Rolling stock

Description

Mersey travel, either on its own account or contracting thorough a wholly owned subsidiary company,(‘Merseytravel’) wishes to procure a new fleet of electric multiple units (known as ‘Units’) (‘New Fleet’) for operation on the Merseyrail Electrics Network in Merseyside, Cheshire and West Lancashire. The MerseyrailElectrics Network is an urban metro style passenger rail system, comprising the Northern Line and the WirralLine, which currently operate separately from the City Line and the rest of the UK rail system by virtue of its electrification by the third rail DC system. It provides good penetration into Liverpool city centre through the coreloop and link underground system, and interconnects with the Merseyrail City Line and national rail services through Liverpool Lime Street station. The Merseyrail Electrics Network comprises 66 stations along 75 route miles of network. The central core operates underground across 5 stations. The Merseyrail Electrics Networkcarries over 34 000 000 passenger journeys each year. The Merseyrail Electrics Network is currently operated by Merseyrail Electrics 2002 Limited (‘Merseyrail’) — a joint venture between Serco and Abellio, under a Concession Agreement let by Merseytravel until 2028. The New Fleet, which will replace the existing Class 507 and 508 Electric Multiple Units (‘Existing Fleet’), is tobe suitable for operation on the Merseyrail Electrics Network and in particular must comply with the specific physical, mechanical and environmental characteristics and restrictions of the Merseyrail Electrics Networkas set out in the Specification. Further details of the performance characteristics and general specification for the New Fleet will be set out in the Specification which will be made available to pre-qualified Applicants at theInvitation to Negotiate (‘ITN’) stage. Details of the diagrams that support the proposed timetable will also be made available to pre-qualified Applicants with the ITN. Merseytravel expects that in the region of 50 initial Unitsof 60 metre nominal length will be necessary to meet these operational requirements. Applicants will however,be requested to consider and propose the configuration and exact number of Units to be supplied which willenable Merseyrail to operate all of the diagrams and the indicative timetable that will also be set out in the ITN inthe most efficient and cost effective manner. The successful Applicant will be responsible for the design, construction, homologation (including any type approval), testing, commissioning and delivery of the New Fleet pursuant to the terms of a Manufacture and Supply Agreement (‘MSA’), a draft of which will be made available to pre-qualified Applicants with the ITN. Thesuccessful Applicant will also be required to provide, as part of the design process, details relating to a number of aspects of Units, in the form of mock-ups of various sections of the new Units including the driver's cab, arepresentative section of the saloon area, and the Unit exterior. The successful Applicant will also be required to provide design, build, test, commission and supply a cab simulator to assist with driver training. The Existing Fleet is leased to Mersey travel's wholly owned subsidiary, Merseyside Passenger TransportServices Limited, by Angel Trains Limited under a long term master operating lease agreement (‘MOLA’), andis sublet to Merseyrail. The successful Applicant will be expected to enter into a maintenance sub-contract(‘MSC’) with Merseyrail, under which the Applicant will carry out all maintenance and repair works and in depot cleaning and servicing requirements on the Existing Fleet until the date on which all of the units comprising theExisting Fleet have been redelivered to Angel Trains Limited. The successful Applicant will also be responsible for ensuring an efficient transition of maintenance services from the Existing Fleet to the New Fleet as the new Units are accepted under the MSA and introduced into passenger carrying service on the Merseyrail ElectricsNetwork. The transfer of responsibility in respect of the maintenance and repair of the Existing Fleet from Merseyrail to the successful Applicant will trigger a transfer of relevant maintenance and depot-based traincleaning staff from Mersey rail to the successful Applicant under the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (‘TUPE’). Applicants will be expected to satisfy themselves of the existence and extent of any TUPE rights through their own due diligence. Relevant employee information will be made available to pre-qualified Applicants at the ITN stage. Merseytravel currently envisages that the successful Applicant will be responsible for the maintenance and depot-based cleaning of the New Fleet under a long term Train Availability and Reliability Agreement (‘TARA’),and will require the successful Applicant to balance the number of Units to be supplied and the maintenance and availability of those Units to achieve the optimal operating efficiency and best value for money on a whole life basis. In this context, the successful Applicant is expected to be responsible for the long term running and heavy maintenance of the New Fleet, as well as daily servicing and cleaning, so that the successful Applicant will be responsible for providing Units that are ready and safe for entry into service available to the operator at the entry point of each diagram. The successful Applicant may also be required, under the TARA, to make certain future modifications to the Units, such as the retrospective conversion of the traction power supply from the third rail dc system to an a dual voltage system that utilises both third rail and overhead line electric traction power systems. The successful Applicant will also be required to design, construct and deliver (or procure the design and construction and delivery of) new maintenance facilities under a Depot Construction Contract (‘DCC’) on