Geospatial Data Cubes for Earth Observation Data Analysis, Access and Interoperability Use Cases

1. Advance Contract Award Notice (ACAN)

An ACAN is a public notice indicating to the supplier community that a department or agency intends to award a contract for goods, services or construction to a pre-identified supplier, thereby allowing other suppliers to signal their interest in bidding, by submitting a statement of capabilities. If no supplier submits a statement of capabilities that meets the requirements set out in the ACAN, on or before the closing date stated in the ACAN, the contracting officer may then proceed with the award to the pre-identified supplier.

2. Definition of the requirement

The Department of Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) has a requirement to explore the development and use of geospatial standards-based solutions to enable a geodatacube solution for an earth observation exploitation platform. This work will demonstrate how geospatial standards-based approaches can allow uses of earth observation exploitation platforms to access and exploit data and processors residing in different types of geodatacubes that are available in distributed nodes of the platform ecosystem. The work will involve the following:
A. Developing open geospatial standards and an associated prototype that will enable access to and use of data and processors within distributed geodatacubes of different types. This will include demonstrating an understanding of NRCan user requirements for geodatacubes and earth observation exploitation platforms and undertaking a comparative analysis/environmental scan of relevant standards that are relevant to support the NRCan user requirements and prototype.

B. Integration of Outcomes into International Geospatial Standards Development Activities ¬by creating a plan for incorporating the geospatial standards concepts developed in this project into official, international geospatial standards managed by standards development organizations.

C. Communicating activities and outcomes of this project through webinars and a written report. All communications material shall be freely accessible by the public in perpetuity.

3. Criteria for assessment of the Statement of Capabilities (Minimum Essential Requirements)

Any interested supplier must demonstrate by way of a statement of capabilities that it meets the following requirements:
o The vendor MUST be a recognized Standards Development Organization (SDO) by the Committee of Experts on Global Geospatial Information Management of the Statistics Division of the United Nations.

o The vendor MUST operate an existing program that builds and tests innovative international standards-based geospatial solutions with an open international forum composed of governments, commercial organizations, businesses, academic and research organizations to solve geospatial challenges via a collaborative process.

o The vendor MUST offer geospatial application programming interface (API) standards that are developed using an open, consensus-based process that anyone can participate in.
Applicability of the trade agreement(s) to the procurement

This procurement is subject to the following trade agreement(s):
o Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA)
o World Trade Organization - Agreement on Government Procurement (WTO-AGP)
o Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)
o Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP)
o Canada-Chile Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA)
o Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement
o Canada-Honduras Free Trade Agreement
o Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement
o Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement
o Canada-Peru Free Trade Agreement (CPFTA)
o Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement (CUFTA)

5. Set-aside under the Procurement Strategy for Aboriginal Business

Not applicable.

6. Comprehensive Land Claims Agreement(s)

Not applicable.

7. Justification for the Pre-Identified Supplier

The supplier mentioned in section 13 below is the only known supplier that meets the mandatory criteria set out in section 3 above.

Should Canada receive a statement of capabilities from a supplier that contains sufficient information to indicate that it meets the requirements set forth in this ACAN, a competitive process will be triggered with a technical and financial evaluation methodology of the bids proposed by the potential bidders

8. Government Contracts Regulations Exception(s)

The following exception(s) to the Government Contracts Regulations is (are) invoked for this procurement under subsection subsection 6(d) - "only one person is capable of performing the work").

The identified supplier, Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc., is the only one able to meet all of the criteria identified in paragraph 3 above.

9. Exclusions and/or Limited Tendering Reasons

The following exclusions and/or limited tendering reasons are invoked under the:

o Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA) – Article: 513.1(b) (iii);
o World Trade Organization - Agreement on Government Procurement (WTO-AGP) – Under the Revised GPA - Article XIII, 1 (b) (iii);
o Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) – Article(s) Article 19.12 (b) (iii)
o Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) – Article(s): 15.10 , 2 (b) (iii) (s)
o Canada-Chile Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA) – Article(s) Kbis-09 (b),Article Kbis-09 (c)
o Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement – Article(s): 1409 (b) (iii);
o Canada-Honduras Free Trade Agreement – Article(s): 17.11 2 (b) (iii)
o Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement – Article 14.3, Under the Revised GPA - Article XIII, 1 (b) (iii);
o Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement – Article(s) 16.10 (b) (iii)
o Canada-Peru Free Trade Agreement (CPFTA) – Article(s) 1409 (b) (iii)
o Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement (CUFTA) – Article(s) 10.13 (b) (iii)

10. Ownership of Intellectual Property

Ownership of any Foreground Intellectual Property arising out of the proposed contract will vest in the Contractor.

11. Period of the proposed contract or delivery date

The proposed contract is for a period from the Contract award date to January 31, 2024.

12. Cost estimate of the proposed contract

The estimated value of the contract, is $300,000.00 USD.

13. Name and address of the pre-identified supplier

Open Geospatial Consortium, Inc.
2300 Wilson Blvd. Suite 700 #1026
Arlington, VA
22201, USA

14. Suppliers' right to submit a statement of capabilities

Suppliers who consider themselves fully qualified and available to provide the goods, services or construction services described in the ACAN may submit a statement of capabilities in writing to the contact person identified in this notice on or before the closing date of this notice. The statement of capabilities must clearly demonstrate how the supplier meets the advertised requirements.
15. Closing date for a submission of a statement of capabilities

The closing date and time for accepting statements of capabilities is May 16, 2023 at 2:00 p.m. EDT.

16. Inquiries and submission of statements of capabilities

Inquiries and statements of capabilities are to be directed to:

Alexandre Rheault, Procurement Specialist
Telephone: 613-298-6447
E-mail: alexandre.rheault@nrcan-rncan.gc.ca: