CONTRACT NOTICE – OFFICIAL JOURNAL

Section I: Contracting Authority

I.1)

Name, Address and Contact Point(s)

I.2)

Type of contracting Authority and Main Activity or Activities

Ministry or any other national or federal authority, including their regional or local sub-divisions National or federal agency/Office Regional or local Authority Regional or local Agency/Office Body governed by public law European Institution/Agency or International Organisation

General public services Defence Public order and safety Environment Economic and financial affairs Health Housing and community amenities Social protection Recreation, culture and religion Education

Section II: Object of the Contract

II.1)

Description

II.1.1)

Title attributed to the contract by the contracting authority

II.1.2(a))

Type of works contract

II.1.2(b))

Type of supplies contract

II.1.2(c))

Type of service contract

II.1.2)

Main site or location of works, place of delivery or performance

Royal Lancaster Infirmary, Lancaster.

II.1.3)

This notice involves

A public contract
The setting up of a Dynamic Purchasing System
The establishment of a framework agreement

II.1.4)

Information on framework agreement (if applicable)

Framework agreement with a single operators
Framework agreement with several operators

Number of participants to the framework agreement envisaged

Duration of the framework agreement

Justification for a framework agreement the duration of which exceeds four years

Estimated total value of purchases for the entire duration of the framework agreement

Frequency and value of the contracts to be awarded

II.1.5)

Short description of the contract or purchase(s)

The Histopathology service undertakes in excess of 28,000 histological samples per annum. Including:

a. formalin fixed paraffin embedded tissue;

b. non Gynaecological cytology: including fine needle aspirations, urines, body fluids.

To ensure prompt diagnosis of medical conditions and to support timely referral for treatment it is important the reporting turnaround times are in line with the proposed Royal College of Pathologists Key Performance Indicators.

Current situation.

The majority of examinations requiring a pathologist report are currently undertaken by internal Trust consultant histopathologists, who offer a high quality timely service when issuing reports. When we are unable to recruit histopathologists, in times of histopathologist's sick leave or during high demand for histopathology services, the backlog of reporting can increase and reporting turnaround time is lengthened, thus compromising patient care. In addition, extra lists to reduce waiting times and deal with the increased demand for examinations generate extra reporting, which at times can also create a backlog.

As Histopathology is a core component on the majority of patient pathways, any delays in reporting can effect patients' return appointments to their clinician — potentially compromising the 18 week RTT target.

The perceived benefits of a remote reporting service are:

Clinical Benefits.

— Capacity and flexibility to provide a first class histopathology service when absentee levels are high, in instances of annual leave and when there are vacant posts.

— Meet or exceed 18 weeks RTT target.

— In house Histopathologists able to prioritise clinical lists during periods of annual leave.

— Any back log of reporting would be identified.

— Extra additional lists would be reported at a set/known cost.

— Auditable Quality Assurance.

II.1.6)

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

II.1.7)

Contract covered by the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)

II.1.8)

Division into lots

II.1.9)

Will variants be accepted

II.2)

Quantity or Scope of the Contract

II.2.1)

Total quantity or scope

II.2.2)

Options

Provisional timetable for recourse to these options

Number of possible renewals

In the case of renewable supplies or service contracts, estimated time frame for subsequent contracts

II.3)

Duration of the contract or limit for completion

Section III: Legal, Economic, Financial and Technical Information

III.1)

Conditions Relating to the Contract

III.1.1)

Deposits and guarantees required

The contracting authority reserves the right to require deposits and/or guarantees and/or bonds and/or any applicable other form of security. Details will be provided in the contract documents.

III.1.2)

Main Terms of financing and payment and/or reference to the relevant provisions

Further details will be provided in the contract documents.

III.1.3)

Legal form to be taken by the grouping of suppliers, contractors or service providers to whom the contract is to be awarded

The contracting authority reserves the right to require groupings of bidders to take a particular legal form, a single bidder to take primary liability or each party to undertake joint and several liability. Consortia bids are acceptable.

III.1.4)

Other particular conditions to which the performance of the contract is subject

III.2)

Conditions for Participation

III.2.1)

Personal situation of economic operators, including requirements relating to enrolment on professional or trade registers

Suppliers Instructions How to Express Interest in this Tender:

1. Register your company on the eSourcing portal (this is only required once):

— Browse to the eSourcing Portal: https://uhmb.bravosolution.co.uk and click the link to register.

— Accept the terms and conditions and click ‘continue’.

— Enter your correct business and user details.

— Note the username you chose and click ‘Save’ when complete.

— You will shortly receive an email with your unique password (please keep this secure).

2. Express an Interest in the tender:

— Login to the portal with the username/password.

