# ITT_for_Marketing_Services_04.03.2026_FINAL.docx
# Tender: UCD-Marketing-ACTIVE

2103754107950 INVITATION TO TENDER DOCUMENT UNIVERSITY COLLEGE DUBLIN OPEN PROCEDURE A SINGLE PARTY FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT FOR THE PROVISION OF STRATEGIC, CREATIVE AND PRODUCTION CAMPAIGN SERVICES FOR MULTI CHANNEL MARKETING CAMPAIGNS MAXIMUM POTENTIAL DURATION OF AGREEMENT: FOUR YEARS UCD REF UCDOPP5581 Issue Date 4th March, 2026 Closing Date and Time for Receipt of Queries 1st April, 2026 at 5 pm Closing Date and Time for Receipt of Tenders 8th April, 2026 at 12 noon -13652141276 -13652141276 Please note that all information relating to this competition, including clarifications and addenda, will be published on the Irish Government Procurement Opportunities Portal (www.etenders.gov.ie). Registration is free of charge and there is no charge for documents. University College Dublin accepts no responsibility for information relayed (or not relayed) via third parties. DISCLAIMERS All information contained in this Invitation to Tender document is provided in the strictest confidence and has been made available solely for the purpose of facilitating the production and submission of tenders. No party may disclose the contents of this document without the express permission of University College Dublin (hereinafter ‘the Contracting Authority’). Tenderers are recommended to read the Invitation to Tender document thoroughly. While all reasonable steps have been taken to ensure that the information set out in this document is factually correct, no representation or warranty, express or implied, is or will be made or given in relation to the accuracy or the completeness of any information contained in this document or otherwise provided by or on behalf of the Contracting Authority, in writing or otherwise, to any interested party or its advisers. No responsibility or liability for any loss or damage arising as a result of reliance on this document, or for the information contained in this document, or for any omission is or will be accepted by the Contracting Authority or by any of its officers, employees, agents or professional advisers. No officer, employee, agent, or professional adviser of the Contracting Authority has any authority to give or make any representation or warranty, express or implied, in relation to such information. The Contracting Authority’s officers, employees, agents and professional advisers expressly disclaim any and all liability arising out of such documentation or information and any errors or omissions in or from the documents and information. The Contracting Authority reserves the right to discontinue the procurement process at any time. Without prejudice to the principle of equal treatment, the Contracting Authority is not obliged to engage in a clarification process in respect of tender submissions with missing or incomplete information. Therefore, tenderers are advised to ensure that they return comprehensive tender submissions in order to avoid the risk of elimination from the competition. CHECKLIST FOR TENDER SUBMISSIONS In order to allow the Contracting Authority to fully evaluate completed tender submissions, Tenderers are advised to ensure that their responses include all of the following information: INFORMATION ✓ The completed pricing schedule – Appendix 2 The completed and signed Form of Tender – Appendix 3 The completed European Single Procurement Document – Appendix 4 All information required under each Award Criterion – Section 6 All other information required in connection with this competitive process This checklist has been provided for guidance purposes only and the Contracting Authority accepts no responsibility for omissions of any description. Tenderers are advised to read this Invitation to Tender document and its appendices in full in order to provide a comprehensive and compliant response. TABLE OF CONTENTS TOC \h \u \z \t "Heading 1,1,Heading 2,2,Heading 3,3,Heading 4,4,Heading 5,5,Heading 6,6,"DISCLAIMERS 2 CHECKLIST FOR TENDER SUBMISSIONS 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS 4 APPENDIX 1 - Creative Brief for the Purposes of Evaluation 39 APPENDIX 2 – PRICING SCHEDULE 42 APPENDIX 3 - FORM OF TENDER 43 APPENDIX 4 – EUROPEAN SINGLE PROCUREMENT DOCUMENT 45 APPENDIX 5 – DRAFT TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT 57 INTRODUCTION 1.1 About the Contracting Authority Since its foundation in 1854, UCD has flourished and made a unique and substantial contribution to the creation of modern Ireland, based on successful engagement with Irish society on every level and across every sphere of activity. UCD is one of Europe's leading research-intensive universities; an environment where undergraduate education, masters and PhD training, research, innovation and community engagement form a dynamic spectrum of activity. The international standing of UCD has grown in recent years; it is currently ranked within the top 1% of higher education institutions world-wide. UCD is also Ireland's most globally engaged university with over 38,000 students drawn from over 152 countries, and includes over 5,000 students based at locations outside of Ireland. As Ireland's largest university, with its great strength and diversity of disciplines, UCD embraces its role to contribute to the flourishing of Ireland; through the study and discussion of people, society, business, economy, culture, languages and the creative arts, as well as through research and innovation. UCD President, Professor Orla Feely, was appointed in 2023. Her strategic plan and vision for 2025-2030 has laid out the roadmap for UCD’s immediate future. Since the upheaval of COVID-19, the norms of higher education have somewhat shifted: a majority of school leavers still place Level 8 degrees as their primary choice on the CAO form; however, apprenticeships and alternative entry routes to college are becoming better understood as alternatives. At graduate level, online learning has grown and UCD has consolidated its offering; in 2022 a range of micro-credentials were offered and promoted by eight Irish universities, including UCD. Recruitment of students from outside the EU is likely to continue to be a priority for UCD, requiring close collaboration between the UCD central marketing team and the UCD global team. Extensive exploration of the UCD brand has been undertaken over the last year and new brand guidelines have been developed. The UCD marketing team has begun to apply new brand guidelines to internal and ‘below the line’ communication channels including presentations, pull-up banners, poster templates, digital screens and wayfinding. A rollout plan for applying the guidelines to the ucd.ie web domain is underway. The new guidelines have not yet been expressed ‘above the line’. The new brand guidelines are available upon request. 1.1.1 UCD Marketing Function The UCD marketing function is structured as follows: UCD Central Marketing: UCD Central Marketing currently comprises: Head of Marketing Marketing Manager Marketing and Digital Officer Marketing Officer CRM Marketing Officer Design Officer, Marketing and Communications Marketing Intern In recent years, the team has planned and managed five to seven central campaigns each year, as well as small ad-hoc campaigns managed on behalf of other UCD units. Media planning and buying is undertaken with our contracted media agency partner. The UCD central marketing team also produces ad-hoc campaigns each year on behalf of other units (e.g., the Ad Astra Academy scholarship scheme and a high profile recruitment campaign on behalf of HR). The budget for these ad-hoc campaigns is in addition to the creative production budget of the UCD Marketing unit. Appendix 1 contains the creative brief, which includes the indicative budget for the multi-annual, three-phased CAO campaign. The table below provides an overview of the nature of the main campaigns conceived and produced by the team in recent years: Table 1: Overview of most recent campaigns produced by UCD central marketing team Campaign Type Audience Dates Production timeline &amp; approach Channels Reference link Brand/Reputation: Overarching platform -Internal -Direct stakeholder influence e.g. presentation -Organic visitors to ucd.ie 2017-2019 -6 months planning &amp; production (concurrent with Product/Brand assets) -2 year lifespan -Owned media only: 90” video, microsite, on campus posters, banners, pullups https://youtu.be/tHVxgDNKttQ Brand / Reputation: Research reputation -Research stakeholders 2018-2020 -4 months planning &amp; production -2 year lifespan -3 x 60” video -3x 30” video Paid: FB, YT, LinkedIn, display (THE, QS) -microsite https://www.ucd.ie/universityrelations/marketing/universitymarketingcampaigns/ucdresearcherswithglobalimpact2019-2020/ Brand/ Reputation: Employer reputation/ ranking -Employers/ Employability ranking stakeholders 2018-2022 -1 month planning &amp; production -Iterated /updated each September -4 year lifespan -microsite -press (business) -display -outdoor (airport) - direct (flyer at employer fair, email) https://www.ucd.ie/universityrelations/marketing/universitymarketingcampaigns/no1inirelandforgraduateemployability2018-2020/ Brand/Product: CAO ‘Future Focused’ -Prospective UG students in Ireland &amp; their influencers 2021/22 2022/232023/242024/252025/2026 -1 year planning &amp; production (Covid-19 delay) - Bursts: Open Day burst October; Dec-Jan burst; May-June ‘change of mind’ burst - Iterated/ updated for ‘23 -cinema -radio, digi audio -Press -outdoor -transport -search -display -VOD &amp; YT -social: FB, IG, TT, Snap www.ucd.ie/cao Brand/Product: Masters ‘Future Focused’ -Prospective Graduate Taught students in Ireland 2021/22 2022/232023/242024/252025/26 -1 year planning &amp; production (Covid-19 delay) - Burst: spring -radio, digi audio -outdoor -transport -search -display -VOD &amp; YT -social: FB, IG, TT, Snap www.ucd.ie/masters Brand/Product: International ‘Future Focused’ -Prospective students in selected Non EU regions 2021/22 2022/232023/242024/252025/26 -1 year planning &amp; production (Covid-19 delay) - Bursts: winter &amp; early spring -search -display -VOD &amp; YT -social: FB, IG, TT, www.ucd.ie/future/global Product: UCD Online -Prospective graduate students to study online (Ireland) 2021/22 2022/23 -6 months planning - Burst: Winter-spring - search &amp; discovery -social www.ucd.ie/online Brand Product: Ad Astra Fellows -Talented early career faculty members (lecturers/researchers) with specific interdisciplinary skills. 2025/26 -1 month planning &amp; production - Burst: Mid-Jan to Mid-Feb 2025 - Academic Recruitment sites- LinkedIn- Press www.ucd.ie/adastrafellows/en/ Table 1 demonstrates that the team has followed a pattern of front-loading strategic planning and production budgets, in order to plan and produce several connected and semi-connected high-quality TV-standard (indeed, cinema standard in some cases) creative campaigns. The team has then re-used these campaign assets for multiple campaign cycles, with minor updates or iterations (e.g., for the 2023 CAO campaign the team produced a version of most creative assets in the Irish language to satisfy the new requirements of the Official Languages Act). Looking to 2026 and beyond, the team is considering re-framing this way of working in order to ensure that the Contracting Authority’s marketing projects are effective and responsive to audience needs and evolving media consumption, e.g. removing a balance of less cinema-standard production and more use of shorter form, easily editable types of formats. UCD Smurfit School: The Smurfit School has a team of five individuals, as follows: Head of Marketing and Communications Marketing Manager Digital Marketing Manager Communications and PR Manager Marketing Executive The team plans and manages approximately 10 micro campaigns each year, each with small budgets and a heavy skew towards targeting prospective students for specific courses or events, e.g., course open evenings or general open evenings. The main channels used for these campaigns are: radio, digital audio, Domestic Press, Sponsor Partner websites, search, display, Video-on-Demand and YouTube, social: FB, IG, TT, Snap, press (business), and occasionally direct channels (ad hoc flyers, email) The indicative amortised creative production budget per year is €50-60k per annum, including VAT. Note: Other Schools, Colleges and Units within UCD do not make contact directly with UCD’s creative agency. Only members of the UCD central marketing team and the UCD Smurfit School team will contact the successful tenderer regarding their respective proposed campaigns. For the avoidance of doubt, the marketing requirements of the UCD Professional Academy fall outside the scope for this competition. 1.2 About the Competition The Contracting Authority is employing the open procedure to establish this single-party framework agreement. In accordance with the provisions governing the conduct of the open procedure, any interested economic operator may tender for appointment as a successful framework member. In the first instance, tenders received will be assessed against the grounds for exclusion and eligibility criteria and rules contained in Sections 4 and 5 of this document, respectively. Tenders that are not eliminated under the grounds for exclusion and that meet the requirements of the eligibility criteria will then be evaluated against the award criteria, rules and weightings contained in Section 6 of this document in order to identify the most economically advantageous tender. 1.3 About the Single Party Framework A framework agreement constitutes a means of establishing overall terms and conditions in accordance with which, for a specified duration, individual contracts may or not be awarded. It is emphasised that a framework agreement constitutes no guarantee to purchase a specific quantity of services from the framework member. Indeed, the Contracting Authority reserves the right to operate outside of the framework agreement at its discretion, particularly should it become apparent that doing so would offer greater value for money. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Contracting Authority has adopted a framework agreement approach to this project in order to leverage efficiencies and maximise cost savings over a four year period. For the avoidance of doubt, once the initial contract has expired, this framework agreement offers no guarantee that any particular quantity of services will be procured. 1.4 Duration of the Framework Agreement This framework agreement will have a maximum potential duration of four years. The initial contract awarded under this framework agreement comprises the provision of the required services, as specified in Section 2 of this Invitation to Tender document, for a period of one year from the date of commencement of the framework agreement. Once the initial contract has expired, the Contracting Authority will exercise its discretion in electing whether or not to award any additional contracts under the framework agreement. Matters to be considered in this regard shall include the performance of the successful framework member, budgetary considerations and the continued strategic appropriateness of the agreement as a whole. The duration of additional contracts awarded under this framework may extend beyond the date of expiry of the framework. 1.5 Award to Runner-up In the event that, following the award of this contract, the successful tenderer cannot, for whatever reason, execute the initial contract to the satisfaction of the Contracting Authority, the Contracting Authority reserves the right to award the contract to the next highest-ranked tenderer identified by this competitive process. This right shall only be availed of by the Contracting Authority during the tender validity period. This shall be without prejudice to the right of the Contracting Authority to terminate the framework agreement in accordance with agreed contractual terms and commence a new competitive process. SPECIFICATION OF REQUIREMENTS 2.1 General Statement of Requirements The Contracting Authority intends to appoint a suitably-qualified and experienced service provider to provide Strategic Creative Campaign Services, encompassing brand / product advertising for multi-channels (these may include outdoor, radio, audio, short form video, digital display and social channels). The successful agency will provide strategic development, creative development, and creative production services. Although subject to change in line with emerging needs of the Contracting Authority, the indicative scope of work arising under this framework is as follows: The production of new creative material (and / or a new iteration of existing creative material) for five to six medium to large scale, mass media, multichannel campaigns per year; The production of new creative material for three to four ad-hoc smaller campaigns per year as the need arises. 2.2 Specific Requirements ‘Strategic Creative Campaign Services’ in this context shall include the delivery of creative solutions to achieve the UCD Central Marketing Team’s marketing objectives. The precise services to be delivered by the successful tenderer may include, but are not limited to: The provision of strategic, evidence-based, creative concepts and recommendations to support campaign objectives; The planning and management of integrated campaigns to ensure consistent and quality messaging across multiple traditional, digital, mobile and social media platforms and other emerging technologies; The identification and analysis of target audiences; Communication channel strategy and planning; The provision of expertise in Awareness Raising campaigns; The provision of expertise in Behaviour Change communications; The design, development, copy writing and production of creative concepts, content and advertising materials for use across all channels and platforms; Expertise in applying and building upon an established brand identity across many integrated marketing and communications channels ; Pre-testing of creative concepts and proposed communications solutions, where required; The provision of a detailed budget breakdown for all projects prior to commencement of any work; Arranging the translation of campaign materials into Gaeilge and other languages, to the highest standards, as required; Liaising, as required, with UCD’s in-house marketing personnel, partner organisations (including any media agencies, service providers and other third party suppliers) to ensure that campaigns are fully integrated, offer effective resource allocation, provide value for money, and are client-centred; Providing timely, accurate reporting of work-in-progress vs budget to the Contracting Authority; Implementing and operating a rigorous quality control system to monitor the provision of the services in accordance with agreed practices and procedures; Implementing and operating strict budgetary controls and reporting systems in relation to all aspects of the provision of the required services; Ensuring that all required work is carried out in compliance with UCD’s brand guidelines; Facilitating Service Level Reviews between the Account Director and UCD’s marketing team(s), which will take place at least half yearly. For the avoidance of doubt, the subject matter of this framework does not include media strategy, planning and buying or website development and design. 