Public Tender Notices

DFAT08-SWE-030 - Request for Tender for the Provision of a Cultural Program for the Australian Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo 2010

Addendum 1 - 3 September 2008

Section 1: Welcome and overview

Peter Tesch, Executive Director, Shanghai World Expo Unit

Briefing format

1 hour – overviews of the project and the RFT followed by Q and A (to be posted as Addendum 1 on www.dfat.gov.au/tenders).

The SWE Team

Peter Tesch, Executive Director and Commissioner General for Australia
Peter Sams, Pavilion Director
David Glass, Director, Business and Communications
Viv O’Connell, Executive Officer, Business and Communications
Alexandra Seal, Unit Coordinator

The Probity Adviser

DFAT has appointed a probity adviser, Stephen Skehill of Mallesons Stephen Jaques.
The probity adviser’s role is to ensure fairness and good process, and is a resource for both tenderers and DFAT.
If you have concerns or queries about the process contact Stephen Skehill on (02) 6217 6084 or stephen.skehill@mallesons.com (contact details are also included in the RFT documentation).

Commonwealth Procurement process

Commmonwealth procurement must comply with strict rules – if you have not undertaken this process before, please bear this in mind.
Our accountability framework includes: The Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines (CPGs); the Financial Management and Accountability (FMA) Act; Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) and Parliamentary scrutiny through Senate Estimates, and Freedom of Information (FOI) legislation.
After today any enquiries must be submitted in writing to expo2010shanghai@dfat.gov.au.
Any aspect of this RFT may be subject to change, and all addenda will be posted on www.dfat.gov.au/tenders.
Please note that members of the Tender Panel cannot accept any gifts or hospitality from tenderers.
DFAT encourages bids from Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and consortia.
We are genuine about providing opportunities to showcase Australian capability through this tender, and are engaging with the Industry Capability Network (ICN).
DFAT is facilitating contact between SMEs through a contact list on http://www.expo2010.com.au/commercial_opps/index.html. Email expo2010shanghai@dfat.gov.au with requests to be included as a service provider seeking partners.
DFAT welcomes consortium tenders.

Context

The Australian pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo is the most significant project being undertaken by the Australian Government in the Australia-China relationship.
The project requires a strong collegiate team spirit – the successful contractor will work closely with DFAT and other contractors.
Compliance with the Expo Bureau guidelines, which may be amended from time to time, is critical – DFAT encourages tenderers to check the Bureau’s website regularly for updates.
DFAT manages all communication with the Shanghai Expo Bureau, the prime dialogue partner for the project. Tenderers are asked not to contact the Bureau directly with reference to this tender or, following completion of the tender process, the services sought under this tender.
The following Powerpoint presentation outlines the scope of the project. It will be posted on www.dfat.gov.au/tenders, with minor modification – images of Act 2 will be removed, as these will evolve as a result of a separate tender.

Section 2

Powerpoint presentation

Peter Tesch, Executive Director, Shanghai World Expo Unit

Section 3: Presentation on the scope of the Request for Tender

Peter Sams, Pavilion Director, Shanghai World Expo Unit

The RFT represents our present thinking, but we are open to your ideas and experience.
This tender forms part of Phase 2 of the project (Phase 1 being for pavilion design and costings), for which the Australian Government, in the 2008-09 Federal Budget committed $61 million over the next three years. An additional $22 million will be sourced through corporate sponsorship and partnerships with the states and territories, bringing the total budget to $83 million. This is the largest investment made by the Australian Government in a world expo.
DFAT’s role is as contract managers and managers of the broader program:
- while we are not arbiters of cultural content, it is our program
- we are a very actively engaged client
- we see the cultural program as integral to the pavilion and to achieving our objectives
- we understand that you are the experts, and will do our best to not impinge, but we may if required.
The cultural program context
- Three components of the cultural program:
  - a. resident group, which we envisage will also perform when required, for business program events;
  - b. rolling program of visiting artists, performing for a fortnight, every second fortnight; and
  - c. at least one major performance (e.g. National Day)
- Australia’s expo national day is tentatively scheduled for mid-June 2010
- the pavilion design includes two dedicated performance spaces, and the successful contractor will be able to provide input into staging requirements (e.g. lighting, sound, etc)
- the expo site will also have several performance venues but as yet the Bureau has not released any details. In general, DFAT would not favour using venues that are not part of the pavilion, as the link to Australia and our pavilion may be lost in the competitive expo environment.
- DFAT does envisage using one of the major on-site performance venues (5,000 or 10,000 capacity) for our national day.
Our expectation of the winning cultural program tenderer is that they will:
- be innovative and look for opportunities to leverage planned Australian cultural activities in China/Asia in 2010 (including linkages with the Australia International Cultural Council China Focus Country program, which DFAT’s Images of Australia Branch will coordinate in 2010)
- create a balanced program that addresses the areas identified by DFAT in the RFT document
- have input into other areas of the pavilion’s operations that have a cultural component
- consider the operating context of the expo, particularly the capacity of audiences to sustain interest in lengthy performances
- consider the context of the venue and its performance spaces
- manage the team for performance and put in place the right structure to get the most we can out of the team
- consider the possibility to occasionally integrate the resident group into Act 2 (subject to further information following the announcement of the successful Construction, Exhibition and Technical Operations contractor
- be adaptive and responsive to the fluid expo and pavilion environment
- maximise the opportunity presented by Australia’s national day at the exp
Format of RFT response
- Please note that tenders should be in the form set out in Schedule 3 of the RFT and must satisfy the minimum content and format requirements in the RFT. Tenderers must respond to all required sections of the RFT.
- If tenderers are not sure how to format a response, please ask DFAT.
- Please note that the Draft Agreement is not highly developed, to allow the inclusion of detail from the successful tenderer’s response.

