Public Tender Notices

DFAT08-DID-016 - EOI for the provision of Permit Management System software tool for UN Sanction Enforcement Laws

Addendum No. 1 5 June 2008

Additional Information and Amendments to EOI documentation

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) wishes to advise all potential Respondents that the following information applies to the above mentioned Request for Expression of Interest (EOI).

Questions and Answers – up to 4 June 2008

Question 1:

Could you please provide some more capacity information? How many permits are applied for per annum? How many are approved and how many refused?

Answer:

This system will be supporting recent legislation, hence there is no historical information to provide indicators of the number of applications which can be expected. Current projections, based on activity to date, would suggest anywhere from 20 to 100 permit applications processed per year.

Question 2:

Could you please clarify the likely number of users – especially those requiring a secure login – in Schedule 1, clause 4.1.2 of the EOI it states less than 12. My assumption is that this includes the 6 Sanctions and Transnational Crime Section (STC) users. However, in Schedule 1, clause 4.1.4.15, the EOI talks about banks and other financial institutions requiring secure login, and in Schedule 1, clause 4.1.6.10 it talks about client login accounts requiring secure login. Is all of this contained within the original 12?

Answer:

The estimate in Schedule 1, clause 4.1.2 refers to Applicants. Current projections, based on activity to date, would suggest up to 20 individual permit applicants making multiple permit applications per year. Access for Banks and Financial Institutions would be related to the number of applications involving financial services and could be expected to be less than 30 per year. The reference at Schedule 1, clause 4.1.6.10 is to enable STC staff to establish and manage the external accounts. Not withstanding these answers, the system needs to be scalable so that extra users and applicants can be added without additional cost.

Question 3:

Could you please provide copies of the current forms used and how many different forms are likely to be required? Schedule 1, clause 4.1.3.1 does not provide enough quantifiable information re the size and scope of the requirement.

Answer:

There will be four forms to be provided on-line. These have not been developed at this time and will form part of the project.

Question 4:

Have you got any details of the processes undertaken to process applications for permits?

Answer:

The application process will contain the following key steps:

Application received – if on-line application received, a hard copy signature is required;
Application identity confirmed, confirmation recorded on-line;
Application submitted for approval through up to 5 stages of processing. Each stage must be recorded and tracked;
Application approved or rejected; and
Applicant advised.

Question 5:

Have you got more details on timescales? When is it envisaged that any contract may be placed? Also, when are you anticipating the system will be implemented?

Answer:

As stated in the EOI, progression to a Request for Tender will be dependent on the assessment of responses to the Expression of Interest. Subject to this, publication of a Request for Tender is expected to proceed in early FY 2008/09. Assuming suitable responses are received, selection and commencement of negotiations with the successful respondent could commence approximately 8 -12 weeks after publication. Implementation will also be dependent on the proposed work schedule of any successful respondent, but is anticipated to be completed in the 2008/09 financial year. These timeframes are indicative only and may change at any time.

Question 6:

I am uncertain what point Schedule 1, clause 4.1.7.4 is referring to. Could you possibly define what you mean by ‘Release Strategy’ in this context?

Answer:

Release Strategy refers to the proposed method of implementing the finished product into a production environment, including any training and/or documentation which may be relevant.

Question 7:

I am uncertain what point Schedule 1, clause 4.1.7.12 is referring to. Could you possibly define what you mean by ‘types of notifications’ in this respect?

Answer:

Schedule 1, clause 4.1.7.12 refers to providing automatic notifications by email to users regarding changes in status of any application or enquiry. These may include submission of an application or enquiry, changes to any details including approvals and date-based notifications such as elapsed deadlines.

Question 8:

If it is not an issue of security (which I do understand that it might be), could you possibly outline what Disaster Recovery (DR) facilities are provided within the current ICT infrastructure? Do you, for example, have multiple data centres, standby arrangements etc? This will be key for us to understand how the overall DR requirement can be met – and how our solution would fit into the overall environment.

Answer:

DFAT maintains two data centres. Systems are allocated (based on business owner requirements and/or their role) a Gold, Silver or Bronze DR status. These relate to the level of DR from “Active-Active” to “Find equipment and rebuild from tape”.

The LAN traverses both sites and presents presentation, business, database and management VLANs as single Layer Two segments between the sites.

The following technologies are used:

Windows Network Load Balancing for limited state applications, such as HTTP and FTP.
Domino cluster replication to keep Domino databases synchronised at both sites.
Microsoft SQL 2005 mirroring to replicate critical databases to the off-site facility.
SAN replication to keep other file types replicated between the two sites.

Question 9:

Would you be prepared to give us an indication of the costs you would say were within your budgetary boundaries. I fully understand the difficulties with this request but it would be extremely useful if you could let us know whether you are primarily looking for a solution (excluding ongoing support) that would fit into one of the following ranges (a) under 200K AUD, (b) between 200K AUD and 1M AUD, (c) over 1M AUD, (d) over 2M AUD.

Answer:

We are relying on the market to inform us of the cost of these services. We will be conducting a value for money assessment of the project based on the submissions.

Question 10:

Is the requirement likely to grow over time? For example, are other licensing regimes likely to want to use this solution (e.g. Export Licensing for Military Goods, Dual Use Goods etc…)

Answer:

There is no current intention for this requirement to be deployed as a shared service or as part of a joint development.

All other terms and conditions of the EOI remain unchanged.

The closing time for lodgement of tenders is 2.00pm AEST, 10 June, 2008.

All enquiries regarding this EOI or this amendment should be directed in writing quoting the EOI reference number (DFAT08-DID-016) to:

Raye Rickard,

DFAT Contact Officer
EOI DFAT08-DID-016 Permit Management System for UN Sanction Enforcement Laws.
E-Mail: icbtenders@dfat.gov.au