2.3 Required Account Management Activities The Contracting Authority shall require the successful framework member to nominate a dedicated Account Director (and an Account Manager) who will act as the main point of contact between the Contracting Authority and the successful tenderer’s organisation for the duration of the Framework Agreement. These individuals shall have the authority to deal with all matters in relation to the Framework Agreement and will be responsible for the satisfactory delivery of all services potentially required. The successful framework member shall be responsible for pro-actively monitoring and managing the quality of service provided to the Contracting Authority and, in this regard, shall be expected to adhere to the provisions of a suitably-detailed Service Level Agreement, which shall set out (amongst other matters) agreed performance levels under the following headings: The availability of key resources to the Contracting Authority (and the continuity of resources across various campaigns and projects); The timeliness of advice and support offered; All documentary and reporting requirements of the Contracting Authority, including the timeframes governing the timely delivery of campaigns ; All hierarchical complaint resolution mechanisms; The likely subject-matter and frequency of routine account management meetings and scheduled Service Level Review Meetings. 2.4 Required Resource Profile The Contracting Authority intends to appoint a service provider with extensive experience of strategic campaign development and production. The successful framework member will be required to provide a well-resourced and experienced team to service these requirements. The technical merit of proposed resources shall be assessed by the award criteria and weightings contained in Section 6 of this Invitation to Tender document. 2.5 Sustainability Championing sustainability is important to UCD. In living this value, UCD acts responsibly and works in ways that support its own wellbeing and that of the organisation, industry, wider society and the planet. UCD intends to partner with companies who also champion sustainability. 2.6 Confidentiality The successful tenderer will be required to uphold the highest standards of confidentiality with regard to all information retained on behalf of the Contracting Authority. Unless an explicit indication is received to the contrary, the successful tenderer will assume that all information of which it is made aware over the duration of this framework agreement is strictly confidential. The successful tenderer will be required to take all steps necessary to ensure that its employees, following the cessation of their employment with the successful tenderer, do not share confidential information relating to the Contracting Authority with third parties. 2.7 General Data Protection Regulations As an organisation engaged in the provision of services to the Contracting Authority, the successful tenderer will be required to adhere to the following provisions in respect of the General Data Protection Regulations (hereinafter ‘the GDPR’): (i) To the extent that it may be deemed a ‘data processor’ for the purposes of the GDPR, the successful tenderer will make itself fully aware of all applicable obligations under the GDPR and will put in place sufficiently robust mechanisms to ensure adherence to the relevant provisions of the GDPR. (ii) To the extent that it may be deemed a ‘data processor’ for the purposes of the GDPR, the successful tenderer will implement appropriate technical and organisational measures in such a manner that any processing activities undertaken will meet the requirements of the GDPR and ensure the protection of the rights of the data subject. (iii) To the extent that it may be deemed a ‘data processor’ for the purposes of the GDPR, the successful tenderer will comply with the provisions of Article 28(3) (a) to 28(3) (h) of the GDPR. (iv) To the extent that it may be deemed a ‘sub-processor’ for the purposes of the GDPR, the successful tenderer will comply with the provisions of Article 28. 3. INSTRUCTIONS TO TENDERERS 3.1 Compliance with Instructions to Tenderers Tenderers are required to comply with these Instructions to Tenderers when preparing their tender submissions. By submitting a tender, each tenderer acknowledges and agrees to be bound fully by these Instructions to Tenderers. Non-compliance with these Instructions may, and in stated circumstances shall, invalidate the submitted tender, subject always to the discretion of the Contracting Authority. The decision of the Contracting Authority in relation to compliance with these Instructions to Tenderers is final and binding. 3.2 Precedence of Invitation to Tender document This Invitation to Tender document supersedes and replaces all previous documentation, communications and correspondence between the Contracting Authority and the market; tenderers shall place no reliance on such previous documentation and correspondence. 3.3 Media Tenderers shall not undertake (or permit to be undertaken) at any time, whether during the currency of the contract or following its award, any publicity (involving any section of the media) in relation to this competitive process, unless explicit prior consent has been granted by the Contracting Authority. Such consent shall extend to the content of any publicity. For the purposes of this paragraph, the word ‘media’ includes (but is not limited to) radio, television, newspapers, trade and specialist press, the Internet and e-mail accessible by the public at large and the representatives of such media. 3.4 Ambiguities, Discrepancies, Errors or Omissions in the Tender Document If you consider that you are missing any documents or information, the absence of which would preclude you from submitting a comprehensive tender, or should you become aware of any ambiguity, discrepancy, error or omission in this Invitation to Tender document, please raise the matter by sending an e-mail to procurement@ucd.ie as soon as possible. 3.5 Queries All queries regarding this competition should be submitted through the eTenders web portal, on www.etenders.gov.ie. The closing date for receipt of such queries is close of business on 1st April, 2026. The following additional conditions govern the submission of queries: (a) No approach of any kind should be made to any other person within, or associated with, the Contracting Authority in connection with this Invitation to Tender. Any such approach may, at the absolute discretion of the Contracting Authority, result in the elimination of the tenderer in question from this process. (b) The Contracting Authority will endeavour to respond to all reasonable queries received but does not undertake to respond to all queries indiscriminately. In particular, queries seeking interpretation of this Invitation to Tender document may not result in a response. (c) In the event that a tenderer considers a query confidential or commercially sensitive, it must mark the query accordingly. If the Contracting Authority considers, at its absolute discretion, that the query or related response should be properly regarded as confidential or commercially sensitive, the nature of the query and its response will be held as confidential, subject to the Contracting Authority’s obligations under law. If the Contracting Authority is of the opinion that it would be inappropriate to answer the query on a confidential basis, it will notify the tenderer accordingly and require the tenderer to either withdraw the query or agree to its release, accompanied by a response, to all tenderers. 3.6 Qualification of Tenders Please note that qualifications to a tender submission may render the tender submission invalid. 3.7 Tender Submission Tenders must be submitted through the eTenders web portal at www.eTenders.gov.ie. The deadline date and time for receipt of tenders is 08/04/2026 at 12 Noon (local time). The completed tender submission, which is to include all information identified in the Checklist for Tender and all other information deemed relevant should be uploaded to the post-box via the eTenders portal. All Tenders submitted must be compiled such that they can be read immediately upon opening of the post-box. Tenderers must ensure electronic documents are not corrupt. The Contracting Authority is not responsible for corruption in electronic documents. Each tenderer is fully responsible for the uploading of the tender document to the eTender Post-box. The Post-box will close at 12:00 (Noon) exactly on the closing date and, in this regard, tenderers are advised to upload well in advance of this time to avoid missing the deadline. E-mailed, faxed or late tenders will not be considered. 3.8 Extension of Tender Period The Contracting Authority reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to revise the deadline date for receipt of tender submissions by giving notice in writing to tenderers at any point up to deadline date contained in this Invitation to Tender document. 3.9 Notice of Addenda The Contracting Authority reserves the right to update or alter the information contained in this document at any time, but not later than seven (7) days before the deadline date for the receipt of tender submissions. Any such notification will automatically become part of this Invitation to Tender document. 3.10 Modifications to Tenders (Prior to Deadline Date for Receipt of Tenders) Modifications to tender submissions will be accepted in the form of supplementary information and/or addenda, provided they are uploaded to the eTenders portal (as described in Section 3.7 above) before the deadline date for the receipt of tender submissions. 3.11 Cost of Preparation of Tender Submissions The Contracting Authority will not be liable for any costs incurred by tenderers in the preparation and submission of tenders and/or any associated work effort or costs (legal or otherwise) arising as a result of participation in this competition, regardless of the outcome or conduct of the competitive process. 3.12 Clarification of Abnormally Low Tenders In the event that the Contracting Authority considers the tender submission to be commercially unsustainable or otherwise problematic in light of the tendered price or any other financial matter, the tenderer shall be invited to provide clarification to the Contracting Authority in respect of all elements of the tender submission that the Contracting Authority deems relevant. Any failure to satisfactorily comply with such a request, or to satisfactorily address the Contracting Authority’s concerns, may, at the discretion of the Contracting Authority, result in the elimination of the tender in question. 3.13 Tender Validity Period To allow sufficient time for tender assessment, a tender validity period of twelve months is required, commencing on the deadline date for receipt of tender submissions. 3.14 Currency Tender prices and any other financial information must be submitted in Euro (€) only. All invoices and payments will be in Euro (€) only. 3.15 Confidentiality The distribution of this Invitation to Tender document is for the sole purpose of obtaining tender submissions as referred to therein. The distribution of this document does not grant permission or licence to use the documents for any other purpose. Tenderers are required to treat the details of all documentation provided in connection with this competition as private and confidential. Similarly, the Contracting Authority undertakes to use all reasonable endeavours to ensure that any confidential information received from tenderers is not disclosed to third parties, subject always to its obligations under law and the applicable provisions of the Freedom of Information Acts. In this regard, tenderers are asked to consider if any of the information supplied by them in response to this Invitation to Tender document should not be disclosed because of its sensitivity. Tenderers must specify the precise information that is sensitive and the reasons for its sensitivity. Tenderers are advised that it is not sufficient to merely include a statement of confidentiality encompassing all information contained in a tender submission. The Contracting Authority cannot guarantee that any information provided by tenderers, either in response to this Invitation to Tender or in the course of any framework agreement awarded as a result thereof, will not be released pursuant to the Contracting Authority’s obligations under law, including the Freedom of Information Act 2014, European Procurement Directives and all Irish procurement legislation and guidance. The Contracting Authority accepts no liability whatsoever in respect of any information provided that is subsequently released or in respect of any consequential damage suffered as a result of such obligations. 3.16 Conflict of Interest Any conflict of interest involving a tenderer must be fully disclosed to the Contracting Authority. Any registrable interest involving the tenderer and the Contracting Authority, or employees of the Contracting Authority or their relatives, must be fully disclosed in the tender submission. In the event that the tenderer becomes aware of the conflict of interest only after a tender submission has been made, the conflict of interest must be immediately disclosed to the Contracting Authority. The terms ‘registrable interest’ and ‘relative’ will be interpreted in accordance with Section 2 of the Ethics in Public Office Act, 1995. Failure to disclose a conflict of interest may disqualify a tenderer or invalidate the award of any contract, depending upon when the conflict of interest is made known to the Contracting Authority. 3.17 National Legislation Tenderers are advised that national legislation applies in respect of matters such as employment, working hours, official secrets, data protection and health and safety. Tenderers must have regard to statutory terms relating to minimum pay and to legally binding industrial or sectorial agreements in preparing tenders. Moreover, tenderers are advised that the laws of Ireland will govern this competitive process. Both this competitive process and any resulting framework agreement will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Irish courts. 3.18 Determination of Responsiveness After opening tender submissions, the Contracting Authority will determine whether each tender submission is substantially responsive to the requirements of this Invitation to Tender document. If a material deviation exists that limits in any substantial way the Contracting Authority’s rights or the tenderer’s obligations under any contract to be awarded, the tender shall be rejected. 3.19 Clarification of Tenders To assist in the evaluation and associated comparison of tender submissions, the Contracting Authority may ask tenderers to clarify and supplement certain aspects of their tender submissions, including financial proposals. A request for such clarifications should not be construed as an indication of success in the competition. 3.20 Award to Runner-up If, having entered into a framework agreement as a result of this competitive process, the Contracting Authority deems that the successful tenderer cannot adequately deliver the required services, the Contracting Authority reserves the right to award the contract to the next highest-scoring tenderer identified through the evaluation of tender submissions. This shall be without prejudice to the right of the Contracting Authority to terminate this competitive process at any time or to terminate any contract awarded as a result of this competition in accordance with agreed terms. 3.21 Interference Any effort by a tenderer to unduly influence the Contracting Authority, its personnel or any other relevant persons or bodies regarding the process of examination, clarification, evaluation and comparison of tenders and any decisions concerning the award of the framework agreement shall result in the elimination of said tenderer’s tender submission. In accordance with Section 38 of the Ethics in Public Office Act 1995, any money, gift or other consideration from a person seeking success in a public tendering competition will be deemed to have been paid or given corruptly unless the contrary is proved. 3.22 Prohibition on Canvassing Any tenderer who, in connection with this competition: (a) offers any inducement, fee or reward to any member, officer or employee of the Contracting Authority or any person acting as an advisor to the Contracting Authority in connection with the competition; or (b) takes any step constituting a breach of the Prevention of Corruption Acts 1989 to 2010; or (c) canvasses any of the persons referred to in paragraph (a) above in connection with the competition; or (d) contacts any officer or employee of the Contracting Authority prior to the contract being awarded about any aspect of the competition in manner not permitted by this Invitation to Tender document may be eliminated from the competition, without prejudice to any other civil remedies available to the Contracting Authority and without prejudice to any criminal liability such conduct by a tenderer may attract. 3.23 Prohibition on Collusion Any tenderer who, in connection with this competition: (a) fixes or adjusts the amount or terms of his/her tender submission by or in accordance with any agreement or arrangement with any other tenderer (other than a member of his own grouping or consortium); or (b) enters into any agreement or arrangement with any other tenderer that he/she shall refrain from tendering or as to the amount or terms of any tender to be submitted; or (c) causes or induces any person to enter into such an agreement or arrangement as referred to in paragraphs (a) or (b) above; or (d) informs any tenderer of the amount, approximate amount or terms of any rival tender; or (e) canvasses any other tenderer in connection with this competition; or (f) offers or agrees to pay or give, or does pay or give, any sum of money, inducement or valuable consideration directly or indirectly to any person for any information in connection with any rival tender submission; or (g) communicates to any person other than the Contracting Authority the amount or approximate amount or terms of his proposed tender submission (except in the event that such disclosure is made in confidence and is necessary for the preparation of the tender submission); or (h) contacts any officer or employee of the Contracting Authority prior to the contract being awarded about any aspect of the competition in manner not permitted by this Invitation to Tender document may be eliminated from the competition, without prejudice to any other civil remedies available to the Contracting Authority and without prejudice to any criminal liability such conduct by a tenderer may attract. 3.24 Notification of Tender Evaluations All tenderers will be informed in writing of the outcome of this tender competition following the completion of the evaluation of tender submissions. 