Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) Business Acceleration Services

Tender description

This Prior Information Notice is to announce an upcoming opportunity titled the ‘Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) Business Acceleration Services’, which is expecting to launch a pre-qualification questionnaire followed by an invitation to tender in early 2024. DASA is seeking an experienced partner (or partners through a consortium approach) to deliver business acceleration services to cohorts of high-tech SMEs for NATO’s Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) and UK defence and security innovation. This will include delivering business training and the provision of mentoring programmes and wider engagements with the goal of facilitating the development of SMEs’ products and businesses. The partner(s) will also manage a vibrant innovation space and its start-up community. In sum, these services will increase the range of advanced dual use capability available for civilian, defence, and security customers, providing strategic advantage for the UK and NATO. To inform the procurement strategy for selecting the delivery partner, DASA plans to hold an Early Market Engagement webinar. At this session DASA plans to seek industry feedback on the requirement, contract framework and pricing, and provide more detail on the opportunity. Lot 1: The service delivery period is for two years with the option to extend for a further three years, subject to allowable refinements. Flexible cost services 1. A comprehensive, high-quality acceleration programme for DIANA. The acceleration curriculum will be designed by NATO DIANA in collaboration with all affiliated sites, but implemented by the partner(s). It will include training and mentoring activities, against curriculum requirements, delivered to a cohort of companies drawn from across the alliance, selected by NATO. It is expected that delivery will entail one annual cycle per year, including one 6-month Bootcamp accelerator programme followed by one 6-month Grow programme with a reduced cohort, as described on DIANA’s website. 2. DASA business acceleration services, which include, but are not limited to: • Acceleration programmes and training modules of differing durations designed for the UK market (in addition to the DIANA programmes) • Innovation activities including, for example, Hackathons, Investor Showcases, Customer Demonstration Days, and events, such as networking and sector-specific events (e.g. FinTech). • Provision and maintenance of a mentor pool for UK programmes Fixed cost services 3. Innovation space management. • Full management and operation of an innovation space fitted out by MOD to a high specification, comprising approximately 40 open plan desks, flexible meeting rooms and event space • Reception facilities for the full innovation space, including the NATO DIANA European Regional Office (the permanent office for NATO DIANA staff, which is collocated with the UK accelerator space that the successful partner(s) will operate) • Provision of general administration services, marketing, communications and outreach to SMEs and defence and security stakeholders 4. Operations • Budget management, security, governance and reporting to DASA 5. Facilities management • Facilities management, including cleaning of the space (both the UK accelerator space and the NATO DIANA European Regional Office), maintaining provisions and supplies in keeping with an innovation space, and the ability to organise catering for events as required