Administration software package

Tender description

This Voluntary ex ante transparency (VEAT) notice acknowledges that Trinity College Dublin proposes to renew a contract with Tribal Education. This will ensure continuation of licencing and support for SITS, a student information management system. The existing solution was implemented following tender reference RFT 27361, which was published on 4.9.2009. The student administration solution delivers a cross campus integrated solution for all aspects of student information management including but not limited to course registration, fee payment, recording and issuing of exam results. This Voluntary ex ante transparency (VEAT) notice acknowledges that Trinity College Dublin proposes to renew a contract with Tribal Education with reference to Article 32(3)b of Directive 2014/24/EU. Specifically, the contract renewal constitutes additional deliveries by the original supplier. The primary component pertains to renewal of existing licences (supplies) with a secondary support and maintenance requirement. A change of supplier would oblige the contracting authority to acquire material having different technical characteristics which would result in disproportionate technical difficulties in operation. It is noted that the length of the contract must not exceed 3 years. Contract renewal will ensure continuation of licencing and support services for SITS, a student information management system. The initial contract was awarded following tender reference RFT 27361, which was published on 4.9.2009. The existing solution has been implemented over the past decade and delivers a cross-campus integrated solution for managing course registration, assigned modules, fee payment, recording and issuing of exam results. The software has interfaces to other university systems including: — oracle financial information system: communication of payment details from the academic registry unit to the financial services division, — library interface: student registration and access control, — kinetics interface: student accommodation management tool, — timetabling interface to separate CMIS system, — human resources unit (CoreHR). Since 2009, Trinity College Dublin has developed internal processes around SITS (Tribal Education) to create efficiencies that have yielded budgetary savings. Examples include optimised workflows through a custom interface to the oracle payments management system and other integrations as listed above. The system provides an accurate and streamlined student information database offering one source of truth. Staff within academic registry and IT services have been trained and developed expertise in using this product. Consequently, service standards have improved and resourcing levels optimised in line with efficiencies achieved. The operational and administrative burden of change would almost certainly mean enhancing staffing levels i.e. creating a new team to plan for and implement the expertise and IT resources required for a new product, resulting in additional costs at a time when opportunities for further savings are being explored. Given the number of interfaces to other enterprise systems, there are no financially or administratively reasonable or viable alternative or substitute systems or products, other than the existing installed Tribal Education product, that can meet Trinity College Dublin’s needs during the period of the proposed contract.