4. GROUNDS FOR EXCLUSION 4.1 Grounds for Exclusion This Section of the Invitation to Tender document details the grounds for exclusion that apply to this competition in accordance with Regulation 57 of the European Union (Award of Public Authority Contracts) Regulations 2016. A tenderer’s position under each of these grounds will be assessed by reference to the completed European Single Procurement Document (ESPD) contained in Appendix 4 of this document. The completed ESPD will comprise a ‘self-declaration’ by the tenderer that the grounds for exclusion detailed hereunder do not apply. The information contained in this Section of the Invitation to Tender document informs tenderers of how the completed ESPD will be interpreted by the Contracting Authority. For the avoidance of doubt, the Contracting Authority reserves the right to request any tenderer to provide all supporting documentation necessary to demonstrate the inapplicability of any ground for exclusion detailed hereunder. Such a request may be made at any point during the competitive process. In particular, before reaching an award decision, the Contracting Authority may require the successful tenderer to provide all supporting documentation necessary to demonstrate the inapplicability of any ground for exclusion detailed hereunder. In the event that the supporting documentation demonstrates that a ground for exclusion does, in fact, apply, the tenderer will be eliminated from this competition. (Grounds detailed overleaf) EXCLUSION GROUND REG. (i) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition if the economic operator, or a member of its administrative, management or supervisory body, has been convicted of participation in a criminal organisation, within the meaning of Article 2 of Council Framework Decision 2008/841/JHA of 24 October 2008 on the fight against organised crime. 57.1(a) (ii) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition if the economic operator, or a member of its administrative, management or supervisory body, has been convicted of corruption, as defined by Regulation 57.1(b) of the European Union (Award of Public Authority Contracts) Regulations 2016. 57.1(b) (iii) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition if the economic operator, or a member of its administrative, management or supervisory body, has been convicted of fraud, within the meaning of Article 1 of the Convention on the protection of the European Communities’ financial interests drawn up under the Council Act of 16 July 1995. 57.1(c) (iv) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition if the economic operator, or a member of its administrative, management or supervisory body, has been convicted of terrorist offences or offences linked to terrorist activities, within the meaning of Articles 1 and 3 respectively of Council Framework Decision 2002/475/JHA of 13 June 2002 on combating terrorism or inciting or aiding or abetting or attempting to commit an offence referred to in Article 4 of that Council Framework Decision. 57.1(d) (v) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition if the economic operator, or a member of its administrative, management or supervisory body, has been convicted of money laundering or terrorist financing, within the meaning of Article 1 of Directive 2005/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 October 2005 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purpose of money laundering and terrorist financing. 57.1(e) (vi) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition if the economic operator, or a member of its administrative, management or supervisory body, has been convicted of child labour and other forms of trafficking in human beings, within the meaning of Article 2 of Directive 2011/36/EU41 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 April 2011 on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims and replacing Council Framework Decision 2002/629/JHA. 57.1(f) NOTE #1: In respect of each of the exclusion grounds detailed under points (i) to (vi) above, an economic operator may provide evidence to the effect that it has undertaken sufficient measures to demonstrate its reliability, despite the existence of the ground for exclusion. Where, in the opinion of the Contracting Authority, such evidence is sufficient, the economic operator shall not be excluded from the competition. Appropriate evidence is detailed in Regulation 57.14 of the European Union (Award of Public Authority Contracts) Regulations 2016. NOTE #2: In the event that a conviction listed under points (i) to (vi) above occurred more than five years prior to the date of advertisement of this competition, the relevant ground for exclusion shall not apply. (vii) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition if the economic operator is in breach of its obligations relating to the payment of taxes or social security contributions and said breach has been established by a judicial or administrative decision having final and binding effect in accordance with the law of the country in which the operator is established or the Member State of the Contracting Authority. NOTE #1: This provision will not apply when the economic operator has fulfilled its obligations by paying, or entering into a binding arrangement with a view to paying, the taxes or social security contributions due, including, where applicable, any interest accrued or fines. NOTE #2: At the discretion of the Contracting Authority, this provision may not apply when only minor amounts of taxes or social security contributions are in question or when the economic operator did not have time, between being made aware of the breach of obligations and the commencement of this competition, to pay, or to enter into an arrangement to pay, the amounts in question. NOTE #3: In the event that the breach of obligations referred to above occurred more than five years prior to the date of advertisement of this competition, this ground for exclusion shall not apply. 57.3(a), 57.3(b) (viii) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition if the economic operator, in performance of a public contract, has not complied with all applicable obligations in the fields of environmental, social and labour law that apply at the place where the works are carried out or the services provided and that have been established by European Union law, national law, collective agreements or by international, environmental, social and labour law. 57.8(a) (ix) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition if the economic operator is bankrupt or is the subject of insolvency or winding-up proceedings, where its assets are being administered by a liquidator or by the court, where it is in an arrangement with creditors, where its business activities are suspended or it is in any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure under the law of the State. NOTE: The Contracting Authority may, at its discretion, decide not to exclude an economic operator on this ground for exclusion if it is possible for the Contracting Authority to establish that the economic operator would be able to perform the contract, taking into account national rules, measures and laws relating to the continuation of business. 57.8(b) (x) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition where the Contracting Authority can demonstrate, by appropriate means, that the economic operator is guilty of grave professional misconduct, which renders its integrity questionable. 57.8(c) (xi) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition where the Contracting Authority has sufficiently plausible indications to conclude that the economic operator has entered into arrangements with other economic operators aimed at distorting competition. 57.8(d) (xii) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition where a conflict of interest, as defined by Regulation 34 of the European Union (Award of Public Authority Contracts) Regulations 2016, cannot be effectively remedied by other, less intrusive, measures. 57.8(e) (xiii) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition where a distortion of competition from the prior involvement of the economic operator in the preparation of the procurement procedure cannot be remedied by other, less intrusive, measures. 57.8(f) (xiv) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition where the economic operator has shown significant or persistent deficiencies in the performance of a substantive requirement under a prior public contract, a prior contract with a contracting entity or a prior concession contract, which led to early termination of that prior contract, damages or other comparable sanctions. 57.8(g) (xv) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition where the economic operator has been guilty of serious misrepresentation in supplying the information required for the verification of the absence of grounds for exclusion or the fulfilment of the selection criteria, has withheld such information or is not able to submit supporting documents required under Regulation 59 of the European Union (Award of Public Authority Contracts) Regulations 2016 57.8(h) (xvi) An economic operator will be excluded from this competition where the economic operator has undertaken to unduly influence the decision-making process of the Contracting Authority, or obtain confidential information that may confer upon it undue advantages in the procurement procedure or where the economic operator has negligently provided misleading information that may have a material influence on decisions concerning exclusion, selection or award. 57.8(i) NOTE #1: In respect of each of the grounds for exclusion detailed under points (viii) to (xvi) above, an economic operator may provide evidence to the effect that it has undertaken sufficient measures to demonstrate its reliability, despite the existence of the ground for exclusion. Where, in the opinion of the Contracting Authority, such evidence is sufficient, the economic operator shall not be excluded from the competition. Appropriate evidence is detailed in Regulation 57.14 of the European Union (Award of Public Authority Contracts) Regulations 2016. NOTE #2: In respect of each of the exclusion grounds detailed under points (viii) to (xvi) above, in the event that the situation referred to occurred more than three years prior to the date of advertisement of this competition, the relevant ground for exclusion will not apply. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA 5.1 Eligibility Criteria and Associated Rules The Contracting Authority is using the open procedure for the award of this framework agreement. While any interested party may submit a tender, only those tenderers meeting the stated levels of financial and technical capacity will be considered for appointment as the successful tenderer. In order to enable the Contracting Authority to ascertain tenderers’ financial and technical capacity, all tenderers must complete the ESPD contained in Appendix 4 of this document. In particular, Part IV of the ESPD constitutes a ‘self-declaration’ to the effect that the tenderer complies with each of the eligibility criteria and rules detailed hereunder. Once the ESPD has been completed, no additional response to these eligibility criteria is required. For the avoidance of doubt, the Contracting Authority reserves the right to request any tenderer to provide all supporting documentation necessary to demonstrate compliance with all eligibility criteria detailed hereunder. Such a request may be made at any point during the competitive process. In particular, before reaching an award decision, the Contracting Authority may require the successful tenderer to provide all supporting documentation necessary to demonstrate compliance with all eligibility criteria detailed hereunder. In the event that the supporting documentation demonstrates that any eligibility criterion is not complied with, the tenderer will be eliminated from this competition. (Criteria detailed overleaf) (a) INSURANCES REQUIREMENT It is a requirement that tenderers either possess the following forms and levels of insurance, or are in a position to implement the following forms and levels of insurance if successful in the competition: Public Liability - €6.5m Employer’s Liability - €13m Professional Indemnity - €250,000 ESPD REFERENCE AND MEANS OF PROOF By completing the ESPD contained in Appendix 4 of this Invitation to Tender document, tenderers are confirming that they either possess the forms and levels of insurance indicated or, alternatively, that they are in a position to obtain the forms and levels of insurance indicated if successful in this competition. Should the Contracting Authority elect to seek supporting evidence from tenderers confirming the assertions made in the ESPD in respect of this eligibility criterion, the following means of proof will be acceptable to the Contracting Authority to confirm that this criterion is complied with: Evidence of the possession of the required forms and levels of insurance (i.e., certificates of insurance provided by brokers or underwriters); A signed letter from the tenderer’s insurance broker to the effect that the required forms and levels of insurance can be implemented should the tenderer prove successful in this competition. ELIMINATION Should a tenderer fail to provide appropriate supporting evidence within five working days of a request to do so, the tenderer in question will be eliminated from further consideration. (b) FINANCIAL CAPACITY REQUIREMENT It is a requirement that tenderers have attained a turnover of at least €400,000 in any one of the three previous financial years. ESPD REFERENCE AND MEANS OF PROOF By completing the ESPD contained in Appendix 4, tenderers are confirming that they have attained a turnover of at least €400,000 in any one of the three previous financial years. Should the Contracting Authority elect to seek supporting evidence from tenderers confirming the assertions made in the ESPD in respect of this eligibility criterion, the following means of proof will be acceptable to the Contracting Authority to confirm that this criterion is complied with: An objectively verifiable statement of the tenderer’s overall turnover (e.g., an auditor’s statement). ELIMINATION Should a tenderer fail to provide appropriate supporting evidence and means of proof within five working days of a request to do so, the tenderer in question will be eliminated from further consideration. (c) TAX CLEARANCE REQUIREMENT It is a requirement that tenderers either possess a Tax Clearance Certificate issued by the Irish Revenue Commissioners, or will possess such certification prior to the award of this contract. For the avoidance of doubt, it is emphasised that the Contracting Authority is precluded from processing invoices submitted by economic operators not in possession of an Irish Tax Clearance Certificate. ESPD REFERENCE AND MEANS OF PROOF By completing the ESPD contained in Appendix 4, tenderers are confirming that they either possess a Tax Clearance Certificate issued by the Irish Revenue Commissioners or have applied for such a certificate. Should the Contracting Authority elect to seek supporting evidence from tenderers confirming the assertions made in the ESPD in respect of this eligibility criterion, the following means of proof will be acceptable to the Contracting Authority to confirm that this criterion is complied with: A reference to electronic evidence of tax clearance status issued by the Irish Revenue Commissioners (i.e., a screenshot, a hyperlink or any other appropriate material); Copies of correspondence between the tenderer and the Irish Revenue Commissioners. ELIMINATION Should a tenderer fail to provide appropriate supporting evidence and means of proof within five working days of a request to do so, the tenderer in question will be eliminated from further consideration. (f) STATUTORY OBLIGATIONS REQUIREMENT It is a requirement that tenderers are in full compliance with all relevant statutory obligations, including the following: Employment Equality Act 1998; Equal Status Act 2000; Equality Act 2004; Minimum Wage Act 2000; Employment Regulation Orders of the Irish Labour Court; The Working Time Directive (Directive 93/104/EC, as amended by Directive 2000/34/EC); The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 and all associated legislation Tenderers must have procedures in place to ensure that subcontractors utilised for the purposes of providing services under this framework agreement (if any) apply the same standards. ESPD REFERENCE AND MEANS OF PROOF By completing the ESPD contained in Appendix 4, tenderers are confirming that they are in a position of compliance with all legislative obligations set out above. Should the Contracting Authority elect to seek supporting evidence from tenderers confirming the assertions made in the ESPD in respect of this eligibility criterion, the following means of proof will be acceptable to the Contracting Authority to confirm that this criterion is complied with: A copy of all documents, procedures and protocols that will serve to demonstrate compliance with the legislative obligations in question. ELIMINATION Should a tenderer fail to provide appropriate supporting evidence and means of proof within five working days of a request to do so, the tenderer in question will be eliminated from further consideration. (g) PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENT It is a requirement that tenderers have successfully delivered, within the previous three years, two projects of a similar nature, scale and complexity to the requirement comprising the subject-matter of this competition. In order to be deemed genuinely comparable in terms of nature, scale and complexity, the services in question must have involved the provision of full Strategic Creative Campaign Services to an organisation of comparable complexity and scale to the Contracting Authority. ESPD REFERENCE AND MEANS OF PROOF By completing the ESPD contained in Appendix 4, tenderers are confirming that they have successfully delivered, within the previous three years, two contracts of a similar nature, scale and complexity to the requirement comprising the subject matter of this competition. Should the Contracting Authority elect to seek supporting evidence from tenderers confirming the assertions made in the ESPD in respect of this eligibility criterion, the following means of proof will be acceptable to the Contracting Authority to confirm that this criterion is complied with: Suitable references from two current/previous customers, detailing, at a minimum, the value of the service, the duration of the contracts in question, the nature of the role, and a statement to the effect that the contracts were, in their entirety, successfully executed. ELIMINATION Should a tenderer fail to provide appropriate supporting evidence and means of proof within five working days of a request to do so, the tenderer in question will be eliminated from further consideration. 6. AWARD CRITERIA This framework agreement will be established with the tenderer submitting the most economically advantageous tender, identified following application of the award criteria and weightings detailed hereunder. It is emphasised that the Contracting Authority is not bound to accept the most economically advantageous tender or any tender received, and reserves the right to accept or reject in whole or in part any or all tenders received. 