Acuerdo marco con un participante para el apoyo y la gestión de las TIC

✓The place of performance is the AquaFlanders registered office in Antwerp.

✓The framework starts on 1 January 2027, has an initial duration of one year and can be renewed seven times (potentially eight years total), but automatically ends once the ceiling amount of 216,000 EUR is exceeded.

✓Quantities in the inventory (e.g. structural support per month, consultancy per hour, project work per hour or forfait, interventions outside standard hours, other costs) are indicative only and do not bind the contracting authority.

✓Thirdly, about award criteria and weighting, the contract is awarded based on the economically most advantageous tender using best price‑quality ratio.

✓The gunningscriteria total 100 points: price (40 points, calculated with a rule-of-three formula using the lowest bid), quality and organisation of the service (30 points), expertise and experience of the proposed team (20 points), and transition, continuity and documentation (10 points).

✓For qualitative evaluation, the contracting authority uses an ordinal scale (e.g.

✓“uitmuntend”, “zeer goed”, “goed”, “middelmatig”, “ondermaats”, “slecht”, “onvoldoende”) translated into scores out of 100, and requires at least “middelmatig” on each (sub)criterion and at least 50% on the main quality criterion.

✓Bidders must submit a sufficiently detailed plan of approach including, such as, integration tests, required client effort, training and go‑live documentation, and risk analysis with mitigation measures.

✓Only formally regular, complete offers that meet minimum and essential requirements are evaluated; others are excluded without compensation.

✓Fourthly, the input sets out various risks and special conditions.

✓The offer binding period is 90 calendar days from the submission deadline (3 November 2026, 13:00 CET), and the procedure includes a simplified negotiated procedure with potential multiple rounds and a possible “final offer” phase, although minimum requirements and award criteria are not negotiable.

✓AquaFlanders reserves the right to end the procedure at any time without liability or compensation, or to restart it, and to adjust the bestek during the process, provided equality and comparability are preserved.

✓Subcontracting is restricted: essential parts must be executed with the contractor’s own personnel and expertise.

✓There are strict rules on professional integrity, no lobbying, no collusion, and non‑discrimination and welfare obligations towards workers (including Limosa and rules on illegal third‑country nationals and non‑payment of wages), with breaches potentially leading to exclusion or termination.

✓The contract requires appropriate insurance (both BA Uitbating and execution-phase insurance for accidents and civil liability) and is governed by the general execution rules under the KB 14 januari 2013.

✓Facturation must be electronic via PEPPOL in XML, monthly, with mandatory elements and a 30‑day payment term.

✓AquaFlanders may break off specific orders if obligations are not respected and may apply herzieningsclausules for changes in taxes, unforeseen circumstances, or faults of either party, including possible term adjustments, damages or termination.

✓Finally, regarding contradictions or corrections within the documents, the text itself defines a hierarchy for resolving conflicting statements: (1) wijzigingsbevelen, richtlijnen en verduidelijkingen from the contracting authority; (2) the closure of the contract and determination of starting date; (3) official notices and corrections related to the publication; (4) the present bestek and its annexes; (5) the contractor’s offer and later approved documents; (6) the inventory.

✓It also clarifies that the provisions of the bestek supplement, clarify or replace the cited legislation where indicated, and that there are “Geen” deviations, additions or remarks listed on the infopage.

✓Free variants and options are explicitly forbidden, and the bidder may not alter indicated quantities.

✓Legal objections must be raised in writing at most 10 calendar days before opening of initial offers or 15 days after publication; otherwise, by submitting an offer, the bidder is deemed to accept the bestek, the criteria and the procedure, and the statements in the bestek prevail over any divergent conditions in the bidder’s own terms.

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 relation to securities and guarantees, the document specifies that the contractor must have and prove an appropriate liability insurance (verzekering BA Uitbating) covering the professional risks, and additional insurances for arbeidsongevallen and civil liability towards third parties, with attest submission within 30 days after contract signature (and on request later).

✓A specific financial “borgsom” or bid/performance bond is not mentioned in the extracted text; instead, there is a “waarborgtermijn” of 3 months after provisional acceptance of deliverables, but this is a warranty period for performance rather than a separate monetary guarantee.

❓No explicit bid bond or performance guarantee amount or deadline is set out in the provided passages.

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

✓Such as regarding subcontracting, the text states under “Gebruik onderaannemers (Art. 74 KB Plaatsing)” that the contractor must execute the “essentiële onderdelen” (essential parts) of the assignment exclusively with its own staff and expertise; for these essential tasks, subcontracting is not allowed.

✓At the same time, elsewhere it is acknowledged that specialized parties or suppliers may be involved where needed, and the contractor must ensure underaannemers respect social, welfare-at-work, Limosa and ethical clauses.

✓This implies subcontracting is allowed for non-essential components, with the contractor remaining fully responsible and having to ensure that underaannemers transfer relevant IP rights and comply with all legal and ethical obligations.

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

❓Such as concerning site visits, the document does not announce a formal, scheduled “plaatsbezoek” session or mandatory collective visit date.

✓Instead, it includes a general obligation that, if the specifications refer to concrete locations, the bidder “zal zich ter plaatse vergewissen van de omstandigheden” before drawing up its offer.

❓This is framed as the bidder’s responsibility to inform itself about local conditions, not as an organized or compulsory meeting at a given date/time; no specific visit date, registration procedure or sanction for non-attendance is indicated in the extracted text.

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

✓Such as in the matter of language and submission, the bestek requires that the tenderer “maakt zijn offerte op in het Nederlands” and that the bidder uses “uitsluitend het Nederlands” in all oral and written communication with the contracting authority.

✓Offers must be submitted electronically via www.publicprocurement.be, in allowed file formats (MS Word, MS Excel, searchable PDF) and cannot be filed on paper or by e-mail.

✓There is no indication that documents in other languages are accepted; foreign certificates (e.g. criminal record, social/fiscal certificates) are allowed from foreign authorities, but the working and submission language of the tender, explanations and forms must be Dutch.

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 for the binding period and bidder questions, the “Verbintenistermijn” is explicitly set at 90 calendar days, counting from the ultimate deadline for receipt of tenders (3 November 2026 at 13:00).

✓During this period the bidder remains bound by its offer, while AquaFlanders may negotiate, request clarifications or directly award.

✓On questions, the text provides a specific deadline only for “wettigheidsbezwaren” (legal objections to the bestek): these must be submitted in writing (registered mail and e-mail) no later than 10 calendar days before the opening of the initial offers.

❓A general Q&A deadline for ordinary bidder questions is not explicitly specified in the extracted parts, though a contact point ([email protected]) is provided for information requests.

Further details

✓The input text concerns a Belgian public procurement procedure (Wet Overheidsopdrachten van 17 juni 2016) for a framework agreement (“raamovereenkomst”) for ICT-ondersteuning en -beheer (ICT support and management) for AquaFlanders vzw, located in Antwerp, Belgium.

✓The perspective is clearly that of the Belgian contracting authority, applying Belgian and EU public procurement, labour, social security and discrimination law.

✓It sets out administrative, contractual and technical provisions for bidders, including selection criteria, submission rules, negotiation framework and execution conditions.