X207 Alignment of the CAR (Corporate Asset Register) and Telemetry databases

Tender description

Summary of the work Analytics is critical to delivering NI Water business analytics short and long-term strategies. To ensure continuous improvement of our service (costs and efficiencies), NI Water need to ensure that all data sources are accurate to provide a solid foundation to generate insights to better inform business decisions in the future. Expected Contract Length Contract should not exceed more than 12 months but may be subject to change. Latest start date Monday 9 November 2020 Budget Range £70,000 - £100,000 Why the Work is Being Done Water and waste water treatment plants are extremely complex and expensive operations to run. We constantly monitor all aspects of these networks to ensure that our drinking water is top quality, plus our waste water plants run efficiently, adhering to stringent compliance regulations. This involves collecting vast amounts of data from Spatial, financial, telemetry and SCADA systems. Therefore, the data sets used to generate reports and business insights need to be up to date, of excellent quality, plus be accurate. A lot of work has already been completed at NI Water to harness our data but now we need assistance from external experts in data analytics, experts in the domain of water and wastewater treatment, to ensure that we make the most efficient and effective use of that data to learn how our networks are operating and how we can realise efficiencies. We have already used some of this data to realise gains (financial) by finding areas of energy reduction in our water treatment plants but we are fully aware we can improve efficiencies by employing the latest and greatest algorithms and processes. We have many projects to complete on the water network but also on the waste water network. Problem to Be Solved For this engagement, our goal is to ensure that our databases are fully aligned. The databases are: 1. CAR GIS – (Corporate Asset Register) 2. Telemetry It is vital that the Telemetry database includes the CARID for the asset. However, this has not always been the case and hence the need for alignment. The potential benefits include: • Single authoritative data source • Improve situational awareness of costing data • Replication and scalability for other business areas will be possible • Will enable improved analysis for Interruptions to Supply events • Could provide enhanced business insights • Key enabler to SMART networks, IOC etc. • More realistic benchmarking against other water utilities The essential outcomes of this project will be: 1. Identify items from the telemetry database without a CARID 2. Identify all assets along the water network to ensure all have been matched. The following are essential: a. Pump Status b. Pump Data flow indicators c. Pressure readings d. Pressure alerts e. Reservoir levels (impounding & service). Successful suppliers will engage with our local GIS, Telemetry and field experts. 3. Maintain updated report of updates. 4. Work with the handover team for new sites to update the workflow (essential). Who Are the Users • Head of Water – In the event of an outage or major issue, can we generate an accurate listing of all potential properties affected in a DMA/ PMA to ensure we have 100% accurate outreach should the need arise. • Head of Wastewater – In the event of outages or major issues, can we generate an accurate listing of all potential catchments affected. • Head of Customer Services – need to ensure we have all customers updated to provide domestic and operational services. • Head of Business Intelligence - how can I see an accurate, up to date list of findings from this activity? Is it significant enough to change internal processes? • Head of GIS/ Telemetry – Is our data up to date. This forms the basis of all of our analytics work and needs to be completed asap. Early Market Engagement There have been a lot of investigations in this area internally to make sure that this project can be completed. Some of this work will be manual input to copy the CAR ID across to the telemetry database so care must be taken to ensure this is correct. Suppliers should ensure that they have access to GIS and Telemetry experts who can navigate these systems, although the majority of the work (data change and entry) should not require senior resources. Therefore we do not expect that this will require senior people full time to complete. Work Already Done Our inhouse team have already worked on a pilot study on one region in the North West. This was to ensure that the work could be completed and what would typically be involved. This information will be made available as needed, provided the right data sharing agreements and contracts are in place. Existing Team Head of Analytics Head of Water Business Improvement Project Manager Business Analytics Project Manager Data Scientist Data Engineer Customer Insights Manager Current Phase Not applicable Skills & Experience • Demonstrate