— Click the ‘PQQs / ITTs Open To All Suppliers’ link. (These are Pre-Qualification Questionnaires or Invitations to Tender open to any registered supplier).

— Click on the relevant PQQ/ ITT to access the content.

— Click the ‘Express Interest’ button at the top of the page.

— This will move the PQQ /ITT into your ‘My PQQs/ My ITTs’ page. (This is a secure area reserved for your projects only).

— You can now access any attachments by clicking ‘Buyer Attachments’ in the ‘PQQ/ ITT Details’ box.

3. Responding to the tender:

— Click ‘My Response’ under ‘PQQ/ ITT Details’, you can choose to ‘Create Response’ or to ‘Decline to Respond’ (please give a reason if declining).

— You can now use the ‘Messages’ function to communicate with the buyer and seek any clarification.

— Note the deadline for completion, then follow the on-screen instructions to complete the PQQ/ ITT.

— There may be a mixture of online & offline actions for you to perform (there is detailed online help available) You must then submit your reply using the ‘Submit Response’ button at the top of the page. If you require any further assistance please consult the online help, or contact the e-Tendering help desk.

III.2.2)

Economic and financial capacity

III.2.3)

Technical capacity

III.2.4)

Reserved contracts

The contract is restricted to sheltered workshops
The execution of the contract is restricted to the framework of sheltered employment programmes

Section IV: Procedure

IV.1)

Type of Procedure

Open		Restricted
Accelerated restricted		Negotiated
Accelerated negotiated		Competitive dialogue

Justification for the choice of accelerated procedure

IV.1.1)

Have candidates already been selected?

IV.1.2)

Limitations on the number of operators who will be invited to tender or to participate

Objective criteria for choosing the limited number of candidates

IV.1.3)

Reduction of the number of operators during the negotiation or dialogue

Recourse to staged procedure to gradually reduce the number of solutions to be discussed or tenders to be negotiated

IV.2)

Award Criteria

IV.2.2)

An electronic auction will be used

IV.3 Administrative Information

IV.3.1)

Reference number attributed to the notice by the contracting authority

A) Suppliers Instructions How to Express Interest in this Tender:1. Register your company on the eSourcing portal (this is only required once):— Browse to the eSourcing Portal: https://uhmb.bravosolution.co.uk and click the link to register.— Accept the terms and conditions and click ‘continue’.— Enter your correct business and user details.— Note the username you chose and click ‘Save’ when complete.— You will shortly receive an email with your unique password (please keep this secure).2. Express an Interest in the tender:— Login to the portal with the username/password.— Click the ‘PQQs / ITTs Open To All Suppliers’ link. (These are Pre-Qualification Questionnaires or Invitations to Tender open to any registered supplier).— Click on the relevant PQQ/ ITT to access the content.— Click the ‘Express Interest’ button at the top of the page.— This will move the PQQ /ITT into your ‘My PQQs/ My ITTs’ page. (This is a secure area reserved for your projects only).— You can now access any attachments by clicking ‘Buyer Attachments’ in the ‘PQQ/ ITT Details’ box.3. Responding to the tender:— Click ‘My Response’ under ‘PQQ/ ITT Details’, you can choose to ‘Create Response’ or to ‘Decline to Respond’ (please give a reason if declining).— You can now use the ‘Messages’ function to communicate with the buyer and seek any clarification.— Note the deadline for completion, then follow the on-screen instructions to complete the PQQ/ ITT.— There may be a mixture of online & offline actions for you to perform (there is detailed online help available) You must then submit your reply using the ‘Submit Response’ button at the top of the page. If you require any further assistance please consult the online help, or contact the e-Tendering help desk.(B) The Trust utilises the NHS supplier information database (Sid4Gov) to manage and assess general pre-qualification information in the form of a profile. Candidates are requested to provide their profile on the Sid4Gov as follows: a) candidates should register on Sid4Gov at https://sid4gov.cabinetoffice.gov.uk by clicking on the Register Organisation tab and select the Supplier button. To continue with the registration process Suppliers must have a current DUNS Number. If a Supplier does not have a DUNS Number there is a link to the D&B UK website to request a DUNS Supplier Number. Suppliers who already have a published profile on Sid4Gov must confirm that information is up to date; ii) candidates should ensure all relevant sections of their NHS Sid4Gov profile are completed to demonstrate their ability to meet the short listing criteria applicable to this contract. Where access to Sid4Gov is unavailable, please contact Sid4Gov helpdesk at Telephone: +44 8452992994 Email: support@nqc.com Any supplier may be disqualified who does not respond to the following in the requisite manner: 1) Supplying a profile in NHS Supplier Information Database (sid4gov) as part of their PQQ submission. The Contracting Authority has no influence in relation to the time period involved in the generation of a sid4gov profile, however, it understands that the process can take between 2 to 5 days and that these timescales may vary from country to country. (C) The contracting authority does not bind itself to accept the lowest or any offer. (D) The contracting authority is not responsible for any costs incurred by bidders in relation to their participation in this process.

