2005 Accommodation Services Improvement Project (ASI)

Tender description

NTU Accommodation Services currently manage 4935 rooms spread across 15 sites owned by NTU, this rises to 6260 rooms managed through a third-party. Room charges are based, largely, on location and facilities and range from £4268 to £9360 with an average annual charge of £5658. The provision of accommodation is a significant revenue stream for the University. All accommodation buildings are owned by NTU with twelve being leased to University Partnerships Programme (UPP). The conditions of the lease are such that UPP operate and maintain them until such time as the lease ends and they are handed back to NTU.This project will procure a new solution, which will support streamlined and effective business processes to improve the service offered and satisfy new and existing students and partners. Lot 1: NTU Accommodation Services currently manage 4935 rooms spread across 15 sites owned by NTU, this rises to 6260 rooms managed through a third-party. Room charges are based, largely, on location and facilities and range from £4268 to £9360 with an average annual charge of £5658. The provision of accommodation is a significant revenue stream for the University. All accommodation buildings are owned by NTU with twelve being leased to University Partnerships Programme (UPP). The conditions of the lease are such that UPP operate and maintain them until such time as the lease ends and they are handed back to NTU.Students can search, book, and pay for available NTU accommodation on our website when it is opened as a service. This is for the academic year they will participate in. It is also possible to book rooms throughout the summer in most buildings for events. Though most bookings for NTU accommodation are made through the website, manual bookings are also possible dealing directly with team members through phone, email, or in-person. In other circumstances e.g. where there is missing student qualifying data, staff are able create bookings for students. NTU accommodation service also can nominate or refer students to private accommodation providers.The technology that is in place to facilitate management of accommodation services is approximately ten years old. It is a combination of Banner administrative forms and web-based booking pages, developed in house using Banner technology. Additionally, there are some email communications sent from within Banner to Applicants/Students concerning their accommodation choices and confirmations. The in-flight Banner system has operated with a change freeze in place, so the Accommodation system has continued to stagnate. The system has known inefficiencies due to it being part of the student record system with an added web-based user interface. The availability of management information and systemised processes are problematical and there are many workarounds which are prone to errors.Analysis of other higher education institutions reveals that the majority are using dedicated, commercial, off the shelf software for accommodation services. These systems are being integrated with other corporate systems to provide seamless experiences and timelyThis project will procure a new solution, which will support streamlined and effective business processes to improve the service offered and satisfy new and existing students and partners.NTU Accommodation Services currently manage 4935 rooms spread across 15 sites owned by NTU, this rises to 6260 rooms managed through a third-party. Room charges are based, largely, on location and facilities and range from £4268 to £9360 with an average annual charge of £5658. The provision of accommodation is a significant revenue stream for the University. All accommodation buildings are owned by NTU with twelve being leased to University Partnerships Programme (UPP). The conditions of the lease are such that UPP operate and maintain them until such time as the lease ends and they are handed back to NTU.Students can search, book, and pay for available NTU accommodation on our website when it is opened as a service. This is for the academic year they will participate in. It is also possible to book rooms throughout the summer in most buildings for events. Though most bookings for NTU accommodation are made through the website, manual bookings are also possible dealing directly with team members through phone, email, or in-person. In other circumstances e.g. where there is missing student qualifying data, staff are able create bookings for students. NTU accommodation service also can nominate or refer students to private accommodation providers.