The UK Ship Emissions Reporting Service (UK-SERS) – Alpha phase (with option to go to Beta)

Description

Summary of the work Test assumptions, understand constraints, develop prototypes to support a CDDO/GDS compliant Alpha that meets user needs, defines key areas of the MVP to reflect core areas of user need, tests technology options, refines Service Blueprint Progress to beta phase, passing CDDO assessment, successful transition to public beta. Expected Contract Length Approximately 10 weeks (for Alpha) Latest start date Monday 17 October 2022 Budget Range Between £200k and £250k for Alpha (excl. VAT), which includes up to 20% for contingencies. Up to £590,000 for Beta (excl. VAT) (if the option to move to Beta is exercised). Why the Work is Being Done Following completion of a Discovery phase on 7 June 2022, the Maritime Environment team require a supplier to undertake a Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO) compliant Alpha (with an option to proceed to Beta depending on the outcome of Alpha) as the next step towards developing a UK Maritime CO2 emissions reporting service. The Alpha phase will need to test ideas and our riskiest assumptions as well as exploring constraints and prototyping solutions to establish what the ‘Minimum Viable Product’ (MVP) looks like and decide which will be taken forward for development in Beta. The MVP will need to receive and store annual CO2 emissions reports from ship operators whose vessels call at UK ports and are within scope of the UK’s monitoring, reporting and verification regime (UK MRV). The service is needed to comply with UK legislation and is likely to be a component of any future UK maritime emission trading scheme (ETS) service, when introduced. The service needs to be able to analyse, interpret and publish emissions data. It should also provide an improved user-experience to that offered by the European Commission’s THETIS-MRV digital service, used by vessels within scope of the equivalent EU MRV regime. Problem to Be Solved A service which monitors CO2 emissions from ships is an essential element in helping Government achieve its net zero commitments. Under the UK’s retained MRV legislation, ship operators must collect and record the fuel consumption and CO2 emissions for all voyages to and from UK ports, made by ships over 5,000 gross tonnes when transporting passengers or cargo. Ship operators are currently collecting data for the 2022 calendar year – the first reporting period under the UK MRV – to produce an annual emissions report for each ship. The reports must be approved by an independent verifier and submitted by 30 April the following year. The Department is required to release some of this data and publish its own report on the key findings. Ship operators cannot upload UK MRV reports onto the European Commission’s existing THETIS-MRV database, nor will the service being developed by BEIS be ready in time to receive these reports. Therefore, we require a CDDO compliant, public facing MVP which is available to users before the end of Q1 2023. If this is not possible, then the service must be ready in time to receive the next emissions reports in Q1 2024. Who Are the Users The core users for the Alpha phase project will be ship operators, emission verifiers, DfT policy officials and the regulator (currently DfT). The UK Accreditation Service (UKAS), ship inspectors and maritime trade bodies also have an interest. Ship operators need to be able to complete their CO2 emissions reports, have them verified by an independent third-party company, and then upload the approved report onto the new service. The independent verifiers (once accredited by the UKAS) need to verify and approve the emissions reports before the final report is accepted, and a ‘document of compliance’ is issued for ship. DfT policy officials need to analyse, interpret and publish the emissions data which is received to shape future climate change policy. The regulator will need to monitor which ships have / have not submitted emissions reports providing a support function to system users. UKAS will accredit verifiers for the UK MRV and have sufficient maritime expertise and knowledge of the UK MRV process to affect any changes to the accreditation process, when necessary. Ship inspectors – require easy access to the ship’s document of compliance and any deficiencies found and observations made by previous inspectors. Early Market Engagement None Work Already Done A Discovery report has already been produced for the Maritime Emission Reporting Service and BEIS are building an emissions reporting system for other industries, including aviation. The supplier for Discovery (Version 1) ran three sprints over six weeks from 25 April to 7 June, which included semi structured stakeholder interviews and journey, service, and process mapping exercises. The report made 20 recommendations in relation to service delivery, operational readiness, the technology and data needed, strategy, service design and stakeholder engagement, as well as recommending a move to Alpha. Existing Team Maria Suttle – Product Owner Natasha Coates / Lowri Rhind – Service Owners Current Phase Alpha Skills & Experience • Detail the tools and approaches used for delivering recent alpha and beta stages for a digital service or product. • Demonstrable experience of designing and building services which meet user needs in terms of content design, service design, improved automation and accessibility • Demonstrable evidence of developing a successful proof of concept/prototype based on user research to enable the development of a Beta solution. • Experience in developing a service which is flexible enough to be adapted to meet future changing requirements. • Demonstrable experience of developing clear recommendations for beta minimum viable products including considerations for timeline and quote. Nice to Haves • Demonstrable experience of delivering an Alpha and Beta project which has passed CDDO Service Assessments. • Recent (within 5 years) experience of