experience of GIS applications and familiarity of how asset information will be presented. • Demonstrate experience with Water networks and the assets associated with them. It’s essential to be able to navigate GIS to be confident the data changes are accurate. • Demonstrate experience of Telemetry/ SCADA information systems and how to navigate these. • Demonstrate experience of Telemetry schematics and the ability to understand water networks (DMAs etc.) • Demonstrate experience of editing telemetry information. • Demonstrate experience of editing GIS systems, or presenting information in the correct formats to the GIS team for validation. • Demonstrate expert knowledge in water networks, including treatment and pumping. • Demonstrate experience of delivering projects that require an extremely high degree of accuracy Clearly show how you achieved this and how that was validated. • Demonstrate experience of building a plan and communicating to stakeholders. • Demonstrate experience of building the appropriate dashboards to show progress on an ongoing basis (live – online). • Demonstrate experience of successfully upskilling/transferring knowledge to the internal customer's team in relation to future system updates. • Demonstrate experience of successfully collaboraton with a client as part of a joint team to detect errors in data, gaining "buy-in" for suggested solutions. • Demonstrate experience of developing accurate project plans, clearly highlighting critical milestones and adhering to timelines and budget. • Demonstrate experience of helping to change internal processes within an organization. • Must be able to start work by 9th November 2020, and be flexible to attend meetings when required (remotely and onsite if required). Nice to Haves Experience with data analytics or data manipulation techniques that could be employed to expedite completion. Work Location Northern Ireland Water Westland House Head Office 40 Old Westland Road BELFAST BT14 6TE Working Arrangments Work as one team with the NIW Analytics delivery team, whether on-site or off-site. Current restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic should be strictly adhered to at all times. Successful suppliers should: • provide regular updates on progress, issues, risks and delivery milestones. • ensure a plan has been well formulated and the necessary resources contacted well ahead of time to ensure availability • have the correct professional resources available for GIS and telemetry queries • a good understanding of water treatment facilities and water networks to be able to have confidence in making any changes. Security Clearance Basic Access NI check is required. On site working as required however current coronavirus guidelines should be adhered to at all times so remote meetings will always be preferred. Data sharing agreements will be required as appropriate, sensitive data obtained should be anonymised to adhere to strict GDPR regulations. Additional T&Cs NI Water intends to use eTendersNI for the 2nd stage of this procurement. Shortlisted suppliers will be invited to submitted their responses on their proposal, cultural fit and price via this platform. Scoring mechanism as follows will be used during both stages of the evaluation 5 - Exceeded 3 - Met 1 - Partially met 0 – Not met or not evidenced NI Water does not envisage the need for any additional terms and conditions. No. of Suppliers to Evaluate 3 Proposal Criteria • Identify a RAID (Risks, Assumptions, Issues, Dependencies) list that needs to be considered as part of the plan. • Describe how you will tackle this problem from start to finish. You need to demonstrate how you will be successful. • Describe how you can ensure accuracy of the updated data. This is essential to ensure validity of our reporting and calculations • Describe how you will work with NI Water to ensure this process is included in all new site handovers. Demonstrated experience in this area will be beneficial . • Proposed team structure you will require including experience (CVs) Cultural Fit Criteria • Collaboration - What drives your organisation to deliver products and, how will you ensure collaboration within the team? • Experts - Clearly demonstrate that you have the right solution for us and that your plan is clear and shows a clear understanding of the task in hand? • Reliable - How can you ensure that you have dedicated resources for the entirety of this engagement and remain within project constraints? • Knowledge Transfer - How will you provide knowledge transfer to our in-house staff to ensure we can complete any future changes required? • Trusted Partner - How will you bring us to the next level in ensuring we have 100% accurate, valid data? Payment Approach Capped time and materials Assessment Method Presentation Evaluation Weighting Technical competence 65% Cultural fit 15% Price 20% Questions from Suppliers 1. Please could you confirm that the listed budget of £70,000 – £100,000 is correct? Yes it is correct.