(Closed) Request For Proposal – GPSNR-RFP-A02-019 Guidance and Tools for GPSNR’s Reporting Requirements

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Introduction & Background

The Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR) is an international multi-stakeholder, voluntary membership initiative seeking to lead improvements in the socioeconomic and environmental performance of the natural rubber value chain. Members of the platform include tire manufacturers, rubber producers and processors, vehicle makers and NGOs.

In December 2021, GPSNR members approved Reporting Requirements that would allow member companies to report on their progress implementing their commitments under the Policy Framework. With the approval of the reporting requirements, ordinary member companies shall report annually on the questions included in the Reporting Requirements for the member’s reporting category.

GPSNR members are required to submit data for the previous year according to the following reporting timelines:
• Category A and Category B: Industrial Producers or Processors and Traders of Raw Materials: on or before 30 June
• Category C: Manufacturers and Traders of Processed Material: on or before 30 September
• Category D: OEMs and End Users: on or before 31 December.

To support GPSNR members in fulfilling their obligations under the Reporting Requirements, the platform is calling for consultants to develop a systemic view of the reporting process, inclusive of developing supporting documents and reporting templates for members to facilitate reporting, and exploring the potential user interface and portal design for data submission to ease the integration and consolidation of reported information from various GPSNR member categories.

Reporting scope and materiality are topics for consultant’s review and suggestion based on the GPSNR reporting requirement.

The reporting process should cover the following scenarios (non-exhaustive list):
(i) tier-1 supplier is disclosed to GPSNR
(ii) tier-1 supplier is not disclosed to GPSNR
(iii) members with suppliers across different category groups that are not GPSNR members
(iv) members with external reports that may substantiate the GPSNR reporting requirement
(v) how the information is consolidated at GPSNR level at the end of each category reporting cycle

Figure below is taking one example of tire maker category member reporting on NR supply chain scope to illustrate the potential complexity of the reporting process.

The expected documents to be developed should include:

A guidance document for each reporting category outlining the appropriate methodology and reporting format for each question, with reference to necessary definitions. One example of reporting segment that requires guidance is Policy Component 2.5 and 2.6 for member categories C and D.
Standardized reporting templates which may utilize word documents, excel spreadsheets, or other appropriate reporting formats.

The documents developed should ensure that data can be consolidated easily across the supply chain with an understanding that the information will be passed downstream. Where appropriate, the requested data should align with data gathered by other reporting schemes to reduce the reporting burden (including, but not limited to, CDP, Ecovadis, ZSL SPOTT, GRI, FSC, PEFC, SNR-i).

The reporting user interface which includes ability for member to upload supporting evidence (e.g., documents, photos etc) and portal design should also enable easy intake by the Secretariat for data analysis, verification and reporting. The ability to design integration with Salesforce is a plus.

Submission Guidelines & Requirements

The following submission guidelines & requirements apply to this Request for Proposal:

Proposals will only be accepted from individuals or firms with experience relevant to this project.
Examples of previous relevant work should be provided as well.
A technical proposal must be provided that should be around 6 pages in length. This technical proposal must provide an overview of the proposed methodology as well as resumes of all key personnel performing the work. In addition, the technical proposal should provide a proposed schedule and milestones, as applicable.
A price proposal must be provided that is not more than 1 page. This price proposal should indicate the overall fixed price for the project as well as daily rates and an estimated total number of days.
Proposals must be signed by a representative that is authorized to commit bidder’s company.
Proposals must be received prior to 14th of March to be considered. Proposals should be submitted to stefano.savi@gpsnr.org and aidan@gpsnr.org for consideration.
GPSNR anticipates shortlisting at least two individuals or firms to have more in-depth discussions with, and will make an award to one of these “down-selected” individuals or firms.