railwayl and which currently comprises part of the Mersey rail Electrics Network. The new maintenance facilities are likely to include (but not be limited to) a maintenance shed covering 3 inspection roads with pits, cranes and/or jacks, test facilities; a train exterior wash plant and specialist cleaning area; a second train exterior wash plant on the opposite side of the Mersey rail Electrics Network to the new depot; secure storage for spares and equipment; an appropriate depot protection system; train cleaning facilities for daily and periodic heavy cleaning; and amendments to the yard layout to optimise yard movements. The successful Applicant will be required to manage the interface between the construction of the new maintenance facilities, the daily operations on the Mersey rail Electrics Network and the successful delivery and commissioning of the new maintenance depot. The successful Applicant will also be responsible for securing all necessary permissions and approvals for the construction of the new maintenance depot. The successful Applicant will also be required to enter into a lease with Network Rail, on full repairing an dinsuring terms, pursuant to which it will occupy the new depot facility to be constructed pursuant to the DCCfrom which the maintenance services in respect of the New Fleet will be performed under the TARA. In this respect the successful Applicant will be the Depot Facility Owner in relation to the new depot. The successful Applicant will also be responsible for the operation of the existing maintenance facilities at the Kirkdale depot and the Birkenhead North depot, and will be required to enter into leases with Network Rail, on full repairing and insuring terms, pursuant to which it will occupy those depots, again as Depot Facility Owner. The successful Applicant will also be required to enter into a contingent Technical Services, Support and Spares Agreement (‘TSSSA’) which will come into effect in conjunction with the award of the MSA but which will only become relevant if Merseytravel elects for any reason not to award the TARA or if the TARA is terminated forany reason. The TSSSA will provide industry standard warranties relating to the design and construction of the New Fleet and the provision of technical services, support and spares on an on-going basis for the design life ofthe new Units, if the successful Applicant is not or no longer responsible for the maintenance of the new Fleet under the TARA. A draft of the TSSSA will be made available to pre-qualified Applicants at the ITN stage. Underthe TSSSA, the successful Applicant will be obliged to continue to supply certain specified spares for the New Fleet throughout the economic life of the new Units, to provide certain warranties in relation to the new Unitswhich will not otherwise be included in the MSA (due to the assumption that the successful Applicant will beresponsible for the provision of running and heavy maintenance in relation to the New Fleet on an availability and reliability basis under the TARA), and to provide technical support and services to Merseytravel or theincumbent maintenance provider for the time being at Merseytravel's request in respect of the New Fleet on acall-off basis. The successful Applicant will also be required to enter into a Project Collaboration Agreement (‘PCA’) pursuant to which it will be required to submit detailed plans supporting, amongst other things, the detailed design,construction, testing, delivery and commissioning phases of the MSA relating to the supply of the New Fleet,the design, construction and delivery phases of the DCC, the transfer of responsibility for the maintenance of the Existing Fleet to the successful Applicant and the delivery of maintenance services under the MSC (in respect of the Existing Fleet) and under the TARA (in respect of the New Fleet), as well as providing for a collaborative approach to the delivery and governance of the Merseytravel Rolling Stock Programme and for themanagement of interfaces between the MSA, TARA, MSC, DCC and TSSSA. In the event that the successful Applicant for the supply of the New Fleet is unable to propose an acceptable and affordable maintenance solution, Merseytravel reserves the right, in its discretion, to award the MSA and to enter into the TSSSA, and to proceed with the purchase of the New Fleet from the successful Applicant, but not to award the TARA, the MSC (in relation to the maintenance of the Existing Fleet) or the DCC (relating to the design, construction and delivery of the new depot facility at which the New Fleet will be maintained). In that circumstance, Merseytravel retains the right to conduct separate procurements to select a maintainer for the New Fleet, who will be required to enter into the TARA, the DCC and the MSC. In such circumstances, if the successful Applicant is not awarded the TARA, the DCC or the MSC, it will also not be required to enter into the leases in respect of the new depot facility or the existing depots at Birkenhead North and Kirkdale, with NetworkRail. Merseytravel intends to hold an industry day for potential Applicants to provide information in relation to the Merseytravel Rolling Stock Programme. This will be held 12.1.2015 at a time that will be notified to potentialApplicants who express an interest in this procurement, and will be held at a location in Liverpool. Following the industry day, the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire and related documentation (‘PQQ’) will be issued electronicallyto potential Applicants. It is currently envisaged that the ITN will be issued to shortlisted Applicants in January 2016 with contract award expected in November 2016. Further details relating to the procurement process will be provided in the PQQ and subsequently, in the ITN. Applicants are invited to register their interest in the Merseytravel Rolling Stock Programme via the Chest procurement portal at https://www.the-chest.org.uk/