working within the maritime industry or with other industries which have a variety of users – some of which are based outside the UK. • Demonstrable experience of working on a project that spans two (or more) government departments/public bodies, to meet common goals. • Experience of working with teams with no or limited experience of digital projects. Work Location Most of the work should be conducted at the supplier’s own site. However, we would expect the supplier to work at our offices when agreed and required, which could be 1 to 2 days per week subject to Covid restrictions. Exact days will be decided with the supplier at contract stage. Most engagement is likely to be over TEAMS. Address: Department for Transport, Great Minster House, Horseferry Road, SW1P 4DR Working Arrangments Supplier to be available and contactable 9.00am - 5pm Monday to Friday. Supplier to suggest a team to complete the Alpha phase in approximately 10 weeks. Includes scaling up and down the team and part-time working when appropriate. Detailed working arrangements will be provided upon appointment of supplier but will include for example, adherence to DfT process and standards. Expenses must align with DfT Travel and Subsistence policy, no expenses incurred within the M25 corridor and with all other proposed travel approved by the buyer prior to mobilisation. Security Clearance All contractors’ personnel should as minimum be cleared to authority security clearance level of BPSS and must be available to begin work with immediate effect following contract award. CV's including security clearance evidence required for resource to be assigned to this project and will be evidenced at written proposal stage. Additional T&Cs Statements of work will be defined for the introduction into the Alpha phase. DfT’s architectural principles and standards and the GOV.UK technology code of practice will apply to this project; https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-technology-code-of-practice No. of Suppliers to Evaluate 6 Proposal Criteria • Your approach and methodology to the Alpha and Beta, to include how priorities will be determined, problems approached, and emerging findings presented (30%) • A project plan with proposed timelines for delivery of the Alpha (and optional Beta) stage (10%) • Value for money (5%) • Demonstrate how you will identify and manage risks, assumptions, and dependencies (5%) • The team structure, their technical skills and experience including the estimated resource (10%) Cultural Fit Criteria • Experience of transparent and collaborative working to deliver outcomes.3% • Experience of taking responsibility for their work and resolving problems effectively. 3% • Demonstrate a user centred approach, using research to present findings that all stakeholders/decisions makers can easily understand. 4% Payment Approach Capped time and materials Assessment Method • Case study • Presentation Evaluation Weighting Technical competence 60% Cultural fit 10% Price 30% Questions from Suppliers 1. Are you able to confirm who carried out the Discovery phase? Version 1 Solutions Limited carried out the Discovery phase. 2. Please can you share the discovery as it includes recommendations that would need to be understood and reviewed in order to assess suitability of the requirement. Discovery report available via the following link:file:///C:/Users/KJAMES/Documents/Discovery%20Report%20(Final)%20(1).pdf 3. Could we see a summary of the Discovery report please and who was the supplier that produced the report ? Answers have been provided in the first 2 questions. 4. Can you please share a copy of the Discovery report with bidders? Discovery report link has been provided in question 2. 5. Could the Authority please share the anticipated timeline for this procurement that include dates for: 1) Shortlisting Notification for Stage 2 2) Submission Deadline for Stage 2 3) Presentation 4) Evaluation period 5) Award Notification. Indicative Timeline• 24.08.22 Publish requirements • 31.08.22 Expiry of supplier period for questions• 06.09.22 Expiry for DfT to publish answers• 07.09.22 Bid submission deadlinePhase 1 = 2 weeks total08.09.22 – 16.09.22 Individual evaluations / moderation meeting • 2nd Stage Requests sent – 19.09.22• 2nd Stage Clarification Period Begins – 19.09.22• 2nd Stage Clarification Period Ends –23.09.22• 2nd Stage Submission Deadline – 23:59 30.09.22• 2nd Stage Individual Evaluations – W/C 03.10.22• 2nd Stage Moderation / Consensus Meeting – W/C 03.10.22 • Notification of Award – 07.10.22 6. The link published to access the discovery report doesn’t appear to work. Could it be checked or shared in a different format? Unfortunately the link we have provided within the answer to question 2 is the only function we are able to use. If it is not accessible then the only option we have is to provide the discovery report individually at stage 2 of this procurement. 7. Can you check the answer to question 2 – the link does not work. Unfortunately as confirmed on the previous answer, we are unable to add the link. 8. Can you check the answer to question 2 – the link does not work. Unfortunately as confirmed on the previous answer, we are unable to add the link. 9. Please check and reconfirm the link for the Discovery report provided in Clarification No. 2 above. It does not appear to be working As advised previously. 