Project Timelines

The Request for Proposal timeline is as follows:

Request for Proposal Issuance	4 Mar 2022
Proposal submitted by consultant to stefano.savi@gpsnr.org	14 Mar 2022
Selection of Consultant / Notification to Unsuccessful Bidders	18 Mar 2022
Contract Award	22 Mar 2022
Work to commence no later than	23 Mar 2022
Specific work-plan agreed upon with GPSNR’s Policy Toolbox Working Group (WG1)	24 Mar 2022
1st deliverable: first draft of guidance on GPSNR Reporting Requirement content and reporting template for PPTs (category A & B), both GPSNR and non-GPSNR.	18 Apr 2022
Final draft of guidance on content for PPTs	25 Apr 2022
2nd deliverable: first draft of guidance on GPSNR Reporting Requirement and reporting template for category C & D, both GPSNR and non-GPSNR.	13 May 2022
Final draft of guidance on content for category C & D	20 May 2022
3rd deliverable: first draft proposal for a streamline reporting process, user interface and portal design to integrate and consolidate the reporting information from all GPSNR member categories	24 Jun 2022
The final draft proposal submitted to WG1	7 Jul 2022

Budget

The Platform is anticipating that a total budget of no more than 30,000 SGD. If the consultant deems that travel plans are required to execute this project, these should be included in the proposal (along with any additional budgetary requirements).

Payment terms shall be:

●       20% at the signing of the contract
●       30% at the midpoint date to be agreed upon and memorialized in the contract based on the submitted work plan
●       50% on delivery of the final report

Evaluation Factors

GPSNR will rate proposals based on the following factors, with cost being the most important factor:

Cost
Responsiveness to the requirements set forth in this Request for Proposals
Relevant past performance/experience
Technical expertise/experience of bidder and bidder’s staff
The ability to collect relevant information at the global and local level

GPSNR reserves the right to award to the bidder that presents the best value to GPSNR as determined solely by GPSNR in its absolute discretion.

View RFP Document here

More To Explore

Request For Proposal – GPSNR-RFP-C03-035-Polygon Mapping Thailand

Introduction & Background

The Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR) is an international, multi-stakeholder, voluntary membership initiative seeking to lead improvements in the socioeconomic and environmental performance of the natural rubber value chain. Members of the platform include tire manufacturers, rubber suppliers and processors, vehicle makers and NGOs.

The Manufacturer’s Subgroup (SG) consists of GPSNR members who are rubber product manufacturers only. The SG is seeking a consultant/field to map their supply shed (i.e., all the farms that they are sourcing from) focusing on polygon mapping techniques in complex supply chains such as in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand – each with a separate RFP, and report on the price and time required for each polygon mapped.

Objectives

The goal of the project is to investigate what effort (i.e., time and cost) may be required for a rubber processor to map their supply chain in complex supply chains in Thailand.

The consultant is to map small holder farmers in selected regions within Thailand. Manufacturers will specify the regions to be mapped at a later date.

The service provider should work with the Manufacturer’s Subgroup and the participating processors from Thailand and their dealers to:

Keep track of the time and costs of all mapping related activities throughout the study, calculate time and cost of mapping each polygon, and provide them to their GPSNR Point of Contact at the end of the survey.
Register farmers using a provided data logger application. The service provider is welcomed to use their own data logger application.

Scope of Work/Expected Deliverables

Specifically, GPSNR expects the consultant to:

Map regions of rubber producers supplying to the participating processor in Thailand via polygon mapping.
1. Single GPS coordinates should not be utilised irrespective of the size of the plantation.
2. Geo mapping to include coordinates up to 6 decimal places in geoJSON format
1. Store/transfer geo location polygons mapped, to a 3rd party database as designated.
2. Bi-weekly progress reports
3. Ensure compliance to applicable local and global data privacy norms and regulations such as but not limited to GDPR, PDPA, etc.

We would like a detailed account of the resources:
1. Price per polygon mapped – Cost per unit (per Farmer/Plot/Polygon)
2. Timeline to map Polygons per day (eg 18 months to map X polygons)

A recommendation of the scalability of this pilot
1. Can the same estimated cost/time/labour be replicated in other regions/jurisdictions within the same country?
2. E.g., $X/farm is calculated but is not scalable due to what reason(s).
Interested parties should submit the quote for the following –
1. For mapping polygons (cost per Ha)
2. For mapping polygons + completing set of questionnaires as a part of risk assessment
Comply with applicable data privacy norms and regulations (including but not limited to GDPR and PDPA).
An optional activity that service providers could provide is the ability to integrate a transactional traceability function (own or 3rd party as designated)

Proposal Format and Contents

The proposal should include the following:

A workplan that outlines the key activities towards the deliverables outlined in Expected Deliverables above
The timeline and key stages of operations based on Project Timeline below
Budget, including detailed breakdown of expected manpower, logistics, and costs as mentioned above
Description of past work and technical expertise that is relevant to this RFP

A list of project team members with their roles in the project and associated qualifications.

