) in the case of a supply contract requiring the siting or installation of goods, a services contract or a works contract, the economic operator’s technical ability, taking into account in particular that economic operator’s skills, efficiency, experience and reliability;
(c) a statement of the principal goods sold or services provided by the supplier or the services provider in the past five years, or during a shorter period if necessary, and: (i) the dates on which the goods were sold or the services provided; (ii) the consideration received; (iii) the identity of the person to whom the goods were sold or the service were provided; (iv) any certificate issued or countersigned by that person confirming the details of the contract for those goods sold or services provided; and (v) where – (a)that person was not a contracting authority, and (b)the certificate referred to in sub-paragraph (c)(iv) is not available, any declaration by the economic operator attesting the details of the goods sold or services provided;
(d) a statement of the technicians or technical services available to the economic operator to: (i) carry out the work under the contract, or (ii) be involved in the production of goods or the provision of services under the contract, particularly those responsible for quality control, whether or not they are independent of the economic operator;
(e) a statement of the economic operator’s: (i) technical facilities; (ii) measures for ensuring quality; (iii) study and research facilities; and (iv) internal rules regarding intellectual property;
(f) a check carried out by the contracting authority or on its behalf by a competent official body of the member State in which the economic operator is established: (i) on the technical capacity of the economic operator; and (ii) if relevant, on the economic operator’s study and research facilities and quality control measures;
(g) in the case of works contracts, services contracts or supply contracts also covering siting and installation operations or services, the economic operator’s educational and professional qualifications where the economic operator is an individual and: (i) if any, those of the economic operator’s managerial staff; and (ii) those of one or more persons who would be responsible for providing the services or carrying out the work or works under the contract;
(h) the environmental management measures, that the economic operator is able to apply when performing the contract, but only where it is necessary for the performance of that contract;
(i) a statement of the services provider’s or contractor’s average annual number of staff and managerial staff over the previous three years;
(j) a description of the tools, material, technical equipment, staff numbers, know-how and sources of supply (with an indication of their geographical location when it is outside the territory of the EU) available to the economic operator to perform the contract, cope with any additional needs required by the contracting authority as a result of a crisis or carry out the maintenance, modernisation or adaptation of the goods covered by the contract;
(k) any samples, descriptions and photographs of the goods to be purchased or hired under the contract and certification of the authenticity of such samples, descriptions or photographs;
(l) certification by official quality control institutes or agencies of recognised competence, attesting that the goods to be purchased or hired under the contract conform to standards and technical specifications (within the meaning of regulation 12(1)) identified by the contracting authority;
(m) in the case of contracts involving, entailing or containing classified information, evidence of the ability to process, store and transmit such information at the level of protection required by the contracting authority;
(n) a certificate: (i) attesting conformity to quality management systems standards based on the relevant European standard; and (ii) from an independent accredited body established in any member State conforming to the European standards concerning accreditation and certification;
(o) any other evidence of conformity to quality management systems standards which are equivalent to the standards referred to in sub-paragraph (n)(i);

Information and formalities necessary for evaluating if the requirements are met:
This information will be sought through the Dynamic Pre-Qualification Questionnaire.
Minimum level(s) of standards possibly required: (if applicable)
A Facility Security Clearance is required for the main contractor, at a minimum capacity level of UK SECRET for the safeguarding of classified information.
Criteria regarding the technical and/or professional ability of subcontractors (that may lead to their rejection)
Information and formalities necessary for evaluating if the requirements are met:
The main contractor will be required to provide evidence of its subcontractor’s ability to process, store and transmit classified information at UK SECRET by describing the required Facility Security Clearance (FSC) granted by its National or Designated Security Authority.
Minimum level(s) of standards possibly required: (if applicable)
The Authority reserves the right under Article 21(5) of Directive 2009/81/EC to reject any subcontractor chosen by the main contractor at any stage of the contract award procedure or during performance of the contract if that subcontractor:
(1) requires access to classified information at UK SECRET; and
(2) fails to provide evidence to the satisfaction of the Authority that it has the capability to protect that level of classified information in accordance with Article 42.1(j) of Directive 2009/81/EC.
III.2.4) Information about reserved contracts: Not Provided
III.3)Conditions Specific To Service Contracts
III.3.1)Execution of service is reserved to particular profession: No
III.3.2)Legal person should indicate the names and professional qualifications of the staff responsible for execution of the service: Yes
Section IV: Procedure
IV.1)Type Of Procedure
IV.1.1)Type of procedure: Negotiated

IV.1.2)Limitations on the number of operators who will be invited to tender or to participate:
Envisaged minimum number: 4 and maximum number: 6
Objective Criteria for choosing the limited number of candidates:
Suppliers must read through this set of instructions and follow the process to respond to this opportunity.
The information and / or documents for this opportunity are available on www.contracts.mod.uk. You must register on this site to respond, if you are already registered you will not need to register again, simply use your existing username and password. Please note there is a password reminder link on the homepage.