6.1 Award Criteria and Weightings CRITERION % MAXIMUM SCORE MINIMUM REQUIRED SCORE A Technical Merit of Proposed Resources 20 2,000 1,200 B Quantity and Balance of Proposed Resources 10 1,000 600 C Proposed Methodology for Service Delivery 30 3,000 1,800 D Proposed Account Management Methodology 10 1,000 600 E Notional Ultimate Cost for Evaluation Purposes 30 3,000 N/A TOTALS 100 10,000 N/A 6.2 Award Criteria Explained (Award criteria commence overleaf) CRITERION A – TECHNICAL MERIT OF PROPOSED RESOURCES (20%) Tenderers must outline the expertise of the team proposed for service delivery. In order to attain the minimum required score associated with this criterion, responses must adequately address the following elements: Tenderers must list the service delivery team (including the Account Director) who will be directly involved in delivering the required services, with the role of each team member clearly defined; Tenderers must include a comprehensive organisation chart for the service delivery team (and, where relevant, for wider organisational team members), which must clearly demonstrate all reporting and communication lines and all relevant hierarchical relationships; Tenderers must provide a narrative statement that describes the overall suitability of the team as a whole, when considered against the context of the Contracting Authority’s advertised requirements; Tenderers must provide individual profiles detailing relevant professional qualifications, experience and skillset for each member of the nominated core team (Maximum ½ of one A4 page per person). Tenderers must demonstrate the skills, expertise and reliability of the service delivery team by including in their responses a number of case studies (Maximum of 2 x A4 pages per case study) for the Evaluation Team’s consideration, as follows: One case study must be provided to demonstrate the tenderer’s strategic and creative development of a brand / reputation campaign for an existing client within the preceding three years; One case study must be provided to demonstrate the tenderer’s strategic and creative development of a brand / product campaign for an existing client within the preceding three years, specifically targeting an audience of 16-20 year olds; One case study must be provided to demonstrate the tenderer’s strategic and creative development of a brand / product campaign for an existing client targeting a B2B audience, within the preceding three years. Regarding at least one of the three case studies sought, tenderers must explicitly demonstrate the manner in which their approach explicitly took into account equality, diversity and inclusion. Tenderers are advised to ensure that their responses to this criterion are succinct and relevant. A failure to address any of the foregoing points (either at all or in sufficient detail) will result in a failure to attain the minimum required score associated with this criterion and the consequent elimination of the tender submission in question from further consideration. Scores in excess of the minimum required score shall be apportioned by reference to the overall relative merit of responses. (Criteria continue overleaf) CRITERION B – QUANTITY AND BALANCE OF PROPOSED RESOURCES (10%) This criterion will be assessed by reference to completed versions of the Pricing Schedule contained in Appendix 2 of this Invitation to Tender document. In completing the Pricing Schedule, tenderers are asked to provide a pricing proposal for delivering the Sample Campaign Brief contained in Appendix 1 of this Invitation to Tender document. In order to attain the minimum required score associated with this criterion, completed Pricing Schedules must comply with the following conditions: The completed Pricing Schedule must demonstrate that a sufficient and appropriate overall number of hours has been proposed to successfully deliver the Sample Campaign Brief contained in Appendix 1; The completed Pricing Schedule must enable the Evaluation Team to place due confidence in the fact that a sufficient quantity of hours has been assigned to each required resource to meet all objectives potentially arising under the Sample Campaign Brief contained in Appendix 1; The completed Pricing Schedule must demonstrate an appropriate division of workload between different technical skillsets; The completed Pricing Schedule must demonstrate an appropriate division of workload between different levels of seniority. Due to the Contracting Authority’s proficiency in this area, it encourages tenderers to demonstrate a lean and efficient use of the tenderer’s resources when responding to this criterion. In the event that a completed version of the Pricing Schedule fails to comply with any of the foregoing conditions, the tender submission shall fail to attain the minimum required score associated with this criterion and, in consequence, shall be eliminated from further consideration. Scores in excess of the minimum required score shall be apportioned by reference to the appropriateness of the quantity of hours proposed and the balance between (i) skillsets and (ii) levels of seniority apparent. CRITERION C – PROPOSED METHODOLOGY FOR SERVICE DELIVERY (30%) Tenderers are advised that a sample campaign brief is contained in Appendix 1 of this Invitation to Tender document. While a full creative response to this award criterion is not required, tenderers are required to demonstrate their understanding of the nature and challenges of the brief by outlining a proposed methodology for service delivery that takes due account of the brief. In order to attain the minimum required score associated with this criterion, responses must adequately address the following elements: Tenderers must demonstrate how research would be appropriately utilised to provide an informed understanding of the target audience; Tenderers must demonstrate how the impact of each type of media would be maximised when attempting to reach the target audience through creative messaging; Tenderers must demonstrate a high-quality and robust strategic approach to the sample campaign brief and must include a high-level, outline creative concept for consideration by the Evaluation Team; Tenderers must explicitly demonstrate the merit of their proposed strategic planning mechanisms, to include audience understanding, timeline planning, message articulation, creative development, pre-testing, pre-production, creative production, post-production and rollout to a wide range of paid media channels; Tenderers must include an indicative project plan/critical path in response to the sample campaign brief, which must contain relevant project milestones aligned to nominated resources; Tenderers must demonstrate the manner in which they would source third-party services and manage third-party costs for the conduct of the Sample Campaign. Tenderers should complete the third party cost schedule (tab 4 of the workbook Appendix 2) to supplement their approach to the engagement of third-parties and to the management of resulting costs. Tenderers must make specific reference to their proposed approaches to translating campaign assets into Gaeilge. In responding to this criterion, tenderers may wish to include scripts and storyboards for video; however, no animation is required. Similarly, while scripts for radio may be included, no audio is required. Finally, whereas roughs for print, digital and OOH may be included, no original photography is required. A failure to address any of the points listed under this criterion (either at all or in sufficient detail) will result in a failure to attain the minimum required score associated with this criterion and the consequent elimination of the tender submission in question from further consideration. Scores in excess of the minimum required score shall be apportioned by reference to the overall relative merit of responses. (Criteria continue overleaf) CRITERION D – PROPOSED ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT METHODOLOGY (10%) In accordance with Section 2.3 of the Specification of Requirements, tenderers are required to provide a draft Service Level Agreement for consideration by the Contracting Authority. In order to attain the minimum required score associated with this criterion, draft Service Level Agreements must comprehensively address at least the following matters: All general Quality Assurance mechanisms that will be relied upon to ensure the delivery of a high-quality service to the Contracting Authority; The likely subject-matter and frequency of all account management meetings and Service Level Review Meetings (which must be held at least bi-annually); All mechanisms that will be relied upon to ensure the availability of the successful tenderer’s resources to the Contracting Authority; A clear approach to budget management including invoicing practices; All mechanisms that will be employed to ensure adherence to production project plans and campaign production timelines; All dispute resolution, complaint management and escalation procedures that will be relied upon to ensure that any issues arising in respect of service delivery are appropriately resolved; All metrics that will be relied upon to monitor successful service delivery, together with associated monitoring methodologies and penalties that will apply in the event that agreed Key Performance Indicators are not met. All mechanisms that will be implemented to ensure that the Contracting Authority fully adheres to the regulations of the Official Languages Act (i.e., the sourcing of high quality Gaeilge translations, fluent Gaeilge VOs, etc. for creative assets). In the event that the proposed Service Level Agreement fails to address any of the points listed under this criterion (either at all or in sufficient detail), the response will fail to attain the minimum required score associated with this criterion and the tender submission as a whole will be eliminated from further consideration. Scores in excess of the minimum required score shall be apportioned by reference to the overall relative merit of responses. (Criteria continue overleaf) CRITERION E – NOTIONAL ULTIMATE COST FOR EVALUATION PURPOSES (30%) Tenderers must complete the Pricing Schedule contained in Appendix 2, which sets out the manner in which a single cost figure will be arrived at for evaluation purposes. This single cost figure must be carried forward, unaltered, to the Form of Tender contained in Appendix 3. Scores will be apportioned under this criterion in accordance with the following formula: Points awarded = (the maximum score achievable) multiplied by (the cost of the lowest-cost valid tender*) divided by (the cost of the valid tender in question). NOTE: The phrase ‘lowest-cost valid tender’ refers to a tender not eliminated by virtue of a failure to attain the minimum required score associated with a qualitative award criterion. (Criteria end) 6.3 Assessment of Qualitative Responses As a general condition of evaluation, the Contracting Authority will utilise the evaluation process in order to determine whether each tender submission is substantially responsive to the requirements of this Invitation to Tender document. If a material deviation exists that limits in any substantial way the Contracting Authority’s rights or the tenderer’s obligations under the framework agreement to be awarded, the tender submission may, depending upon the severity of the deviation in question, be rejected. The evaluation team shall rely upon the following scoring bands for the purposes of apportioning scores under the qualitative award criteria: ELIMINATED 0% of marks available No response 20% of marks available Poor 40% of marks available Mediocre ELIGIBLE 60% of marks available Acceptable 70% of marks available Good 80% of marks available Very Good 90% of marks available Excellent 100% of marks available Outstanding 6.4 Minimum Qualitative Score Required Tenderers should note that they must achieve a minimum rating of ‘acceptable,’ or 60% of the total marks available, for all qualitative award criteria in order to avoid elimination from the competition. For the avoidance of doubt, a failure to attain any minimum required score will result in the elimination of the tender submission in question from further consideration. Should a tender submission fail to attain a minimum required score, tenderer’s attention is drawn to the fact that the following provisions shall apply: The tender submission in question shall not be subject to a comparative assessment against other tender submissions. The financial proposal contained in the tender submission in question shall not be subject to evaluation under Award Criterion D (Notional Ultimate Cost for Evaluation Purposes). The tenderer in question will be notified of the reasons for the failure to attain the minimum required score. Additionally, the tenderer in question shall be informed of the name of the successful tenderer. On the basis that no comparative assessment will have taken place and the financial proposal of the tenderer in question will not have been assessed, the characteristics and relative advantages of the successful Tenderer under any qualitative or financial criterion will not be provided, by virtue of the fact that the Contracting Authority will not have access to such information. 6.5 Verification/Clarification Meetings Meetings for the purpose of verification/clarification may be carried out with appropriate tenderers as an element of the evaluation process in order to identify the most economically advantageous tenders. Such meetings may be required in order to verify the scores achieved by tenderers in respect of their written tenders. For the avoidance of doubt, tenderers should note that mere performance at interview will not of itself be evaluated. In the event that such meetings are required, information regarding location and times will be communicated to the chosen tenderers. In order to ensure the optimum effectiveness of such meetings, it is strongly recommended that key personnel of the tenderer’s account management and creative team should attend. 6.6 Acceptance of Assessment Methodology By submitting a tender, each tenderer acknowledges that the evaluation of tender submissions will be conducted in accordance with the procedures laid down in this Invitation to Tender document. Any queries, reservations or observations should properly be raised by tenderers via the communications protocol contained in Section 3 of this document prior to the submission of a tender. Appendix 1 - Creative Brief for the Purposes of Evaluation Campaign UCD CAO Brand/Product campaign Background UCD is a campus based and research-intensive university. It is Ireland’s largest university and is the second most highly ranked university by the two most respected international rankings agencies, QS and THE. UCD is Ireland’s largest university with over 38,000 students – including over 9,000 international students from over 150 countries and 5,500 in overseas campuses. With over 170 years of tradition, UCD has been a major contributor to the making of modern Ireland, leading and shaping agendas since its foundation in 1854. UCD was created from an idea, its founder St. John Henry Newman’s The Idea of a University, written in 1852. This idea sought ‘true enlargement of mind’ and ‘a university mission to benefit the wider world’. To this day, UCD stays true to this ethos. UCD’s participation data, showing one-third participation among under-represented groups, makes us Ireland’s most inclusive university, however this strength is not widely known or understood. This may in part be due to UCD’s aim to mainstream inclusion of under-represented groups, with an outlook dubbed ‘University for ALL’. With its reputation for excellence of teaching, broad breadth of subjects, a holistic learning experience and extensive facilities and opportunities to participate in clubs, sports and societies, UCD held the position as No.1 for first preferences among CAO applicants from 2012 to 2021. (First preferences being the term associated with the first choice course on an applicant’s CAO form). Although UCD is still No. 1 in total choices, for the most recent CAO cycles, Trinity College Dublin has increased its first preferences to the extent that it now has the No.1 position in terms of share of first preferences. UCD aims to regain the position of No.1 in first preferences because more first preferences means more students accepting their place and studying what they really want, which helps prevent students dropping out, helps them succeed at university, enjoy and recommend UCD: it is a virtuous circle. UCD Central Marketing each year produces a three-phased CAO campaign consisting of Undergraduate Open Day, CAO main campaign and CAO Change of Mind campaign. Target Market Primary target audiences: Prospective Undergraduate students (primarily leaving cert students) and their influencers (parents / guardians / teachers) Secondary school students from transition year to 6th year - they form opinions about the potential areas of study and colleges/universities offering them from transition year. Geographics: UCD applicants come from all across Ireland, with an East coast/Leinster skew. Small but growing numbers of EU and UK/NI students apply to UCD and other HEIs through the CAO (Students from outside the EU apply directly and are not counted in CAO numbers). This includes CAO applicants from under-represented groups: access routes including Mature students, HEAR, DARE, QQI-FET, asylum seekers, members of the travelling community Choice factors: course is critical, but quality of educational institution and the experience of studying there are also key factors Points: average points at UCD are very high Influencers: parents / guardians of group 1 (paid campaign audience) play a big role in their children’s college choice, particularly with the increasing cost considerations. Campaign Objectives For UCD to be No.1 in Ireland for CAO first preferences - Solidify UCD as a university that students from all backgrounds aspire to attend Convey excellence of education (globally recognised, high quality degrees), incomparable campus experience (facilities, sports, clubs, space), inclusion and welcome (University for ALL, extensive student supports, Peer mentoring, extensive Equality, Diversity and Inclusion initiatives and a tangible inclusive mentality) Recent market research carried out specifically with these target audiences (prospective student and their parents/guardians) has garnered the following areas of focus: UCD’s strength re: student experience should be dialled up UCD’s campus size is a strength for some and barrier for others - help showcase the benefits of our campus, balanced with the warmth, the supports in place, and the sense of belonging that others are experiencing here, which can showcase UCD at its best while also helping to dispel apprehension that some prospective students may have. Parents are of the view that universities struggle to differentiate from one another beyond historically ingrained perceptions that are arguably weakening as the bar continues to be raised in terms of quality perception of universities and technological universities across Ireland. Practical considerations such as Dublin accommodation and transport are more of a factor in consideration