MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI CMDP Sessi on on ePr ocur ement * e- Procurement Concept s * e- Payment s I nt egrat ion * NI C’s Pilot I mplement at ion of e- Procurement * Govt . e- Procurement solut ion ( GeP) by NI C * eGP Mission Mode Proj ect and NI C * I ssues in e- Procurement = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Monday , t he 8 t h Sept ember 2008 R K Si ngh ( r k .si ngh@ni c.i n) Seni or Techni cal Di r ect or , NI C MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Procurement Concept s ……. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Procurement Concept s × Procurement Process and it ’s Const raint s × I nt roduct ion t o e- Procurement × Feat ures & Benefit s × Approach t o a solut ion/ Crit ical Det erminant s × I mplement at ion - Approach & Success Fact ors × Reverse Auct ions – What , How & When? × e- Cat alogue based Buying MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Procurement Process – A Bird’s Eye View MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Procurement cycle Procurement cycle starts from Raising of the requirements for an item or a service and ends only after settlement of supplier payments. Request Source Order Receive Pay Analytics MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Const raint s of Tradit ional Procurement - Large t ime and effort wast ed in disseminat ing & seeking procurement informat ions - Physical Access barriers - Slow and laborious manual processes, act ivit y- flow - Human int erface at every st age - Low Value Addit ion - Several processes not t ransparent t o suppliers - Scope for compromises in bid- securit y & confident ialit y - Cart el format ion suppresses compet it ion and art ificially hikes bids - Possibilit y of dat a t ampering and loss of records MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C ×e-Procurement means procurement of goods and services online using the internet. Ideally, it covers the full ‘life cycle of procurement’. ×The intention is to automate, possibly, the entire procurement process, along with tender bid submission and payments by suppliers, in an online web-based real-time environment. × e-Procurement could resolve many of the constraints/ delays of traditional procurement. e- Procurement - The Solut ion MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Modes of e- Procurement Elect ronic procurement act ivit ies could be effect ed using one of t he several ways or modes given below, or a combinat ion of t hese could also be used as per need: - · e- Tendering · e- Auct ioning – Reverse Auct ions · e- Cat alogue based buying/ e- Ordering I n common parlance however, a basic e- Procurement applicat ion essent ially consist s of an ‘e- Tendering syst em’ and oft en also includes an ‘e- Auct ioning syst em’. I t could also encompass e- cat alogue based buying as well. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Obj ect ives of e- Procurement Obj ect i ves of aut omat i ng pr ocur ement pr ocesses ar e t o: - × Reduce cycle t imes of procurement × I ncrease supplier access t o ensure wider part icipat ion × Reduce cost s of procurement t hrough compet it ive bidding and Reverse Auct ioning × Remove cart elisat ion by supplier groups ( Reverse Auct ioning) × I ncrease visibilit y of procurement spend, for effect ive decision making × I ncrease t ransparency in t he procurement process × Almost complet e eliminat ion of paperwork, for speedy and efficient funct ioning MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Elect ronic Tendering Solut ion An e-Tendering solution primarily facilitates the ‘Tendering Process’ and may cover from Indenting of Requirements to the placing of contract/ PO Tender Preparation Tender Publishing Bidder Response Bid Evaluation Contract Award Indent To Tender Request e-Tendering Solution MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Tendering solut ion - Funct ionalit ies -Tender Creation/ configuration, with Response Forms - Pre-NIT Approvals and Floating/ Publishing of Tender - Tender Clarifications, Pre-Bid Conference - Online Secure Bid Submission, e-Payment of Fees - Online Bid Opening/ Decryption, Evaluation/ Negotiation - Award of Contract, Empanelment etc. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Tendering solut ion - Feat ures - Different Types of Tenders – Open, Limit ed & Propriet ary - Configurable Approval Work flow, Re- use of old t enders - Supplier Enablement – Online Regist rat ion, Cust om dashboard, Repet it ive document st orage, Alert s, Search et c - St rong Audit - t rail and Archival/ Ret rieval - Securit y/ Aut hent icit y/ Secrecy of Transact ions - Online Payment s – Tender Fee, EMD & Payment t o Suppliers MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Benefit s of e- Procurement / e- Tendering Benefits to Buyers - Reduction in Procurement & Contracts cycle time - Cost Reduction - Efficient & streamlined Procurement Processes - New Supplier Discovery - Close Monitoring of Activities/ Vendor Performance - Rich MIS and Analytics - New Improved Image - Standardized formats and Uniform tendering practices Benefits to Suppliers - Increased visibility/ Less artificial barriers - Increased business opportunities, - Greater degree of transparency - Cycle time reduction in participation and award of Contract - Supplier Enablement and Ease of Participation MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Approach To A Solution Before looking for an e-Procurement solution, a relook on existing procurement procedures/ practices is essential: - - ‘As Is’ Analysis, Re-engineering for optimized processes - Optimization/ reduction in process-flow steps - Uniformity/ standardization in formats/ practices/ procedures - Organization wide use of ‘unified item-codification structure’ - Automation of Processes MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Crit ical Det erminant s - of a Good Solut ion - Good aut hent icat ion – Role based access - Securit y, Secrecy ( of bids) - Signing, Encrypt ion - Ease of Use, Tender Templat es, e- Payment int egrat ion et c. - I nt egrat ed Document Management feat ures, Good Analyt ics - Good Audit t rail/ t raceabilit y feat ures – Access for Financial Audit , Legal and RTI needs - Good Archival & Ret rieval feat ures/ policy - Safe and secure MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C I mplement at ion - Approach - Business Process Analysis for I mprovement : Re- engineering, Codificat ion, Back- end applicat ion linkages et c. - Defining scope of I mplement at