Minutes of Non Compulsory Briefing Session held Virtually on 18 JUNE 2021 10:00 - BID NO. DFFE-T010 (21/22)

Minutes of Non Compulsory Briefing Session held
            Virtually on 18 JUNE 2021 10:00
              BID NO. DFFE-T010 (21/22)
APPOINTMENT OF SERVICE PROVIDER TO PROVIDE QUALITY ASSURANCE AND GOVERNANCE SUPPORT
  WITHIN BID ADMINISTRATION PROCESSES OF THE DEPARTMENT FOR A PERIOD OF 24 MONTHS.

Minutes: Non-Compulsory Briefing Session- 18/06/2021
                       DFFE-T010 (21/22)

I.     The virtual meeting commenced at 10:00 on 18 June 2021 using MS Teams,
II.    The Project Manager Ms Maria Lekota welcomed attendees and introduced the SCM Assistant Director Mr Hector Mutthabo.
III.   The Project Manager mentioned apology from SCM Practitioner Ms Emily Babedi who was on sick leave.
IV.    The Project Manager requested all in attendance to indicate their Names through the MS Teams Chat Box.
V.     It was confirmed that the Briefing Session was non-compulsory and no bidder will be disqualified for having not attended.
VI.    The Project Manager mentioned that a presentation has been prepared for the briefing and it will be published on the Departmental for ease of reference. Attendees
       were requested to type their questions in the chat box and more questions would be taken and answered after the presentation.
VII.   The closing date for the tender DFFE-T010(21/22) is 30 June 2021 at 11:00
VIII. The Project Manager provided the presentation and emphasized the following points for bidders to note:
IX.    The correct tender number is DFFE-T010(21/22) and not DFEE-T010(21/22) stated on the SBD 1 and also not DFFE-T009(21/22) stated on the Invitation to Bid. This
       discrepancy was caused by having had to withdraw the DFFE-T009(21/22) which was initially posted on the National Treasury e-Tender Portal and not on the
       Departmental Website. To align the advert / posting dates for the two media platforms, Tender number DFFE T009(21/22) was withdrawn and replaced with DFFE-
       T010(21/22). Addendum to communicate this Tender Number correction was posted on the Departmental Website and e-Tender Portal.

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Minutes: Non-Compulsory Briefing Session

I.     Bidders must ensure that they fully comply with the requirements of the bid, and duly complete, sign and submit all the required Documents / Forms as outlined in
       pages 7 & 8 of the TOR. Failure to do this leads to disqualification. The SBD 6,1 must be duly completed, signed and submitted and accompanied by a valid proof of
       B-BBEE Status Level of Contributor as indicated in the Bid Documents. Failure to do this will lead to forfeiture of B-BBEE Points.
II.    Where copies of Original B-BBEE Certificates and Sworn Affidavits are submitted, Bidders are requested to have these duly certified as a true copy of the original.
       The certification stamp should be original. CIPC B-BBEE Certificates downloaded from the CIPC Website need not be certified.
III.   Bidders were urged to consider the special conditions of tender and also the fact that the Department may negotiate prices where need be. The DPSA Guideline Fees
       on Appointment of Consultants are used as a bench mark and based on that, the Team Leader is considers to be on the level of Deputy Director and the Team
       Members at the level of Admin / Senior Admin Officers.
IV.    Tax compliance requirements must also be met as outlined in the slide and the bid documents.

The following questions were raised with answers provided accordingly:

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Minutes: Non-Compulsory Briefing Session

Question 1: Could you kindly clarify the evaluation criteria on page 11 of the ToR “valid reference letters (supported by proof of appointment on various projects) clearly
stipulating client satisfaction” are these required references for proposed team members or the bidder
Answer: The valid reference letters required is for the bidder. This talks to previous and current similar projects run by the bidder / company. To assess the
bidder’s capability and quality of service.
Question 2: Can you quote for one office and not another? or do you have to quote for both?
Answer: The bid was issued and intended as one bid for a service that has to be offered in Cape Town and Pretoria. To comply with its requirements, bidders
have to bid for it and offer service / resources / teams that will be based in Pretoria and in Cape Town.
Question 3: Do bidders’ offices have to be based in Cape Town and Pretoria?
Answer: There is no requirement for the bidder or service provider to have a footprint either in Cape Town or Pretoria. What is required under tis bid is team
members that will be working from Departmental Offices that are in Cape Town and Pretoria. The Department will not reimburse team members for travelling
from their place of residence to Departmental Office as that is ordinarily similar to travelling to a place of work from one’s own residence.
Question 4: For the Academic Qualification (Degree / Diploma) which is required from the proposed Team Members / Leaders, will it be acceptable if one has 20 years SCM
experience with no Academic Qualification?
Answer: No. As part of the Pre-Qualification Evaluation Criteria which is mandatory, the Academic Qualifications are listed and these are compulsory. The
qualifications may be from any of the Fields / Areas listed. Failure to meet this requirement will lead to disqualification.

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Minutes: Non-Compulsory Briefing Session
Question 5: The Costing Table on Page 6-7 of the Terms of reference indicated in the terms of reference seems to contain an error with regard to number of hours allocated
for the Team Members (Practitioners) in relation to the Project Duration.
Answer: The hours allocated in the pricing schedule for Team Members/ Practitioners were based on 8 hours x 5 days x 4 weeks x 24 months as these
Resources are required on a full time basis for the duration of the project. The Team Leader is not required on a full time basis. Bidders are expected to quote in
accordance with the Costing Table reflected on Page 6-7 and they must provide Hourly Rate per Professional, then multiply that by No. of Professionals and by
Estimated Number of Hours as outlined in the Costing Table. They must then provide the total under the Total Column and VAT vendor should then add VAT and
provide the total offer amount. Those who are not VAT Vendors will have also put their total offers which exclude VAT. The Total Offers will be used by the
Department for evaluation and award purposes in order for the Bids to be on a comparative basis. Should bidders bid in any way which is not aligned to the or
covering the Costing Table, their bids may not be Comparable with others fir evaluation purposes. Bidders are therefore urged to comply with this request.

Follow up Question: So, the Estimated Number of Hours refer to Estimated Number of Hours per Professional.
Answer: The Number of Professionals is stated on the Table and if the calculation on the Costing Table is followed correctly, this will still lead to the same Total.

All written technical enquiries may be sent to mlekota@environment.gov.za and SCM related enquiries may be directed to ebabedi@environment.gov.za
The briefing session was adjourned at 11:05. The tender DFEE-T010 (21/22) will close on 30 June 2021 11:00,

                                              M Lekota (Project Manager)                                                                                       Slide 5