Defence Online

Type of document: Contract Notice
Country: United Kingdom

1. Title: LINK 16 MODERN ELECTRONIC CRYPT KEY OPERATOR
2. Awarding Authority: Ministry of Defence, GB. Web:
3. Contract type: Service contract
4. Description: CSD L16M EKEY OPERATOR is responsible for; provision of L16 electronic keying material to CSD’s cryptographic custodian accounts; Operation of equipment and completion of processes required to enable provision of L16 keymat; Support to CSD and L16 project team to plan and prepare for continued development of CSD L16 support.
5. CPV Code(s): 72000000, 72200000, 72212000
6. NUTS code(s): UKK, UKK1, UKK15
7. Main site or location of works, main place of delivery or main place of performance: South West England
Address where the work will take place MOD Corsham, SN13 9NR
8. Reference attributed by awarding authority: Not provided.
9. Estimated value of requirement: Maximum day rate £820 inclusive of VAT
10. Closing date for applications 30.11.2021 (23:59).
11. Address to which they must be sent: For further information regarding the above contract notice please visit
12. Other information: Deadline for asking questions: Tuesday 23 November 2021 at 11:59pm GMT
Specialist role: Technical Architect
Off-payroll (IR35) determination: Supply of resource: the off-payroll rules will apply to any workers engaged through a qualifying intermediary, such as their own limited company
Latest start date Monday 6 December 2021
Expected contract length Dec ‘21 to Mar ‘22
Organisation the work is for Ministry of Defence
About the work
Early market engagement
Who the specialist will work with The successful candidate will work within a multi-disciplined team. This team consists of Authority Crown Servants, technical resource, and military staff.
What the specialist will work on 1.Conduct processes to enable the provision of L16 keymat.
2.Act as system manager for the LKMS installation
3.Manage incidents and problems with L16 keymat, providing guidance to end users.
4.Ensuring cryptographic material is authorised for issue in liaison with CSD teams.
5.Document processes associated with End-to-End provision of L16 electronic keymat, stored at an appropriate protective marking and updated as required
6.Liaison with sSCs, Controlling Authorities, Key Producers & Users on issues that impact delivery.
7.Input into development of CSD support to L16.
8.Support the CSD Ekey team to operate and maintain systems and equipment for the provision of ekey.
Work setup
Working arrangements Due to the requirement to access bespoke IT systems and the nature of the work above OS this role will be office based 5 days a week. There may be occasion to work outside of normal working hours if operationally urgent. Any leave must be agreed with your line manager.
Security clearance Evidence of DV security clearance and validity dates for the duration of the contract will be required by the contract start date. Due to the nature of the work, there is no movement on this requirement.
Additional information
Additional terms and conditions IR 35 applies
Skills and experience
Buyers will use the essential and nice-to-have skills and experience to help them evaluate suppliers’ technical competence.
Essential skills and experience
Have experience of electronic crypt key. Experience of using electronic crypt key in LINK 16 or similar systems, would be preferred. (15%)
Have a high degree of IT literacy and competency with a focus on solving interoperability issues which are presented when using systems running on different operating systems (40%)
Have experience using MOD IT, including deployed systems (15%)
Have broad and practical experience of all aspects of CIS support to operations, experience of the challenges associated with both being on AND supporting operations would be beneficial (5%)
Nice-to-have skills and experience: Cryptographic Custodian Trained
How suppliers will be evaluated
All suppliers will be asked to provide a work history.
How many specialists to evaluate 5
Cultural fit criteria
Be able to work comfortably in a joint environment with a mix of Civil Servant and Military staff (1%)
take responsibility for their work (2%)
work as a team with our organisation and other suppliers (2%)
Additional assessment methods Interview
Evaluation weighting
Technical competence 75%
Cultural fit 5%
Price 20%
TKR-20211117-EX-1725835