Request for Proposals: Technical Design and Development of the DIAMAS Common Access Point

Founded in 1971 and based in The Hague, LIBER is Europe’s largest research library network. Currently, LIBER is involved in the EU Horizon Europe-funded project, “Developing Institutional Open Access Publishing Models to Advance Scholarly Communication–DIAMAS”: https://diamasproject.eu

For the needs of the project, LIBER will procure the Common Access Point (CAP) for Diamond Open Access (OA) in Europe. The CAP is creating a one-stop shop for Diamond OA journals and their service providers to facilitate knowledge exchange and collaboration. This hub will include guidelines, toolkits, training materials, translation facilities, and a registry of service providers, helping to create a community through co-creation and innovation. For a better understanding of what Diamond OA refers to and the functions of a Diamond capacity hub at European level, read: https://thd.hypotheses.org/296

Description of the assignment

The Common Access Point (CAP) will serve as a hub and a web portal for scholarly publishing service providers in Europe and will lay the foundation of a future Diamond OA Capacity Hub: a virtual network of resources and platforms enabling capacity building, networking and knowledge exchange.

The assignment foresees the implementation of the following interoperable components and the design of a federated and scalable architecture for the Diamond OA Capacity Hub:

• CAP portal (including a user dashboard)
• Toolsuite for Service Providers (part of the CAP portal)
• Registry of Service Providers (part of the CAP portal)
• User Forum (standalone)
• DIAMAS project website (currently: https://diamasproject.eu/ – to be integrated into the CAP portal)
• Training platform (standalone – currently under development by a consortium member)
• Self-assessment tool (standalone – currently under development by a consortium member)

The proposed architecture should provide centralised access to the above-mentioned components, support the exchange of data and/or information, and allow the future integration of additional components.

Additionally, the following technical tasks are expected to be carried out at the level of individual components with the use of open-source software, to the extent possible:

• Create wireframes and design mockups to illustrate the user interface. Implement the user interface (CAP portal; toolsuite; Registry)
• Set up the component. Develop back-end infrastructure and functionalities. Adapt or develop APIs for communication between the front-end and back-end (CAP web portal; toolsuite; Registry; Forum)
• Define user roles and permissions, prepare user authentication mechanisms (CAP portal; toolsuite; Registry – in alignment with the specifications applied to the components under development), and configure the plug-ins for them.
• Implement necessary measures to protect the components against common threats.

The Contractor will additionally conduct tests to ensure seamless data and information exchange across the components, integrate the components with third-party services or APIs (where necessary), and provide relevant technical documentation, including the system architecture and API implementation.

A description of the Components of the Common Access Point is available in the Annex No. 1.

Budget

The budget range for this assignment is between 25.000€ and 30.000€, including 21% VAT.

Proposal submission and selection process

Candidates are encouraged to compose their proposals in a format and style that reflects the intended assignment and deliverables.

The proposal should combine the following:

• A description of proposed deliverables compatible with the requirements specified in the Annex number:1.
• A description of work: The submitted proposals should describe a) the proposed software, programming languages, frameworks, and tools to be used with a justification of the choice made b) the procedure for deploying the installations to production c) the suggested data and information exchange workflows across the above mentioned components (including a centralised search functionality) d) the procedure for designing the architecture of a federated infrastructure enabling further integration of additional components . The proposals should also provide an estimation of the required effort and related costs. The development of the portal will be carried out in collaboration with the project partners and will be documented in the project’s reports to the EC; thus, time and effort will also be committed to meetings and the preparation of the relevant documentation.
• A more detailed timeline for carrying out the work, compatible with the requirements specified;
• A detailed financial proposal in Euros, at a fixed price, and all taxes and charges included;
• A description of relevant experience of similar projects and a list of recent references justifying the candidate’s expertise;
• A statement of alignment with the General Data Protection Regulation and other legal obligations, national or international;
• The candidates are free to provide any other document they deem necessary;
• Offers must be written in English.
• The proposal document and its appendices have to be submitted via email to the address: liber@libereurope.org, using ‘for the DIAMAS project’ in the title. The candidates may ask questions directly in the same email using the same title. Answers will be given through email and will be publicly posted on the project website. Questions and answers will be posted anonymously.

Time schedule

Please send us your proposal, including all costs. Please quote separately costs for the conceptual design (wireframes, architecture, workflows, etc.) and the technical implementation (development of the components and application of interoperability standards).

Please express the VAT separately.

LIBER expects your written offer by Friday 8 March, 2024 at the end of the working day (17:00 CET). Please send your offer to: liber@libereurope.org

Please put in the title of your e-mail: “for the DIAMAS Project”.

LIBER reserves the right to change the intended time schedule. In the event that LIBER proceeds to change the intended schedule, this will be communicated to all parties concerned. Tenderers cannot derive any rights from this intended schedule. The dates mentioned in this (or the amended) time schedule for the submission of questions and the submission of Tenders are regarded as deadlines.

Evaluation and selection of the offers

The winner of the Call for Proposals will be chosen based on the evaluation of the proposal document and its appendices in response to the above specifications. All proposal documents are of value when the winner of the call is selected.

If necessary, some details and specifications may be adapted by mutual agreement.

The offers will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

1. Develop back-end infrastructure and functionalities, based on standard open source solutions. Adapt or develop APIs for communication between the front-end and back-end, define user roles and permissions, implement user authentication mechanisms -at the level of individual components (CAP portal; IPSP toolsuite; IPSP Registry) – 60%
2. Create wireframes and design mockups to illustrate the user interface. Implement the user interface (CAP portal; IPSP toolsuite; IPSP Registry) – 20%
3. Implement necessary measures to protect the components against common threats (unauthorised access, malware infections, insecure APIs, risks resulting from integration with third-party applications, etc.)  – 20%

Offers will be selected on the evaluation of the quality of their proposal and their capacity to deliver, as set out in their proposal. The financial evaluation will follow the principle of “the best value for money” in accordance with the Annotated Grant Agreement for EU Funding Programmes 2021-27.

Other conditions attached to this request for proposals

• The agreement will be concluded with Stichting LIBER and the chosen bidder. The bidder must be a legal entity with a seat in the European Union;
• The ARVODI 2018 conditions apply to the assignment to be granted;
• All proposals will be treated as confidential and will be kept in accordance with the Annotated Grant Agreement for EU Funding Programmes 2021-27;
• You cannot derive any rights to reimbursement of quotation costs or to obtaining the order from this request for quotation.
• LIBER may (temporarily) suspend and/or revoke this request for quotation. In such a situation, you are not entitled to reimbursement of the costs incurred for this request for quotation;
• By submitting a request for quotation, you declare that you meet all the requirements set out in this request for quotation and that you agree to the terms and conditions set;
• General conditions of sale, sector conditions or other conditions of the candidate are expressly excluded and do not apply to this agreement.

Duration of assignment

The start date will be determined with the signature of the contract. The foreseen timeframe of the project is 16 months.

LIBER wishes you every success in drawing up your offer.

With kind regards,
Martine Pronk, Executive Director