ion: funct ionalit ies covered - Sourcing e- Proc. Appln. S/ w: Gap Analysis and Cust omizat ion - Set t ing up a Fail- safe & Secure 24x7 I nfrast ruct ure - I nt egrat ing Payment Gat eways, PKI s, Mail et c. - Change Management : Training, 24 Hr. Help- desk - Execut ion Framework – Management of Rollout & Risks MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C I mplement at ion - Success Fact ors Major factors which could be crucial to transformation from simple traditional procurement to e-Procurement are: - - Strong will and focused thrust from the top management - Building in-house champions/ enthusiasts for adoption of e-Procurement - Buyer’s dedicated project team to drive the Mission - Aiming for realistic implementable goals/ objectives and time lines - Well defined/ standardized procurement processes and forms - Extreme care to aspects like Tender-security, Supplier-enablement/ Training & Ease of use - Well integrated back end systems, standards, policies & practices to link and leverage upon It must be remembered that implementing e-Procurement is most often a continuous evolving process with shifting goals, spread over a longer period, targeting end to end procurement supply chain; rather than a one shot solution for all procurement problems. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Reverse Auct ion and e- Cat alogue based Buying MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C What is A Reverse Auct ion? • The t radit ional auct ion is a Forward Auct ion I t normally involves a seller offering an it em for sale, while pot ent ial buyers compet e wit h each ot her for purchase. Thus price is driven up, unt il no buyer is willing t o go up furt her. • I n a Reverse Auct ion, MULTI PLE SELLERS OF A PRODUCT VI E FOR THE BUSI NESS OF A SI NGLE BUYER. Therefore t he price is driven down. • There are 3- 4 flavours of reverse auct ion, called as: English Auct ion, Dut ch Auct ion, Sealed Bid Auct ion et c. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C How does a Reverse Auct ion work? E Pre- screening/ Pre- qualificat ion of suppliers is essent ial t o have t echnically compet ent vendors, ready t o offer product s of desired specs/ qualit y. E Complet e requirement specificat ions are pre- known/ agreed and frozen for all before auct ion. E Usually services of an online Auct ion Service Provider is ut ilized t o conduct s t he process on his auct ioning websit e. E Suppliers are required t o be pre- regist ered wit h t he auct ion service provider and expect ed t o have received t raining on how t o part icipat e . MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C How does a Reverse Auct ion work? E All bidding vendors must have agreed t o abide by t he t erms & condit ions of t he auct ion/ service. E The Reverse auct ion is configured and all part icipat ing vendors are pre- not ified about t he st art t ime & closing t ime of auct ion. E Bidders submit t heir price bids by remot ely logging- in from t heir offices. E Bidders ident it ies are masked, but t hey can see t he compet ing prices and rankings in real t ime and could revise t heir bids as desired. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C How does a Reverse Auct ion work? E There is no communicat ion or negot iat ion wit h t he bidders during t he auct ion. E Buyer also wat ches t he progress of bidding from his office. I dent it ies of bidders are available t o him. E I n reverse auct ion compet it ion is high, bidders get t empt ed t o bid lower and lower t o clinch t he deal, unt il t hey are unwilling t o go any furt her. E At t he conclusion t he lowest bidder emerges as winner of t he auct ion. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Pot ent ial Benefit s from Reverse Auct ion + To Buyers: - Significant reduct ion in cost due t o Dynamic Bidding process. I nefficiencies in t he supply chain reduce. - Wit h real t ime compet it ion, suppliers are on t heir t oes - A t ool for efficient price discovery, complement ing direct negot iat ion process. Oft en used along wit h Tendering. + To Vendors: - Ensures Savings in market ing cost / dist ribut or margins - Facilit at es flexibilit y in pricing decision. - Transparency increases - Allows vendors t o assess t heir pricing power from close quart ers of compet it ion. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Tender Cycle wit h Reverse Auct ion ( Dynamic Pricing) Onl i ne Regi st r at i on Cr eat e and Publ i sh Tender / NI T Pur chase/ Dow nl oad Tender Pr epar at i on/ Encr y pt i on of Bi ds PQ/ Tech. Openi ng, Eval uat i on & Shor t l i st i ng Bi d- Openi ng and Ver i f i cat i on Onl i ne Submi ssi on of Bi d/ Hashes Cr eat i ng Bi d Seal s ( Hashes & Super Hash) Commer ci al Openi ng and Shor t l i st i ng Gener at i on of Compar at i ve St at ement Aw ar d of Cont r act ( l ow est of t he t w o r ounds) Compet i t i ve Bi ddi ng usi ng Dy nami c Pr i ci ng Engi ne MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Applicabilit y of Online Reverse Auct ions × Reverse auct ion works best when: Þ I t ems have well defined specificat ions and universally accept ed st andards. Þ Est ablished qualified base of vendors ( at least t hree) × Suit able for High value, large volume goods, Capit al goods, Direct Mat erials / MRO it ems. × Periodic rat e cont ract s for above it em t ypes. × Oft en used along wit h Tendering for efficient price discovery × Applicable for Technically Pre- qualified/ short list ed vendors only MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Cat alogue based Buying e- Cat alogue based Buying or e- Ordering is t he obvious prevalent mode for small procurement s by individuals. But for corporat e or government agencies, t his is yet not a real opt ion. But t his mode of procurement has many obvious advant ages, part icularly if such an ‘Online Procurement Hub’ ( Port al) is creat ed for use of government agencies. Such a Hub would hold ( and manage) elect ronic supplier- cat alogues ( wit h specs/ qualit y det ails) of goods & services, wit h minimum possible prices affordable by t hem, for buying agencies t o access and use for off- t he- shelf buying. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Cat alogue based Buying ( …Cont d) Secure t ransact ions ( such as: Purchase orders, I nvoices, e- Payment s et c. ) would be enabled by t he Hub and exchanged elect ronically bet ween buying agencies and suppliers. Though success of such a vent ure mainly depends upon a large enough size of part icipant s, but t he approach has many advant ages, like: - C I t is superior t o buyer & suppliers est ablishing direct link C Suppliers need t o maint ain/ updat e only one cat alogue on t he Hub and est ablish only one int erface t o sell t o many ( govt . ) buyers C I t could be highly useful for all t he rout ine small it em purchase of government agencies and even be used for bigger it ems/ volume purchases, where it em/ service specs are quit e st andard. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C End of session on e- Procurement Concept s MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Payment and it ’s I nt egrat ion MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Payment and it ’s I nt egrat ion × Commonly available modes for effect ing EMD/ Fee/ ot her payment s elect ronically, from wit hin a soft ware Applicat ion, are: - × Online payment t hrough Credit cards/ Debit cards or × Direct Account Debit ( using Gat eway for I nt ernet Banking) × Depending on t he act ual need and usage const raint s, t he appropriat e mode could be chosen and int egrat ed int o t he s/ w applicat ion. × Credit cards could convenient ly be int egrat ed for use if t he payment amount s involved are not subst ant ial. × For all ot her cases where payment amount s could be heavy, payment s t hrough Direct Debit s from concerned account s, using I nt ernet Banking is t he only alt ernat ive. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Payment and it ’s I nt egrat ion ( …cont d. ) For int egrat ing e- Payment feat ures int o t he Applicat ion, one needs t o t alk t o concerned banks, who manage t heir own Payment Gat eway I nt erfaces for t his purpose. I f credit card based payment s are t o be int egrat ed, t hen int egrat ing t he ‘Credit Card Payment Gat eway’ of any one of t he providing banks is sufficient . But for int egrat ing e- Payment s t hrough direct debit from concerned account s, it is essent ial t hat t he exercise for int egrat ing such Payment Gat eways is undert aken wit h every bank concerned. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Payment and it ’s I nt egrat ion ( …cont d. ) The exercise of a Payment Gat eway int egrat ion involves: - × Deciding on det ails like: · Paramet ers t o be exchanged bet ween t he Applicat ion and t he Bank Gat eway · Handshaking bet ween t he t wo · Modes of Access ( Transact ion/ Verify) · Periodic Reconciliat ion of payment s et c. × Modifying t he Applicat ion t o act ually int egrat e above. × Funct ional t est ing rounds wit h each int egrat ed gat eway. × Signing a Document of Underst anding bet ween part ies. × Opening Merchant Account ( s) in t he int egrat ed bank for t he purpose of collect ing payment s and giving any st anding fund t ransfer inst ruct ions, if so. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Payment I nt egrat ion Paramet ers E Sampl e set of Par amet er s passed ( Appl i cat i on t o Pay ment Gat ew ay ) Þ Mode ( payment / verificat ion) Þ Merchant I D Þ Transact ion Reference No. Þ Amount Þ Currency Þ Time St amp Þ Ret urn URL et c E Sampl e set of Par amet er s passed ( Pay ment Gat ew ay t o Appl i cat i on) Þ Bank Reference No. Þ Transact ion Reference No. Þ Amount Þ St at us ( Paid) Þ Time St amp MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Payment Process - St eps 1. The User i ni t i at es pay ment t hrough int erface in Applicat ion syst em for a part icular t ransact ion 2. The User sel ect s t he mode of payment ( i.e. direct debit ) and t he bank . 3. The Applicat ion Syst em generat es a uni que r ef er ence number ( PRN) for t his t ransact ion. 4. The Applicat ion Syst em i nvok es t he appr opr i at e pay ment gat ew ay based on t he select ion of t he User and passes a set of i dent i f i ed par amet er s t o t he payment gat eway. 5. The payment gat eway r ecei ves t he par amet er s and t he payment screen is displayed t o t he User. 6. The User l ogs i n t o hi s bank account and aut hent icat es t he payment . 7. The payment gat eway pr ocesses t he t r ansact i on and r et ur ns a set of paramet ers ( including a unique bank reference number/ BI D) t o t he Applicat ion Syst em. 8. The Applicat ion Syst em capt ur es and r ecor ds t hese det ai l s against t he t ransact ion and displays t he st at us t o t he User. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Payment Process ( Direct Debit ) MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C End of session on e- Payment and it ’s I nt egrat ion MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Pilot I mplement at ion of e- Procurement solut ion at NI C Hqr. https:/ / eprocure.gov.in MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e- Procurement Pilot at NI C Hqr E NI C implement ed a proj ect for e- Procurement on pilot basis, wit h an e- t endering solut ion provided by an out side vendor at zero cost . E The solut ion essent ially involved creat ing all t he requirement det ails/ specs, of a t ender t o be float ed elect ronically, in paramet erized form; so t hat subsequent evaluat ion & comparat ive chart preparat ion exercises could be aut omat ed t o a large ext ent . E I t was implement ed wit h good securit y feat ures, aft er having t hree rounds of securit y audit and addressing it ’s observat ions. E A t ot al of four NI C t enders were processes elect ronically t hrough t he solut ion from May ’06 t ill Feb. ’07. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Pilot I mplement at ion at NI C Hqr • Online creat ion of I ndent and Tender document s/ specs wit h General/ Specific Terms & Condit ions, Vendor Eligibilit y, Configurat ion of Tender/ NI T det ails & event s • Elect ronic publishing of NI T & Tender document • Bidder Regist rat ion, Login, Bid preparat ion, document upload, Bid encrypt ion/ enveloping & secure submission • Online payment of Tender Fee/ EMD • Bid Opening and Decrypt ion, visible t o all bidders • Simult aneous Bid Evaluat ion of an open t ender - Technical/ Financial. • Mat ching & Negot iat ion facilit ies Funct ionalit ies/ Feat ures MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Pilot I mplement at ion at NI C Hqr • Rat e Cont ract / Empanelment , Generat ion of Purchase Orders • I nt egrat ion of t hree payment gat eways (Bank of I ndia, PNB & I CI CI Bank) • I nt egrat ion of DSCs of t hree CAs (NI C, TCS and nCode Solut ions) • Enabling exchange of elect ronic payment (EMD/ T. Fee) info. wit h PAO’s soft ware, t o enable lat er refunds • Server side validat ion • Aut omat ic mail alert s t o vendors/ approvers/ bid openers • Provision for asking