Services specific to international organisations and bodies

Tender description

The UK Space Agency (UKSA) wishes to acquire services in support of its national commitments to the International Charter: Space and Major Disasters. The International Charter: Space and Major Disasters (here on in referred to as the Charter) aims to provide a unified system of space data acquisition and delivery to those affected by natural or man-made disasters. Further details on the Charter can be found at https://disasterscharter.org/web/guest/charter-members UKSA has a requirement for operational support in line with its Charter obligations and agreements, specialist training and stakeholder engagement services to ensure optimal uptake of the Charter within the UK Government and with selected overseas partners, and to proactively engage in Executive Secretariat activities, so that they remain aligned to the strategic direction provided by the Charter Board and wider UK interests. Please see sections II.2.4 and VI.3 for further information about this requirement. The UK’s contribution to the Charter is provided though a longstanding and successful UKSA and UK industry partnership. UKSA sit on the Management Board of the Charter, whilst the day to day support for Charter activations and operations is provided by industry. The Executive Secretariat support and UK training is currently also provided by industry. High resolution earth observation data from satellites which are registered, operated and licenced in the UK, are provided into the Charter on a pre-agreed and voluntary basis through an industry led consortium which provides the UK national contribution (which is a pre-condition of Charter Membership). The data provided must meet minimum quality criteria and be provided in a format which is compatible with Charter processes. Although the data provision is voluntary and free, the Agency currently shares a proportion of the staff costs associated with providing on-call emergency cover (24/7 on a pre-agreed rota basis when the UK is the Emergency on Call Officer (ECO)), specialist imagery tasking and for participating in the semi annual ECO refresher training exercise. To ensure the UK meets its commitments and fully engages in Charter activities, the Agency also supports attendance at the Executive Secretariat meetings and associated working groups. The Executive Secretariat is the main delivery mechanism for the Charter which comprises nominated representatives from all Charter Members; whose duties include managing and monitoring Charter activities, coordinating and supporting ongoing charter initiatives, driving/ delivering continuous improvement activities and new projects in line with the strategic direction set by the Management Board. In addition to this, UKSA also funds specialist training to ensure UK Authorised Users, UK Charter Project Managers and other key stakeholders are fully briefed and trained on the latest Charter developments, processes and software tools required to effectively interface with the Charter. UKSA wishes to confirm the existing provision of UK owned and operated satellites available to support continued UK participation in the Charter, understand what UK operated and licenced capabilities may be available in the future (in the next 3-5 years) which could be made available to Charter as a potential future UK contribution, and acquire some or all operational support and services necessary to support Charter activations, ensuring that the UK fulfills its legal obligations and effectively responds, interacts and engages in all priority aspects of Charter operations from Oct 2018. UKSA has a requirement for operational support in line with its Charter obligations and agreements, specialist training and stakeholder engagement services to ensure optimal uptake of the Charter within the UK Government and with selected overseas partners, and to proactively engage in Executive Secretariat activities, so that they remain aligned to the strategic direction provided by the Charter Board and wider UK interests. This requirement includes: — Operational support and emergency response to enable the effective acquisition, provision and dissemination of high resolution satellite imagery. — Application of specialist knowledge and expertise to achieve key deliverables. — Understanding of specialist tools and processes. — Cross government and industry stakeholder management. — Process refinement activities. — Provision of specialised training (on Charter operations, roles, tools and processes to HMG Authorised Users, Nominated Project Managers and pre-agreed Overseas Partners). — Attendance at international working groups with meeting outcome associated deliverables. — Supporting briefing and governance activities for the UKSA. — UK representation and involvement in wider stakeholder engagement and communication activities to promote and improve the Charter’s operation as well as optimising its use and influence within the UK and overseas.