Framework Agreement Company Publication "EINSVIER"

✓In stage 1, evaluation is based on Eignungskriterien per lot using the Bewertungsmatrix Eignungskriterien: for Los 1 and Los 2, 30 % of the score relates to Berufserfahrung der Mitarbeiter (with detailed point scales per role, e.g.

✓Redaktionsleiter*in, Projektleiter*in, Redakteur*innen bzw. Designdirektor*in, Grafikdesigner*in, Reinzeichner*in) and 70 % to Referenzen (company and key staff references, assessed against similarity of medium, complexity, scope, and responsibility).

✓Only the top three candidates per lot proceed (plus ggf. Reservebewerber bei Punktgleichheit).

❓In the second stage, Zuschlagskriterien für Los 1 are: Kosten pro Ausgabe inkl. Stundensätze (250 Punkte, 50 %), Konzept (Redaktions- und Kommunikationskonzept, Projektorganisation, KI-Einsatz und Qualitätssicherung; 100 Punkte, 20 %), Kreativaufgabe/Arbeitsprobe (125 Punkte, 25 %) und Gesamteindruck der Präsentation/Pitch (25 Punkte, 5 %), insgesamt 500 Punkte.

❓For Los 2, Zuschlagskriterien sind: Gestaltungsprobe Schwerpunktartikel (300 Punkte, 60 %) und Preis (Pauschalpreis pro Ausgabe, Stundensätze, Zusatzleistungen/Illustrationen; 200 Punkte, 40 %), ebenfalls 500 Punkte Gesamt.

✓As to risks and special conditions, the input text outlines several legal and contractual obligations rather than numerical penalties.

✓They also must give a Mindestlohnerklärung according to the Brandenburg public procurement minimum wage law, including obligations to pass this on to any subcontractors and to allow inspection of payroll and employment documentation (even for staff abroad) at the contracting authority’s location or on their premises.

✓Bietergemeinschaften must submit a joint ARGE‑Erklärung (Formblatt 234) confirming Gesamt­schuldner­haftung and a single authorised representative.

✓The validity period of offers is governed by the Zuschlags-/Bindefrist (bis 21.02.2027), during which bidders are bound.

✓While explicit contractual penalties and guarantees are not detailed in the excerpt, the documents emphasize that staff named in the bid may be replaced only with persons of equal qualification and experience and only with prior written consent of the Auftraggeberin, which creates performance risk if the bidder cannot maintain their promised team.

✓Nebenangebote are only admissible if they fully meet the minimum requirements and are clearly structured (per VHB‑Formblatt 632EU).

✓With respect to contradictions or corrections, the Verfahrensbrief clearly contains tracked changes where earlier dates have been corrected: for example, the deadline for bidder questions was first 19.10.2026 and is corrected to 26.10.2026, and the Teilnahmeantragsfrist from 27.10.2026 to 03.11.2026; the corrected dates (with the second, later date) are the applicable ones.

✓Similarly, other scheduling entries (Aufforderung zur Angebotsabgabe, Öffnungstermine, Information nach § 134 GWB, Ablauf der Bindefrist, Leistungsbeginn) show old and new dates, of which the later, second date is controlling.

⚠There is also a minor internal inconsistency: an early passage of the Los 1 Bewerberformblatt in the verbal description lists “2 Fotograf*innen” as mandatory roles, while the more detailed copied section of the form in the excerpt only shows Redaktionsleiter*in, Projektleiter*in, 2 Redakteur*innen; here, the Verfahrensbrief (as higher-level procedural document) and the more complete earlier description with Fotograf*innen should be treated as authoritative, but in case of doubt the bidder is instructed (per 632EU) to notify the contracting authority of any perceived errors or ambiguities via the Vergabemarktplatz Brandenburg before submission, so the final binding interpretation would result from a clarified Q&A / Bieterinformation.

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 requirements for securities: the text does not require bid bonds, performance guarantees or warranty guarantees.

❓No specific amounts or deadlines are mentioned for any bid, performance or warranty bonds; therefore, based on the provided text, such securities are not required.

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

✓Such as rules on subcontracting and Eignungsleihe: subcontracting and the use of capacities of other companies are expressly allowed, subject to disclosure and formal obligations.

