ELLESMERE PORT AND NESTON BOROUGH COUNCIL

LOCAL GOVERNMENT REVIEW IN CHESHIRE

RESPONSE BY WEB LABS LTD

TO

FUNCTIONAL SPECIFICATION

FOR A

CONTENT MANAGEMENT SOLUTION

TO

SUPPORT THE DELIVERY OF CORPORATE WEB SITES

CONTENTS

1. MANAGEMENT SUMMARY 3

2. WEB LABS LTD - PROFILE 4

3. REFERENCE ACCOUNTS 10

4 FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS 14

5 EVALUATION CRITERIA 23

6. OUTLINE PROJECT PLAN 24

7. DRAFT SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT 26

8. WEB LABS TURNOVER 30

9. HEALTH & SAFETY POLICY 30

10. EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES POLICY 30

LEGAL FORMS FOR COMPLETION 31

1. MANAGEMENT SUMMARY

Thank you for the opportunity to tender for the provision of and services to underpin your web sites and Intranet.

We are pleased to inform you that there are no items in your tender document to which we cannot comply and do not already have considerable experience implementing with other Local Authorities.

We have proposed two of our enterprise systems software products

* Content-Master - Enterprise Content Management System and

• Forms Master – Enterprise e-Forms System

To meet your requirements as specified

These software products were designed, developed and supported by Web Labs and have been installed with over 90 Public Sector clients some of which have the largest web site traffic in the UK

In addition we have many proven software applications (overviewed in the Web Labs Profile) designed in conjunction with other Local Authorities that could be of considerable benefit to implementing your web site and intranet quickly and cost effectively.

As our management, development and support staff are all based in the UK we all have considerable experience of Local Government and our policies and shaped by the UK Public Sector market and we are always directly available to our customers.

We have included prices for each item but are unable to provide you with a fixed price Project Cost (which we like to do for our clients) without a detailed functional specification and/or site maps for the web sites and intranet e.g. we do not know what applications you may wish to deploy or when or exactly what third party software you want integrated for each web site and the intranet. (eg at this moment we are carrying out an integration to the Government Gateway on a clients web site and on another a Building Maintenance System on the Intranet both of which are relatively time consuming.

To provide you with some sort of budget figure we estimate it will cost about £100,000 to build you a transactional web site and professional Intranet using our systems software and applications, this will include integration into the third party systems mentioned, staff training, project management and installation. We appreciate that this will entail an element of bespoke programming which we would hope to minimise with our already proven applications software and interface connectors. WE would be able to host the web site on dedicated server/s for £6,000 per annum. We would be able to confirm the web site and intranet development figure after a one or two meetings at which we could agree the details of the deliverables, the responsibilities and the timescales. This figure would include the discounts we would be prepared to offer on our systems and applications software.

The lack of detail as to the exact deliverables is also reflected in the Outline Project Plan which by its nature without the detail can only be an indication based upon experience.

We have for many of our Local Government clients completed the Web Site project in an elapsed time of 12 weeks however, in this instance we expect the web site and intranet project to take about nine months with a new organisation and communications likely to take a little longer.

3 In conclusion we know that Web Labs have:

1. Proven Systems Products

2. Unequalled range of Applications Software

3. The UK based staff are experienced in every aspect required to deliver the Project, including development, programming, integration, design, project management etc

4. The investment will be of the order of £100,000

5. The Timescale of the order of nine months for the web site and Intranet from the date of the first project meeting

6. The Web Labs Company is a professional, enthusiastic and committed team able to successfully deliver your project on time and within budget.

2. WEB LABS LTD - PROFILE

Mission Statement:

Our mission is to be the preferred supplier of IT Software and Services for organisations seeking improvement through the effective use of „Web Technology‟. We will do this by ensuring that our products, services and people are continually focused on the needs of our customers in the dynamic environments in which they operate.

We are a Software Development and Services company specialising in the development and supply of systems software for the Internet.

We spent three years trading profitably as IMP ltd and developing our first systems product a Content Management System known as „ContentMaster‟, which successfully deployed with the Local Government Association www.lga.gov.uk. We then amalgamated our resources and set up Web Labs Ltd during September 2001. Since that date we have traded profitably and launched many other systems products including an e-forms solution known as „FormsMaster‟

We are particularly viable as a company with the highest Bank rating (4AA) obtainable as a commercial operation with no debts, loans or overdraft and a healthy trading position. We are totally owned by the Directors and staff all of which are based in the UK and our company policies reflect this position. We include among our 90 Public Sector clients the, Local Government Ombudsman. The States of Guernsey, the Islamic Bank, the Healthcare Commission, the Driving Standards Agency, the East of England Regional Assembly, Reading Borough Council, Somerset County Council, all of who use our software and services especially our CMS and e-Forms for developing the web sites and Intranet.

We are able to devote a total of five managerial and technical staff to the Project if required, which is a little more than is expected to be necessary after considering the requirements and timescales. We have completed several very similar projects before. We would use our own staff and our proven software developed in-house and as all our staff are based in the UK and they are all available to assist with the project during the period of implementation or for future consultation.

4

Some accolades won by our clients using our software and services include:

* Best Legal Web Site * Best Community IT Project * Best Communications Award * Nominated Best Health web site * Most Improved Local Government web site

Some notable installations:

Driving Standards Agency The DSA have the UK Governments most popular site with 3m visitors per month. This site is underpinned with Web Labs CMS and services. The DSA also have 6,500 seat UK wide intranet supported by Web Labs , CMS, e-Forms, Search Engine, auto classifier and application software

Healthcare Commission The HCC collect information from all of the Healthcare Providers in UK every month. These are both NHS and private and total over 10,000. The Web Labs e-Forms system collects this confidential information on-line every month through its hosting services and analyses the results for monthly management reports.

RELATE The RELATE web site has over 1m visitors per month and its extranet is accessed and used by over 5,000 external consultants, they use the Web Labs CMS and e-Forms to support these systems.