Suppliers must log in, go to the Response Manager and add the following Access Code: 99XV4JYZ87. Please ensure you follow any instruction provided to you.

The deadline for submitting your response(s) is 18/01/2018 12:00. Please ensure that you allow yourself plenty of time when responding to this invite prior to the closing date and time, especially if you have been asked to upload documents.
If you experience any difficulties please refer to the online Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s) or the User Guides or contact the MOD DCO Helpdesk by emailing support@contracts.mod.uk.

Interested suppliers are required to complete the Dynamic PQQ to provide information that allows the Authority to evaluate the supplier’s capacities and capabilities against the selection criteria set out at Sections III.2.1), III.2.2) and III.2.3) of this Contract Notice.
The Authority will use the DPQQ response to create a shortlist of tenderers who:
(1) Are eligible to participate under Section III.2.1) of this Contract Notice;
(2) Fulfil any minimum standards under Sections III.2.2) and III.2.3) of this Contract Notice; and
(3) Best meet in terms of capacity and capability the selection criteria set out Sections III.2.2) and III.2.3) of this Contract Notice.
Full details of the method for choosing the tenderers will be set out in the Help Text Box for the Dynamic PQQ.
IV.1.3)Reduction of the number of operators during the negotiation or dialogue: Yes
IV.2)Award Criteria
IV.2.1)Award criteria:
The most economically advantageous tender in terms of
The criteria stated in the specifications, in the invitation to tender or to negotiate or in the descriptive document

IV.2.2)An electronic auction will be used: No

IV.3)Administrative Information
IV.3.1)File reference number attributed by the contracting authority: TSSP/091
IV.3.2)Previous publication(s) concerning the same contract: Yes
Prior information notice
Notice number in OJ: 2016/S 208 – 37751 of 25/10/2016

Other previous publications: No

IV.3.3)Conditions for obtaining specifications and additional documents or descriptive document:

Payable documents: No

IV.3.4)Time-limit for receipt of tenders or requests to participate
Date: 18/01/2018
Time: 12:00
IV.3.5)Date of dispatch of invitations to tender or to participate to selected candidates: Not Provided
IV.3.6)Language(s) in which tenders or requests to participate may be drawn up: English

Section VI: Complementary Information

VI.1)This Is A Recurrent Procurement: No
VI.2)The contract is related to a project and/or programme financed by European Union funds: No
VI.3)Additional Information: The contracting authority considers that this contract may be suitable for economic operators that are small or medium enterprises (SMEs). However, any selection of tenderers will be based solely on the criteria set out for the procurement. The Authority reserves the right to amend any condition related to security of information to reflect any changes in national law or government policy. If any contract documents are accompanied by instructions on safeguarding classified information (e.g. a Security Aspects Letter), the Authority reserves the right to amend the terms of these instructions to reflect any changes in national law or government policy, whether in respect of the applicable protective marking scheme, specific protective markings given, the aspects to which any protective marking applies, or otherwise. The link below to the Gov.uk website provides information on the Government Security Classification.

Advertising Regime OJEU:- This contract opportunity is published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU),the MoD Defence Contracts Bulletin and www.contracts.mod.uk

Potential Bidders will have the opportunity to ask clarification questions relating to the Contract Notice and DPQQ.

The deadline for submission of clarification questions is 12:00, 14th December 2017. The Authority will endeavour to respond to all clarification questions relating to this notice by 20th December 2017.

VI.4)Procedures For Appeal
VI.4.1)Body responsible for appeal procedures:
Ministry of Defence, Land Equipment, Training and Simulation Systems Programme (TSSP)
Bristol, United Kingdom

VI.4.2)Procedures for appeal: Not Provided

VI.4.3)Service from which information about the lodging of appeals may be obtained:
Not Provided

VI.5) Date Of Dispatch Of This Notice: 14/11/2017

ANNEX A