than in the past. Requirements Do: - Develop a suite of integrated campaign assets which can match the most persuasive and compelling messages to the most appropriate channels and formats to convey them to the audience- Demonstrate how all elements of creative can be produced as Gaeilge, in keeping with the requirements of the Official Languages act - Creatively and visually meet or exceed the level of ambition demonstrated in past campaigns - Reflect the diversity and welcome that is true to UCD - Build on the new brand positioning - Develop messaging that is adaptable across customer journeys including on landing pages and CRM journeys. Don’t: - Limit the ability of the campaign theme or assets to be iterated or updated over subsequent cycles Relevant Statistics Key stats on UCD: http://www.ucd.ie/about-ucd/about/ucdbynumbers/https://strategy.ucd.ie/ Tone Ambitious: driven, empowering, authoritativePeople-centred: warm, open, supportive Imaginative: curious, innovative, investigative Purposeful: authentic, responsible, inspiring Media Most likely video 6”, 10”, 15”, 30”, social (all formats) audio (radio &amp; Spotify), digital display, print, OOH. Timelines Production in advance of campaign cycles which begin in October Budget Production budget of (€200,000 ex. VAT) for the three phases of the CAO brand/product campaign. Deliverables for this pitch Demonstrate the agency’s approach to strategic planning including market analysis, audience understanding, brand analysis, and message articulation for the CAO audiences as outlined above. Provide a detailed rationale for your campaign approach which is be suitable for the following 3 phases of a CAO campaign and distinguish the differences between the three distinct phases of the overall campaign detailed below: 1. Undergraduate Open Day: 2 week burst with the aim to drive registrations to attend Open Day, 2. CAO main campaign Dec-Jan (6-8 weeks) campaign for awareness/consideration 3. CAO Change of Mind campaign (4-5 weeks) for reminder/ behaviour change These presentations must be limited to: Scripts and storyboards for video. No animations required for the pitch process Scripts for radio. No audio required for the pitch process Roughs for print, digital, OOH, etc. No original photography required for the pitch process Any other key material you feel will help support your proposed direction.Please make specific reference to your proposed approach to translate campaign assets into Gaeilge. APPENDIX 2 – PRICING SCHEDULE Please consult the separate Excel document, which must be completed and returned with tender submissions. APPENDIX 3 - FORM OF TENDER This Form of Tender must be completed, signed and returned by tenderers. The purpose of this document is to facilitate the evaluation of tender submissions on a like-for-like basis. Any action that frustrates this aim may result in the elimination of the tender submission in question as inadmissible. Additionally, any amendment to the structure of this document, or any qualification of financial offers, may, at the sole discretion of the Contracting Authority, result in the elimination of the tender submission in question as inadmissible. Contracting Authority: University College Dublin Competition: A Single Party Framework Agreement for the provision of Strategic, Creative and Production Campaign services for multi-channel marketing campaigns From: _________________________________________ I/We, having read the full Tender Documents and associated Appendices, do hereby offer to provide the whole of the services described to the entire satisfaction of the Contracting Authority, for the following price, and will enter into a framework agreement accordingly: ULTIMATE COST FOR EVALUATION PURPOSES (Carried forward from the Form of Tender in Appendix 2) Insert I/We confirm that I/we: Will keep this offer open for acceptance by the Contracting Authority for a period of twelve months from the date of deadline for submission of tenders; Have formulated a commercially sustainable offer that takes into account any potential implications of inflation, cost increases or alterations to our operating costs; Agree that you are not bound to accept the most economically advantageous tender or any tender you may receive; Have read and thoroughly examined the Invitation to Tender document and fully understand the Invitation to Tender document and the Contracting Authority’s requirements; Undertake to treat the details of this Invitation to Tender document, the resulting tender submission and any subsequent clarifications as private and confidential; Acknowledge that acceptance by the Contracting Authority of a tender will not constitute a binding and enforceable agreement and that a legally enforceable agreement will not exist until and unless the contract has been formally concluded by the Contracting Authority and the successful tenderer; Have availed of all offers for additional information or have otherwise satisfied myself/ourselves as to conditions that may in any manner affect the performance of the framework agreement; Have included in our pricing submission everything necessary for the performance of this contract as specified, including all elements that are either expressly stated in the Tender Documents or contained in any supplementary information or which could reasonably be inferred therefrom; Have found no errors, omissions, conflicts or ambiguities in the tender document, except those which I/we have brought to the attention of the Contracting Authority before the latest date for submitting queries; Have included for compliance with all statutory requirements applicable in Ireland and those applicable in any country where parts of the contract may be performed that are in force seven days prior to the deadline for receipt of tenders; Will not, if awarded this contract, employ labour in a manner that is discriminatory in relation to gender, race, religious beliefs, age, etc and will not, if awarded this contract, source any goods or services in countries subject to official international trading sanctions. SIGNATURE (Insert) Date (Insert) Name (Insert) Position (Insert) Telephone (Insert) Email (Insert) A Tenderer’s failure to sign and date this Form of Tender and to complete all sections will invalidate the tender submission. APPENDIX 4 – EUROPEAN SINGLE PROCUREMENT DOCUMENT This document must be completed and returned by tenderers. The completed version of this document will constitute a ‘self-declaration’ that the grounds for exclusion detailed in Section 4 of the Invitation to Tender document do not apply to the tenderer and that the tenderer is in a position to comply with each of the eligibility criteria detailed in Section 5 of the Invitation to Tender document. Failure to complete all sections of this document will result in the tenderer’s elimination from this competition. Moreover, failure to provide sufficient detail in respect of any field may, at the discretion of the Contracting Authority, result in the elimination of the tenderer in question. Any misrepresentation in respect of the completed document will result in the tenderer’s elimination from this and future procurement competitions. Tenderers may reuse a European Single Procurement Document previously submitted in respect of another competition. Alternatively, in the event that a tenderer has previously completed an electronic version of this document, the tenderer may provide the Contracting Authority with electronic access to the relevant document. In both instances, it is imperative that the completed version of the European Single Procurement Document contains all of the information sought by this document. For the avoidance of doubt, the Contracting Authority reserves the right to request any tenderer to provide all supporting documentation necessary to demonstrate the inapplicability of any ground for exclusion detailed in Section 4 of the Invitation to Tender document. Additionally, the Contracting Authority reserves the right to request any tenderer to provide all supporting documentation necessary to demonstrate compliance with the eligibility criteria detailed in Section 5 of the Invitation to Tender document. Such requests may be made at any point during the competitive process. In particular, before reaching an award decision, the Contracting Authority may require the successful tenderer to provide all supporting documentation necessary to confirm the assertions made hereunder. If a tenderer fails to provide supporting documentation necessary to confirm the assertions made hereunder within five working days of a request to do so from the Contracting Authority, the tenderer in question will be eliminated from the competition. PART I – INFORMATION CONCERNING THE PROCUREMENT PROCEDURE AND THE CONTRACTING AUTHORITY IDENTITY OF THE PROCURER: ANSWER: Name: University College Dublin Which procurement is concerned? THE PROVISION OF STRATEGIC, CREATIVE AND PRODUCTION CAMPAIGN SERVICES FOR MULTI-CHANNEL MARKETING CAMPAIGNS Title or short description of the procurement: THE PROVISION OF STRATEGIC, CREATIVE AND PRODUCTION CAMPAIGN SERVICES FOR MULTI-CHANNEL MARKETING CAMPAIGNS File reference number attributed: UCDOPP5581 PART II – INFORMATION CONCERNING THE ECONOMIC OPERATOR A: INFORMATION ABOUT THE ECONOMIC OPERATOR IDENTIFICATION: ANSWER: Name: Insert VAT-number, if applicable: (If no VAT-number is applicable, please indicate another national identification number, if required and applicable) Insert Postal Address: Insert Contact Person or Persons: Insert Telephone: Insert E-mail: Insert Internet address, if applicable: Insert GENERAL INFORMATION: ANSWER: Is the economic operator a Micro, a Small or a Medium-Sized Enterprise? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 Define which: Insert Only in the case the procurement is reserved, is the economic operator a sheltered workshop, a ‘social business,’ or will it provide for the performance of the contract in the context of sheltered employment programmes? NOT APPLICABLE If yes, what is the corresponding percentage of disabled or disadvantaged workers? If required, please specify which category or categories of disabled or disadvantaged workers the employees concerned belong to. NOT APPLICABLE If applicable, is the economic operator registered on an official list of approved economic operators or does it have an equivalent certificate (e.g., under a national [pre]qualification system)? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 Not Applicable 🖵 If you have answered ‘yes’ to the above question, answer the remaining parts of this Section, Section B and, where relevant, Section C of Part II. Then complete and sign Part VI. (i.e., if you have answered ‘yes’ to the above question, there is no need to complete Parts III and IV of this Appendix). Please provide the name of the list or certification and the relevant registration or certificate number, if applicable: Insert If the certificate of registration or certification is available electronically, please state: Insert web address, issuing authority or body, precise reference of the documentation. Please state the references on which the registration or certification is based and, where applicable, the classification obtained in the official list: Insert Does the registration or certification cover all of the required selection criteria? (If ‘no,’ please complete and sign Appendix IV of this document.) Yes 🖵 No 🖵 Will the economic operator be able to provide a certificate with regard to the payment of social security contributions and taxes or provide information enabling the Contracting Authority or Contracting Entity to obtain it directly by accessing a national database in any Member State that is available free of charge? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 (If the relevant documentation is available electronically, please insert the web address, the issuing authority or body and the precise reference of the documentation). FORM OF PARTICIPATION ANSWER: Is the economic operator participating in the procurement procedure together with others? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If you have answered ‘yes’ to the above question, please ensure that the others concerned provide a separate ESPD document and please answer the questions below: If ‘yes,’ please indicate the role of the economic operator in the group (e.g., leader, responsible for specific tasks, etc.): Insert If ‘yes,’ please identify the other economic operators participating in the procurement procedure together: Insert Where applicable, please insert the name of the participating group: Insert LOTS: ANSWER: Where applicable, please indicate the lot(s) for which the economic operator wishes to tender: NOT APPLICABLE B: INFORMATION ABOUT REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ECONOMIC OPERATOR Where applicable, please indicate the name(s) and address(es) of the person(s) empowered to represent the economic operator for the purposes of this procurement procedure: REPRESENTATION, IF ANY: ANSWER: Full Name: (Accompanied by the date and place of birth, if required) Insert Position / Acting in the capacity of: Insert Postal Address: Insert Telephone: Insert E-mail: Insert If necessary, please provide detailed information regarding the representation (e.g., its form, extent, purpose, etc). Insert C: INFORMATION ABOUT RELIANCE ON THE CAPACITIES OF OTHER ENTITIES RELIANCE: ANSWER: Does the economic operator rely on the capacities of other entities in order to meet the eligibility criteria for this competition as set out in Section 5 of the associated Invitation to Tender document? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes,’ please provide a separate ESPD form setting out the information required under Sections A and B of this Part and Part III of this Appendix for each of the entities concerned, duly completed and signed by the entities concerned. Please note that this should also include any technicians or technical bodies, not belonging directly to the economic operator’s undertaking, especially those responsible for quality control and, in the case of public works contracts, the technicians or technical bodies upon whom the economic operator can call in order to carry out the work. Insofar as it is relevant for the specific capacity or capacities on which the economic operator relies, it may also be necessary for some or all of the entities concerned to complete Part IV of this Appendix. D: INFORMATION CONCERNING SUBCONTRACTORS ON WHOSE CAPACITY THE ECONOMIC OPERATOR DOES NOT RELY SUBCONTRACTING ANSWER: Does the economic operator intend to subcontract any share of the contract to third parties? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes,’ and so far as is known, please list the proposed subcontractors. If ‘yes,’ please provide the information required under Sections A and B of this part for each of the subcontractors concerned. PART III – EXCLUSION GROUNDS A: GROUNDS RELATING TO CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS Article 57.1 of Directive 2014/24/EU sets out the following reasons for exclusion: Participation in a criminal organisation; Corruption; Fraud; Terrorist offences or offences linked to terrorist activities; Money laundering or terrorist financing; Child labour and other forms of trafficking in human beings. GROUNDS: ANSWER: Has the economic operator itself or any person who is a member of its administrative, management or supervisory body or has powers of representation, decision or control therein been the subject of a conviction for one of the reasons listed above, by a conviction rendered at the most five years ago or in which an exclusion period set out directly in the conviction continues to be applicable? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If the relevant documentation is available electronically, please insert the web address, the issuing authority or body and the precise reference of the documentation. If ‘yes,’ please provide the following information: Date of conviction, which of the grounds for conviction (points 1 to 6 above) is concerned and the reason(s) for the conviction: Insert dates, points and reasons. Identify who has been convicted: Insert Insofar as is established directly in the conviction: Insert the length of the period of exclusion and the point(s) concerned. If the relevant documentation is available electronically, please insert the web address, the issuing authority or body and the precise reference of the documentation. In cases of convictions, has the economic operator taken measures to demonstrate its reliability despite the existence of a relevant ground for exclusion (as per Article 57.6 of Directive 2014/24/EU)? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes’ please insert a comprehensive description of the measures taken. B: GROUNDS RELATING TO THE PAYMENT OF TAXES OR SOCIAL SECURITY CONTRIBUTIONS PAYMENT OF TAXES / SOCIAL SECURITY: ANSWER: Has the economic operator met all of its obligations relating to the payment of taxes or social security contributions, both in the country in which it is established and in the Member State of the Contracting Authority if other than the country of establishment? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If the relevant documentation concerning payment of taxes or social contributions is available electronically, please indicate: Please insert the web address, the issuing authority or body and the precise reference of the documentation. If the economic operator has not met all of its obligations relating to the payment of taxes or social security contributions, please provide the following information: Country or member state concerned: Taxes Social Contributions Insert Insert What is the amount concerned? Insert Insert How has this breach of obligations been established? Insert Insert If through a judicial or administrative decision, is this decision final and binding? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If through a judicial or administrative decision, please indicate the date of conviction or decision: Insert Insert If through a judicial or administrative decision, and in the case of a conviction, please provide the length of the period of exclusion: Insert Insert If this breach of obligations has been established by other means, please indicate the other means in question: Insert Insert Has the economic operator fulfilled its obligations by paying or entering into a binding arrangement with a view to paying the taxes or social security contributions due, including, where applicable, any interest or accrued fines? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If the relevant documentation concerning payment of taxes or social contributions is available electronically, please indicate: Please insert the web address, the issuing authority or body and the precise reference of the documentation. C: GROUNDS RELATING TO INSOLVENCY, CONFLICTS OF INTEREST OR PROFESSIONAL MISCONDUCT GROUNDS: ANSWER: Has the economic operator, to its knowledge, breached its obligations in the fields of environmental, social and labour law? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If the economic operator has breached its obligations in the fields of environmental, social and labour law, has the economic operator taken measures to demonstrate its reliability despite the existence of a relevant ground for exclusion (as per Article 57.6 of Directive 2014/24/EU)? