Supply of Serials, Periodicals and Associated Services

London Universities Purchasing Consortium (LUPC), a company limited by guarantee reg. no. 04784719, is a not-for-profit company owned by its Members, for its Members. Its primary purpose is to maximise value from the collaborative procurement of goods and services for over 65 Members, made up of universities and colleges, as well as government agencies, research organisations (including the UK Research Councils) and museums and other cultural establishments. A full list of current Members may be found at: http://www.lupc.ac.uk/about/members-list.aspx.

LUPC is establishing a Framework Agreement for the Supply of Serials, Periodicals and Associated Services that will be accessible both by its own Member Institutions and also the Member Institutions of the North Western Universities Purchasing Consortium (NWUPC) including those Institutions which are also Members of the North West Academic Libraries Consortium (NoWAL). A full list of current members of NWUPC may be found at: http://www.nwupc.ac.uk/our-members. A full list of NoWAL Members may be found at: http://www.nowal.ac.uk/member-libraries/. The NWUPC will be the first point of contact for both NWUPC Member Institutions and NoWAL Member Institutions.

Any other consortium or institution that wishes to participate in this Framework Agreement will only do so at the discretion of the LUPC. Suppliers’ attention is drawn to the fact that participating institutions may be subject to change in the future owing to strategic realignment of the above-named Consortia or the inclusion of new full or associate Members, who could be within the education sector or outside the education sector, but within the public sector. By the term “serial” or “periodical”, LUPC intends the following: “A foreign or domestic publication in any medium, issued in successive parts bearing numerical or chronological designations and intended to be continued indefinitely. This includes: current and back issues of periodicals; newspapers and annuals (annual conference proceedings, reports, yearbooks, etc); the journals, memoirs, proceedings, transactions and other similar publications of societies; numbered monographic series; standing orders; and databases. These are typically charged on a prepaid, usually annual, subscription basis.” The scope of the Framework Agreement will cover publications in serial form, both print and electronic, as well as some associated services. Tenderers will be required to demonstrate their ability to meet a wide range of Member subscription requirements across print and electronic media. The Framework Agreement will be awarded for an initial term of two (2) years with an option to extend for two (2) further periods of twelve (12) months. The extension(s) will be exercised at the discretion of the Authority. Electronic ordering and/or electronic invoicing and/or electronic payment may be used during the period of the Framework Agreement and throughout the lifespan of any Call-Off Contracts.

Additional information: Potential suppliers should note that, in accordance with the UK Government’s policies on transparency, LUPC intends to publish the Invitation to Tender (ITT) document and the text of any Framework Agreement awarded, subject to possible redactions at the discretion of LUPC. The terms of the proposed Framework Agreement will also permit a public sector Contracting Authority, awarding a contract under this Framework Agreement, to publish the text of that contract, subject to possible redactions at the discretion of the Contracting Authority. Further information on transparency can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/topics/government-efficiency-transparency-and-accountability

The Authority expressly reserves the right (i) not to award any contract as a result of the procurement process commenced by publication of this notice; and (ii) to make whatever changes it may see fit to the content and structure of the tendering competition; and in no circumstances will the Authority be liable for any costs incurred by the candidates. If the Authority decides to enter into a Framework Agreement with the successful supplier, this does not mean that there is any guarantee of subsequent contracts being awarded. Any expenditure, work or effort undertaken prior to contract award is accordingly a matter solely for the commercial judgement of potential suppliers. Any orders placed under this Framework Agreement will form a separate contract under the scope of this Framework between the supplier and the specific requesting other contracting Authority. The Authority and other contracting authorities utilising the Framework reserve the right to use any electronic portal during the life of the agreement.