States of Guernsey The SOG Tax Office have implemented Web labs e-Forms to securely collect on-line the tax returns from residents, exiles and their agents. The system is fully integrated to the back office tax databases and EDRMS. The SOG have also used Web Labs to develop their on-line Single Citizen Sign On System which enables citizens to only sign on the web site with a single password to access all of the on-line services

London Borough of Southwark The LBS have deployed the Web Labs CMS to underpin their 4,500 seat intranet and may of their web sites. They also use the Web Labs e-Forms on all of the web sites and intranet.

Somerset County Council SCC have deployed the Web Labs e-Forms system to provide their on-line forms for both the web site and intranet

Inverclyde Council IC have deployed the Web Labs CMS to underpin their web site and intranet. They are also using the e-Forms system extensively with many of our application modules including market place, staff directory, resource booking, Committee Meetings. IC have also deployed our Portal Builder to develop micro sites for Schools and Voluntary Groups

5

Some other public sector sites:

Aylesbury Vale District Council Boston District Council Basingstoke and Deane Council Reading Borough Council Mendip District Council Rushcliffe Borough Council Preston City Council Lancaster City Council Portsmouth City Council Fylde District Council Fareham Borough Council Gosport Borough Council Hart District Council Teesdale District Council Wyre District Council Newcastle Borough Council Rushmoor District Council Tamworth District Council Rushcliffe Borough Council London Borough of Lambeth London Borough of Tower Hamlets London Borough of Southwark Newport Pagnell Town Council Leighton & Linslade Town Council Dunstable Town Council East of England Regional Assembly Local Government Transport Network Winchester City Council Local Government Association County Councils Network Central and Local Information Providers Local Government Data Unit –Wales Local Government Ombudsman MOD States of Guernsey Charities Commission IT Directors Group NASEN

6 This document is the response to your Invitation to Tender for a Content Management System, associated software and services. We have attempted to provide answers to all of the questions with an Investment Budget to meet ALL of the mandatory and desirable requirements, the design of the web site and where possible suggested additional costed features to meet the few „desirable‟ requirements not covered by the „out of the box‟ features of „ContentMaster‟, and „FormsMaster‟.

This document refers directly to the Invitation to Tender for a Content Management System.

We have copied large sections of your Invitation to Tender document and responded directly alongside each requirement with our answer, as completely as possible. In the cases where we do not fully understand the requirement we have mentioned this and also commented so that we can discuss these items with you at a date convenient to your Project Team.

The Web Labs team have implemented the following software products designed in co-operation with our clients and these have been developed in- house to meet the requirements of Local Government. This results in lower development, implementation and support costs combined with the Web Labs team‟s considerable experience of Local Government:

1. ContentMaster – Enterprise Content Management System

2. FormsMaster – Enterprise e-Forms System

3. DocumentMaster – Enterprise Document and Records Management System designed to comply with PRO 2002

4. SearchMaster – Enterprise Advanced Conceptual Search Engine

5. TaxonomyMaster – Enterprise Advanced digital asset auto-classifier IPSV2 or any number of public or bespoke taxonomies.

6. Consultation Manager – A system to allow the design, publishing and analysis of on-line consultations

7. Policy Manager – A system to allow the publishing, distribution, proof of receipt/understanding and analysis of Policies

8. Committee/Minutes Manager – A system to manage, publish and archive, Agendas, Committees, and Minutes

9. ResourceManager – A system to manage the on-line booking of different types of resources e.g. Rooms, People, Cars Halls, Pitches etc to analyse usage and cost fully integrated to Outlook for ease of communication.

10. Knowledge Manager – A system to permit the public to „ask‟ questions on line, to search the information assets to supply answers and to administer the process when answers are not available

11. Web Self Service – A system to permit the building of any „scenario‟ so as to answer any question or series of questions on-line for use by the public or internal help desk e.g. Do I need Planning Permission for my new extension?

7 12. Recruit Manager – A system to aid collaborative working between HR and Department Heads the system administers and publishes Staff Vacancies and manages the entire process from advertising, interviewing, contracts, costing and management analysis.

13. Remote Audit Manager – A system to capture remote information and integrate to back office systems, used extensive to check that remote sites operations are complying to standards and reporting on performance

14. Press Office Manager – A system to control the digital assets of the Communications Department and assist in the control of a „Consistent Message‟ especially in the advent of an emergency

15. Directory Manager – A system to enable the fast development of any directory with different types of fields that are all searchable and the ability to add other assets e.g. documents, graphics etc

16. Market Place – is a system to be used on the intranet (as a „For Sale Board‟ for use by staff) or on the web site where local organisations can advertise their requirements for goods and services that can be satisfied by other local businesses benefiting the local economy and reducing transport/environmental cost when reducing transport into the area.

17. Staff Directory – this is a common application on the intranet it enables the creation of a directory with any number of fields all of which are searchable so a person can be located by name, telephone number, department etc, Graphics are easily attached for photos. Location maps and department structures to ensure the system is intuitive and User Friendly

18. Multi-Language Browser – The multi language browser enables to web site to be more accessible, instead of creating web pages for each language with its associated design and layout problems the system simply enables an audible playback of any web page

19. Portal Developer – This system is designed to reduce the cost of the development and maintenance of multiple micro sites e.g. elected members, voluntary groups parish councils etc. The system enables the rapid development of micro sites with templates that can be personalised and with pre-developed application software modules and the easy maintenance of the web sites by the owners by means of intuitive CMS.

20. Licence Premises Application and Administration – This system is designed to permit the application of any type of licence on-line and its administration and renewal through a simple web browser.

21. Food Premises Inspection System – This system is designed to support the Food Standards Agency „Scores on the Doors‟ initiative and allows the inspection of Food premises by the Health and safety Officers, the collection of data the calculation of the „Food Safety Rating‟ and the publishing of the results on a web site/s.

22. Single Citizen Sign On – This system is designed to enable residents to securely access all the on-line services through the web site using a single password

23. E –Citizen – is selection of programs designed to aid public communications and include: Polls Consultations Campaigns etc

8 24. E-Commerce – is a suite of programs to facilitate the selling of goods and services from the web site and includes: Product Catalogue Shopping Basket Integration to a Payment Engine/Merchant Management Reporting

25. Camera Master – is suite of programs that control remote cameras and display information on the web site or intranet.