Revised Financial Bid, as per need • Provision for t ender copy facilit y - view & use old t ender document s/ corrigendum Funct ionalit ies/ Feat ures (…cont d) MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C I mplement at ion Plat form - H/ W and S/ W Servers H/ w: Rack Mount Dual CPU Servers (Intel Xeon MP 2.8Ghz Processors, with 512 KB L2 cache, 2 MB L3 cache per processor) Ot hers : SAN Back Agent S/ W For Linux(Net vault ), Online Line back up Agent for DB2 under Linux (Net vault ) Appl i cat i on Server : - I BM Web Sphere Applicat ion Server 6.0 ND, - I BM Web Sphere Applicat ion Server 6.0 wit h - Red Hat Advanced Server3.0 (updat e 5) Dat abase : I BM DB2 UDB V8.2 (Ent erprise Server Edit ion) Ot hers : Server Prot ect Trend micro for Applicat ion Servers. Front End : I E 5.0 and above browser. Devel opment Envi ronment : J2EE Development Environment . Client users needed only t o have a browser MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Implementation Platform-Deployment Architecture MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C I mplement at ion Plat form - Applicat ion Archit ect ure I d e n t i t y B a s e d A u t h e n t i c a t i o n W e b S e r v e r R o l e B a s e d U s e r A c c e s s Application Server DATABASE Server Firewall Suppliers / External Presentation Layer Business Logic Layer Document Versioning Reports Engine Internal P K I ( D i g S i g n ) e-payment Server MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Pilot at NI C Hqr - Experiences Þ At t empt s at BPR/ Aut omat i on of Pr ocesses: + At t empt s at Organizat ion wide Unified I t em-codificat ion st ruct ure + Collaborat ive way of evaluat ion t o minimize evaluat ion cycle t ime + Paramet erizat ion of t ender specificat ions t o enable aut omat ed evaluat ion Þ User Aut hent i cat i on: + PKI enablement - The applicat ion support ed t wo fact or aut hent icat ion - one based on credent ials maint ained by t he applicat ion and t he ot her based on t he credent ials provided t hrough use of PKI digit al cert ificat es I ssues Þ Bi d secur i t y & secr ecy - Si gni ng, Encr ypt i on: + The applicat ion support ed t he indust ry st andard for bid securit y t hrough PKI based signing & encrypt ion of bid forms/ document s, as well, as t he t ime st amping of bids at t he t ime of submission by vendors I ssues Þ Submi ssi on of Bi ds and payment of Bi d f ees: + Last minut e submission of bids by Vendors + Unsuccessful e-Payment s - I ssues, Opt ion for convent ional payment + e-Payment Reconciliat ion MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Unified I t em- codificat ion St ruct ure Example : 101 Servers 101005 Rackmount Servers 101005001 Rackmount Server RS-1U 101005001001 Intel-One Processor Server 1U Category Code Category Sub Category Code Sub Category Type Code Type Description Item Code Item Description (Tender) 100 COMPUTING DEVICES 200 Communication & Network Equipments 300 Softwares(300-399) 400 Infra-strcuture Equipments(400-499) 600 Office Items, Office Equipment & Equipment 800 Services(800-899) 900 Books Publications & Library Related 316 Image editing Softwares 316004 Remote Sensing Satallite Data Processing softwares 316004001 Image Processing Software 316004001001 Image Processing Software For Remote Sensing Satellite Data Processing For Ms Windows MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Log-in Process- Home Page https://eprocure.gov.in MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C End of session on Pilot I mplement at ion of e- Procurement solut ion at NI C Hqr MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Gover nment e- Pr ocur ement ( GeP) Sol ut i on by NI C MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C GeP Solut ion - Out line 4 Background & Evolut ion of GeP 4 Envisaged Scope of GeP 4 Funct ionalit y/ Feat ures 4 Securit y/ Aut hent icat ion 4 NI C GeP Syst em 4 Development & St at us 4 Different Modules 4 Securit y & Aut hent icat ion MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Background of GeP – Why & How? E As expect ed from an organizat ion like NI C, an import ant purpose of t he pilot e- Procurement proj ect at NI C Hqr was also - t o evolve/ cryst allize a workable approach for wide adopt ion and Rollout of e- Procurement / e- Tendering solut ion in government – at Cent ral/ St at e levels – t o meet t heir impending requirement s in t his regard. E But aft er pursuing wit h t he pilot implement at ion for a significant period, t he following became obvious: - Þ Procurement procedures/ norms as well as format s and act ivit y- flows differ widely across govt . offices and t hey also significant ly vary depending on nat ure of procurement – viz: Bulk goods, St d. it ems, Specificat ion based it ems, Works or Services et c. Þ As such, t here could not be a single Applicat ion which could fit all kinds of procurement requirement s and be rolled out . MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Background of GeP – Why & How?( Cont d. ) Þ I t is much more difficult t o at t empt rollout of an e- t endering solut ion wit h ‘st rict paramet ric pre- defined form based’ approach in creat ing online t ender specificat ions and also in evaluat ion of bids. The problem is more because of lack of st andard pract ices and format s/ document s in organizing backend procurement act ivit ies. Þ I t is difficult t o evolve a reasonable & accept able rollout model for government depart ment s, if t he solut ion’s ownership belongs t o a t hird part y. E As such, NI C decided t o at t empt evolving/ developing an e- procurement solut ion where t he ownership would be of NI C it self and t he solut ion could be of a more general nat ure, rat her t han specific for wider implement at ion. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Evolut ion of GeP Syst em C Basic framework of Gep was decided t o be a generic solut ion, usable for all kind of Tenders by all users. C I t was t o be largely non- paramet ric, based mainly on t he upload/ download and submission of Tender ( RFP/ RFQ document ) & Bids as t ext based document s, wit h a few t ables, which is normally used in most cases. C The t abular Response Form( s) were t o be dynamically definable ( like EXCEL) for vendor responses in one column. C I t was t arget ed t o be fully configurable for different t endering pract ices – 1/ 2/ 3 packet bid- syst ems, EOI et c. C Full range of Access cont rol & Securit y relat ed feat ures were t o be built around t he main basic funct ionalit y. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Envisaged Scope EProcurement of Goods, Works and Services – all kinds ETypes of Tenders - Open, Limit ed, Expression of I nt erest EHybrid Mode of Operat ion Þ Elect ronic and Paper Based Bid Submission ( I nit ial St ages of I mplement at ion) Þ Mode of Payment s ( Tender Fee, EMD) Þ e- Payment , as well as Þ Convent ional Payment Modes ( DD et c. ) MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Envisaged scope - Funct ionalit ies E User Regist rat ion and Dat abase of Regist ered Cont ract ors E Creat ion/ Publishing of NI T, Tender docs. , Addendum/ Corrigendum E Bidding: Search, download, Prepare bid, Pay, Prepare Bid- envelopes, Sign/ Encrypt , Submit securely E Secure Bid Opening and Decrypt ion E SOR based Financial Bid Evaluat ion for Works Tender E Publishing of Cont ract Det ails ( Rat e Cont ract / Work Order/ PO) E Communicat ion of Tender Award t o respect ive Tenderers E I nt erface wit h User’s exist ing Tender Port al/ websit e MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Envisaged Scope - Solut ion Feat ures E Capt uring of import ant t ransact ion dat a/ met a dat a at Various St ages of Procurement Cycle E Aut o Not ificat ion/ Mail Alert s, Validat ion of Dat a ( Client / Server end) E Time St amping and confident ialit y of Bid Document s E MI S on e- Payment / Reconciliat ion, Tendering, Bidding, Evaluat ion, Award of Cont ract , Tender Summary, User Act ivit y, Audit Trail et c. E Online User Help/ Manuals/ Document s, Help Desk E Reliabilit y – Failsafe Deployment , Archival of Elect ronic Records E Syst em Administ rat ion ( by NI C) and Appl. / DB Admn ( by User Dept ) MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C Envisaged Scope - Securit y/ PKI E Secur ed Logi n and Aut hent i cat i on E Rol e Based Access Cont r ol E Audi t Loggi ng, Hi st or y Tabl es, Fi r ew al l s E Di gi t al Si gni ng/ Ver i f i cat i on of Dat a & Document s Þ St ruct ured dat a as well as document s t o be uploaded in t he syst em would be signed using DSC ( Class I I and above) issued by any valid Cert ifying Aut horit y in I ndia Þ While accept ing digit ally signed cont ent , server side verificat ion required, so as t o ensure t hat t he document is not t ampered E Encr y pt i on ( / Decr y pt i on) of Sensi t i v e Dat a & Document s E Secur ed Communi cat i on bet w een Cl i ent & Ser v er ( 128 bi t SSL) E Secur i t y Audi t of GeP sof t w ar e MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C NI C GeP Syst em – Development & St at us E Aft er our Requirement Specificat ions, act ual development was at Tamilnadu St at e Unit of NI C. E The init ial soft ware version came out in Jan. 2008 E Plat form used: Open Source/ open st andard s/ w t ools, i. e. - Linux, Apache Tomcat , Post greSQLs Dat abase, JEE and Jasper Report s. E First pilot implement ed in Tamilnadu Government E Pilot implement at ions also going on in select depart ment s of Orissa, UP, Haryana Govt . E Online payment gat eways of SBI , I CI CI & AXI S banks also implement ed ( opt ional) . MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C NI C GeP syst em - Modules E Regist rat ion – Dept . Users and Suppliers E Tender Management – Creat e, Publish, Corrigendum/ Addendum E Bid Management – Download, Clarify, Prepare & Submit bids E Bid Opening – Part - I ( Technical/ Pre- Qual. ) and Part - I I ( Financial) E Bid evaluat ion – Technical & Financial E Award of cont ract MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C NI C GeP syst em - User Regist rat ion E Depart ment al user Þ Creat ed by Administ rat or Þ Roles like Tender Creat or, Publisher, Bid Opener & Evaluat or are defined as needed Þ Password sent by mail, Lat er User regist ers his DSC E Cont ract ors/ bidders Þ Regist ers online by filling up a form Þ DSC is at t ached if available else lat er Þ Password sent by mail. Þ Logs- in and Regist ers his DSC ( eToken of Sify/ nCode/ TCS) E Digit al Signat ure Cert ificat es Þ Class I I or Class I I I –Required for log- in and enables signing & encrypt ion Þ Valid for one or t wo years Þ Current ly int egrat ed - DSC’s from NI C- CA and e- Tokens from SI FY, nCode & TCS Þ Regist ered DSC’s can be cancelled/ blacklist ed MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C NI C GeP syst em - Tender Management E Tender Creat ion/ Preparat ion of document s: Þ Descript ion/ Tech. specs, Drawing ( in Design Web Format ) Þ I TB, Cont ract Terms & Condit ions ( Genl/ Spcl/ Adnl) Þ Qualificat ion Crit eria, Forms, Various Proforma/ Declarat n. Þ Financial Bid, BOQ Form ( I t em- rat e or % Rat e based) E Tender Configurat ion: Þ Open/ limit ed/ EOI , Class of Tender/ Cont ract or, Validit y et c Þ No. of Packet s, Tender fees/ EMD - online/ offline/ exempt Þ Dat es of Event s, Format ion of commit t ees E Tender Publishing E Pre- bid Clarificat ions/ meet ings – Queries/ replies uploaded E Creat ion/ Publishing of Tender Corrigendum MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C NI C GeP syst em - Bid Management E Tender document download E Bid preparat ion E Payment of Fees – Elect ronically or Tradit ional Modes E Bid submission Þ Bidder must be prior regist ered wit h t he sit e along wit h his DSC Þ He Logs- in securely and Searches/ Select s t he desired t ender Þ Select ed Tender get s moved t o ‘My Tender’ sect ion, He downloads Þ Get s clarificat ions, Prepares Bid document s/ Forms ( in PDF) Þ St art s Bid- submission by Accept ing T&Cs, t hen Paying fees Online/ Offline ( fills det ails/ uploads scans and sends physically) Þ Fills BOQ form/ rat es, Signs/ encrypt s & uploads bid document s Þ Submit s securely, Get s a t ime- st amped Bid- summary/ Receipt . Þ Bidder can wit hdraw an online bid and re- submit Þ Bidder can also submit manual bids MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C NI C GeP syst em - Bid Receipt & Opening E Receipt of bids: Remain encrypt ed t ill t he opening of bids. E Opening of 1 st Part / Tech. Bid: Þ Opened by designat ed officials, using t heir DSCs Þ Bidders need not be physically present Þ Each act ivit y is t ime st amped ( present ly server t ime) Þ Bidders select ed ( as per crit eria) for Tech. Evaluat ion Þ Summary of proceedings updat ed. Þ Met adat a on offline/ manual bids can also be updat ed if received. MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C NI C GeP syst em - Evaluat ion & Award • Technical Bid Evaluat ion: • Bid document s are print ed & evaluat ed manually • Tech. Evaluat ion Recommendat ions are updat ed • Select ed bidders