AUDIO RECORDING SERVICES

Description of Requirement

This requirement contains security requirements.

Bidders must hold an approved facility clearance for Document Safeguarding at the Protected B level prior to contract award.

OVERVIEW

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) seeks to enter into an “as-and-when” contract with a single vendor for the supply and delivery of audio recordings for English and French documents for the CRA tax programs.

CRA intends to enter into a two (2) year contract with three (3) one-year options with one contractor.

The Agency will include a minimum spend commitment of $10,000.00 Canadian over the entire period of the resulting contract, which includes any exercised option periods.

BACKGROUND

CRA makes available internal and external publications intended for use by the general public. Additionally, CRA provides publications to Canadians with disabilities in various multiple formats such as braille, large print, e-text, and audio recordings. The Agency is legally required to provide documents in multiple formats to individuals when requested.

SCOPE

Canadian taxpayers can request audio recordings of personalized and non-personalized documents at any time throughout the year. The deliverable for any given audio recording service may be required in either English or French, or both languages. Respect of delivery timelines, high levels of quality and 100% accuracy are crucial elements for audio recording services.

The annual number of audio recording Task Authorizations (TA) issued varies from year to year. Approximately 100 TAs were issued last year. The peak period during the year for recording of tax program material is from September to March.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

CRA Materiel Management policy requires that contracting be conducted in a manner that will ensure the pre-eminence of operational requirements and comply with international trade agreements. It also requires that contracting support national CRA objectives, such as protection of the environment.

In support of the CRA Sustainable Development Strategy, the Agency is committed to:

• Carrying out its mandate in a manner consistent with the principles of sustainable development (SD) and to promote SD opportunities and obligations with respect to economic growth, social well-being, and a healthy environment. Opportunities and cooperative efforts related to SD will be supported and encouraged throughout the contract period; and
• The purchase of green products and services that are of equal or better performance and quality where available and cost effective.

It is the policy of the CRA to:

• Demonstrate leadership and commitment to SD; and raise the level of management and employee involvement and support for SD;
• Communicate our SD commitment and be accountable to the public;
• Assess the economic, social, and environmental effects of our programs, policies and plans leading to integrated and informed decision-making; and leverage sustainable development to enable efficient and innovative program delivery;
• Monitor, measure, and report on our SD progress;
• Enhance partnerships with clients and partners to support shared responsibility and cooperation for SD objectives; and
• Reduce waste, ensure efficient use of resources, and comply with environmental legislation resulting in environmental stewardship.

Contractors are encouraged to identify the way that their products and/or services benefit the environment and align with the CRA Sustainable Development Strategy which can be found at http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/gncy/sstnbl/menu-eng.html

PRICE ESCALATION/DE-ESCALATION

Prices for the second of the initial contract period and optional periods of service, if exercised at CRA's discretion, will be adjusted (i.e. either increased or decreased) in accordance with the following, as published by Statistics Canada.

The yearly pricing adjustments will be calculated using the Statistics Canada’s Table 1 The Consumer Price Index, major components and special aggregates, Canada, not seasonally adjusted, Special aggregates, Services, as shown through the link below.

http://www.statcan.gc.ca/

The prices of the previous contract year will be multiplied by the “% change” published for the twelve month period preceding the contract anniversary date (for the second contract year) or the month preceding the month in which the Option is exercised.

TRADE AGREEMENTS

Only AIT is applicable to this requirement.

CONTRACTOR SELECTION METHODOLOGY

The Bidder must meet all mandatory criteria applicable to this solicitation. Only the bids meeting the mandatory criteria will be evaluated and scored in accordance with the point rated evaluation criteria. Any proposal that does not achieve the minimum score of 87.6 points out of 146 will be considered non-compliant and will receive no further consideration.

To determine an overall score for each proposal, technical and price will each be given a rating value; in this case, 60% for technical and 40% for price, and then combined to derive a total combined rating.

The Bidder recommended for award of the Contract will be the compliant Bidder achieving the highest combined rating.

All enquiries regarding this Request for Proposal must be directed in WRITING (see email address below) to:

CONTRACTING AUTHORITY:

Phuong Ly

Senior Supply/Business Analyst

Contracting Division

Canada Revenue Agency

Tel. Number: (613) 957-3291

Email Address: Phuong.Ly@cra-arc.gc.ca