26 Public Display Control System – This system enables the administration and control of all the display screens in public areas this enables the message to be easily changed according to pre set programmes or for emergency messages to be display of individual or groups of displays. This enables the Local Council to maximise the benefit of the investment in public displays

NB: Web Labs have researched, collaborated, developed, installed and supported 5 enterprise systems and 21 application software modules especially suitable for the Public Sector.

This has given us unparalleled experience of: Web Technologies The design, development, testing, implementation and support of web based systems An in depth knowledge of how Local Government organisations work at different levels and How to successfully deliver IT projects into a Public Sector environment.

In the next section we have provided some reference accounts for your consideration, we do not know the traffic or user volumes for each clients but if the reason for the question is related to the systems ability to expand or cope with future volumes then we have already provided information of clients with volumes well in excess of your aggregated volumes, also should you contact the reference accounts they will be pleased to supply the very latest statistics and their growth plans.

We have also not provided details of hardware as we do not supply hardware for delivery to clients sites (only to our server farm) In the pricing section we have provided an average specification and price for a server that would support your web site or intranet. In practice we often supply two servers for our hosting customers to separate the databases from the web site this is to improve security and/or performance. We would be pleased to provide any advice that you may require on this subject as outlined earlier we have several web sites with over 1m unique visitors per month and large UK wide intranets that provide a fast and efficient delivery of information.

9 3. REFERENCE ACCOUNTS

Organisation: Reading Borough Council Contact Name: David Legge Position: Web Master Email: [email protected] Tel:-0118 939 0531 Project Overview: Reading Borough Council have deployed Web Labs software products and services to underpin their * Corporate web site * Satellite web sites * Corporate Intranet They have used the following Systems and Application software: ContentMaster – Enterprise CMS FormsMaster – Enterprise E-Forms SearchMaster – Enterprise Advanced Conceptual Search Engine TaxonomyMaster - Enterprise auto-classification System ResourceMaster – To book Rooms, Cars, Courts and Registrars SpeechBrowser – To provide multi language audio translations on-line Self Service- To provide knowledge and answers to residents on-line Government Gateway Integration – due for delivery in November Several integrations have been installed to various back office systems and Web Labs host the web sites on two dedicated servers at our server farm

10 Organisation: Preston City Council Contact Name: Stephen Parkinson Position: Head of Communications Email: [email protected] Tel: 01772 906464 Project Overview: Preston City Council have deployed Web Labs software and services to underpin their * Corporate web site * Satellite web sites * Corporate Intranet They have used the following Systems and Application software: ContentMaster – Enterprise CMS FormsMaster – Enterprise E-Forms SearchMaster – Enterprise Advanced Conceptual Search Engine TaxonomyMaster - Enterprise auto-classification System ConsultationMaster – To carry out on-line consultations PortalMaster – To develop micro sites for the Voluntary Sector SharepointMaster – To search and auto-classify content in Sharepoint Self Service- To provide knowledge and answers to residents on-line due for installation in November New Design – Approved and due for installation during November Several integrations have been installed to various back office systems and Web Labs host the web sites on a dedicated server at our server farm

11 Organisation: Aylesbury Vale District Council Contact Name: John Barter Position: Project Manager Email: [email protected] Tel: 01296 585352 Project Overview: AVDC have deployed Web Labs software and services to underpin their Corporate web site They have used the following Systems and Application software: ContentMaster – Enterprise CMS FormsMaster – Enterprise E-Forms SearchMaster – Enterprise Advanced Conceptual Search Engine TaxonomyMaster - Enterprise auto-classification System ConsultationMaster – To carry out on-line consultations MeetingsManager – To administer and publish Committee Meetings Minutes and Agendas on-line The intranet is due to be launched during November with a Leisure Bookings System Several integrations have been installed to various back office systems Web Labs host the web site on a dedicated server at our server farm

12 Organisation: Winchester City Council Contact Name: Stuart Marks Position: Web Master Email: [email protected] Tel: 01962 848413 Project Overview: Winchester City Council have deployed Web Labs software and services to underpin their * Corporate web site * Satellite web sites * Corporate Intranet They have used the following Systems and Application software: ContentMaster – Enterprise CMS FormsMaster – Enterprise E-Forms SearchMaster – Enterprise Advanced Conceptual Search Engine TaxonomyMaster - Enterprise auto-classification System ConsultationMaster – To carry out on-line consultations PortalMaster – To develop micro sites for the Voluntary Sector Several integrations have been installed to various back office systems Web Labs host the web sites on a dedicated server at our server farm

13 4 FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS Suppliers are asked to tender for the supply of a software/hardware solution to meet the requirements set out below: Ref Description Requirement Response The supply of a comprehensive

software/hardware solution to meet the requirements set out within this

tender document:

Mandatory Desirable 4.1 Design – Externally Internally Managed Look and Feel Managed To supply The Council‟s x We sometimes assist the client to options and representative will develop the clients „Design Brief‟ guidance for require full control of considering, branding, objectives, the design of the design templates, accessibility, performance and the website. colour schemes and compliance etc. When we receive the This will navigation schemes. Design Brief we produce three design include the concepts for the client‟s team to branding of consider and discuss with our award the site, the winning design team. As a result of navigation, this collaborative exercise we produce website the final designs for the client‟s usability, approval and sign off. The client accessibility representative has control of the and branding, navigation etc throughout compliance. the process after which the designs are developed as strict HYML and style sheets for the client‟s final approval before developing the templates and integration with the CMS. 4.2 Content Creation 4.2.1 Ability for non-technical users to x The CMS is designed specifically for complete all content tasks using a this level of user and uses clear and simple browser based interface. easy to follow methods of content creation, using only a standard web browser. We have some sites with 5,000 external Users who successfully use the intuitive system.