IV.3.2)

Previous publication(s) concerning the same contract

Prior Information Notice
Notice on a Buyer Profile

Other previous publications

IV.3.3)

Conditions for obtaining specifications and additional documents

IV.3.4)

Time-limit for receipt of tenders or requests to participate

IV.3.5)

Date of dispatch of invitations to tender or to participate to selected candidates

IV.3.6)

Language or languages in which tenders or requests to participate can be drawn up

IV.3.7)

Minimum time frame during which the tenderer must maintain the tender 

IV.3.8)

Conditions for opening tenders

Section VI: Other Information

VI.1)

Indicate whether this procurement is a recurrent one and the Estimated timing for further notices to be published

VI.2)

Does the contract relate to a Project/Programme financed by Community Funds?

VI.3)

Additional Information

A) Suppliers Instructions How to Express Interest in this Tender:

1. Register your company on the eSourcing portal (this is only required once):

— Browse to the eSourcing Portal: https://uhmb.bravosolution.co.uk and click the link to register.

— Accept the terms and conditions and click ‘continue’.

— Enter your correct business and user details.

— Note the username you chose and click ‘Save’ when complete.

— You will shortly receive an email with your unique password (please keep this secure).

2. Express an Interest in the tender:

— Login to the portal with the username/password.

— Click the ‘PQQs / ITTs Open To All Suppliers’ link. (These are Pre-Qualification Questionnaires or Invitations to Tender open to any registered supplier).

— Click on the relevant PQQ/ ITT to access the content.

— Click the ‘Express Interest’ button at the top of the page.

— This will move the PQQ /ITT into your ‘My PQQs/ My ITTs’ page. (This is a secure area reserved for your projects only).

— You can now access any attachments by clicking ‘Buyer Attachments’ in the ‘PQQ/ ITT Details’ box.

3. Responding to the tender:

— Click ‘My Response’ under ‘PQQ/ ITT Details’, you can choose to ‘Create Response’ or to ‘Decline to Respond’ (please give a reason if declining).

— You can now use the ‘Messages’ function to communicate with the buyer and seek any clarification.

— Note the deadline for completion, then follow the on-screen instructions to complete the PQQ/ ITT.

— There may be a mixture of online & offline actions for you to perform (there is detailed online help available) You must then submit your reply using the ‘Submit Response’ button at the top of the page. If you require any further assistance please consult the online help, or contact the e-Tendering help desk.

(B) The Trust utilises the NHS supplier information database (Sid4Gov) to manage and assess general pre-qualification information in the form of a profile. Candidates are requested to provide their profile on the Sid4Gov as follows:

a) candidates should register on Sid4Gov at https://sid4gov.cabinetoffice.gov.uk by clicking on the Register Organisation tab and select the Supplier button.

To continue with the registration process Suppliers must have a current DUNS Number. If a Supplier does not have a DUNS Number there is a link to the D&B UK website to request a DUNS Supplier Number. Suppliers who already have a published profile on Sid4Gov must confirm that information is up to date; ii) candidates should ensure all relevant sections of their NHS Sid4Gov profile are completed to demonstrate their ability to meet the short listing criteria applicable to this contract. Where access to Sid4Gov is unavailable, please contact Sid4Gov helpdesk at Telephone: +44 8452992994 Email: support@nqc.com Any supplier may be disqualified who does not respond to the following in the requisite manner: 1) Supplying a profile in NHS Supplier Information Database (sid4gov) as part of their PQQ submission. The Contracting Authority has no influence in relation to the time period involved in the generation of a sid4gov profile, however, it understands that the process can take between 2 to 5 days and that these timescales may vary from country to country.

(C) The contracting authority does not bind itself to accept the lowest or any offer.

(D) The contracting authority is not responsible for any costs incurred by bidders in relation to their participation in this process.

VI.4)

Procedures for appeal

VI.4.1)

Body responsible for appeal procedures

Body responsible for mediation procedures

VI.4.2)

Lodging of appeals
Precise information on deadline(s) for lodging appeals:

The contracting authority will incorporate a minimum 10 calendar days standstill period at the point of information on the decision to award the contract is communicated to bidders in accordance with Regulation 32A of the Public Contract Regulations 2015. Any bidder wishing to appeal the decision to award the contract, or after the award of the contract, appeal the award, shall have the rights as set out in Part 9 of the Public Contract Regulations.

VI.4.3)

Service from which information about the lodging of appeals may be obtained

VI.5)

Dispatch date of this Notice