Submission Guidelines & Requirements

The following submission guidelines & requirements apply to this Request for Proposal:

Proposals will only be accepted from individuals or firms with experience relevant to this project.
Examples of previous relevant work should be provided.
A technical proposal must be provided that is not more than 4 pages. This technical proposal must provide an overview of the proposed solution as well as resumes of all key personnel performing the work. In addition, the technical proposal should provide a proposed schedule and milestones, as applicable.
A price proposal must be provided that is not more than 1 pages. This price proposal should indicate the overall fixed price for the project as well as hourly rates and an estimated total number of days.
Proposals must be signed by a representative that is authorized to commit bidder’s company.
Proposals must be received prior to the 25th of September to be considered. Proposals should be submitted to stefano.savi@gpsnr.org and aidan@gpsnr.org for consideration.
GPSNR reserves the right to amend the scope and budget of this RFP in order to get the most suitable consultant for each topic.

Project Timelines

RFP Published	4 Sep 2023
Proposal Submission Deadline	25 Sep 2023
Contract Awarded	9 Oct 2023
Initial methodology presentation and Q&A with subgroup	23 Oct 2023
Bi-weekly progress updates	23 Oct till project conclusion
Other milestones to be agreed upon during initial Q&A

Budget

The Platform is anticipating that a total budget of no more than 20USD/ha be allocated to this engagement and more competitive quotations will be favoured.

Payment terms shall be:

20% at the signing of the contract
30% at the midpoint date to be agreed upon and memorialized in the contract based on the submitted work plan
50% to be agreed based on mutually agreed milestones

The allocation of the payment shall be based on the net amount after travel expenses, if deemed necessary by both the consultant and Secretariat, are incurred and documented.

Evaluation Factors

GPSNR will rate proposals based on the following factors, with cost being the most important factor:

Responsiveness to the requirements set forth in this Request for Proposal
Relevant past performance/ experience
Samples of work
Cost, including an assessment of total cost of ownership
Technical expertise/experience of bidder and bidder’s staff

GPSNR reserves the right to award to the bidder that presents the best value to GPSNR as determined solely by GPSNR in its absolute discretion.

View RFP Document here

GPSNR Secretariat September 6, 2023

Tender

(Closed) Request for Proposal – GPSNR Knowledge Sharing Platform (GPSNR-RFP-A02-016)

Introduction & Background

The Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR), is an international Multi-Stakeholder, voluntary membership initiative seeking to lead improvements in the socioeconomic and environmental performance of the natural rubber value chain. Development of the GPSNR was initiated by the CEOs of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) Tire Industry Project (TIP) in 2019. Members of the platform include tire manufacturers, rubber suppliers and processors, vehicle makers and NGOs. Representatives from each of these stakeholder groups have contributed to the development of the Singapore-based platform and the wide-reaching set of priorities that define GPSNR strategy and objectives.

The GPSNR Secretariat and the GPSNR Capacity Building Working Group, through the GPSNR Knowledge Sharing Platform Task Force, are jointly overseeing the development and eventual operations and maintenance of a digital GPSNR Knowledge Sharing Platform.

This digital platform is envisaged to be an easily accessible, multi-lingual and expandable knowledge platform for smallholders and other actors based on quality-controlled information. Besides providing technical information on the latest Good Agricultural Practices it will provide access to live market conditions on natural rubber such as prices on key exchanges, projected supply, and demand shifts, as well as overall global market developments. The digital platform will also incorporate communication functions such as live chat and forum with built-in translation tools to allow smallholders to share and communicate seamlessly across different countries. Another crucial aspect will be to safeguard data security and ownership.

