The History Education Division is part of the Education Department of the Council of Europe. Its work covers a wide range of activities including the Observatory on History Teaching in Europe (OHTE) as an Enlarged Partial Agreement of the Council of Europe, the intergovernmental programme on history education, the Remembrance of the Holocaust and Prevention of Crimes against Humanity Programme, as well as joint projects of the Council of Europe and the European Union on the topic.

The Council of Europe is looking for maximum 30 Providers (provided enough tenders meet the criteria indicated in the Tender File below) in order to support the implementation of activities related to history education with a particular expertise in communications, event promotion, production of videos and other communication materials and data visualisation. All communication services are required to meet Council of Europe’s visual identity.

The present tendering procedure aims to select Providers to support the implementation of the project and is divided into the following lots: 

• Lot 1: FRAMEWORK CONTRACT – standard communication services (videos, event communications, consultancy services and visibility material), including sublots on Videos, Events, Data Viz Consultancy, Visibility material and Design - with maximum 15 providers to be selected.
• Lot 2: FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT – complex communication services (data visualisation, social media campaigns, visibility materials and videos) - with minimum 3 and maximum 15 providers to be selected.

The full Tender documentation below provides extensive information on the type of services required by the history education division.

The deadline for the submission of tenders is 28 May 2024 by 23:59 CET. Applications to be sent only to [email protected] with reference no. 2024AO32 in the subject field

  Tender File (corrected on 14/05/2024)

  Act of Engagement

Questions and Answers:

(last update 23/05/2024)

• The text of the PDF tender file refers to Sections F and Section G of the same document. We scrolled the document and we are not sure we could find sections named F or G in the file. Can you help us understand what you are referring to?
  • There is indeed a minor inconsistency in the structure of the tender file. The document was updated and replaced in the link above. 
• Does video editing service solely cover implementing video edits according to instructions and material provided by the Council of Europe, or does this involve an active engagement from the supplier in deciding how to edit the video, propose materials, create visual and graphical elements ad hoc etc?
  • The Council of Europe provides guidance on how to edit videos – as far as providing a script, that can be slightly adjusted by providers. We combine the creativity of providers with the imperatives of our mission and subject at hand.
• What kind of needs would you expect for video filming? One operator on site shooting videos as an events unfolds, or a full crew with audio operators, maybe an audio corner and side interviews?
  • This service being linked to Lot 1 for standard communication services, we expect that it would imply one operator on site. For more complex projects involving several filming sites and crews, please consider applying for Lot 2, where a call off will be organised among selected companies on as needed basis when such projects are planned within the history education division.
• Is the content for social media capsules going to be provided by the Council or created by the provider? Would you be interested in illustration videos or stock content, or potentially both?
  • Content for social media capsules will be edited from the main “Key findings” videos listed in Sublot 1.1 – Videos on the basis of a script provided by the Council of Europe. Depending on the project, we could be interested in illustration videos, stock content or a combination of the two.
• If the covers of the conferenciers and notebooks need to be customised, do you expect to provide the supplier with an approved design or would you need design proposals from the supplier?
  • We provide mock-ups with our ideas on the potential end design. Providers finetune and improve the mock-up, therefore a certain degree of design is involved in the conception of personalised conferenciers and notebooks.
• Are you expecting a specific number of pages for notebooks?
  • We expect notebooks to contain 96 pages.
• We understand that you are asking for consultancy on data visualization best practices. Would it be mainly referred design of /graphs/charts/tables for printed files and social media? Do you refer also to digital and technical data visualization, with tools such as PowerBi?
  • We expect consultants to be able to helps us in making the best decisions related to developing a complex data visualisation project based on data published by the Observatory on History Teaching in Europe (mainly). Our intention is to start by using Tableau Public (input by the Council of Europe) and upgrade, with the help of consultants, towards a solution that is best adapted to our needs. A detailed concept note will be among the deliverables expected for consultancy services included under Sublot 1.3. – DataViz Consultancy. The concept note will serve in organising a call-off among selected companies within Lot 2 specialised in Data visualisation.
• Are entrants allowed to submit for only 1 of the 2 lots are do all lots have to be submitted through the Act of Engagement? 
  • Tenderers can submit their offers only for the lots and sublots they esteem they have competence for. The explanations below provide further important details.
  • For Lot 1, tenderers can choose the sublot(s) they wish to apply for, provided they indicate fees for all services included in the respective sublot(s). Failure to comply with this requirement will lead to exclusion from the call for tenders. Example: one provider can choose to submit their offer for Sublot 1.1 - Videos, Sublot 1.2 – Events, and Sublot 1.4 – Visibility material, without submitting an offer for Sublot 1.3 – Data Viz Consultancy, Sublot 1.5 – Design and Sublot 1.6 – Miscellaneous. This is acceptable, provided the tenderer indicates fees for all services included in sublot 1.1, 1.2 and 1.4. as listed in the Act of Engagement.
  • For Lot 2 – given the nature of framework agreements, fees are not required at this stage of the procedure. Companies are selected based on portfolio along the award criteria listed in the Tender File and are invited for further call-offs on as-needed basis.

