Defence Online

Type of document: Contract Notice
Country: United Kingdom

Notice Type:MOD Contract Notice

GB-Bristol: Type 31e (T31e) Frigate
Region Codes: UKK11

Section I: Contract Title
1. Contract Title: GB-Bristol: Type 31e (T31e) Frigate
2. Section (DIO only):

Section II: Identification Numbers
1. MOD Contract Notice Nr: SHIPACQ182

Section III: Relevant Dates
1. Deadline for Expression of Interest: 12/10/2018
2. Proposed/Estimated ITT Issue Date: 29/10/2018
3. Proposed/Estimated ITT Return Date: 30/11/2018
4. Proposed Issue Date of Contract: 21/12/2018
5. Proposed Completion Date of Contract: 22/07/2019

Section IV: Issuing Branch / Organisation Details
1. Notice Address
Ministry of Defence
Type 31e Acquisition Team, Ash 0C #3016, Abbey Wood South, Bristol, BS348JH, United Kingdom
Tel. 01173416044, Email: DESShipsComrcl-T31e@mod.gov.uk
Contact: Gary Richards

Section V: Product / Service Descriptor Code
1. Industry Codes:
35510000 – Warships.

73424000 – Development of warships.

34500000 – Ships and boats.

35511200 – Destroyers and frigates.

Section VI: Summary of Requirements / Description of Work, Goods and Services
1. Summary of Requirements / Description of Work: Warships. Development of warships. Ships and boats. Destroyers and frigates. As announced in the National Shipbuilding Strategy (“NSbS”) the Ministry of Defence (“MOD”) is seeking to procure five (5) new General Purpose Frigates for the Royal Navy (“RN”) for a firm price of £1.25 billion less an amount in respect of Government Furnished Equipment (“GFE”) provided by the Authority. These General Purpose Frigates have been denoted the Type 31e (“T31e”).
The Authority’s high level requirement for the T31e programme, in accordance with the NSbS, is for:
• the maintenance of a force structure of nineteen (19) Destroyers and Frigates by delivering five (5) T31e ships to replace the five (5) Type 23 General Purpose Frigates with:
• delivery of the first ship in 2023;
• delivery of all five T31e (5) ships by 2028;
• a contract for five (5) ships , inclusive of development costs, Government Furnished Equipment (GFX), risk and profit;
• minimising the GFX burden and cost of ownership to the MOD;
• maximised UK prosperity footprint and export potential, without compromising on cost and time; and
• a UK focused Build Strategy that maximises UK content.

The T31e will provide an enduring and continuous worldwide maritime security presence in forward operating areas and releasing other, more complex warships to their primary roles.
The T31e will carry out various maritime security and interdiction tasks, such as security patrols, escort duties, counter drugs and counter piracy. It will also carry out defence engagement activities, such as port visits and official entertainment, demonstrations of military capability and participation in allied training exercises. It must be ready to respond to emergent events, such as natural disasters or evacuation of non-combatants and will routinely carry specialist emergency relief stores in certain operating areas.
The T31e design will need to be adaptable, providing evolution paths for future capability to enable growth of the destroyer and frigate numbers into the 2030s, and to address export customers’ needs.
The purpose of this Contract Notice (“CN”) is to advertise the requirement and invite potential suppliers to express their interest to receive the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (“PQQ”) for the T31e competitive procurement. Suppliers should only respond if they are (themselves or as part of a consortium with other suppliers) in a position to undertake the full T31e programme and meeting its full requirement including building the T31e in a UK shipyard.
All suppliers who express an interest in this procurement, and who have returned an acknowledgement of their responsibilities with regards to the T31e Security Aspects Letter (“SAL”) by the deadline, will be invited to submit a response to the PQQ (see further detail below).

