Extension BIZGIS phase 3

✓The assignment is not divided into lots; it has a generiek and specifiek deel but within one scope for a single service provider.

✓The general objective is to develop and implement a framework and support for municipalities (local besturen) to participate in BIZGIS, address data management for business parks, integrate various data sources (including leegstand and bovenlokaal uitgiftebeleid), and carry out maturity assessments and tailored support.

✓Place of performance includes meetings at VLAIO/Vlaamse Overheid offices and at local authorities on site.

✓Quantities are explicitly “vermoedelijke hoeveelheden”; no minimum purchase is guaranteed, and the maximum total value of the framework is set at €800,000 excl.

✓Execution deadlines are set per individual bestelopdracht in consultation with the contractor.

✓The generieke opdracht (methodology, maturity screening preparation) is priced as a lump sum; specific assignments per local authority (maturity analyses, workshops, interviews, process analyses, reporting, guidance) are called off on a time‑based basis (junior/senior hourly rates).

✓Such as regards award criteria, the contracting authority applies the economically most advantageous tender (best price‑quality ratio).

✓Three criteria with fixed weighting are defined: “Visie op de opdracht” (20 points), “Plan van aanpak” (40 points) and “Prijs” (40 points), totalling 100 points.

✓The vision must show understanding of BIZGIS phase 3 objectives, data management challenges, differences in digital maturity, links between processes/data/GIS, integration of various datasets, and sustainable support to local authorities.

✓The plan of approach must describe methodology, phasing, generic handbook development, maturity assessment approach, guidance of local authorities, knowledge transfer, quality assurance, risk analysis, reporting and how economies of scale and standardisation/herbruikbaarheid are achieved.

✓A minimum score of 50% on the Plan van aanpak criterion is mandatory for an offer to remain in contention.

✓Price is split into sub‑criteria: (i) the generieke deel (sections 3.1 and 3.2.1) worth 30 points, using a relative scoring formula (lowest compliant total price / bidder’s total price × 15); and (ii) the average of junior/senior hourly rates for specific assignments (sections 3.2.2–3.5) worth 10 points, scored via (lowest compliant average hourly rate / bidder’s average hourly rate × 25).

✓The lowest regular offer and hourly rate receive the maximum 40 points.

✓Annual indexation of hourly rates is foreseen on the basis of the Belgian health index (base year 2013).

✓Such as concerns risks and special conditions, the contract is subject to Belgian public procurement execution rules (KB Uitvoering) without specific derogations, except where explicitly noted (e.g. deviation from Civil Code art. 5.210 regarding payment allocation).

✓No financial guarantee (borgtocht) is required.

✓Price includes a defined list of elements (administration, travel, insurance, documentation, inherent deliverables, packaging, training, and legally required health-and-safety measures).

✓There are provisions on IP rights: the contracting authority acquires rights to methods and know‑how developed or used in the assignment, and the bidder must disclose necessary third‑party IP rights and ensure licences are included in prices.

✓The use of electronic means is mandatory during execution, and strict confidentiality, data protection (GDPR processor agreement where relevant) and information security obligations apply, aligned with the Vlaamse overheid’s security framework; confidentiality clauses must be mirrored to subcontractors.

✓On subcontracting and reliance on capacity, the bidder may use subcontractors without capacity reliance or rely on the economic/technical capacity of other entities, in which case specific commitments (Stuk 4) and UEA forms are required, no exclusion grounds may apply to those entities, and in case of reliance for economic/financial capacity, joint and several liability for performance must be explicitly accepted.

✓During execution, replacement of key profiles requires prior written approval by VLAIO.

❓The offer’s binding period (verbintenisstermijn) is 120 calendar days from the day after the submission deadline.

✓Questions about the tender documents can be submitted by email up to 10 calendar days before the submission deadline; answers are published via corrigendum in e‑Procurement and the EU Official Journal and become contractually binding.

❓There is no mention of a mandatory site visit.

✓Execution risk is managed through standard tools: general penalties for defective performance (daily or one‑off fines calculated under KB Uitvoering), delay penalties (vertra­gingsboetes) per component treated as a separate assignment, and revision clauses addressing tax changes, unforeseeable circumstances (threshold of at least 15% change in contract value) and mutual fault leading to possible time adjustments, compensation or contract termination.

✓Payment is split between the generic assignment (preferably one tranche after full completion), and specific time-based assignments paid quarterly based on accepted performance; no advance payments are made, and payment terms are governed by KB Uitvoering with a 30‑day processing period, e‑invoicing via PEPPOL/Mercurius and priority allocation of payments to principal over interest.