4.2.2 Ability to create, manage and x Our Directory module can build, maintain directories and databases, populate and configure any database with a built-in search engine capable of information. You have control over of searching on keywords. the layout, style and search options . 4.2.4 Ability to import content from standard x We provide a number of options, the office tools such as MS Word, MS CMS can attach complex documents Excel, PDF, email or reports from for download or in some cases use a proprietary databases. The content built-in viewer (e.g. , videos that is produced in these formats etc). You can optionally paste content should be able to be imported into the into any rich text field and the CMS CMS without reformatting. will take care of ensuring it is web and design rule compliant.

14 Ref Description Requirement Response The supply of a comprehensive

software/hardware solution to meet the requirements set out within this

tender document:

Mandatory Desirable Ability to import information from the x We have imported from many different councils‟ existing CMS systems? CMS tools and formats and should have no concerns doing the same for you. The quality and speed of such importing information depends on how accessible the original content is and this would need to be reviewed carefully to maximise the import quality. We also have a auto- classification tool ensure the content is classified to IPSV2. As we have no information with regards to what CMS are employed and the formats of your existing content we can only provide an estimate of the time and cost involved. As a new site is being developed this is an ideal opportunity for a „content audit‟ Web Labs cannot judge the „currency‟ of the content for the new site or re-classify the content to suit the new navigation this will need local and specific client knowledge Ability to export information from the x We have a number of tools and built-in proposed CMS system? facilities to export information from the CMS

4.2.5 Ability to effectively control page x The CMS has a template-based design and updates through the use structure and anyone with the of templates and clear administration appropriate skills and permissions will rights be able to extend or re-configure the templates supplied with the CMS.

4.2.6 Timed submissions – to set x You have full control over the status of expiry/publication dates for content to the content including when it goes live allow for more effective management and expires. You can also specify of site information including warning when the content should be reviewed. of expiry date Automatic warnings are sent when content is due to expire and you also have the ability to override this on a per-record basis should the author require it. All warning information is sent via the system and by email

4.2.7 Ability to develop and host additional x Most of our Local Government Clients public facing Websites without the have several public facing web sites need to purchase additional licences e.g. Leisure, Strategic Partnerships, Culture etc, Web Labs supply an enterprise license but in some cases charge a modest install/support (5%) charge for additional copy licenses.

15 Ref Description Requirement Response The supply of a comprehensive

software/hardware solution to meet the requirements set out within this

tender document:

Mandatory Desirable 4.2.8 Ability to setup thumbnails for photos, x The CMS is more than capable of images and graphic displays and producing galleries with the integrated create photo galleries „asset manager‟ and can apply appropriate post-processing techniques (including resizing and web optimisation) so that images are delivered and re-purposed without requiring the skills to operate an image editing package. 4.2.9 Ability to gather extensive metadata x You can use any of the built-in and metadata hierarchy for content metadata schemes and others can be tagging and e-Gif support produced should you need it. e-GIF support is standard. Most metadata elements are populated by the CMS without any User intervention, however they have the choice to override values. Coupled with our SearchMaster product you can also have content automatically classified on the fly too. 4.2.10 Ability to provide a standard search x We can integrate to any search engine engine that can index site or you require and the CMS will provide document content, integrating with standardised searching facilities. We current software i.e. Open Objects also have an advanced conceptual search engine and auto-classification system. 4.2.11 Automatic link checker – ensuring x The CMS automatically checks links at integrity of all site links as pages are the point of entry and we have a built and the facility to remove dead scheduled checker that will produce links reports of dead links (including single- click fixing in most cases). 5.2.12 Facility to provide user polls – to allow x We have a polls module that can creation of user polls for immediate provide quick and easy polling. polling of users on specific subjects 4.2.13 Ability to accept customer x E-alerts are standard and can be subscriptions to notify of page delivered via email or SMS (when a updates. suitable gateway available). 5.2.14 Ability to generate email notification, x We can generate alerts through the through MS Exchange email system, workflow, these can integrate with of certain events non-specific mail servers as well as other communications devices. 4.2.15 Ability to publish material to multiple x Content can be tagged to any context sites via a single publishing action you choose, causing that content to appear in the appropriate site. 4.2.16 Ability to update to a newer version of x The CMS provides version control that content or restore to a previous records all details of the content, version, as well as tracking any records can be rolled back too. We changes made to files. Content can provide archiving via our flexible should incorporate details of workflow system. publication and expiration dates.

16 Ref Description Requirement Response The supply of a comprehensive

software/hardware solution to meet the requirements set out within this

tender document:

Mandatory Desirable Facilities should allow content to be A full audit trail is generated. Currently given a life cycle after which there is this is open to all users to see on a per an automatic archival process. All record basis however we could lock content will be version controlled, with this down although in our experience it a secure, auditable history available is useful allowing other users to see to nominated users. how a record has changed.

4.2.17 Ability to support requirements to x The CMS provided a number of ways translate content to multiple of achieving this. You can provide languages e.g. Urdu, Polish etc alternative content records or within a content item itself upload translated audio files via our Spoken Word task for very efficient management of multi- language items. 4.2.18 Transactional Ability to redesign the HTML wrapper x A 'boiler plate' template can be Web Services for the web services from back office provided that ensures any integrated system pages to ensure its look and applications match the branding of the feel is consistent with the new website new website. This can be delivered as To establish a mechanism for priority a working empty CMS driven template back off links and protocol for and/or as a basic wrapper. This remaining services wrapper can include methods to sync up menu's etc that are derived from the main site. 4.2.19 E-Forms Ability to create E-forms for all key x We have an enterprise e-Forms services. The forms server should System used by many Local have options for internally and Government clients for their external externally hosting, along with the (web site) and internal (intranet) e- ability for offline completion. The Forms. These clients have developed forms should be a set of basic local over 150 „standard‟ e-forms that every authority forms, with the option for customer regards as „common reasonably easy internal property‟ and available to other local development, if required, alternatively Government customers. The –Forms access to/training provided on skills system comes with an e-Forms for more complex, intelligent forms. „Builder‟ and „Integrator‟ and clients can be trained to develop or modify intelligent e-Forms and integrate them to third party systems. 4.2.20 Ability to generate templates for e- x The e-Forms generally fit into one forms production standard template