Intended Procurement Process
The procurement is planned to consist of:
1. A Pre-Qualification Questionnaire. PQQ responses will be used to select suitable suppliers to tender for a Competitive Design Phase (“CDP”) Contract;
2. A CDP Invitation to Negotiate (“CDP ITN”) which will be issued to suppliers successful at the PQQ stage;
3. CDP Contracts for the supply of specific design deliverables during the Design and Build (“D&B”) competition;
4. A Design & Build Invitation to Negotiate (“D&B ITN”) to commence the D&B competition which will be issued to suppliers who are awarded a CDP Contract; and
5. A single D&B Contract to build five (5) T31e frigates for the Royal Navy.
Only those suppliers that are successful at the PQQ stage will be invited to tender for a CDP Contract. The Authority intends to award up to four (4) CDP Contracts, the terms of which may be negotiated within the timescales set out by the Authority in the procurement documents, to successful suppliers determined by the Authority in accordance with the criteria set out in the CDP ITN.
The CDP is a funded phase of the T31e programme where suppliers will develop and mature their proposed T31e designs, with the opportunity to engage with and receive feedback from the Authority and its representatives. Design deliverables supplied to the Authority during the CDP will form the basis of Bid submissions in response to the D&B ITN. It is anticipated that the CDP will last approximately seven (7) months from CDP Contract award.
The mechanism by which the Authority will assess whether suppliers can deliver as a minimum the RN’s threshold capability by the required dates, and to the available budget, will be articulated in the D&B ITN.
The Authority will issue the D&B ITN together with the draft D&B Contract to those suppliers who are awarded a CDP Contract. Suppliers will be able to negotiate the terms of the D&B Contract. The supplier which provides the Most Economically Advantageous Tender, in accordance with the requirements of the published evaluation criteria in the D&B ITN, will (subject to approvals) be awarded the D&B Contract. The D&B ITN may include a mechanism for allowing the submission of and evaluation of variant bids.
Indicative Timeline
The indicative procurement timeline, which the Authority reserves the right to amend at its sole discretion is as follows:
1. PQQ Issue Date: 28 September 2018
2. PQQ Submission Deadline:19 October 2018
3. CDP ITN Issue Date: 29 October 2018
4. CDP Bid Submission Deadline: 30 November 2018
5. CDP Contract Award: 21 December 2018
6. D&B ITN Issue Date: 21 December 2018
7. D&B Bid Submission Deadline: A date which is seven (7) months from the effective date of the CDP Contract
8. D&B Contract Award: Q4 2019
General
Whilst what is set out above is the intended procurement process, the Authority, in its sole discretion, reserves the right to amend in any way and/or cancel the procurement process. The Authority reserves the right to withdraw this notice at any time for any reason.
The Authority reserves the right not to award any Contract to any supplier at any stage during the procurement (including CDP Contracts or the D&B Contract). The Authority does not bind itself to enter into any Contract(s) arising out of the proceedings envisaged by this CN and no contractual rights express or implied arise out of this CN or the procedures envisaged by it.
This procurement is exempt from the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011 (the “DSPCR”) pursuant to Article 346 TFEU and therefore no rights, duties, obligations or liabilities arising from the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011 and/or the EU Treaties apply to this procurement. By expressing an interest in the procurement, you acknowledge that none of the obligations, rights and remedies deriving from the DSPCR and/or the EU Treaties apply to this procurement.
Other than any amount that may be paid to successful CDP suppliers in accordance with the terms of the CDP Contracts, any suppliers who respond to this procurement (irrespective of whether they are assessed to meet the PQQ requirements or are evaluated to be successful CDP suppliers) shall be fully responsible for the cost of responding to the procurement and the Authority does not accept any liability for any costs howsoever incurred including but not limited to those costs arising out of or in connection with any amendment to, or cancellation of, the procurement process.
Data Room

The Authority is using the AWARD™ software to support this project. AWARD™ will be used to:
• provide access to documents shared by the Authority;
• allow suppliers to raise and respond to requests and clarifications;
• provide a portal for formal submission of responses; and
• support the Authority in their assessment of the responses.
AWARD™ is an internet based system and contains on-line guidance. To access the system a user will need to state that they have read the AWARD™ terms and conditions of use and confirm that the user accepts them. Access to the procurement documents is restricted and will only be provided through AWARD™ as set out in this Contract Notice.

Expressions of Interest

To express an interest to this procurement you must send your lead bidder’s / company name and two point of contact details (to include; names, phone numbers, email address, and postal address) to DESShipsComrcl-T31e@mod.gov.uk.

The T31e Security Aspects Letter (“SAL”) outlines the appropriate measures the Authority deems necessary to safeguard the protective aspects that pertain to this procurement.

Suppliers who have previously returned an acknowledgement of their responsibilities with regards to the SAL, and who express an interest in this procurement by the deadline, will be invited to submit a response to the PQQ.

For suppliers who have not previously returned an acknowledgement of their responsibilities with regards to the SAL, and who express an interest in this procurement, the Authority will provide both points of contact access to AWARD™ to view the SAL and allow them to upload a response acknowledging their responsibilities with regards to the SAL.

The deadline for expressing an interest in this procurement and (if required) uploading a response to the SAL, in AWARD™ is 12:00 midday on 12 October 2018. The Authority reserves the right to reject any expressions of interest received after this time, and/or responses to the SAL uploaded after this time, in the Authority’s sole discretion.

An electronic version of the PQQ Letter is attached to this Contract Notice on Defence Contracts Online and can be accessed using the following code: Z45SC333RY. Your PQQ response must be submitted through AWARD™ in accordance with instructions in the PQQ letter. The AWARD™ portal will become available as soon as possible and no later than 9:00am 12th October 2018.
2. Main Place of Performance or Delivery: Bristol, City of
3. Can a supplier bid alone for only a part of the contract?: No
Section VII: Reverse Auction
1. Reverse Auction: No. A Reverse Auction, conducted using electronic means, will not be used as part of the procurement process for this requirement.

Section VIII: Estimated Value of Requirement
1. Estimated Value of Requirement: Category A: 400M GBP and above

Section IX: QA Standards
1. QA Standards: BS EN ISO 9001 with appropriate scope

Section XII: Additional Information
1. Additional Information:
Suppliers interested in working with the MOD should register on its Supplier Information Database (SID), available at www.contracts.mod.uk. The SID is a catalogue of potential suppliers available to all MOD procurement staff, and is the main supplier database used by MOD. Please note that the registration and publication of a company profile on the SID does not mean or imply that the supplier has in any way been vetted or approved by the MOD. Suppliers wishing to compete for a contract opportunity must respond to any specific call for competition by submitting a separate expression of interest in accordance with the instructions in the contract notice.
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.

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