Networks

Tender description

The University wishes to appoint a Supplier to provide a network solution, encompassing the below: 1. Core Network, 2. Distribution, 3. Edge Network, 4. Wireless Network, 5. Internal and Wireless Firewall, 6. Management and Monitoring Tools, 7. Deployment, 8. Support and Maintenance. This project will not be divided into lots due to its complexity. In accordance with Reg 27(4) of The Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015, use of this procedure is justified on the basis that the supplies and services cannot be sufficiently defined and require supplier technical design input. The complexity of this project and need to mitigate risk on technical, financial, legal and reputational dimensions, necessitates dialogue. Bidders must self-certify adherence to selection and exclusion criteria via the ESPD (Scotland) on PCS-T, and may be required to submit Means of Proof at a later stage. When completing the ESPD, bidders must have regard for the selection requirements detailed in Section III of this OJEU Notice. The University data network is a key infrastructure component supporting the delivery of teaching, learning, research and business operation for the University's staff and 37 800 full and part time students. Under investment over the past ten years has resulted in failure to keep pace with necessary technology refresh, therefore creating a large amount of technical debt. The University, like all other Universities, faces the challenge of the network being increasingly relied on for more services being accessed through more devices. Teaching, learning and research services all fundamentally rely on the network for the creation, distribution and access of content and material. In addition, the network is also a key foundation for operational services. As such, the University data network needs to offer a strong, flexible foundation to support the University's requirements moving forward. It needs to offer greater capacity for more devices and greater amounts of data, it needs to provide stability and resilience to allow teaching, learning and research activities to take place unhindered, whilst also providing support for critical operational services such as telephony and building management. Most importantly, it needs to ensure all of these elements are supported in an environment which is secure, scalable, easily managed and auditable. The high level scope of the Capex procurement is as follows: 1. Core Network, 2. Distribution, 3. Edge Network, 4. Wireless Network, 5. Internal and Wireless Firewall, 6. Management and Monitoring Tools 7. Deployment, 8. Support and Maintenance (Opex). The estimated total order of magnitude of this contract is 6 200 000 GBP. This low accuracy estimation is based on cost to replace the University's current network, in its entirety, with hardware we currently buy. At this stage, the University does not have sufficient information of what a solution might entail and consequently form a meaningful contract value estimate. The Competitive Dialogue process is structured to determine such factors.