are informed of Financial bid opening dat es • Opening of 2 nd Part / Finl. Bid: Similar t o Tech. • Financial Bid Evaluat ion: • Fin. Bids are print ed & evaluat ed manually • Fin. Evaluat ion Recommendat ions are updat ed • Bidders are informed of t he result s • Award of Cont ract : Final award published on t he web- sit e MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C GeP syst em - Securit y & Aut hent icat ion • Secured Host ing facilit y • Web securit y – 128 bit s SSL encrypt ion • Two fact or Aut hent icat ion wit h DSCs • Confident ialit y – Encrypt ion of all Bids document s using a mix of Sym. / Asymmet ric ( opener ’s Public Key) Approach, Sensit ive fields also at DB level. • Audit t rail of each act ivit y • Time st amping of all event s. • Good backup policy • Securit y Audit ed by independent t hird part y MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C A l i ve GeP e- Tender i ng w ebsi t e of Tamilnadu Government w w w .t nt ender s.gov .i n [ al so w w w .t ender s.t n. gov .i n & demoet ender s.t n. ni c.i n] MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C End of session on Govt . e- Procurement solut ion ( GeP) by NI C MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C I ssues in e- Procurement - e- Payment I ssues: - Gat eway I nt egrat ion – Diverse Gat eway I nt erfacing Requirement s, oft en dict at ed by t he Banking s/ w in use. - Adopt ion in Government – I ssues in Wide scale and uniform adopt ion of e- Receipt s/ e- Payment s in government - Digit al Cert ificat es ( DSCs) I ssues: - Relat ing t o I nt egrat ion - Change of CPS/ DSC fields - Need for st andard int erface/ API from CAs for int egrat ion int o any Applicat ion - Usage - Handling Encrypt ion Keys MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C I ssues in e- Procurement ( ..Cont d) ( DSC I ssues …Cont d) - Adopt ion in Government - Repeat ed Fee, Transfers - I nt eroperabilit y – I nt er- usabilit y of DSCs of CAs mandat ed by CCA of I ndia and t hose of ot her count ries, in case of global t ender invit at ions/ part icipat ion. - Bid Secrecy/ Time- st amping – Need of a common t rust ed ‘Third Part y Reposit ory’ t ill bid opening - Elect ronic Archival/ Ret rieval – Need of a Secure Archiving Reposit ory for Govt . organizat ions MDP sessi on on ePr ocur ement , NI C e-Procurement Concepts ……. MDP session on eProcurement, NIC e-Procurement Concepts Procurement Process and it’s Constraints Introduction to e-Procurement Features & Benefits Approach to a solution/ Critical Determinants Implementation - Approach & Success Factors Reverse Auctions – What, How & When? e-Catalogue based Buying MDP session on eProcurement, NIC NIC .Procurement Process – A Bird’s Eye View MDP session on eProcurement. Procurement cycle Procurement cycle starts from Raising of the requirements for an item or a service and ends only after settlement of supplier payments. NIC . Request Source Order Receive Pay Analytics MDP session on eProcurement. NIC .Constraints of Traditional Procurement Large time and effort wasted in disseminating & seeking procurement informations Physical Access barriers Slow and laborious manual processes. activity-flow Human interface at every stage .Low Value Addition Several processes not transparent to suppliers Scope for compromises in bid-security & confidentiality Cartel formation suppresses competition and artificially hikes bids Possibility of data tampering and loss of records MDP session on eProcurement. NIC . MDP session on eProcurement. Ideally. the entire procurement process. The intention is to automate. possibly.The Solution e-Procurement means procurement of goods and services online using the internet. e-Procurement could resolve many of the constraints/ delays of traditional procurement.e-Procurement . in an online web-based real-time environment. it covers the full ‘life cycle of procurement’. along with tender bid submission and payments by suppliers. a basic e-Procurement application essentially consists of an ‘e-Tendering system’ and often also includes an ‘e-Auctioning system’. It could also encompass e-catalogue based buying as well. or a combination of these could also be used as per need: - e-Tendering e-Auctioning – Reverse Auctions e-Catalogue based buying/ e-Ordering In common parlance however. NIC . MDP session on eProcurement.Modes of e-Procurement Electronic procurement activities could be effected using one of the several ways or modes given below. Objectives of e-Procurement Objectives of automating processes are to: Reduce cycle times of procurement Increase supplier access to ensure wider participation Reduce costs of procurement through competitive bidding and Reverse Auctioning Remove cartelisation Auctioning) by supplier groups (Reverse procurement Increase visibility of procurement spend. NIC . for speedy and efficient functioning MDP session on eProcurement. for effective decision making Increase transparency in the procurement process Almost complete elimination of paperwork. NIC .Electronic Tendering Solution An e-Tendering solution primarily facilitates the ‘Tendering Process’ and may cover from Indenting of Requirements to the placing of contract/PO Indent To Tender Request Tender Preparation Tender Publishing Bidder Response Bid Evaluation Contract Award e-Tendering Solution MDP session on eProcurement. Empanelment etc. e-Payment of Fees Online Bid Opening/ Decryption.e-Tendering solution . NIC .Functionalities Tender Creation/ configuration. Evaluation/ Negotiation Award of Contract. Pre-Bid Conference Online Secure Bid Submission. with Response Forms Pre-NIT Approvals and Floating/ Publishing of Tender Tender Clarifications. MDP session on eProcurement. EMD & Payment to Suppliers MDP session on eProcurement. NIC .e-Tendering solution . Limited & Proprietary Configurable Approval Work flow. Alerts. Search etc Strong Audit-trail and Archival/ Retrieval Security/ Authenticity/ Secrecy of Transactions Online Payments – Tender Fee.Features Different Types of Tenders – Open. Re-use of old tenders Supplier Enablement – Online Registration. Custom dashboard. Repetitive document storage. NIC . Greater degree of transparency Cycle time reduction in participation and award of Contract Supplier Enablement and Ease of Participation MDP session on eProcurement.Benefits of e-Procurement/ e-Tendering Benefits to Buyers Reduction in Procurement & Contracts cycle time Cost Reduction Efficient & streamlined Procurement Processes New Supplier Discovery Close Monitoring of Activities/ Vendor Performance Rich MIS