Prior to embarking on the technical or IT development of the digital platform, GPSNR and the Capacity Building Working Group is seeking to conduct an Assessment of Status Quo and Evaluation

The consultant will collect the information via desktop study and information provided by the Working Group/Secretariat. The consultant would also be expected to conduct a number of stakeholder interviews (including but not limited to GPSNR member companies with relevant experience and digital tools, as well as smallholders within and beyond GPSNR) based on the criteria set out below. Regular contact and provision of updates to the Capacity Building Working Group and Knowledge Sharing Platform Task Force together with the Secretariat will be required.

It is estimated that there will be the need for at least one virtual meeting every two weeks over the course of the project.

Submission Guidelines & Requirements

The following submission guidelines & requirements apply to this Request for Proposal:

Proposals will only be accepted from individuals or firms with proven experience relevant to this project.
Examples of previous relevant work should be provided as well.
A technical proposal must be provided that is not more than 4 pages. This technical proposal must provide an overview of the proposed solution as well as resumes of all key personnel performing the work. In addition, the technical proposal should provide a proposed schedule and milestones, as applicable.
A price proposal must be provided that is not more than 1 pages. This price proposal should indicate the overall fixed price for the project as well as hourly rates and an estimated total number of days.
Proposals must be signed by a representative that is authorized to commit bidder’s company.
Proposals must be received prior to 7 January 2022 to be considered. Proposals should be submitted to yeo.siyuan@gpsnr.org for consideration. You may also reach out to this contact for any questions or clarifications.
GPSNR anticipates shortlisting at least two individuals or firms to have more in-depth discussions with and will make an award to one of these “down-selected” individuals or firms.

The submission should address, at minimum, the following:

Review of Existing Digital Applications

What are the existing apps/platforms on rubber (or other agricultural commodities) available and what are the advantages and disadvantages of each?
Are there existing platforms that could be expanded to incorporate the necessary functions or solutions to be used as template? (This could be specified with the consultant)

Assessing Smallholders’ Capacities and Needs

What are the technological constraints and capacities of smallholders?
What technology is best suited to address smallholders’ needs (smartphone technology)?
What functions or content of the Platform would smallholders prioritise?
What technical platform is meaningful (concerning the digital literacy of smallholders, and global application in diverse developing countries)?
How can we reach smallholders who are not familiar with digital technologies?

This should be conducted through a needs review comprising a representative set of stakeholders (including but not limited to smallholders, considering countries, farm size, gender, etc.)

GPSNR will facilitate virtual access and engagement with GPSNR smallholder members where applicable and requested by the consultant.

This RFP is also not limited in scope to smallholders or stakeholders in any specific geographical region, given that the eventual Knowledge Sharing Platform is expected to be globally used.

Project Timelines

The Request for Proposal timeline is as follows:

Activity	Due Date
Release of RFP	10 Dec 2021
Submission Deadline for Proposals	7 Jan 2022
Contract Award	21 Jan 2022
Implementation to Begin	28 Jan 2022
First Review	March 2022
Second Review	May 2022

The work shall begin by January 2022 and the various phases shall be completed in accordance with the dates outlined in the timeline below:

Budget

The Platform is anticipating that a total budget of up to 18,000 EUR (subject to change) be allocated to this engagement with an additional amount available to support planned and approved travel.

Payment terms shall be:

20% at the signing of the contract
30% at the midpoint date to be agreed upon and memorialized in the contract based on the submitted work plan
50% on delivery of the final report

The allocation of the payment shall be based on the net amount after travel expenses are incurred and documented.

Evaluation Factors

GPSNR will rate proposals based on the following factors, incorporating the overall quality of the proposal and consultant:

Responsiveness to the requirements set forth in this RFP;
Relevant past performance and experience;
Samples of work;
Cost, including an assessment of total cost of ownership;
Technical expertise/experience of bidder and bidder’s staff;
The ability to collect information at the global and local level.

GPSNR reserves the right to award to the bidder that presents the best value to GPSNR as determined solely by GPSNR in its absolute discretion.

Download RFP here

Contact Person: Yeo Siyuan – yeo.siyuan@gpsnr.org

GPSNR Staff December 10, 2021