REQUEST_FOR_EXPRESSION_OF_INTEREST_-_RFEOI_-_SOFTWARE_RESELLER.JSON
Editing: General
Introduction The opportunity The Reserve Bank of Australia ABN 50 008 559 486 (the Bank) invites expressions of interest from respondents for the consolidation of multiple software products into an arrangement with up to two (2) authorised resellers. Information about the Bank is available at www.rba.gov.au. The Bank intends to conduct a multi-stage competitive tender process to procure the Supply. The purpose of the Request for Expression of Interest (RFEOI) stage (Stage 1) is to identify a shortlist of capable Respondents. The shortlisted Respondents may then be invited by the Bank to participate in a subsequent Request for Proposal (RFP) stage (Stage 2) where they will have the opportunity to submit proposals for the Supply. How to respond to this RFEOI Respondents are required to respond to this RFEOI by completing and submitting: A completed and correctly executed Non-Disclosure deed (attached) A completed Part 4 - Response Schedule, by the Closing Time and in the manner indicated in the Process Details. Process Details Process Conditions Application of these Conditions Overview These Conditions apply to the Procurement Process undertaken by the Bank. Respondents are bound by the Conditions By lodging an Expression of Interest to the Bank in response to the RFEOI, the Respondent is bound by and agrees to comply with these Conditions. How to read these Conditions Definitions In the RFEOI: Interpretation In the RFEOI, headings are for the purpose of convenient reference only and do not form part of this RFEOI, and unless the context otherwise requires: a reference to a part is a reference to a part of the RFEOI; a reference to a section is a reference to a section in the nominated part of the RFEOI and includes a reference to a subsection of that section; a reference to a schedule is a reference to a schedule to the RFEOI; the singular includes the plural and vice-versa; a reference to one gender includes the other; a reference to a person includes an individual, body politic, body corporate, trust or a partnership or any other entity; a reference to an Act is a reference to an Act of the Commonwealth, State or Territory of Australia, as amended from time to time, and includes a reference to any subordinate legislation made under the Act; a reference to a 'dollar', $, $A, $AUS or AUD means the Australian dollar unless otherwise stated; a reference to a time is to Australian Eastern Daylight Time (AEDT); the word includes in any form is not a word of limitation; the meaning of ‘or’ will be that of the inclusive ‘or’, meaning one, some or all of a number of possibilities; if a word or phrase is given a defined meaning, any other part of speech or grammatical form of that word or phrase has a corresponding meaning; and a reference to a party includes that party's administration, successors, and permitted assigns, or its officers, employees, agents or advisers. Inconsistency If there is any inconsistency between the Parts of the RFEOI, the inconsistency will be resolved in the following descending order of precedence: Part 2 - the Conditions; Part 1 – Introduction; Part 3 – Statement of Requirements; and Part 4 – Response Schedules. The Request for Expression of Interest Request The Bank requests that Respondents lodge Expressions of Interest to the Bank to supply, provide or perform (as applicable) the Supply. Bank Contact The Bank's point of contact for all matters in connection with the Procurement Process is the Bank Contact. All RFEOI enquiries for information or requests for clarification in connection with the Procurement Process must be lodged in writing by either letter or email and addressed to the Bank Contact. Respondents must not communicate with the Bank's staff about the Procurement Process except in accordance with the RFEOI or any subsequent RFP. Only written statements issued by the Bank Contact will be binding on the Bank. Respondents must not rely on any verbal statement made by the Bank or the Bank Contact. Respondents are to note that no telephone call enquiries will be taken in connection with the Procurement Process. Industry briefing This Condition 3.3 applies if item 3 of the Process Details specifies that an industry briefing will be held. Respondents must register their attendance for the industry briefing. Respondents should advise the Bank Contact of the names of the Respondent's representatives and their position within the Respondent's organisation by no later than 2 Business Days prior to the industry briefing, which is the time and date specified in item 2 of the Process Details. Attendance at the industry briefing is strongly encouraged, as information provided at the industry briefing may not otherwise be made available to Respondents. Responses to questions, unless approved by the Bank Contact to be withheld, will be provided to all Respondents through AusTender (if the RFEOI has been issued via AusTender) or otherwise via email to the Respondent Contact following the briefing. Any information provided at the industry briefing will be provided subject to the Conditions. Ownership of RFEOI All documents comprising the RFEOI (and the intellectual property rights in them) are and remain the property of the Bank and each Respondent is permitted to use them only for the purpose of preparing an Expression of Interest and participating in the Procurement Process in accordance with the RFEOI. Confidentiality of RFEOI The Respondent must treat the RFEOI and any Confidential Information provided to the Respondent by or on behalf of the Bank in connection with the Procurement Process as confidential, and not disclose or use that information except as strictly required for the purpose of preparing an Expression of Interest and participating in the Procurement Process in accordance with the RFEOI. The Respondent's obligation to keep information provided by the Bank confidential will not be taken to have been breached to the extent that the information: is disclosed by the Respondent to its advisers, officers, employees, agents or subcontractors solely in order to conduct the Procurement Process; is disclosed as agreed with the Bank; is authorised or required by law or the listing rules of a stock exchange to