Section 4: Question and Answer

Responded to by Peter Tesch and Peter Sams

Q1: Please clarify the concept of the rolling program of visiting artists

A1: DFAT envisages visiting artists will perform for seasons of one fortnight each, and that that these seasons will take place in alternate fortnights. Where possible, DFAT will encourage the states and territories to provide and fund performance groups to fill in the non-performance fortnights. While this will not incur artists’ fees and associated costs (transport, accommodation) for the successful contractor, there will be a management overhead associated with managing this process.

Q2: Is each visiting artist/group expected to perform for two weeks?

A2: This is a general expectation, but not a mandatory requirement. DFAT will take the contractor’s advice on the most appropriate performance schedule.

Q3: Does DFAT have a view on which venue should be used for national day?

A3: We would expect that one of the major venues on the expo site would be used – either the 5,000 or 10,000 seat venues. DFAT’s view is that it will not be difficult to attract large audiences, given the volume of expo visitors and interest in Australia.

Q4: Who are the target audiences, and what are the objectives for national day?

A4: National day is Australia’s opportunity to have a major impact across the expo site, standing out from the 170 or so countries, generating significant media coverage, and assisting us to deliver our messages. We expect Government will be represented at senior levels. National day will comprise a major performance for the general public, as well as targeted events for VIPs within the pavilion. DFAT does not have set ideas about the program for the day, but does expect that it will be innovative, and support our claims to a high-level, innovative and creative culture.

Q5: Do you have a program for the VIP area functions?

A5: Not at this stage. We will not be implementing a program of themed, industry months, as was the case at Aichi. The program will include events for sponsors; the states and territories; trade and investment promotion events coordinated by Austrade; bilateral events; and high level visits. Over the 184 days we anticipate presenting over 200 events in this space.

Q6: DFAT will be running a broad spread of events on the expo site – will any activities be held off-site?

A6: DFAT’s official program will not extend beyond the expo site, but where relevant, and consistent with the project’s objectives and thematic messages, we will seek to link our events to those that are taking place in Shanghai, especially from the point of view of our Communications and Public Affairs program (e.g. an art exhibition in Shanghai supported by a state government). While it is not within the scope of this tender to manage events offsite, it will be important for the successful tenderer to be aware of the broader Chinese and Shanghai event calendar (e.g. Shanghai Creative Industries Week), to see whether there are opportunities to leverage these for the cultural program.

Q7: Will the pavilion have storage and warm-up space?

A7: Yes. The store room is 20 square metres and is adjacent to the loading dock. The green room is approximately 40 square metres, but the final floorplan is subject to the outcome of the Construction, Exhibition and Technical Operations Tender. A corridor will link the back of house directly to the performance stage.

Q8: Is this a fixed price contract?

A8: Yes, excluding currency fluctuations.

Q9: If the successful contractor wished to adjust the budget, would they need to consult with DFAT?

A9: Yes. While this is a fixed price contract, DFAT must agree to budget amendments.

Q10: Is there provision for work space in the pavilion for the successful contractor?

A10: Yes. Two workstations will be provided.

Q11: Are the accommodation costs for the resident group included in the budget for this contract?

A11: Yes. Accommodation costs for all performers (except any additional visiting artists supported by the states/territories) are included in the contract.

Q12: Does DFAT have a ballpark figure on the accommodation costs?

A12: Yes. We have an indicative per square metre cost that we will provide as an Addendum on the website for this RFT.

Q13: Does DFAT have access to guaranteed hotels and rates in Shanghai?

A13: Not at this stage. We plan to have arrangements in place for hotels and serviced apartments, but cannot guarantee that these will be available to the successful contractor at a certain rate.

Q14: Can tenderers use the DFAT supplied accommodation figure (to be posted as an Addendum) in their bids?

A14: Yes. This will provide consistency between bids.

Q15: Does DFAT have an arrangement in place with transport providers, such as Qantas?

A15: Not at this stage. Even if DFAT does have an arrangement in place, we would pass on the cost of airfares to the contractor.

Q16: Does DFAT have an indicative figure for transport, both international airfares and Shanghai taxi rates?

A16: We have an indicative rate for international economy airfares, but not on-the-ground transport costs. We will post the airfare rate on the website for this RFT as an Addendum (with the accommodation figure) to facilitate consistency between bids.

Q17: If a tenderer has an idea for the cultural program that differs from DFAT’s vision, should the tenderer include it in their RFT response?

A17: To submit a compliant bid, tenderers must address the components required in the RFT document. However, tenderers may also submit alternative proposals outlining other services. This is ultimately a commercial decision for tenderers, and it should be noted that DFAT does not currently have additional resources to fund activities beyond the scope of the RFT.

Q18: Is there scope to negotiate on the Intellectual Property clause in the draft agreement contained in the RFT?