4.2.21 Ability to capture the data from e- x As mentioned above the e-Forms Forms into our corporate databases have an „Integrator‟ module that provides a easy mechanism to transfer data to a corporate database

4.2.22 Ability to generate or convert e-Forms x The E-Forms system come as to printed forms automatically standard with the ability to changes to (Supplier to specify if third party HTML or PDF format products will be used to satisfy this requirements)

17 Ref Description Requirement Response The supply of a comprehensive

software/hardware solution to meet the requirements set out within this

tender document:

Mandatory Desirable 4.2.23 Work flow functionality with clear x The E-Forms system comes as mapping of work against functions to standard with mapping and workflow enable targeting the forms to specific to provide this functionality people or functions 4.2.24 Integration of emails for notification of x The e-Forms system is also integrated delivery and expiry (if not part of the to email packages as standard to workflow) notify specific persons when e-forms have been completed, expired etc. 4.2.25 Notification of receipt of forms via our x As mentioned above this function is email system. provided as standard 4.2.26 Notification could include information x The notification can be tailored to suit such as who or what function will be the specific application dealing with the issue 4.2.27 Deep linking The ability to establish meaningful x We have a couple of ways this can be URL‟s around key pages to permit achieved and will work with you to find deep linking to and at the same time the best solution (or hybrid) that suits provide the ability to establish multiple your team. Typically we can allow you web sites, with their own identities for to set-up 'marketing url' that allow community groups and others. deep linking with tracking or use our provide a tool for managing both 'External Page' content type that can internal and external links on the redirect to any internal or external website page. 5 Technical Requirements 5.1 Compliance XML Compliant x You can export content in XML format. 5.2 with industry & E-GIF Compliant (interoperability) x The CMS is e-GIF compliant, in government particular the management system is Standards totally browser based, we produce e- GMS metadata, we can integrate using XML and we can operate the site based on LGCL, IPSV or any other taxonomy you choose (including multiple taxonomies) 5.3 E-GMS Compliant (metadata) x The CMS can produce e-GMS metadata as well as other standard schemes. 5.4 Coding Yes, We can code the templates as HTML 4.0.1 x CMS to comply with any of these, (XHTML1.0) x however we will always produce our CSS 1.0 x internally designed templates to 2.0 x XHTML.

5.5 Accessibility Yes we can code the templates to WCAG 1.0 to AA Standard x meet these standards. However AAA AAA x is more dependent upon the content PAS78 x entered in which case our integral „Accessibility Checker‟ can provide the solution

18 Ref Description Requirement Response The supply of a comprehensive

software/hardware solution to meet the requirements set out within this

tender document:

Mandatory Desirable 5.6 Browser Yes most of our Public Sector clients : All versions 5+ x request that we build the templates to (Including IE*8, but excluding IE5 for comply with this requirement the Mac) x 1.0.4+ x 6+ x 1.2+ 5.7 Platform Compatibility Yes, we can offer the system PC and Mac x compatible with PC and Mac 5.8 A list of server platforms and 2000, 2003. databases onto which the system has x Microsoft SQL Server 2000, 2005. been successfully installed, tested and operated 5.9 What open application programming x The templates and CMS are built upon interfaces (APIs) and standard Microsoft's .NET Framework, languages are supported? specifically Version 2 and ASP.NET. Our templates will be integrated in C#. 5.10 Security Suppliers should indicate how x We can encrypt sensitive data within security for sensitive data can be the database as well as have certain maintained, and where appropriate, web pages adopt SSL for transmission how different levels of security can security. With regards to users there is apply to different classes of user. a totally granular permissions model. 5.11 Does the system comply with x No, we do however capture all the ISO27001, if yes, to what level? information required in a secure audit log file 5.12 The ability for administrative/editorial x The CMS can be fully administrated functions to be performed from any from a web browser, only very top PC level installation configuration must be done on the server (for security and reliability reasons) 5.13 The ability to integrate with Active x We can integrate with other Directory Services and network authentication systems including those directory services (Lightweight listed. This is generally infrastructure Directory Access Protocol - LDAP) limited but we have a great deal of experience in dealing with / advising on infrastructure design. 5.14 The system to provide a full audit trail x All content and system-level actions are recorded. 5.15 The system to comply with DISC x We use SQL Server as our database PD0012 (Data Protection Guide to engine, and all the changes to the managing databases) database are audited as per the standards. 5.16 Integration Any bespoke web development to be x based on Microsoft .NET technology. Our CMS and all its modules are based on .NET V2.

19 Ref Description Requirement Response The supply of a comprehensive

software/hardware solution to meet the requirements set out within this

tender document:

Mandatory Desirable 5.17 Please identify the portal, digital asset management, document X Some of the integrations we have management, ERP or CRM products completed include: that you integrate with out-of-the-box CAPS or have pre-packaged connectors for. ESRI, Mappoint Northgate, Lagan Flare, Academy Worldpay EDPQ, Google Biztalk Anite e-Works, IDOC Sharepoint, Comino, PlanTec PlanetFM. Meredio, ITAX, Ferret Oracle, SQL. MySQL, Cybase 5.18 Printing Ability to provide a “printer-friendly” conversion of web pages X This is standard feature within the CMS and is used with all the sites we produce. 6 Training Technical We provide on-site training for To supply sufficient training to X technical staff. With technical training technical staff we would normally pre-arrange the training schedule as we find different customers have a different technical focus and it is better to tailor it to your needs. 6.1 Authors To supply sufficient training x Our training is geared towards train- for content authors with the option to the-trainer this generally provides take a „train the trainer‟ approach. better results in our experience. The CMS is designed to be intuitive and we have often found that our clients are already well versed after using our demo system even before any formal training has been given. 7 Business Ability to provide comprehensive x The CMS comes with „out of the box‟ Intelligence management and performance management reports, these can be information added to and tailored to suit your needs. 8 Testing To ensure that the solution is tested x We will operate a rigorous testing at application and system level programme as part of the standard delivery plan. 9 Documentation To supply all relevant documentation We can provide manuals that you can to include x tailor to suit your own needs, some of Training (technical and author) x our customers have produced their Architecture own branded versions of our manuals. There is also an online help system in the CMS as standard. 10 Support & To provide a support contract, x We have attached our SLA which has Maintenance including detailed SLA targets and contractual performance targets and support procedures support procedures.