be disclosed; or is in the public domain otherwise than due to a breach of the relevant obligations of confidentiality. The Bank may require a Respondent to execute a deed of confidentiality in the form required by the Bank and provide it to the Bank Contact, before being provided with information (including at an industry briefing or in or under the RFEOI). The Bank may at any time require all written or electronically stored information (whether confidential or otherwise and without regard to the type of media on which such information was provided to Respondents) provided to Respondents (and all copies of such information made by Respondents) be: returned to the Bank, in which case Respondents will be required to promptly return all such information to the address identified by the Bank; or destroyed by Respondents, in which case Respondents will be required to promptly destroy all such information and provide the Bank with written certification that the information has been destroyed. Public statements Respondents must not make any public statement or provide any information to the media or any other third party in relation to the Procurement Process, without the prior written approval of the Bank or as required by law or the listing rules of a stock exchange. Errors or deficiencies in the RFEOI If a Respondent believes it has found a discrepancy, error, ambiguity, inconsistency or omission in the RFEOI or any other information given or made available by the Bank, the Respondent should promptly notify the Bank Contact setting out the issue in sufficient detail so that the Bank may take the corrective action, if any, it considers appropriate. Variations and addenda to the RFEOI The Bank may issue any variations and addenda to the RFEOI for any purpose. If the Bank elects to vary or supplement the RFEOI or change the Conditions, it will make reasonable efforts to inform Respondents in accordance with this Condition 3.8. Variations to the RFEOI or addenda will be issued via formal written addendum to the RFEOI and issued via: AusTender - if the RFEOI has been issued via AusTender; or email to the Respondent Contact. If the RFEOI is issued via AusTender: the Bank accepts no responsibility if a Respondent fails to become aware of any variation or addenda to the RFEOI which would have been apparent from a visit to the AusTender website; and Respondents acknowledge that it is their responsibility to download from the AusTender website any variation or addenda to the RFEOI. If the RFEOI is issued via email: the Bank accepts no responsibility if a Respondent fails to become aware of any variation or addenda to the RFEOI because the email is not received or is filtered or filed in a junk or spam folder; and Respondents acknowledge that it is their responsibility to monitor the email account of the Respondent Contact for any variation or addenda to the RFEOI. On issue, each addendum forms part of the RFEOI. Use of AusTender This Condition 3.9 only applies if the RFEOI is issued via AusTender. This RFEOI is available on the AusTender website at https://www.tenders.gov.au. Respondents should regularly check the AusTender website for any variation or addenda to the RFEOI. AusTender is the Australian Government's procurement information system. Access to and use of AusTender is subject to terms and conditions. In participating in this Procurement Process, Respondents must comply with those terms and conditions and any applicable instructions, processes, procedures and recommendations as advised on AusTender at https://www.tenders.gov.au. All queries and requests for technical or operational support should be directed to: AusTender Help Desk Telephone: 1300 651 698 International: +61 2 6215 1558 Email: Tenders@finance.gov.au The AusTender Help Desk is available between 9am and 5pm ACT local time, Monday to Friday (excluding ACT and national public holidays). Respondents should inform themselves of the security measures and other aspects of AusTender prior to using it for any matter related to the RFEOI. The Bank makes no representations or warranties about the security or unauthorised access to any information transmitted via the internet to, or from, AusTender or to or from the Bank and accepts no responsibility arising from any use or attempted use of AusTender by a Respondent. Liability from reliance on information This RFEOI is issued, and Expressions of Interest will be submitted and considered, on the basis that, and the Respondent acknowledges and agrees that: all information which has been made available to Respondents is provided on the basis that no representation or warranty in relation to the suitability, accuracy, adequacy or completeness of the information, whether express or implied, is made by the Bank in relation to that information; each Respondent must carry out all relevant investigations and make its own enquiries, review and evaluation in respect of: all aspects of the Supply; the suitability, accuracy, adequacy and completeness of any information provided by the Bank; all information which is relevant to the risks, contingencies and other circumstances related to the Supply which could affect the decision to lodge an Expression of Interest without reliance on the Bank or its Associates; the Bank has no liability to any Respondent should any information provided in the RFEOI be unsuitable, inaccurate, inadequate or incomplete or if actual volumes, locations, environments or other relevant matters vary from the Bank’s current expectation; the RFEOI does not contain any business, investment, legal or tax advice. Respondents must seek their own professional advice as appropriate; neither the release of the RFEOI, nor any Contract, will imply that there has been no material change to the RFEOI since the date of preparation of the RFEOI or since the date at which any information contained in the RFEOI is stated to be applicable; and to the maximum extent permitted by law, neither the Bank, nor its Associates, will in any way be liable to any person for any Claim arising in any way out of or in connection with any information, statement or other representations, actual or implied, contained in or omitted from the RFEOI or by reason of any reliance on them by any person. Preparing an Expression of Interest Conditions