✓The bidder must, via form 235 (Verzeichnis der Leistungen/Kapazitäten anderer Unternehmen), specify the type and scope of partial services to be performed by other companies and which capacities are borrowed for eligibility.

✓For each such third or subcontractor company, corresponding declarations and, where used for financial/economic capacity, a Verpflichtungserklärung (form 236) must be submitted, including a commitment to provide capacities and joint liability for contract performance.

✓The 632EU conditions (section 6) state that these other companies must be named with legal representative and contact details, and that in case of Eignungsleihe for economic/financial criteria they must jointly and severally be liable; companies with exclusion grounds or insufficient capacity must be replaced within a set deadline.

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

❓Such as information on site visits or mandatory attendance: no “site visit” (Baustellenbegehung or similar) is mentioned for this service contract.

✓Attendance at these meetings, if bidders are invited, is effectively mandatory and role-specific: for Lot 1, the personal presence of the editor-in-chief (Redaktionsleiter*in) and the project manager (Projektleiter*in) is required; for Lot 2, the design director (Designdirektor*in) and the project manager must attend.

✓Each meeting lasts about one hour (approximately 30 minutes presentation of the offer plus 30 minutes discussion).

❓There is no mention of any physical site inspection as part of the procedure.

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

✓Such as language requirements and acceptance of foreign-language documents: under 632EU, section 3.1, offers must be drawn up in German (“Das Angebot ist in deutscher Sprache abzufassen.”).

✓All standard forms provided are German.

✓For eligibility evidence, if certificates are not in German, the 632EU conditions specify that a translation into German must be attached (“Bescheinigungen, die nicht in deutscher Sprache abgefasst sind, ist eine Übersetzung in die deutsche Sprache beizufügen.”).

✓Thus, the tender and core documentation must be in German, while supporting certificates in other languages are accepted only together with a German translation.

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

✓Such as information on tender validity and deadlines for bidder questions: the indicative timetable in the Verfahrensbrief fixes the end of the award/commitment period (“Ablauf der Zuschlags-/Bindefrist”) at 21.02.2027; bidders are bound by their tenders until that date.

✓Communication takes place exclusively via the Vergabemarktplatz Brandenburg.

✓For the first stage (participation applications), bidder questions “sollen möglichst” (should preferably) be submitted by 26.10.2026; questions submitted later may remain unanswered.

✓For the second stage (offers), there is another deadline for clarification questions, set to 15.12.2026.

✓The time schedule also includes key dates such as the deadline for submission of participation applications (03.11.2026, 10:00), opening of applications and offers, invitation to submit indicative offers, and the planned dispatch of award information letters under § 134 GWB (08.02.2027).

Further details

✓Vergabeverfahren „EINSVIER_2026“ – Rahmenvereinbarung Unternehmenspublikation (Redaktion & Gestaltung)

✓The input text concerns a German public procurement procedure conducted under the Vergabeverordnung (VgV) for a framework agreement on the corporate publication “EINSVIER”, divided into Lot 1 (editorial work) and Lot 2 (design).

✓It reflects the legal framework of Germany (federal VHB-Bund forms, Brandenburg state rules) and European Union law (e.g. sanctions regulation against Russia, reference to EU procurement directives).

✓The point of view is clearly that of a German contracting authority applying EU procurement rules.

✓Such as background information: the procedure is a “Verhandlungsverfahren mit öffentlichem Teilnahmewettbewerb” (negotiated procedure with prior call for competition).

✓In the first stage, candidates submit participation applications via the Vergabemarktplatz Brandenburg with various standard forms (e.g. 124 Eigenerklärung zur Eignung, 632EU Bewerbungsbedingungen).

✓In the second stage, selected bidders submit offers including price sheets, concepts or design samples and may be invited to negotiation meetings.

✓The documents also set detailed eligibility criteria regarding professional registration, financial capacity (minimum turnover and professional liability insurance limits) and technical capacity (team composition, qualifications, references).

✓Instead, it requires proof or commitments regarding professional liability insurance (for Lot 1: 2.5 million € for personal and property damage and 1.0 million € for financial loss; for Lot 2: 1.0 million € for personal/property damage and 1.0 million € for financial loss), which can be evidenced either by an existing policy or by an insurer’s declaration to conclude such insurance in case of award.

✓However, negotiation meetings (“Verhandlungsgespräch”) may be held in the second stage.