20 Ref Description Requirement Response The supply of a comprehensive

software/hardware solution to meet the requirements set out within this

tender document:

Mandatory Desirable 10.1 The nature of supplier helpdesk x We have both a Telephone Help Desk support must be defined, as should (08:30 to 17:30) and an On-Line Fault the availability and method of remote Reporting system (24 x 7), both of support which have a „time stamped ticketing system‟ to ensure that all customers issues are handled fairly and efficiently within the contractual performance targets. All our support staff are also developers and highly skilled and experienced therefore the technical support available is very effective and generally very prompt. 11 Future A roadmap of future development of x We can provide an overview of our Developments the application software non-commercially sensitive product roadmap. We would point out that in the introduction we have overviewed over 20 items of relevant application software developments we have already successfully installed with Local Government clients which is a far larger portfolio than any other Supplier and would take any one client a few years to install.. We make no secret that we are working with some of our clients on integrating to the Government Gateway and closer integration with Microsoft products i.e. Office and Sharepoint which we will announce soon. The development of the cores of our CMS and e-Forms products do not need any immediate attention as they are technically ahead of all the competition at this moment. We will however be keeping and eye on World Wide developments and continue with our own developments into faster/cheaper developments of templates and the development of a universal interface so that our systems can easily plug into any third party software. 11.1 Suppliers should state how software x We will apply updates as part of your upgrades are implemented. These maintenance plan. We generally should comply with ITIL change provide changes via the web having management good practice. agreed the time and security Examples could include CD-ROM, procedures with the client. We rarely downloading updates/fixes via the have to visit the client‟s premises for Internet from the supplier‟s website. In this activity. The cost are included in addition, any costs incurred over and the standard maintenance contract above the annual maintenance in respect of porting upgrades are to be

21 Ref Description Requirement Response The supply of a comprehensive

software/hardware solution to meet the requirements set out within this

tender document:

Mandatory Desirable itemised. 12 Pricing Capital and revenue costs to be x We have completed the Pricing included, up to and including year 3. Schedule as per your requirements but would respectfully point out that there is no specification of the functionality outlining the number of applications required within the web site or intranet or, exact number of integrations to third party systems, e.g. at this moment we are carrying out an integration to the Government Gateway for a Local Government client which will cost more than the list price of the CMS or the scope of the migration. 13 Specific Our live air quality information is x We have integrated with all manner of Requirements currently generated as a series of data transfer scenarios. We are information bulletins that give confident this would not pose a residents the level of pollutant and the problem. It might be a solution e.g. to relevant health implication. These receive the information as an RSS bulletins are currently hosted by an feed external provider. The external provider calculates the worst case scenario and appropriate health implication from the data generated by our server, and this is then published to the web. The information is automatically updated throughout the day. 13.1 Page plug-ins The CMS should have x Our templates are open to allow the ability to allow the creation of custom integrations and we have a custom content plug-ins where a framework for delivery of such solution is not provided by the pluggable items. supplier, e.g. an RSS feed viewer, Many of our Local Government view onto a back office system etc. customers have secondary sites with This would be a way of solving the dedicated functionality and branding live air quality information requirement e.g. see: www.readingarts.com (4.3.18). In addition to plug-ins we need an environment that would allow us to host custom websites or web applications that have the look and feel of the main site but provide dedicated functionality, e.g. the http://www.chester.gov.uk/WhatsOn/

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5 EVALUATION CRITERIA Supplier‟s responses to the requirements will be assessed against the following criteria:

The ability to meet the all the requirements described in this specification The Web Labs can meet ALL the requirements specified

The performance guarantees offered The Web Labs solution is working in environments with much higher volumes in terms of traffic and system load and we have installations with over 6,000 Users

Ease of use, to be evaluated at demonstrations and reference site visits The Web Labs solution is renowned for its ease of use and intuitive

Evidence that the hardware and software solution meet with industry standards and the supplier should have experience of working with other local authorities (and provide examples). The Web Labs team have probably more experience of working with Local Authorities than any other individual organisation.

The quality of supplier support both during and after implementation. This will be determined by references and the number of implementation days required Web Labs have quality procedures in place to ensure a high level of support

The ability of the supplier to guarantee delivery of the products and services to the requested timescales and to guarantee performance levels Web Labs can guarantee the timescales after the Requirements are finally specified and agreed. We are confident about the performance of our products

Project management, Prince 2 methodology Web Labs have staff qualified in Prince 2 methodology

Ease of interface development to existing related systems Web Labs have a wide range of „connectors‟ and considerable experience of interfacing both our CMS and e-Forms to third party systems

Financial Appraisal of supplier Web Labs has the highest bank rating of 4AA

The quality of the proposal submitted We have responded to all of your questions and supplied supporting information where we belief it will assist you with your evaluation

On-site demonstrations and meeting with potential suppliers will be required We would be pleased to demonstrate our software and solutions to your team