for Participation The Respondent must meet the Conditions for Participation at item 4 of the Process Details to participate in the Procurement Process. Subject to Condition 7.3, the Bank may exclude a Respondent from the Procurement Process if at any time before a Contract is executed, the Bank considers the Respondent does not meet any of the Conditions for Participation. Responsibility of Respondents to inform themselves The onus is on a Respondent to understand the contents of the RFEOI and the implications of being involved in the Procurement Process. It is the sole responsibility of Respondents to obtain all information necessary and relevant to an Expression of Interest. The Bank will not accept responsibility for any misunderstanding arising from a Respondent's failure to comply with the RFEOI or any issues arising from ambiguity contained in any Expression of Interest. The Respondent must ensure, and the Bank accepts any Expression of Interest on the condition, that the Respondent has: examined the RFEOI (including any variations or addenda to the RFEOI), any documents referred to in the RFEOI, and any other information made available in writing by the Bank to Respondents for the purpose of tendering; made its own enquiries to determine the adequacy, accuracy, suitability and completeness of any information provided by the Bank; prepared its Expression of Interest based on its own investigations, interpretations, deductions, information and determinations; satisfied itself as to the correctness and sufficiency of its Expression of Interest; satisfied itself as to the nature and effect of any laws regulating the provision of the Supply; and made its own interpretations, deductions and conclusions from the information made available and accepted full responsibility for such interpretations, deductions and conclusions. In preparing its Expression of Interest, the Respondent must not rely on: any representation, letter, document or arrangement, whether oral or in writing, or other conduct as adding to or amending the RFEOI other than amendments in accordance with Condition 3.8; or any warranty or representation made by or on behalf of the Bank, except as are expressly provided for in the RFEOI. All costs and expenses incurred by a Respondent in connection with the RFEOI, including the costs associated with preparing and lodging an Expression of Interest, responding to requests from the Bank, hosting site visits or attending industry briefings, interviews or contract negotiations, or taking any other action related to the Procurement Process, are the sole responsibility of the Respondent. To avoid doubt, the Bank will not be, and is not, liable for any Loss of the Respondent. Requests for clarification Any enquiries or requests for clarification in connection with the RFEOI must be made in writing to the Bank Contact by the date and time specified in item 2 of the Process Details (if any). The Bank reserves the right to refuse to accept any enquiries or requests for clarification not made in accordance with Condition 3.2. If the Bank considers that a Respondent's enquiry or request for clarification may be relevant to other Respondents, it will publish its response to all Respondents on a non-attributable basis in the form of an addendum by notice via AusTender (if the RFEOI has been issued via AusTender) or otherwise via email to the Respondent Contact. Minimum content and format requirements The minimum content and format requirements are set out at item 5 of the Process Details. Subject to Conditions 4.8 and 7.3, if the Respondent does not comply with any one or more of the minimum content and format requirements in item 5 of the Process Details, it may be excluded from the Expression of Interest evaluation process. Prime contractor Unless specified otherwise in the RFEOI (e.g. that Consortium Expressions of Interest are permitted), the Bank requires that any Contract resulting from the Procurement Process will be entered between the Bank and a single legal entity (or multiple entities with joint and several liability) responsible for the delivery of the entire Supply. Additional information in support of Expressions of Interest In addition to the completed Response Schedules that are required to be lodged in accordance with the RFEOI, supporting information elaborating, clarifying or otherwise explaining the Expression of Interest may be lodged. Such information will be taken to form part of the Expression of Interest for all purposes of the RFEOI. The Bank may choose not to consider information presented as supporting information which alters the completed Response Schedules. Alternative Expressions of Interest If specified in item 7 of the Process Details that Alternative Expressions of Interest are permitted: the Respondent may lodge an Alternative Expression of Interest; the Respondent must lodge a fully conforming Expression of Interest (in addition to any Alternative Expression of Interest); and the Alternative Expression of Interest must be lodged in a separate document. Unintentional errors of form If, at any time, the Bank considers that there are unintentional errors of form in an Expression of Interest, the Bank may, in its sole and absolute discretion, allow the Respondent to correct or clarify the error, but may refuse to consider any new or different information that would materially alter the original Expression of Interest. Lodging an Expression of Interest Expressions of Interest must be lodged electronically Expressions of Interest must be lodged electronically via: AusTender and in accordance with the Expression of Interest lodgement procedures set out in the RFEOI and on AusTender; or email to the Expression of Interest Lodgement Email Address, as specified at item 8 of the Process Details and in accordance with the Expression of Interest lodgement procedures set out in the RFEOI. Subject to Condition 5.4.1, Expressions of Interest lodged by any other means, including by hand or facsimile, may not be considered. File format Expressions of Interest may only be lodged in the following file formats unless other formats are permitted or required by the RFEOI: Microsoft Word; Microsoft Excel; Microsoft PowerPoint; Microsoft Project; and
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