Space and Major Disasters Charter Procurement

Description

The UK Space Agency (UKSA) wishes to acquire services in support of its national commitments to the International Charter: Space and Major Disasters. The International Charter: Space and Major Disasters (here on in referred to as the Charter) aims to provide unified system of space data acquisition and delivery to those affected by natural or man-made disasters. Further details on the Charter can be found at https://disasterscharter.org/web/guest/charter-members UKSA has a requirement for operational and strategic support in line with its Charter obligations and agreements, specialist training and stakeholder engagement services to ensure optimal uptake of the Charter within the UK Government and with selected overseas partners, and to proactively engage in Executive Secretariat activities, so that they remain aligned to the strategic direction provided by the Charter Board and wider UK interests. Please refer to section "more information" for further details. Lot 1: This Prior Information Notice is being issued in order to undertake a market consultation exercise with regards to the requirements within the description above and attachments. UKSA will be holding a supplier engagement day in order to assess the market's appetite, and view on the approach to procuring the services. If you believe this is of interest to you and your organisation, please register an Expression of Interest to attend by sending an email to the following email address: applications@ukspaceagency.gov.uk The supplier engagement day will be held in on the 15th of September 2021 via Microsoft Teams. Expressions of Interest to attend must be received at the above email address by no later than 1200*hrs BST on the 27th of August 2021 (the EOI Deadline). Places are limited to two representatives per organisation. Your email should have the subject heading "UKSA Space and Major Disasters Charter Procurement PIN EOI" you should include your company name and the names and contact telephone numbers of up to two representatives wishing to attend and the email address(s) for reply confirmation. Upon confirmation of attendance by UKSA, the agenda for the day & virtual invites will be issued. PLEASE NOTE: Due to coordinating access arrangements, Expressions of Interest received after EOI Deadline will not be considered and access to the event will not be possible. UKSA may consider information and responses received as part of the preliminary market consultation to help inform UKSA specification and further decision making in relation to the planning and conduct of the proposed procurement. For the avoidance of doubt, this notice is not a Call for Competition; a Contract Notice will be issued as a call for competition. Not registering an interest shall not prevent any supplier participating in a future procurement, nor is it intended that any information supplied as part of preliminary market consultation will be preferential. Additional information: The UK's contribution to the Charter is provided though a longstanding and successful UKSA and UK industry partnership. UKSA sit on the Management Board of the Charter, whilst the day-to-day support for Charter activations and operations is provided by industry. The Executive Secretariat support and UK training is currently also provided by industry. To ensure the UK meets its commitments and fully engages in Charter activities, the Agency also supports attendance at the Executive Secretariat meetings and associated working groups. The Executive Secretariat is the main delivery mechanism for the Charter which comprises nominated representatives from all Charter Members; whose duties include managing and monitoring Charter activities, co-ordinating and supporting ongoing charter initiatives, driving/ delivering continuous improvement activities and new projects in line with the strategic direction set by the Management Board. High resolution earth observation data from satellites which are registered, operated and licenced in the UK, are provided into the Charter on a pre-agreed and voluntary basis through an industry led consortium which provides the UK national contribution (which is a pre-condition of Charter Membership). The data provided must meet minimum quality criteria and be provided in a format which is compatible with Charter processes. Although the data provision is voluntary and free, the Agency currently shares a proportion of the staff costs associated with providing on-call emergency cover (24/7 on a pre-agreed rota basis when the UK is the Emergency on Call Officer (ECO)), specialist imagery tasking and for participating in the semi-annual ECO refresher training exercise. UKSA wishes to confirm the existing capabilities of UK owned and operated satellites, that can be made available as a UK contribution to the Charter and acquire operational support and services necessary to support Charter activations, ensuring that the UK fulfils its legal obligations and effectively responds, interacts and engages in all priority aspects of Charter operations. In addition to this, UKSA also funds specialist training to ensure UK Authorised Users, UK Charter Project Managers and other key stakeholders are fully briefed and trained on the latest Charter developments, processes and software tools required to effectively interface with the Charter. UKSA has a potential requirement for strategic support in line with its Charter obligations and agreements, specialist training and stakeholder engagement services to ensure optimal uptake of the Charter within the UK Government and with selected overseas partners, and to proactively engage in Executive Secretariat activities, so that they remain aligned to the strategic direction provided by the Charter Board and wider UK interests. UKSA support for the Charter largely falls into two main areas: Operational Response and Strategic Support on behalf of the UK. This requirement includes: - Operational support and emergency response to enable the effective acquisition, provision and dissemination of high-resolution satellite imagery - Application of specialist knowledge and expertise to achieve key deliverables - Understanding of specialist tools and processes - Cross government and industry stakeholder management - Process refinement activities - Provision of specialised training (on Charter operations, roles, tools and processes to HMG Authorised Users, Nominated Project Managers and pre-agreed Overseas Partners) - Provision of training to multiple Suitably Qualified and Experienced Persons for continuity purposes within the strategic support elements. - Attendance at international working groups with meeting outcome associated deliverables - Supporting briefing and governance activities for the UKSA - UK representation and involvement in wider stakeholder engagement and communication activities to promote and improve the Charter's operation as well as optimising its use and influence within the UK and overseas.