Software package and information systems

Tender description

Swansea University has awarded a cloud based platform for its Digital Learning Environment or VLE, in order to support its students and all aspects of its academic mission. The University intends to let this agreement for a period of 3 + 3 + 3 + 1 years, up to a total of 10 years. Swansea University wishes to award a contract with a start date of September 2019. The digital learning environment (also commonly known as VLE) is a mission critical service at the heart of the University’s Learning, teaching and assessment operation. The VLE is primarily used to support staff and students with all aspects of our academic mission as well as to support students outside of their academic modules. Swansea University has awarded a cloud based platform for up to 10 years, with renewal clauses at 3, 6 and 9 years, the contract will also include the implementation of the new platform and ongoing supporting services. The contract was initially estimated to be in the region of 3 500 000 GBP over the course of the 10 year period. The current platform has been a key system at the University since 2001 and its service and value has grown year on year since. With this in mind a change in platform will be a significant undertaking and investment, impacting on close to 31 000 end users, and thus warranting the length of contract as above. The current licence expires in July 2020 and Swansea wishes to award a contract with a start date of September 2019. Swansea University seeks to award the contract to a supplier and platform that are capable of meeting the following high-level objectives: — supports all types of learners and pedagogical methods found and employed at Swansea, — fit for purpose; modern, attractive, easy and intuitive to use interface as judged by our students and academic staff, — provides a good and consistent experience as judged by our students and academic staff, across all types of devices, including mobile, both currently and in the future, — integrates easily through secure APIs, web services and/or other fully defined integration methods with existing Swansea University IT systems (including, but not limited to, our student information system, programme and module systems, authentication systems and other technology enhanced learning systems), — is fully developed, tested and is in full production in at least one other reference institution, — the supplier has demonstrable and referable track record of delivering against a defined methodology within our required timescales, — fully supports a Welsh language interface, — complies fully with GDPR and University Cybersecurity Standards, — is affordable as determined by the University at its absolute discretion.