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes’ please insert a comprehensive description of the measures taken. Is the economic operator in any of the following situations: Bankrupt; The subject of insolvency or winding-up proceedings; In an arrangement with creditors; In any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure under national laws and regulations; That its assets are being administered by a liquidator or the court; That its business activities are suspended? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If the economic operator is in any of the situations mentioned in the immediately preceding question, please provide comprehensive details of the situation: Insert Please provide the reasons for nevertheless being able to perform the contract or framework agreement, taking into account the applicable national rules and measures on the continuation of business in those circumstances, as per Article 57.4 of Directive 2014/24/EU. Insert If the relevant documentation is available electronically, please indicate: Please insert the web address, the issuing authority or body and the precise reference of the documentation. Is the economic operator guilty of grave professional misconduct? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes’ please insert a comprehensive description of the matter. If the economic operator is guilty of grave professional misconduct, has the economic operator taken measures to demonstrate its reliability despite the existence of a relevant ground for exclusion (as per Article 57.6 of Directive 2014/24/EU)? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes’ please insert a comprehensive description of the measures taken. Has the economic operator entered into arrangements with other economic operators aimed at distorting competition? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes’ please insert a comprehensive description of the arrangements in question. If the economic operator has entered into arrangements with other economic operators aimed at distorting competition, has the economic operator taken measures to demonstrate its reliability despite the existence of a relevant ground for exclusion (as per Article 57.6 of Directive 2014/24/EU)? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes’ please insert a comprehensive description of the measures taken. Is the economic operator aware of any conflict of interest due to its participation in the procurement procedure? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes’ please provide a comprehensive description of the conflict(s) in question. Has the economic operator or an undertaking related to it advised the Contracting Authority or otherwise been involved in the preparation of the procurement procedure? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes’ please provide a comprehensive description of the matter. Has the economic operator experienced that a prior public contract, framework agreement or concession contract was terminated early, or that damages or other comparable sanctions were imposed in connection with a prior contract? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes’ please insert a comprehensive description of the matter. If the economic operator experienced that a prior public contract, framework agreement or concession contract was terminated early, or that damages or other comparable sanctions were imposed in connection with a prior contract, has the economic operator taken measures to demonstrate its reliability despite the existence of a relevant ground for exclusion (as per Article 57.6 of Directive 2014/24/EU)? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 If ‘yes’ please insert a comprehensive description of the measures taken. Can the economic operator confirm the following: That it has not been guilty of serious misrepresentation in supplying the information required for the verification of the absence of grounds for exclusion or the fulfilment of the selection criteria? That it has not withheld such information? That it has been able, without delay, to submit the supporting documents required by a contracting authority or contracting entity? That it has not undertaken to unduly influence the decision making process of a contracting authority or contracting entity, to obtain confidential information that may confer upon it undue advantages in a procurement procedure or to negligently provide misleading information that may have a material influence on decisions concerning exclusion, selection or award? Yes 🖵 No 🖵 PART IV – ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA α: GLOBAL INDICATION FOR ALL SELECTION CRITERIA Concerning the eligibility criteria, the economic operator declares that it satisfies the required eligibility criteria for this competition as detailed in Section 5 of the Invitation to Tender document: Yes 🖵 No 🖵 PART V – REDUCTION OF THE NUMBER OF QUALIFIED CANDIDATES NOT APPLICABLE PART VI – CONCLUDING STATEMENTS The undersigned formally declare that the information stated under Parts II – III of this Appendix is accurate and that it has been set out in full awareness of the consequences of serious misrepresentation. The undersigned formally declare to be able, upon request and without delay, to provide the certificates and other forms of documentary evidence referred to, except where: The Contracting Authority has the possibility of obtaining the supporting documentation concerned directly by accessing a national database in any Member State that is available free of charge; As of 18/07/2019 at the latest, the Contracting Authority already possesses the documentation concerned. The undersigned formally consent to University College Dublin gaining access to documents supporting all information provided in this European Single Procurement Document for the purposes of this competition. Signed (Authorised Signatory): Insert Block Capitals: Insert Position: Insert Company: Insert Registered Office: Insert Date: Insert APPENDIX 5 – DRAFT TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT The following terms are provided as an indication of the intended format of the framework agreement to be signed with the successful framework member identified by this competition. Tenderers are not requested to sign these terms as part of their tender submission but should review them carefully and indicate any areas of interest by submitting a written query during the tender period. Single Party Framework Agreement for the Provision Strategic, Creative and Production Campaign Services for Multi-channel Marketing Campaigns PARTIES UCD (Hereinafter referred to as ‘the Contracting Authority’) [XXXX] (Hereinafter referred to as ‘the Framework Operator’) BACKGROUND The Contracting Authority has conducted a tender competition for the establishment of a single party framework agreement for the provision of Strategic, Creative and Production Campaign Services for Multi-Channel Marketing Campaigns. The framework agreement was advertised via the Irish Government’s Procurement Opportunities Portal (www.etenders.gov.ie). The open procedure was used and an Invitation to Tender was issued with a deadline date for tender submissions of 8/04/2026. Following evaluation of the submitted tender against the published award criteria, the Framework Operator is now appointed as the single operator under this Framework Agreement. DEFINITIONS ‘Commencement Date’ means the date upon which this Framework Agreement shall come into effect, being XX/XX/XX ‘Contract’ means a contract falling within the advertised scope of this Framework Agreement, constituting a defined and agreed piece of work to be performed by a Framework Operator; ‘Framework Agreement’ means these terms and conditions, including the Schedules hereto; ‘Framework Period’ means the period in years set out in Clause 2.1; ‘Initial Contract’ means the provision of the services specified in Schedule 1 of this Agreement for a period of twelve months from the Commencement Date; ‘Invitation to Tender’ means the Invitation to Tender document issued by the Contracting Authority on 04/03/2026 ‘Price’ means the amount in Euro chargeable by the Framework Operators in respect of any item, supply or associated services purchased by the Contracting Authority; ‘Request for Supplementary Tender’ means a document issued by the Contracting Authority at any point during the Framework Period requesting a proposal for the provision of either supplies or services; ‘Supplementary Tender’ means the written submission of the Framework Operator in response to a Request for Supplementary Tender; ‘Tender’ means the submission of the Framework Operator in response to the Invitation to Tender together with any clarifications, additions or amendments accepted by the Contracting Authority. Appointment of Framework Operator In consideration of payment by the Contracting Authority of good and valuable consideration, receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, the Framework Operator accepts their appointment under the terms and conditions of this Framework Agreement. Once the Initial Contract has expired or has been terminated, appointment to this Framework does not entitle the Operator to be consulted in respect of, or awarded, any Contract during the Framework Period. Once the Initial Contract has expired or has been terminated, the Contracting Authority may at its sole discretion choose not to enter into any Contracts falling within the scope of this Framework Agreement, or to terminate the Agreement in accordance with Clause 11. While this Framework Agreement will, in general, form the basis for the award of Contracts falling within the scope set out in Clause 3.1 during the Framework Period, the Contracting Authority may at its sole discretion decide to carry out a separate award procedure for requirements falling within the specified scope. In this event, the Contracting Authority shall observe all applicable public procurement rules and shall not afford any advantage to any Framework Operator. Period of Framework Agreement 2.1 The Framework Agreement shall take effect on the Commencement Date and will be for a maximum potential duration of four years. The initial contract will be for one year and thereafter renewable annually at the discretion of the Contracting Authority. Scope of Framework Agreement and Scope of Initial Contract 3.1 This Framework Agreement relates to the provision of the services set out in specification of requirements contained in the Invitation to Tender document and appended to this Agreement at Schedule 1. 3.2 The Initial Contract under this Framework Agreement comprises the provision of Strategic, Creative and Production Campaign Services for Multi-Channel Marketing Campaigns. For the avoidance of doubt, no guarantee is offered that any specific service shall be carried out under the Initial Contract; the Contracting Authority shall liaise with the Framework Operator in order to determine the variety and scope of any services to be provided. The Contracting Authority shall be entitled to exercise its absolute discretion in deciding whether or not to proceed with a particular service and shall be at no liability to the Operator as a result of any decision in this regard. 3.3 The Operator acknowledges that the volume of service required during the Initial Contract may legitimately fluctuate depending upon the Contracting Authority’s requirements. 3.4 Once the Initial Contract has expired or has been terminated, no guarantee is offered regarding the volume of service required during the currency of the Framework Agreement as a whole. Award of Contracts Contracts under this Framework Agreement may be awarded either on foot of the Invitation to Tender or on foot of a Request for Supplementary Tender in accordance with the procedure set out in Clause 5. A Request for Supplementary Tender shall typically be sought when there is insufficient financial information in the Framework Operator’s Tender to enable the Contracting Authority to determine the price that will be chargeable for a particular requirement. Procedure for Supplementary Tenders In general, it is envisioned that the majority of work required under this Framework Agreement will be awarded directly on foot of the Invitation to Tender document. From time-to-time, however, in accordance with Directive 2014/24/EU, the Contracting Authority may elect to issue a Request for Supplementary Tender during the Framework Period, in accordance with the following procedure. It is emphasised that Supplementary Tenders will be sought solely in respect of work falling under the advertised scope of the Framework Agreement. The Contracting Authority will issue a Request for Supplementary Tender to the Framework Operator in writing, specifying the conditions that will apply in respect of the Supplementary Tender. The Contracting Authority shall specify the scope of the Supplementary Tender, and in particular whether the applicable terms and fees will be determined by reference to the Tender or, where relevant, the Supplementary Tender. The Contracting Authority shall fix a deadline for the receipt of the Supplementary Tender taking into account the complexity of the Contract and the time needed to prepare an appropriate proposal. Following evaluation of the Supplementary Tender, the Contracting Authority shall determine whether it meets its stated requirements and whether a Contract will be awarded. The Contracting Authority shall not be responsible for any costs incurred by the Framework Operator in the preparation of a Supplementary Tender or any related site visits. The Contracting Authority shall not be obliged to award any Contract on foot of a Request for Supplementary Tender and may terminate the award procedure at any time at its sole discretion. Conditions for Award of Contracts 6.1 Award of any Contract under the Framework Agreement (including the Initial Contract) may be subject to the Framework Operator to whom it is intended to award the Contract facilitating, upon request, the drafting and implementation of a Service Level Agreement, to include agreed key performance indicators, response times, escalation procedures and penalties. Pricing The maximum prices chargeable in respect of the services procured during the Initial Contract shall be calculated by reference to the Form of Tender or Pricing Schedules submitted as part of the Tender (Schedule 1 of this Agreement). Following the expiry of the initial contract, the price chargeable may be adjusted for inflation on each annual anniversary of the Commencement Date of the Framework Agreement. This adjustment shall be in accordance with any change to the Irish Consumer Price Index. The Contracting Authority may seek, or the Framework Operator may offer, lower prices at any time during the Framework Period. In particular, where a given item, supply or service is being offered to other purchasers at a lower price, the Contracting Authority may request adjustment of the Framework Operator’s Pricing Schedules or Form of Tender to reflect this fact. Personnel The personnel assigned by the Framework Operator to deliver any Contract under this Framework Agreement shall be those identified in the Framework Operator’s Tender, or other personnel of equivalent qualifications, skills, professional expertise and experience expressly approved by the Contracting Authority. 9. Obligations of Framework Operators 9.1 The Framework Operator is required to inform the Contracting Authority of any conflict of interest of which it becomes aware during the period of the Framework Agreement. Any registrable interest involving the Framework Operator and the Contracting Authority or employees of the Contracting Authority or their relatives must be communicated to the Contracting Authority immediately. The terms ‘registrable interest’ and ‘relative’ shall be interpreted as per Section 2 and the Second Schedule of the Ethics in Public Office Act, 1995. 9.2 The Framework Operator is required to maintain, as a minimum, the forms of insurance set out in Schedule 3. These forms and levels of insurance may be subject to revision during the lifetime of the Agreement, in which case the Contracting Authority shall notify the Framework Operator of the revised requirements and allow thirty (30) days for the provision of evidence that the required policies are in place. The levels of insurance required in respect of individual Contracts may vary, in which case the Contracting Authority shall notify the Framework Operator in question of the required levels of insurances in the relevant Request for Mini-Tender, if appropriate, or at the earliest opportunity. 9.3 The Framework Operator shall retain a copy of its submitted European Single Procurement Document (ESPD), as used during the evaluation of tender submissions prior to the establishment of this Framework Agreement. If at any point during the Framework Period or during the lifetime of a Contract an Operator becomes aware of circumstances that might affect the validity of any of the statements in its ESPD, it shall notify the Contracting Authority in writing of such circumstances at the earliest possible opportunity. 9.5 No Framework Operator shall give, provide or offer to any staff or agent of the Contracting Authority a loan, fee, reward, gift, advantage, benefit or other payment during the Framework Period as an inducement or reward for doing or forbearing to do, or for having done or forborne to do, any action in relation to the obtaining or execution of this Agreement or any Contract. 9.6 No Framework Operator shall assign the benefit of its appointment under this Framework Agreement, or under any Contract, or any part thereof without the written permission of the Contracting Authority. 