and Analytics New Improved Image Standardized formats and Uniform tendering practices Benefits to Suppliers Increased visibility/ Less artificial barriers Increased business opportunities. NIC .Approach To A Solution Before looking for an e-Procurement solution. a relook on existing procurement procedures/ practices is essential: ‘As Is’ Analysis. Re-engineering for optimized processes Optimization/ reduction in process-flow steps Uniformity/ standardization in formats/ practices/ procedures Organization wide use of ‘unified item-codification structure’ Automation of Processes MDP session on eProcurement. Critical Determinants . Good Analytics Good Audit trail/ traceability features – Access for Financial Audit. Tender Templates. e-Payment integration etc. Legal and RTI needs Good Archival & Retrieval features/ policy .Signing. Secrecy (of bids) .Safe and secure MDP session on eProcurement.of a Good Solution Good authentication – Role based access Security. NIC . Encryption Ease of Use. Integrated Document Management features. 24 Hr. Codification.Implementation . Appln. S/w: Gap Analysis and Customization Setting up a Fail-safe & Secure 24x7 Infrastructure Integrating Payment Gateways. Mail etc. PKIs. Sourcing e-Proc. Help-desk Execution Framework – Management of Rollout & Risks MDP session on eProcurement.Approach Business Process Analysis for Improvement: Re Defining scope of Implementation: functionalities covered engineering. Back-end application linkages etc. Change Management: Training. NIC . standards. policies & practices to link and leverage upon It must be remembered that implementing e-Procurement is most often a continuous evolving process with shifting goals. rather than a one shot solution for all procurement problems. MDP session on eProcurement. targeting end to end procurement supply chain. Supplier-enablement/ Training & Ease of use Well integrated back end systems.Implementation . spread over a longer period. NIC .Success Factors Major factors which could be crucial to transformation from simple traditional procurement to e-Procurement are: Strong will and focused thrust from the top management Building in-house champions/ enthusiasts for adoption of e-Procurement Buyer’s dedicated project team to drive the Mission Aiming for realistic implementable goals/ objectives and time lines Well defined/ standardized procurement processes and forms Extreme care to aspects like Tender-security. NIC .Reverse Auction and e-Catalogue based Buying MDP session on eProcurement. Sealed Bid Auction etc. • There are 3-4 flavours of reverse auction. until no buyer is willing to go up further. called as: English Auction. Dutch Auction. MULTIPLE SELLERS OF A Therefore the price is driven down. Thus price is driven up.What is A Reverse Auction? • The traditional auction is a Forward Auction It normally involves a seller offering an item for sale. NIC PRODUCT VIE FOR THE BUSINESS OF A SINGLE BUYER. while potential buyers compete with each other for purchase. MDP session on eProcurement. • In a Reverse Auction. . Usually services of an online Auction Service Provider is utilized to conducts the process on his auctioning website. Suppliers are required to be pre-registered with the auction service provider and expected to have received training on how to participate .How does a Reverse Auction work? Pre-screening/ Pre-qualification of suppliers is essential to have technically competent vendors. MDP session on eProcurement. ready to offer products of desired specs/ quality. NIC . Complete requirement specifications are preknown/ agreed and frozen for all before auction. The Reverse auction is configured and all participating vendors are pre-notified about the start time & closing time of auction. Bidders identities are masked. but they can see the competing prices and rankings in real time and could revise their bids as desired. Bidders submit their price bids by remotely logging-in from their offices. MDP session on eProcurement.How does a Reverse Auction work? All bidding vendors must have agreed to abide by the terms & conditions of the auction/ service. NIC . In reverse auction competition is high. Identities of bidders are available to him. bidders get tempted to bid lower and lower to clinch the deal. NIC . until they are unwilling to go any further. At the conclusion the lowest bidder emerges as winner of the auction. Buyer also watches the progress of bidding from his office.How does a Reverse Auction work? There is no communication or negotiation with the bidders during the auction. MDP session on eProcurement. To Vendors: Ensures Savings in marketing cost / distributor margins Facilitates flexibility in pricing decision. With real time competition. MDP session on eProcurement. Transparency increases Allows vendors to assess their pricing power from close quarters of competition.Potential Benefits from Reverse Auction To Buyers: Significant reduction in cost due to Dynamic Bidding process. suppliers are on their toes A tool for efficient price discovery. NIC . Inefficiencies in the supply chain reduce. complementing direct negotiation process. Often used along with Tendering. Tender Cycle with Reverse Auction (Dynamic Pricing) Online Registration Create and Publish Tender/ NIT Purchase/ Download Tender Preparation/ Encryption of Bids PQ/ Tech. Evaluation & Short listing Bid-Opening and Verification Online Submission of Bid/ Hashes Creating Bid Seals (Hashes & Super Hash) Competitive Bidding using Dynamic Pricing Engine Commercial Opening and Short listing Generation of Comparative Statement Award of Contract (lowest of the two rounds) MDP session on eProcurement. NIC . Opening. Direct Materials / MRO items. Capital goods. Established qualified base of vendors (at least three) Suitable for High value.Applicability of Online Reverse Auctions Reverse auction works best when: Items have well defined specifications and universally accepted standards. Periodic rate contracts for above item types. NIC . Often used along with Tendering for efficient price discovery Applicable for Technically Pre-qualified/ short listed vendors only MDP session on eProcurement. large volume goods. NIC .e-Catalogue based Buying e-Catalogue based Buying or e-Ordering is the obvious prevalent mode for small procurements by individuals. particularly if such an ‘Online Procurement Hub’ (Portal) is created for use of government agencies. But for corporate or government agencies. MDP session on eProcurement. Such a Hub would hold (and manage) electronic supplier-catalogues (with specs/ quality