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6. OUTLINE PROJECT PLAN Implementation Plan Start Task Title Day Duration (days) Appoint a Project Manager to liaise with Web Labs and User Departments 1 1 WL Appoint Project Leader 1 1 WL Confirm Deliverables, identify any changes, or use of software modules 1 1 WL Confirm/Identify any bespoke programming or risk 1 1 Approve Project Plan (with timescales, responsibilities and priorities) 1 5 Supply Design Brief with sample artwork for style sheets 1 1 Both Parties Identify any Project Risk and draw up alternative plans 1 4 Supply API‟s or Third party Software Integration Information 1 1 Arrange Meetings with 3rd Party Software Suppliers and Web Labs 1 5 Arrange Meetings with User Departments 7 2 Agree Scope/Time of Acceptance Test 10 1 Chair Design Briefing and Approvals meeting 5 2 WL liaise with any 3rd Part Software Suppliers 7 6 WL Commence Development of web site 11 40 WL Commence interface with any third party systems 21 10 WL Demonstrate and interface any required software modules 28 10 WL Develop and Build e-Forms 30 5 WL Test e-forms with any 3rd Party Software on own servers 36 10 WL Deliver system elements for discussion 20 3 WL Integrate templates 40 20 WL Migrate content 40 1 WL Carry Out e-Forms training in situ 45 2 Categorise and edit Content 70 2 Attend project meetings with Web-Labs and report back 20 3 WL Integrate all Systems and test on own servers 30 10 WL Beta Test Systems on LBO server 50 10 WL Deliver to System Elements for discussion 55 2 Report to Web-Labs any change of plans, systems or requirements 60 2 WL Deliver prototype incorporating any late changes 65 2 Approve prototype system 70 2 Produce User Manuals with WL 71 4 WL Install System on LGO Servers 77 1 Supervise Acceptance Test carried out by WL 78 1 Approve and Sign Off Deliverables 80 2 Suggest changes/improvements to system 85 1 WL Program Changes 90 3 Oversee parallel running 92 30 Sign off and launch new system 100 1 Complete Documentation 102 2 WL Document Improvements and future enhancements 110 2

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Plan Schedule for Phase 2 120 1 Agree/confirm Specification for the Intranet/responsibilities/reporting procedures design brief and timescale 60 2 Document any changes including use of any software modules 62 3 WL Develop designs for Intranet 66 5 Approve designs for Intranet 70 1 WL Migrate content from previous system 72 5 Categorise and edit content 77 10 WL Build templates for Intranet 72 12 WL Integrate Templates for new Intranet 84 12 WL Test any software modules 110 2 WL Integrate to any third party software 112 10 WL Deliver Prototype on WL servers 120 1 Test and approve prototype 122 2 Document any changes required 124 1 WL Carry out any changes and test them on the prototype 125 3 Carry out any additional staff training required 126 1 WL Transfer system to LGO server 128 1 Carry out any parallel running required 130 14 Make system live 140 1 Document any changes required for Phase two 140 1

WL = Web Labs Task This plan was drawn up without your teams input and will need to be adapted to meet your requirements at the first project meeting

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7. DRAFT SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT

Draft Service Level Agreement

for

Software Support and Maintenance

between

Web-Labs

and

XXXX

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Introduction

The aim of this agreement is to outline the basis under which Web-Labs will provide support for the Web-Labs CMS and associated modules licensed to XXXX (xx).

Web-labs agree to provide XX with

a static IP address by which support services will be rendered when appropriate. A support telephone number and contact details A web-based logging system which allowed the tracking of open jobs and a bugs database so that bugs can be reported and identified bugs and the advice/ fixes can be obtained without recourse to the helpdesk staff.

XX agree to provide:

access to XX net servers an unique password and username with the appropriate access permissions for support purposes. This password and username will be for the sole use of Web-labs staff activation of password and username as required

Support desk

A web-based logging system which allowed the tracking of open jobs and a bugs database so that bugs can be reported and identified bugs and the fixes can be obtained without recourse to the helpdesk staff.

Web-Labs agree to provide support facilities for the logging and resolution of problems specifically related to the CMS and its associated modules

Telephone support should be available during normal working hours 9am - 5 pm Mon-Fri.

E-mail support should be available during normal working hours 9am - 5 pm Mon-Fri.

Out of hours work to be agreed in advance and invoiced as required

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Call priority and escalation priority Description Example Service 1 Critical Business failure Data corruption or Support acknowledgment as a result of CMS failure major system failure call or e-mail response prohibiting normal within 30mins. operation of the website or ability to Update call or e-mail access admin system every 2 hours or at an agreed time.

Resolution of enquiry or agreement of specific time table for closure within 3 hours 2 General failure Problem affecting Acknowledgment within 3 users within the hours administration system – e.g. inability Resolution of enquiry or add or edit content agreement of specific time table for closure within 2 days.

3 Bug reporting – where Problem identified in Acknowledgment within the bug does not affect an intermittently used 24 hours critical business issues service Closure of enquiry or agreement of specific time table for closure within 2 days.

4 Request for information General Query or Acknowledgment within advice related to the 24 hours CMS and it‟s associated modules Closure of enquiry 3 days and the optimum server settings for the system

Conditions

A support call cannot be closed without the consent of XX*. If a problem re-occurs after it was thought to be fixed XX will affix the previous correspondence along with the request for support to ensure continuity of information and accurate problem resolution.

*Where Web-Labs request information from XX in respect of the support call, the request must be actioned within an agreed timescale. Where no action has been forthcoming Web-Labs will re- request the information. If the request has not been actioned by XX within 5 working days from the re-request the support job will be closed.

Web-Labs will not be held liable for any incident arising from XX‟s failure to provide requested information.

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On site support visits

On site support visits are generally a chargeable service. If the support problem cannot be resolved without a site visit then a support site visit may be arranged with the agreement of the Head of Information Services.

Web-Labs resolve to inform XX of any known bugs on the system and provide, without charge, patches to resolve any identified problems

Review of agreement

This agreement will be reviewed on an annual basis.

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8. WEB LABS TURNOVER

Annual turnover and gross profit of Web Labs for the last 3 financial years:

Year Turnover £ Net Profit before Gross profit £ taxation 2007 £684,835 £90,805 £345,450 2006 £490,256 £22,384 £231,504 2005 £618,968 £214,487 £421,393 2004 £562,420 £349,226

We have included our full accounts on the CDs along with 1 hard copy to adhere to our commitment to our Environmental policy.