10. Review Meetings 10.1 The Contracting Authority and the Framework Operator may liaise to address any issues arising that may impact on the performance of this Framework Agreement and to agree milestones, compliance schedules and operational protocols as required from time-to-time. 11. Termination of Appointment 11.1 Without prejudice to any other rights or remedies to which it may be entitled, the Contracting Authority shall be entitled to terminate the appointment of a Framework Operator forthwith and without liability by giving notice at any time if: 11.1.1 The Initial Contract has expired or has been terminated and the Contracting Authority, at its sole discretion, determines that no additional Contracts are to be awarded; 11.1.2 The Framework Operator commits a material breach of any term or condition of this Framework Agreement, or a Contract concluded under the Framework Agreement; 11.1.3 The Framework Operator fails to perform any obligation or responsibility under this Agreement or a Contract concluded under the Framework Agreement either at all or to a standard that the Contracting Authority, acting reasonably, considers satisfactory and, if such breach is capable of being remedied, fails to remedy the breach within fourteen (14) days of notice given by the Contracting Authority requiring the Operator to do so; 11.1.4 The Framework Operator repeatedly fails to supply the required services to the Contracting Authority and has been afforded all reasonable opportunities to rectify this situation; 11.1.5 The Framework Operator performs an obligation under a Contract in a manner that is not in accordance with the terms of this Framework Agreement, including its Schedules, or any agreed Service Level Agreement, or fails to meet any standard prescribed by law; 11.1.6 Any person employed by the Framework Operator, or acting on its behalf, offers or appears to offer a corrupt gift or inducement in the sense set out in Clause 9.5 above, whether with or without the knowledge of the Framework Operator; 11.1.7 The Framework Operator convenes a meeting for the purposes of, or proposes to enter into any arrangement or composition for the benefit of its creditors; 11.1.8 The Framework Operator ceases or threatens to cease to carry on business or takes or suffers any analogous action under any applicable law; 11.1.9 The Framework Operator is unable to pay its debts within the meaning of Section 214 of the Companies Act, 1963 (as amended by Section 123 of the Companies Act, 1990) or any analogous provision of law; 11.1.10 An order is made or an effective resolution is passed for the winding up of the company of the Framework Operator, other than for the purpose of a restructuring, the terms of which have been agreed by the Contracting Authority; 11.1.11 A petition is presented or an order is made or a resolution passed or any analogous proceedings or action is taken for the appointment of an examiner, administrator, receiver, trustee or any similar officer over the company of the Framework Operator; 11.1.12 An encumbrancer takes possession, or a receiver is appointed, of any of the property or assets of the Framework Operator; 11.1.13 The Contracting Authority reasonably believes that any of the events mentioned above is about to occur in relation to the Framework Operator and notifies the Framework Operator accordingly; 11.1.14 The Framework Operator has committed any fraudulent act or any criminal activity or is guilty of gross negligence in the performance of this Agreement or the relevant Contract; 11.1.15 Any representation made by the Framework Operator in connection with this Agreement or a Contract shall in the opinion of the Contracting Authority prove to be untrue or incorrect in a material respect as of the date when made; 11.1.15 Any event analogous to those contemplated in Clauses 11.1.6 through 11.1.15 inclusive occurs to the Framework Operator in question within the laws of any other jurisdiction. The Framework Operator shall have no claim for damages or otherwise against the Contracting Authority as a result of the termination of its appointment in accordance with this Clause. 12. General 12.1 The Framework Operator acknowledges that the Contracting Authority is subject to the Freedom of Information Acts 2014, as amended. Accordingly, information furnished to the Contracting Authority by the Framework Operator may be released pursuant to the Contracting Authority’s statutory obligations. If a Framework Operator considers that any of the information supplied by it to the Contracting Authority under this Framework Agreement or any Contract should not be disclosed because of its sensitivity, the Framework Operator in question must, when providing the information, indicate this and specify the reason for its sensitivity. The Contracting Authority accepts no liability whatsoever in respect of any information provided which is subsequently released or in respect of any consequential damage suffered as a result of such obligations. 12.2 This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Ireland. 12.3 Should any part of this Framework Agreement be or subsequently be found to be invalid, unlawful or unenforceable, then such parts shall be severed from the Framework Agreement and the remainder of the Agreement shall continue in full force and effect. 12.4 Force Majeure 12.4.1 If through no fault of a party, its performance has been affected or delayed by force majeure, such party shall be at no liability to the other providing the performances are recommenced as soon as possible after such force majeure has ceased to operate. 12.4.2 If however, force majeure causes a delay or failure in performance for a period longer than seven days, the Contracting Authority shall have the right to remove the Framework Operator in question from the Framework Agreement by giving seven days’ notice in writing. 12.4.3 Force majeure shall mean an occurrence beyond the control and without the fault or negligence of the party affected in which it is unable to prevent or provide against by the exercise of reasonable diligence including, but not limited to, acts of God or the public enemy, ex-procreation or confiscation of facilities, government intervention, war, hostilities, rebellion, terrorist activities, local or national emergency, sabotage or riots, floods, or unusually severe weather conditions which could not be reasonably anticipated, fires, explosions, or other catastrophe, national or district strikes or other concerted acts of workmen or other similar occurrences other than strikes or concerted acts of a Framework Operator’s workforce. 12.5 Nothing in this Agreement shall prevent the Contracting Authority from complying with its obligations under public procurement legislation. If necessary this Framework Agreement and any Contract concluded hereunder may be abridged, modified, or amended without penalty to the Contracting Authority so as to enable it to comply with said obligations. 13. General Data Protection Regulations (‘GDPR’) 13.1 As an organisation engaged in providing services to the Contracting Authority, the Framework Operator will be required to adhere to the following general provisions: 13.1.1 To the extent that it may be deemed a ‘data processor’ for the purposes of the ‘GDPR,’ the Framework Operator will make itself fully aware of all applicable obligations under the GDPR and will put in place sufficiently robust mechanisms to ensure adherence to the relevant provisions of the GDPR. 13.1.2 To the extent that it may be deemed a ‘data processor’ for the purposes of the GDPR, the Framework Operator will implement appropriate technical and organisational measures in such a manner that any processing activities undertaken will meet the requirements of the GDPR and ensure the protection of the rights of the data subject. 13.1.3 To the extent that it may be deemed a ‘data processor’ for the purposes of the GDPR, the Framework Operator will comply with the provisions of Article 28(3)(a) to 28(3)(h) of the GDPR. 13.1.4 To the extent that it may be deemed a ‘sub-processor’ for the purposes of the GDPR, the Framework Operator will comply with the provisions of Article 28(4) of the GDPR. 13.2 In addition to the foregoing, the Framework Operator shall enter into the Confidentiality and Data Processing Agreement appended to these terms and conditions at Schedule 4. The Framework Operator undertakes, without reservation, to be bound by the provisions of the Confidentiality and Data Processing Agreement and acknowledges that any breach of the provisions of the Confidentiality and Data Processing Agreement will be construed by the Contracting Authority as a breach of this Framework Agreement, which may depending upon its materiality, may give rise to the termination of this Framework Agreement. 13.3 For the avoidance of doubt, it is emphasised that the Confidentiality and Data Processing Agreement appended to this Framework Agreement at Schedule 4 is to be governed and construed solely in accordance with the laws of Ireland. The Irish Courts shall have exclusive jurisdiction to hear any disputes relating to, or deriving from, the Confidentiality and Data Processing Agreement. 14. Notices 14.1 The address, e-mail address, facsimile and telephone numbers of the parties for the purpose of the giving of notices under this Agreement are as follows: For the Contracting Authority: [XXXX] [for insertion prior to signature] For the Framework Operator: [XXXX] [for insertion prior to signature] 14.2 All notices to the Contracting Authority or a Framework Operator from the other party under this Agreement or the relevant Contract shall be in writing and sent to the appropriate address set out above. 14.3 All notices, documents and communications provided under this Agreement or the relevant Contract shall be in the English language. IN WITNESS whereof the parties hereto have executed this Framework Agreement the day and year first herein WRITTEN SIGNATURES SIGNED for and on behalf of [XXXX] by: Signed: ______________________________________ Date: ______________________________________ Witnessed by: ______________________________________ SIGNED for and on behalf of the Contracting Authority by: Signed: ______________________________________ Date: ______________________________________ Witnessed by: ______________________________________ Schedules and Appendices Schedule 1 – Specification of Requirements Schedule 2 – Form of Tender / Pricing Schedules Schedule 3 – Form of Insurance Schedule 4 – Data Protection Schedule SCHEDULE 1 – SPECIFICATION OF REQUIREMENTS [To be inserted prior to the commencement of the Framework Agreement] SCHEDULE 2 – FORM OF TENDER / PRICING SCHEDULE [To be inserted prior to the commencement of the Framework Agreement] SCHEDULE 3 – FORMS AND LEVELS OF INSURANCE [To be inserted prior to the commencement of the Framework Agreement] SCHEDULE 4 – CONFIDENTIALITY AND DATA PROCESSING AGREEMENT THIS AGREEMENT shall take effect on the Commencement Date of the Framework Agreement (as appropriate) to which it is appended and is made between: UCD (the ‘Contracting Authority’) [XXXX] (the ‘Service Provider’) GENERAL In connection with a current or proposed Service between the Contracting Authority and the Service Provider, whereby the Service Provider is supplying, or proposes to supply, goods or services (the Service) to the Contracting Authority, the Contracting Authority may directly make available to the Service Provider from time to time the information (as defined below), or the Service Provider or its servants, employees, agents, subsidiaries or sub-contractors may indirectly acquire or have access to the Information by virtue of the Service. For the avoidance of doubt, the Service as referred to in this Schedule includes all services and/or supplies as defined in the Contract or Framework Agreement to which this Agreement is appended. This Agreement shall apply to the Service Provider’s use of the Information (as defined below) and other related matters. In the event of any ambiguity or discrepancy between the provisions of this Agreement and the provisions of the Contract or Framework Agreement to which this Agreement is appended, the provisions of the Contract or Framework Agreement shall apply. Any standard terms proposed by the Service Provider pertaining to data protection or confidentiality are hereby expressly disclaimed. The term of this Agreement shall correspond to the term of the Contract or Framework Agreement to which this Agreement is appended. DEFINITIONS In this Agreement, unless the context otherwise requires: Data Breach(es) means any breach of security lending to (or which may lead to) the accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorized disclosure of, or access to, Personal Data or other Information transmitted, stored or otherwise Processed, and (for the avoidance of doubt) has the meaning afforded to “personal data breach” under Article 4(12) of the GDPR (when effective); Data Controller or Controller has the meaning given to that term in Section 1(1) of the Data Protection Acts and (when effective) in Article 4 of the GDPR; Data Processor or Processor has the meaning given to that term in Section 1(1) of the Data Protection Acts and (when effective) in Article 4 of the GDPR; Data Protection Acts means the Data Protection Acts 1988 and 2003 (as amended) and the European Communities (Electronic Communications, Networks and Services) (Privacy and Electronic Communications) Regulations 2011 (S.I. 336/2011) and every statutory modification, re-enactment, replacement and/or amendment thereof for the time being in force (or, where the context so admits or requires, any one or more of such Acts) and all orders and regulations/statutory instruments made thereunder; Data Protection Directive means Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24th October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data; Data Subject has the meaning given to this term in Section 1(1) of the Data Protection Acts and (when effective) in Article 4 of the GDPR; Delete for the purposes of this Agreement means removing all Information which is electronically held in such a way that it can never be retrieved from the device on which it is held; FOIA 2014 means the Freedom of Information Act 2014 and any amendments to or replacements thereof, including by means of directly effective EU Regulation; GDPR means the EU General Data Protection Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2016/679, the effective date of which is 25th May 2018; Information means any and all Information, (irrespective of the format, to include paper, electronic or otherwise) belonging to the Contracting Authority, including but not limited to the following: Personal Information concerning the Contracting Authority’s clients, patients or staff, or others whose personal Information is in the control of the Contracting Authority, including confidential Information concerning the physical and mental health of the Contracting Authority’s clients, patients, staff or others. For the avoidance of doubt, personal Information includes Personal Data and also includes patient data; Information regarding the business affairs of the Contracting Authority generally, and as regards the Service; Information regarding the policies, procedures and work practices of the Contracting Authority; Goods and services (including, without limitation, audit, consultancy and related services); Information regarding the existence, content, progress or conclusion of any negotiations between the Contracting Authority and the Service Provider relating to the Service; and Confidential codes or other Information concerning access to the Contracting Authority’s computer networks and / or Information systems; Personal Data has the meaning given to that term in Section 1(1) of the Data Protection Acts and (when effective) in Article 4 of the GDPR, and relates only to personal data, or any part of such personal data, of which the Contracting Authority is the Data Controller or joint Data Controller and in relation to which the Service Provider is providing the Service, and (for the purposes of this Agreement) also includes Sensitive Personal Data and Special Categories of Data; Processing, Processed and Process (and like words) have the meaning given to those terms in Section 1(1) of the Data Protection Acts and (when effective) in Article 4 of the GDPR; Pseudonymisation, Pseudonymised and like words, have the meaning given to those terms (when effective) in Article 4 of the GDPR; Sensitive Personal Data has the meaning given to this term in Section 1(1) of the Data Protection Acts; Special Categories of Data has the meaning given to this term and/or such Personal Data as referred to in Article 9(1) and/or Article 10 of the GDPR. Any reference to a third party in this Agreement includes, for the avoidance of doubt, subcontractors. OBLIGATIONS OF THE SERVICE PROVIDER: In consideration of the Contracting Authority directly making the Information available to the Service Provider, or the Service Provider otherwise acquiring the Information, and in consideration of the award of the contract to provide the Service, the Service Provider shall: Not take or remove any Information from the Contracting Authority’s premises without having received the written authorisation of the Contracting Authority. Such written authorisation must be issued in advance of the first instance and will apply thereafter; Manage and Process any Information which it acquires from the Contracting Authority in accordance with the documented instructions of the Contracting Authority and the obligations of the Data Protection Acts and the GDPR in so far as these obligations apply to the Service Provider as a Data Processor, including with regard to transfers of Personal Data to a third country or an international organisation, unless required to do so by European Union, EU Member State or Irish law to which the Service Provider is subject; in such a case, the Service Provider shall inform the Contracting Authority of that legal requirement before Processing, unless that law prohibits such information on important grounds of public interest; Maintain secret and confidential all Information furnished to it or otherwise acquired by its servants, employees, agents, subsidiaries or sub-contractors save and to the extent that such Information has been made available to the public by the Contracting Authority or by any third party lawfully in possession thereof and entitled to make such disclosure without restriction; Take appropriate measures to ensure the reliability of the Service Provider’s servants, employees, agents, subsidiaries or sub-contractors who have access to the Information and ensure that they are required to maintain the confidentiality of the Information which they access and process (in this regard, the Service Provider must be in a position to provide the Contracting Authority with a named list of its servants, employees, agents, subsidiaries or sub-contractors authorised to have access to Information); Not disclose Information to any of the Service Provider's servants, employees, agents, subsidiaries or sub-contractors unless and only to the extent that such persons need to know such Information for the purposes of providing services in connection with the Service, and provided that such person has been made aware of the restrictions in this Agreement on the disclosure of the Information and has agreed in writing to comply with such restrictions; Not disclose any Information to any third party without the prior written consent of the Contracting Authority; Not engage any third party to Process the Information or any part thereof on its behalf without the prior written consent of the Contracting Authority. Should such consent be given, then the obligations of the Service Provider as set out in Clause 2 of this Agreement shall be imposed on that third party by way of a separate written Agreement between the Service Provider and the third party, which Agreement will terminate automatically upon the termination of this Agreement for any reason. In the event that the third party fails to fulfil its obligations set out in Clause 2 of this Agreement, the Service Provider shall remain fully liable to the Contracting Authority for the performance by the third party of those obligations; Not use the Information directly or indirectly for any purpose other than in connection with the provision of services to the Contracting Authority regarding the Service; Not reverse engineer, decompile or disassemble Information or attempt to use the Information in any form other than machine readable object code, or allow a third party to do any of the above; Not make any press announcement or otherwise publicise the business relationship with the Contracting Authority in any way, including, without limitation, using the name of the Contracting Authority in any publicity material, unless authorised to do so by the Contracting Authority; Only use the Information solely for the purposes of fulfilling the requirements of the Service. Implement appropriate human, organisational and technological controls and measures in accordance with Section 2(c) of the Data Protection Acts and Article 32 of the GDPR, to keep the Information secure and to protect against accidental loss, destruction, damage, alteration, or disclosure of the Information. Take the necessary precautions for the prevention of unauthorised access to, unauthorised disclosure of or other unauthorised processing of the Information and in particular: Keep all Information obtained from the Contracting Authority or otherwise relating to the Service separate from all documents and other records of the Service Provider; Only make such copies of the Information as are necessary for the provision of services to the Contracting Authority regarding the Service; and Mark all documentation containing the Information as being subject to the terms of this Agreement and indicate that it is contrary to the terms of this Agreement to copy, disclose or use in any manner or fashion such documentation without the prior written consent of the Contracting Authority; and Have all necessary access controls in place to include authentication and authorisation for access to Information to ensure its security and confidentiality; and Have all necessary systems in place to ensure the ongoing confidentiality, integrity, availability and resilience of Processing systems and services; and Have the ability to restore the availability and access to the Information in a timely manner in the event of a physical or technical incident; and Have a process for regularly testing, assessing and evaluating the effectiveness of technical and organisational measures for ensuring the security of the Processing of the Information; Ensure, upon termination or the completion of this Agreement, that all documents, data, other records or tangible objects containing or representing Information which have been disclosed by the Contracting Authority to the Service Provider(“Information Records”), and all copies thereof which are in the possession of the Service Provider and their subcontractors, shall at the written request and election of the Contracting Authority, be returned to the Contracting Authority or securely Deleted. Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing:- Where the Contracting Authority has requested that the Service Provider return Information Records, the Information Records shall be returned from the Service Provider to the Contracting Authority in a commonly used electronic format; Where the Contracting Authority has requested that the Service Provider securely Delete Information, the Service Provider shall ensure the Information is permanently Deleted from any of the Service Provider’s systems or devices which were used to store the Information and from those of third parties to whom the Service Provider has disclosed and/or permitted access to the Information or Information Records, save in the case of Information to the extent that European Union or Member State law requires storage or retention of the Information; Where the Service Provider is required for legal or regulatory compliance to retain a copy of any Information, the Service Provider shall provide the Contracting Authority in writing with full details of any Information they are proposing to retain and the details of the legal and regulatory obligations governing this action; Without prejudice to the obligations at Clause 2.14.3 above, in circumstances where European Union or Irish law requires the Service Provider to retain any Personal Data which the Contracting Authority has shared with the Service Provider, the Service Provider shall provide the Contracting Authority in writing with full details of any Personal Data they are legally required to retain and the details of the European Union or Irish legal obligations governing this action, and ensure the Personal Data retained by them is anonymised or Pseudonymised by them to the Contracting Authority’s satisfaction and in a manner and to a standard which is satisfactory under European Union law (including, without limitation, the GDPR); Provide all necessary assistance to the Contracting Authority in ensuring compliance with the provisions of Articles 32 to 36 of the GDPR and/or any legislative requirements of the Data Protection Acts or any guidance issued by the Irish Data Protection Commissioner regarding Data Breaches, and in particular to notify the Contracting Authority as soon as is practical, but no later than 48 hours after they or (as applicable) their subcontractors become aware of any actual or suspected Data Breach. In such an event the Service Provider will immediately supply the Contracting Authority with all the relevant facts surrounding the actual or suspected Data Breach and will provide all necessary assistance to the Contracting Authority to investigate, report upon, ameliorate, correct and end (or, as applicable, prevent) the Data Breach and to ensure that no such Data Breach (or any similar breach) occurs in future; Ensure that all appropriate and necessary technical and organisational measures are in place to enable the Contracting Authority to fulfill its obligations to respond to requests from Data Subjects exercising their rights under Section 2D of the Data Protection Acts and Chapter III of the GDPR, (including the rights of access to, rectification of and erasure of their Personal Data), and shall promptly comply with any request from the Contracting Authority to amend, transfer, restrict Processing of, or Delete such Personal Data; For the purposes of Freedom of Information/ transparency obligations placed upon the Contracting Authority (by FOIA 2014, national or European public procurement regulations or otherwise): Procure that it and its servants, employees, agents, subsidiaries or sub-contractors shall assist the Contracting Authority, at no additional charge and within such timescales as the Contracting Authority may reasonably specify, in meeting any requests for Information which are made to the Contracting Authority under the FOIA 2014 or other applicable transparency rules, such assistance to include (but not be limited to) the provision of a copy of the requested Information. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement, if the Contracting Authority receives a request for Information pursuant to the FOIA 2014, the Contracting Authority shall be entitled to disclose all Information (in whatever form) as is necessary to comply with the FOIA 2014. If, at the request of the Service Provider, the Contracting Authority seeks to withhold Information protected by this Agreement and a competent authority determines, or the parties subsequently agree, that the Information is not exempt, then the Service Provider shall reimburse the Contracting Authority for all costs (including but not limited to legal costs) incurred by the Contracting Authority in seeking to withhold such Information from a request under the FOIA 2014. Not (and shall procure that its servants, employees, agents, subsidiaries or sub- contractors do not) respond directly to a request for Information under the FOIA 2014 unless expressly authorised to do so by the Contracting Authority; Ensure the security of Information stored on all fixed and mobile devices, including medical devices, desktop computers, servers and mobile computer devices (i.e. laptops, notes, tablets, personal data assistants, Blackberry-enabled devices, iPads, iPhones and other smart type devices etc) and removal storage devices (i.e. CD, DVD, portable hard drives, Diskettes, ZIP disks, Magnetic tapes, etc); and further - Only in exceptional circumstances and with the written consent of the Contracting Authority, should the Service Provider hold Information on mobile computing or removable storage devices. Should the business requirements necessitate the holding of Information on such devices then the Service Provider shall ensure that only the Information absolutely necessary for their purpose is stored in this format and that the Information is held on such devices only for the minimum amount of time necessary and furthermore, after such period that they will Delete all Information from these devices; Where the use of mobile computing or removal storage devices is a necessity then the Service Provider will take all necessary precautions to ensure the safety of these devices from theft, or loss and authorized access. As a minimum all mobile computing and removal storage devices must be appropriately secured including by means of strong encryption and protected by the use of strong complex passwords; The encryption used by the Service Provider must satisfy or better the requirements of the HSE Encryption Policy (the current version of which is available at http://hse.ie/eng/services/Publications/pp/ict/Encryption_Policy.pdf) as may be updated from time to time. At any time during the term of this Agreement, the Contracting Authority may request the Service Provider to set out in writing the current encryption measures used and the Service Provider will provide this information within five business days. If, in the reasonable opinion of the Contracting Authority, the encryption standard employed by the Service Provider is not sufficient, the Service Provider will implement, at their expense, whatever encryption standards are proposed by the Contracting Authority. At no time should cipher keys be held on the mobile computing or removal storage device for the data which they secure. In addition, the Service Provider will at all times hold cipher keys in a secure fashion; Under no circumstances (encrypted or otherwise) is the Service Provider sanctioned by the Contracting Authority to download or store Information on USB memory sticks/keys; Ensure the security of the Information in transit (including by way of electronic transit/transit by way of electronic communication). Where it is necessary to transfer the Information, the Service Provider must take all necessary precautions to ensure the security of the Information before, during and after transit; and further - The Service Provider shall ensure that all transfers of the Information are legal, justifiable, and only the minimum Information absolutely necessary for a given purpose is transferred. All transfers of Information should, where possible, only take place electronically via secure on-line channels or electronic mail. Where the Service Provider transfers Information electronically, in any form and by any means, the Information must be encrypted using strong encryption. The encryption methods used must satisfy or better the requirements of the HSE Encryption Policy referred to by Clause 2.18.3. Where it is not possible to transfer the Information electronically, the Information may be encrypted and copied to a mobile storage device (with the exception of USB memory sticks/keys) and transported manually. The encryption methods used must satisfy or better the requirements of the HSE Encryption Policy referred to by Clause 2.18.3. The encrypted mobile storage media, should wherever possible, be hand delivered by the Service Provider to, and be signed for by, the intended recipient. If this is not possible, the use of registered post or some other certifiable delivery method must be used. In relation to transfers of Information outside of the Republic of Ireland: The Service Provider must seek the written consent of the Contracting Authority prior to the Service Provider sending Information outside the jurisdiction of the Republic of Ireland. The Contracting Authority may, at its discretion, prohibit the Service Provider from sending Information outside the jurisdiction of the Republic of Ireland; Where the Contracting Authority has consented to the transfer of Information outside the Republic of Ireland, the Service Provider may only transfer Information to a legal entity located in: A country within the European Economic Area; A country outside the European Economic Area but approved for this purpose by the EU Commission pursuant to Article 25 of the Data Protection Directive and (when effective) to Article 45(3) of the GDPR; A country outside the European Economic Area but subject to the execution by the Contracting Authority, the Service Provider and the transferee of standard contractual clauses adopted by the EU Commission in accordance with the examination procedure referred to in Article 31(2) of the Data Protection Directive (and Article 93(2) of the GDPR), as provided for in Article 26(4) of the Data Protection Directive (and Article 46 of the GDPR); A country outside the European Economic Area but where the transferee of the Information is a parent or subsidiary company of the Service Provider, provided that the Service Provider and that parent or subsidiary company have adopted Binding Corporate Rules which have been approved by the relevant national Data Protection Authority under Article 26(2) of Data Protection Directive and/or the comply with the provisions of Article 47 of the GDPR; or The United States of America only when the Information transferee has agreed in writing to be bound by the European Commission's Implementing Decision (EU) 2016/1250 of 12th July 2016 (EU-US Privacy Shield). Make available all information necessary to demonstrate compliance with the obligations laid down in Article 28 of the GDPR in respect of the duties of Data Processors and in particular, If so requested by the Contracting Authority, the Service Provider shall: Permit the Contracting Authority or its representatives (subject to reasonable and appropriate confidentiality undertakings), to inspect and audit the Service Provider’s data Processing facilities and activities (and/or those of its agents, subsidiaries and sub-contractors) and comply with all reasonable requests or directions by the Contracting Authority to enable the Contracting Authority to verify and/or procure that the Service Provider is in full compliance with its obligations under this Agreement; Make available for audit by the Contracting Authority or its representatives, (subject to reasonable and appropriate confidentiality undertakings), all staff procedures, processes and instructions that the Service Provider employ for the management of Information; Permit the Contracting Authority or its representatives, (subject to reasonable and appropriate confidentiality undertakings), to inspect the contractual arrangements that the Service Provider has in place, governing the transfer of any Information from the Service Provider to legal entities located outside the European Economic Area (whether they be in the form of standard contractual clauses as referred to in Clause 2.20.2.3, Binding Corporate Rules as referred to in clause Clause 2.20.2.4, an agreement by the transferee to be bound by the EU-US Privacy Shield as referred to in Clause 2.20.2.5 or any other form); DISCLOSURE REQUIRED BY LAW In the event that the Service Provider is legally required to disclose any of the Information to a third party, the Service Provider undertakes to notify the Contracting Authority of such requirement prior to any disclosure and, unless prohibited by law, to supply the Contracting Authority with copies of all communications between the Service Provider and any third party to which such disclosure is made. The Service Provider must co-operate with the Contracting Authority in bringing any legal or other proceedings to challenge the validity of the requirement to disclose Information. BREACH OF AGREEMENT The Service Provider hereby indemnifies and agrees to keep indemnified the Contracting Authority against any costs, expenses, damages, harm or loss suffered or incurred by reason of any disclosure of the Information in breach of the terms and conditions of this Agreement and shall account to the Contracting Authority for any moneys received by the Service Provider directly or indirectly arising out of the disclosure or use of any of the Information in breach of the terms and conditions of this Agreement. NO WARRANTY Nothing in this Agreement shall constitute a warranty by the Contracting Authority as to the accuracy of any of the Information and the Contracting Authority will not be liable to the Service Provider or to any other party to which any of the Information may be disclosed for any loss or damage howsoever caused, arising directly or indirectly out of the inaccuracy of any of the Information. NO LICENCE The Service Provider acknowledges that the Information is of a special and unique character and that the Information and any patent, copyright or other intellectual property rights of whatever nature attaching thereto are and will remain the property of the Contracting Authority and nothing in this Agreement will be construed as giving the Service Provider a licence in respect of such patent, copyright or other intellectual property rights. SURVIVAL OF OBLIGATIONS The non-disclosure obligations of this Agreement will survive and continue and will bind the Service Provider's legal representatives, successors and assigns notwithstanding that the Service may not be actually implemented by the parties. WAIVER The rights of the Contracting Authority under this Agreement will not be prejudiced or restricted by any indulgence or forbearance extended to the Service Provider or other parties, and no waiver by the Contracting Authority in respect of any breach of this Agreement will operate as a waiver in respect of any subsequent breach. VARIATION This Agreement may not be released, discharged, supplemented, amended, varied or modified in any manner except by an instrument in writing signed by a duly authorised officer or representative of each of the parties hereto. NOTICE All notices to the Contracting Authority or the Service Provider from the other party under this Agreement shall be in writing and sent to the appropriate address set out above. 11. SEVERANCE If any provision of this Agreement is found by any court or administrative body of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, unenforceable or illegal, the other provisions of this Agreement will remain in force. If any invalid, unenforceable or illegal provision would be valid, enforceable or legal if some part of it were deleted, the provision will apply with whatever modification is necessary to make it valid, enforceable or legal. GOVERNING LAW This Agreement will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Ireland and the parties hereto hereby irrevocably submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Ireland. SIGNATURE IN WITNESS whereof the parties hereto have executed this Framework Agreement the day and year first herein WRITTEN SIGNED for and on behalf of [XXXX] by: Signed: ______________________________________ Date: ______________________________________ Witnessed by: ______________________________________ SIGNED for and on behalf of the Contracting Authority by: Signed: ______________________________________ Date: ______________________________________ Witnessed by: ____________________________________