• We noticed that in Sublot 1.4 – Visibility material some items include a shipping service to Strasbourg and some other do not. Should we take into account the shipping cost to Strasbourg for all the items?
  • Shipping costs should be included in all quotes for services listed under Sublot 1.4 – Visibility materials (where relevant);
• What does the "HISTOLAB Digital Hub Maintenance" refer to, more specifically? We are asking this as maintaining the content updates and maintaining the technical side of the platform can be slightly different services with slightly different costs.
  • The service under Sublot 1.6 – Miscellaneous concerns the HISTOLAB Digital Hub (https://histolab.coe.int). Maintenance (updates of software and minor fixes) need to be ensured by a third party with competence in the platform on which the hub is built (technical specifications indicated in footnote in the Act of Engagement).
• How many CVs are expected to be submitted from a company that has multiple data visualization experts on staff under Lot 1 Sublot 1.3 – Data Viz Consultancy?
  • We expect individual CVs of staff that will be directly involved in consultancy work proposed by the Council of Europe.
• Under Lot 1 Sublot 1.3 – Data Viz Consultancy, what exactly is the expected content of CVs and how should the expertise in data visualization consultancy and the capacity to meet required deadlines be demonstrated? Furthermore, is it expected to include a selection of completed data visualization projects as part of the CVs if we already provide a complete data visualization portfolio for Lot 2?
  • CVs should prove consultants’ expertise in the field of data visualisation. Capacity to meet required deadlines is assessed based on successfully completed projects. Indeed, where applicable, portfolios can be submitted along with CVs as additional proof of expertise. However, tenderers applying for both Lot 1 Sublot 1.3 – Data Viz Consultancy and Lot 2 do not need to submit the portfolio twice.
• If we intend to submit a tender for both lots, is it expected that two copies of the Act of Engagement, Registration Document, and List of Executives are submitted or does it suffice to submit these documents once?
  • There is no need to submit documents twice in this case, you can apply for both lots with a single set of documents. Please make sure to tick the box(es) corresponding to the lot(s) you tender for in the Act of Engagement.
• Can we submit the portfolio via a dropbox link or does it have to be an attachment to the submission email?
  • Tenderers can submit documents as attachments to the submission email (either as standalone PDF files, or as .zip files).  They may also submit documents via links (such as dropbox).  In this case please make sure that the links remain active for at least two weeks after the deadline date for the submission of bids.
• Can we submit our application under our Brazilian entity, given that we also have a presence in Spain through a joint venture with a local company?
  • Companies from any country can apply to this call for tenders – there are no restrictions for applications for companies based in non-European countries.
• In the Word document for the tender, the production of some services includes design while in some other cases this is not specified. Do these services include design or should we estimate them with a design provided by the Council of Europe?
  • Services listed as ‘production of’ under Sublot 1.4. – Visibility material, include design. As a rule, Council of Europe provides mock-ups of the content to include in the design and companies propose professional renditions of the design.