10. We are having trouble accessing the Discovery report and the link presented in question 2 (file:///C:/Users/KJAMES/Documents/Discovery%20Report%20(Final)%20(1).pdf) does not work, please can you provide us with a workable link? Unfortunately we are unable to provide an alternative to the link in question 2 as the system does not allow it. 11. Who from your team will be scoring applications for this opportunity and what positions do they hold? It has yet to be confirmed exactly who will be the evaluators due to staff leave within the scheduled timeline, therefore it could be subject to change. However we can confirm the positions evaluators are expected hold for this DOS:1. Maritime Directorate Digital Business Partner 2. Head of Maritime Environment Strategy and Regulation (and Service Owner)3. Maritime Policy Advisor 12. Demonstrable experience of developing clear recommendations for beta minimum viable products including considerations for timeline and quotePLEASE CLARIFY: QUOTE ? We are looking for experience in making recommendations for moving from Alpha to Beta which includes evidence that the supplier can provide a timeline for delivering a minimum viable product and therefore a quote based upon a multidisciplinary team working to that timeline. We are not looking for a quote but demonstrable evidence the supplier has experience of providing a quote/proposal for Beta. 13. To enable access to the Discovery report, may we suggest that you ask suppliers to contact you at an agreed email address (perhaps confirmed in the answer to this CQ?) so you can reply with the report attached? This is a fairly common approach with DOS procurements. Please send any requests for the Discovery Report only, to kevin.james@dft.gov.ukPlease note that today (31/08/2022) is the last day for questions therefore any request for the Discovery Report after this date cannot be accepted. 14. The recommendations contained within the discovery report may determine the suitability of the requirement for a number of suppliers. if the report is not made available until stage 2 there could be significant resource consumed in the review of applications that are potentially not relevant. Please could the report be emailed to participating/responding suppliers? Please request the Discovery Report via the email address provided in the previous answer. Please also note the expiry date for these requests. 15. Hi, if you cannot share the discovery report then does that imply that Version 1 Systems have an unfair advantage in responding, as they are party to information that other suppliers do not have.If it helps we would be able to provide a download link for all suppliers to use if you can share the report. Thank you for your offer of support with the download link. As advised on the previous answer please see the email address provided for Discovery Report requests. 16. Which supplier completed the Discovery? Version 1 Solutions Limited. The Discovery report can be requested via the email address confirmed on a previous answer above. 17. Would it be possible for the Authority to provide an email address so that suppliers can request a copy of the Discovery report and receive it by return email? Please see above answers for the email address to send Discovery Report requests. 18. Will the Authority allow the Supplier who performed Discovery Phase to bid for the Alpha Phase? Yes bids are open to all DOS suppliers able to satisfy our requirements. There is no reason to discount any supplier at this stage. 19. In the Discovery Report, there are links to Journey Maps for ship operators and verifiers, as well as to the EU MRV Process Map – these point to Version 1’s Sharepoint and are hence inaccessible to others. Could you please let us know how to access these documents? Unfortunately, we encounter exactly the same issue for certain links within the document:If you could work with the vast amount of other information provided within the report that would be much appreciated. 20. Could you please clarify if the proposed service is for ship operators to upload the report after approval, or whether the completion of these reports and the verification are also within the scope of the proposed service? The system could include provision for both uploading and verification of the report (by an independent verifier), as is the case for the EU’s system. 21. 1. Can you confirm whether the supplier selected to deliver the Alpha – based on performance – will be selected to then deliver the Beta as well?2. Is the workflow for verification and approval by independent verifiers part of the scope of the proposed service? 1. Based on performance, if DfT are content that the supplier can transition from Alpha to Beta within all of the required parameters and within budget then this is an option as per the DOS specification, however it is not guaranteed. 2. The system could include provision for both uploading and verification of the report (by an independent verifier), as is the case for the EU’s system. 22. Has any preparatory planning work already started on managing stakeholders and end users to be made available from the kick-off date? To ensure stakeholders are kept abreast of changes, DFT issues guidance on the UK Monitoring, Reporting and Verification system to the maritime sector periodically, e.g. MIN 669. In addition, stakeholder and user engagement was undertaken as part of the discovery phase. 23. Regarding the first question in the Essential Skills and Experience section which asks for detail about “delivering recent alpha and beta stages”, please can you clarify how recent this should be? I.e. Within how many years? Examples should be not more than 4 years old. 24. Is this system starting from scratch, form a data-perspective, or will this need to integrate with other systems from the off? This will be starting from scratch but we anticipate other relevant systems and user needs to inform the data requirements and approach. 25. You mention BEIS and their efforts to build a similar system which includes aviation; this may or may not be duplication. Is each sector seen as a specialism individually, but there is a plan to dashboard them together at some point in the future? There may be similarities between sectors but the users are obviously different. The Discovery Report identifies possible opportunities and we expect to merge with the PMRV system that BEIS are building at some point, from which “dashboarding them together” may be an outcome. 26. Can we have any details, reports at anything related to the Aviation system mentioned? The Discovery Report provides the information within our control. BEIS are building, at some point, the aviation element.