9. HEALTH & SAFETY POLICY We have no breaches or convictions pending. We have included our Health & Safety Policy on the CDs along with 1 hard copy to adhere to our commitment to our Environmental policy

10. EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES POLICY We have included our Equal Opportunities Policy on the CDs along with 1 hard copy to adhere to our commitment to our Environmental policy

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LEGAL FORMS FOR COMPLETION

CERTIFICATE AS TO COLLUSIVE TENDERING

TO: The COUNCIL (Ellesmere Port and Neston Borough Council)

Contract for the Provision of a Content Management System

I/We declare that this is a bona fide Tender, intended to be competitive and that I have not fixed or adjusted the amount of the Tender by or under or in accordance with any agreement or arrangement with any person („person‟ includes any persons any body or association, corporate or incorporate) except as disclosed on this Certificate under 7 below.

I/We declare that the Company is not aware of any connection with a member of the Council‟s staff which could affect the outcome of the bidding process.

I/We declare that I/We have not done and I undertake that I/We will not do at any time any of the following: communicate to any person, including the addressee calling for the Tender, the amount or approximate amount of the proposed Tender; enter into any agreement or arrangement with any other person or body that he or it shall refrain from tendering or as to the amount of any Tender to be submitted; enter into any agreement or arrangement with any other person or body that we will refrain from tender on a future occasion; offer or pay or agree to pay any sum of money or valuable consideration directly or indirectly to any person for doing or causing to be done in relation to any other tender for the said work any act of the kind described above; canvass or solicit the Council‟s staff.

I/We understand that any instances of illegal cartels or market sharing arrangements suspected by the Council will be referred to the Office of Fair Trading for investigation and may be subject to action under the Restrictive Trade Practices Act 1916.

I/We understand that any misrepresentations may also be subject of criminal investigation or used as a basis for civil action.

In the Certificate “agreement” or “arrangements” includes any transaction private or open, of collusion, formal or informal, and whether or not legally binding.

Disclosure: ………………………………………………………………………………………

Signed: Name: Edmund Swain Title: Director…………… Signed:……………………….. Name: …………………………Title: …………………… on behalf of: Web Labs Ltd…… Date: .6th August 2008

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CERTIFICATE AS TO CANVASSING

TO: The COUNCIL (Ellesmere Port and Neston Borough Council)

I/We hereby certify that I/We have not canvassed or solicited any Member Officer or employee of The Council in connection with the award of this Tender or any other or proposed Tender for the Service, and that no person employed by me/us or acting on my/our behalf has done any such act.

I/We further hereby undertake that I/We will not in the future canvass or solicit any Member, Officer or Employee of The Council in connection with the award of this Tender or any other tender or proposed Tender for the Service, and that no person employed by me/us or acting on my/our behalf will do any such act.

Signed

(1) ______Name _Edmund Swain Title _Director

(2) ______Name ______Title ______

on behalf of Web Labs Ltd

Date __6/8/08______

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SCHEDULE OF PRICES

Having examined the Invitation to Tender and it's accompanying documents and being fully satisfied as to my/our abilities and experience in all aspects to satisfy the requirements of the Invitation to Tender and accompanying documents hereby propose the following amounts for the supply and implementation of the required services to the Authority.

All fees quoted shall be fixed prices stated exclusive of VAT and inclusive of expenses.

Suppliers will be deemed to have satisfied themselves before submitting their proposal as to the accuracy of the rates and prices stated in the analysis of costs.

Suppliers should complete the following table summarising the price of their proposal.

Initial Price Ongoing Annual / Quarterly Maintenance or Licence £ £ £ Intranet Site Infrastructure We assume your existing hardware and network suppliers would be most competitive for these elements. Web Labs will be pleased to supply subsequent copies of the CMS and e- Forms as outlined below The application software is not specified see Web Labs Preview for list of proven Application Software Modules. Content Management System £20.000 4,000 4.000 pa E-Forms £20,000 4,000 4,000 pa E-Consultation £10,000 2,000 2,000 pa Website Hosting £6,000 6,000 pa

Software development £5,000 per £1,000 per software application application and £350 per template design/integration we cannot estimate this without a detailed site map or functional specification

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Installation/Implementation £1,000 N/A N/A Data migration/integration 3,000 per Council N/A N/A site £12,000 Interfaces 3,000 per interface £600 per £3600 pa The ones integration specified are: Interactive mapping Planning apps LDF consultation (Local Development Framework) Income – on line payments School Admissions Venue Bookings £18,000 Training 2 days per product N/A included in the license Consultancy 2 days per product N/A included in the license Project Management Estimate £5,000 N/A Without a detailed functional specification of applications and the entire web site and intranet cannot be fixed price Other – please specify Install/support second and £1,000 £1,000 £1,000 subsequent copies of CMS per copy

Install/support second and £1,000 £1,000 £1,000 subsequent copies of e-Forms per copy

Totals

Hardware – please specify Server see hosting below

Help desk/support costs Included in maintenance cost

Suppliers should also complete the following table to show the day rates that will apply for any additional work that is identified in relation to this proposal.

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HOSTING HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE

SERVER Dedicated Server includes: 1 3,000 4 Way Opteron 8000 Series 2x SATA2 Drive Bays 3x LAN Ports 850W Power Supply Multiple PCI Express (x16) Slots

RAM 4GB DDR-II Fully Buffered ECC Ram PROCESSORS Opteron Dual Core 8220 Socket F 2 HARD DRIVE 1 160 Gb SATA2 Hard Disk Drive 7,200rpm 1 HARD DRIVE 2 160 Gb SATA2 Hard Disk Drive 7,200rpm 1 CD-ROM DVD Re-Writer Drive (Dual Layer) 1 Windows 2003 Standard Edition 1 470

Software 470 Hardware Installation 1 250

Monthly Hosting £500 x12 12 6,000 pa.

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Resource Rate

Project Manager £800/day Trainer £500/day Consultant £800/day Technical £600/day Other- Applications Software see list of developed software available from Web Labs in the Web Labs Preview We would expect there to be an element of bespoke integrations and Application software but cannot estimate this without a detailed functional specification

Signed (1) ………………………………………………………………………………….

Name in Capitals ………Edmund Swain……..

Signed (2) .………………………………………………..………………………………..

Name in Capitals …………………………………………………………………………

Duly authorised for and on behalf of:

…Web Labs Ltd…………………………………

Dated …6/8/08…………………………………….………………………………

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