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

Library and Archives Canada (LAC) was planning to onboard to the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat’s (TBS) GCfm solution, but the project was cancelled in 2021 before the SAP S4/HANA solution could be implemented for onboarding departments (primarily departments using FreeBalance). The GCfm initiative was deemed not financially viable for small departments. TBS and the also recognized that the current version of FreeBalance used by LAC has reached the end of its life cycle and needs to be upgraded or replaced. FreeBalance Inc. is urging its customers/users to upgrade to the next version of FreeBalance, as the focus is on version 7 rather than version 6.5. Currently, all development is done in version 7 for customers, leaving Government of Canada departments as among the last to make the transition.

As a result, LAC has a relatively urgent need to migrate from version 6.5 to the latest version 7 of FreeBalance Accountability Suite as part of the Financial System Renewal (FSR) project. Upgrading LAC’s “classic” FreeBalance solution from the older client/server version 6 technology to the enhanced web-based Government Resource Planning version 7 will enable LAC to adopt an affordable and sustainable solution that will greatly benefit the organization in the next few years. The FRS project’s main objective is to upgrade LAC’s FreeBalance solution to version 7 by April 1, 2023.

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:

• Experience in deployment of FreeBalance Accountability Suite software
• Experience in upgrading FreeBalance Accountability Suite (version 6.5) modules to the FreeBalance Public Financial Management (version 7) solution
• Experience in upgrading FreeBalance Performance Budgeting for Human Capital (PBHC) functions to FreeBalance Civil Service Planning (CSPL) module
• Experience in FreeBalance software data mapping as well as metadata management and integration
• Experience in performing requirement gathering and business process workshops for financial and material management solutions
• Experience in delivering user training for the FreeBalance Public Financial Management solution
• Experience in performing knowledge transfer of functional and technical aspects of the FreeBalance Public Financial Management solution

4. Applicability of the trade agreement(s) to the procurement
   This procurement is subject to the following trade agreement(s):
    
   • Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA)
   • Canada-Chile Free Trade Agreement (CCFTA)
   • Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (CCoFTA)
   • Canada-Honduras Free Trade Agreement (CHFTA)
   • Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement (CKFTA)
   • Canada-Panama Free Trade Agreement (CPaFTA)
   • Canada-Peru Free Trade Agreement (CPFTA)
   • World Trade Organization – Agreement on Government Procurement (WTO-AGP)
   • Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)
   • Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP)
   • Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement
   • Canada-United Kingdom Trade Continuity Agreement

5. Justification for the pre-identified supplier

FreeBalance Inc. has proprietary rights to the FreeBalance financial accountability application being used by LAC for its departmental financial management system.

The FreeBalance financial accountability application is proprietary software that is available exclusively through FreeBalance Inc. FreeBalance custom products, product support and maintenance (PSM), as well as professional services for FreeBalance Application (FA) are available exclusively through FreeBalance. FreeBalance Inc. is the developer of FA and the sole owner of the intellectual property. FreeBalance is the only authorized provider of FA Pro Services.

Based on LAC’s current internal level of knowledge and the proprietary nature of the FreeBalance application, LAC will contract directly with FreeBalance for professional services to implement any of the tasks related to the upgrade.

6. Government Contracts Regulations exception(s)

The following exception(s) to the Government Contracts Regulations is (are) invoked for this procurement under subsection:

6(d) – "only one person is capable of performing the work"

7. Ownership of intellectual property

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

8. Period of the proposed contract or delivery date

The proposed contract is for a period of one (1) year, from July 1^st 2022 to June 30^th, 2023, and three (3) one-year option periods.

9. Cost estimate of the proposed contract

The estimated value of the contract, including option periods and optional services(s), is $508,440.00 (GST/HST extra). The optional services are for New Modules Implementation, up to a maximum total cost of $253,440.00 CAD.

10. Name and address of the pre-identified supplier

FreeBalance Inc.

210–411 Legget Dr.

Ottawa, Ontario

K2K 3C9

11. Suppliers' right to submit a Statement of Capabilities

Suppliers who consider themselves fully qualified and available to provide the 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.

12. Closing date for submission of Statements of Capabilities
The closing date and time for accepting Statements of Capabilities is June 15^th, 2022 at 2:00 p.m. EDT.

13. Inquiries and submission of Statements of Capabilities

Inquiries and Statements of Capabilities are to be directed to:

Anne-Marie Aubry

Senior Contracting Officer

550 de la Cité Blvd.

Gatineau, Quebec

K1A 0N4
Telephone: 613-716-2173
Email: receptiondesoumission-bidreceiving@bac-lac.gc.ca