✓Such as concerns contradictions or corrections within the documents, the text consistently states that there are no deviations from the general execution rules of the KB Uitvoering (explicitly “Niet van toepassing” under “Afwijkingen KB Uitvoering”), meaning the standard Belgian execution regime applies except where the bestek itself sets more detailed conditions (e.g. on intellectual property, confidentiality, penalties, payment allocation).

✓The “leeswijzer” clarifies the structure (selection conditions, award criteria, offer drafting, submission, technical requirements, execution).

✓Any later clarifications or corrections will be issued as “terrechtwijzend bericht” (corrigendum) via e‑Procurement and the EU Supplement, and those published answers explicitly form an integral part of the contract and prevail as binding interpretations.

Answers on the required criteria

Must securities be provided (bid bond, performance or warranty guarantee)? If so: which, in what amount and by when?

✓Such as in section 4.3 “Borgtocht (ART. 25 TOT MET 33/1 KB UITVOERING)”, the text explicitly states: “Er wordt geen borg gesteld.” There is no mention of any other form of security (no bid bond, performance bond or warranty guarantee) being required.

✓Consequently, for this procedure no security has to be provided, and there are no amounts or deadlines related to guarantees.

Is subcontracting allowed? If so: with which limits and which disclosure duties?

✓Subcontracting is clearly envisaged and allowed.

✓Such as in the ESPD/UEA request, the form asks whether the entrepreneur intends to give part of the contract in underaanneming and, if so, to name proposed subcontractors and provide information on them when the contracting authority explicitly asks.

✓The bestek further requires that key obligations are passed down: for example, confidentiality (section 4.1.4) and non‑discrimination / social conditions (section 4.10) must also be respected by any subcontractors.

✓Additionally, due to EU sanctions on Russia, the offerteformulier includes a declaration that it is forbidden to award the contract if more than 10% of the contract value is performed by subcontractors or other entities with a Russian link as defined.

✓This effectively limits subcontracting to entities that are not covered by those sanctions and imposes a disclosure duty on such participation.

Is there a site visit, and is attendance mandatory? If so: when?

❓There is no site visit foreseen, but there is an information meeting.

✓Such as in section “INFORMATIEVERGADERING”, the bestek states that an online information session will be held on 27/10/2026 at 9:30, for which the link is provided after confirmation of participation.

✓Attendance is “sterk aanbevolen” (strongly recommended) but not stated as mandatory, and no sanction or exclusion is attached to non-attendance.

✓Questions to be answered at that meeting must be submitted at the latest three days beforehand; during the meeting no new questions will be accepted or answered.

In which language must the tender and the supporting documents be submitted, and are documents in other languages accepted?

✓The language regime is strict.

✓Such as in sections 2.5.7 and 4.1.3, the tenderer “gebruikt uitsluitend het Nederlands in zijn mondelinge en schriftelijke relatie met de aanbestedende overheid.” This implies that the tender and all core documents must be in Dutch.

✓Documents that exist only in another language may be submitted, but the contracting authority can require a translation, possibly a sworn translation (“desgevallend beëdigde vertaling”).

✓During contract execution, communication with the authority must also be exclusively in Dutch.

How long is the bidder bound by the tender (validity period), and is there a deadline for bidder questions? If so: until when?

✓The binding period and question deadlines are explicitly defined.

❓Such as in section 2.5.6, bidders remain bound by their offer for 120 calendar days, starting the day after the limietdatum for receipt of tenders (limietdatum: 12 November 2026, limietuur: 12:00).

✓Regarding questions, section “VRAGEN BIJ DE OPDRACHTDOCUMENTEN” provides that questions about the contract documents may be submitted until at the latest 10 calendar days before the deadline for receipt of tenders; they must be sent to the specified email address with the bestek number as reference.

✓The answers are published as a corrigendum on e‑Procurement and in the Supplement to the Official Journal of the EU and form an integral part of the contract conditions.

Further details

✓Tender conditions for VLAIO-2026-17 “Uitbreiding BIZGIS fase 3”

✓The input text is the tender specifications (“bestek”) for a Belgian public service contract by the Flemish Government / VLAIO (Agentschap Innoveren en Ondernemen), concerning the expansion of BIZGIS (phase 3).

✓It is drafted from the point of view of a Belgian contracting authority applying Belgian and EU public procurement rules, and it references EU law (such as the ESPD/UEA and EU sanctions against Russia).

✓The applicable legal framework mentioned includes Belgian public procurement legislation and EU regulations.