details) of goods & services. But this mode of procurement has many obvious advantages. with minimum possible prices affordable by them. for buying agencies to access and use for off-the-shelf buying. this is yet not a real option. ) buyers It could be highly useful for all the routine small item purchase of government agencies and even be used for bigger items/ volume purchases. Though success of such a venture mainly depends upon a large enough size of participants.e-Catalogue based Buying (…Contd) Secure transactions (such as: Purchase orders. MDP session on eProcurement.) would be enabled by the Hub and exchanged electronically between buying agencies and suppliers. Invoices. NIC . like: It is superior to buyer & suppliers establishing direct link Suppliers need to maintain/ update only one catalogue on the Hub and establish only one interface to sell to many (govt. but the approach has many advantages. ePayments etc. where item/ service specs are quite standard. NIC .End of session on e-Procurement Concepts MDP session on eProcurement. e-Payment and it’s Integration MDP session on eProcurement. NIC . Credit cards could conveniently be integrated for use if the payment amounts involved are not substantial. payments through Direct Debits from concerned accounts. from within a software Application. MDP session on eProcurement. For all other cases where payment amounts could be heavy. the appropriate mode could be chosen and integrated into the s/w application. using Internet Banking is the only alternative. NIC .e-Payment and it’s Integration Commonly available modes for effecting EMD/ Fee/ other payments electronically. are: Online payment through Credit cards/ Debit cards or Direct Account Debit (using Gateway for Internet Banking) Depending on the actual need and usage constraints. who manage their own Payment Gateway Interfaces for this purpose. integrated. one needs to talk to concerned banks. then integrating the ‘Credit Card Payment Gateway’ of any one of the providing banks is sufficient. it is essential that the exercise for integrating such Payment Gateways is undertaken with every bank concerned. If credit card based payments are to be But for integrating e-Payments through direct debit from concerned accounts.e-Payment and it’s Integration (…contd.) For integrating e-Payment features into the Application. NIC . MDP session on eProcurement. MDP session on eProcurement. if so. Functional testing rounds with each integrated gateway.) The exercise of a Payment Gateway integration involves: Deciding on details like: Parameters to be exchanged between the Application and the Bank Gateway Handshaking between the two Modes of Access (Transaction/ Verify) Periodic Reconciliation of payments etc. NIC . Signing a Document of Understanding between parties. Modifying the Application to actually integrate above.e-Payment and it’s Integration (…contd. Opening Merchant Account(s) in the integrated bank for the purpose of collecting payments and giving any standing fund transfer instructions. Amount Status (Paid) Time Stamp MDP session on eProcurement. NIC . Amount Currency Time Stamp Return URL etc Sample set of Parameters passed (Payment Gateway to Application) Bank Reference No. Transaction Reference No.e-Payment Integration Parameters Sample set of Parameters passed (Application to Payment Gateway) Mode (payment/verification) Merchant ID Transaction Reference No. The Application System invokes the appropriate payment gateway based on the selection of the User and passes a set of identified parameters to the payment gateway. direct debit) and the bank. 4. The User initiates payment through interface in Application system for a particular transaction The User selects the mode of payment (i. 6. 2. The payment gateway processes the transaction and returns a set of parameters (including a unique bank reference number/BID) to the Application System. The Application System captures and records these details against the transaction and displays the status to the User.e. NIC . 7. 8. The Application System generates a unique reference number (PRN) for this transaction.e-Payment Process . 3. MDP session on eProcurement. The payment gateway receives the parameters and the payment screen is displayed to the User.Steps 1. The User logs in to his bank account and authenticates the payment. 5. e-Payment Process (Direct Debit) MDP session on eProcurement. NIC . End of session on e-Payment and it’s Integration MDP session on eProcurement. NIC . gov. https://eprocure.Pilot Implementation of e-Procurement solution at NIC Hqr. NIC .in MDP session on eProcurement. The solution essentially involved creating all the requirement details/ specs. with an e-tendering solution provided by an outside vendor at zero cost. A total of four NIC tenders were processes electronically through the solution from May ’06 till Feb. after having three rounds of security audit and addressing it’s observations. in parameterized form. NIC . so that subsequent evaluation & comparative chart preparation exercises could be automated to a large extent. of a tender to be floated electronically. ’07.e-Procurement Pilot at NIC Hqr NIC implemented a project for e-Procurement on pilot basis. MDP session on eProcurement. It was implemented with good security features. Pilot Implementation at NIC Hqr Functionalities/ Features • Online creation of Indent and Tender documents/ specs with General/ Specific Terms & Conditions. NIC . Configuration of Tender/ NIT details & events • Electronic publishing of NIT & Tender document • Bidder Registration. Bid encryption/ enveloping & secure submission • Online payment of Tender Fee/ EMD • Bid Opening and Decryption. visible to all bidders • Simultaneous Bid Evaluation of an open tender Technical/Financial. Bid preparation. document upload. • Matching & Negotiation facilities MDP session on eProcurement. Login. Vendor Eligibility. TCS and nCode Solutions) Enabling exchange of electronic payment (EMD/ T. to enable later refunds Server side validation Automatic mail alerts to vendors/approvers/bid openers Provision for asking Revised Financial Bid. with PAO’s software. Fee) info. as per need Provision for tender copy facility . NIC .Pilot Implementation at NIC Hqr Functionalities/ Features (…contd) • Rate Contract / Empanelment. PNB & ICICI Bank) • • • • • • Integration of DSCs of three CAs (NIC.view & use old tender documents/corrigendum MDP session on eProcurement. Generation of Purchase Orders • Integration of three payment gateways (Bank of India. 0 ND. NIC . with 512 KB L2 cache.IBM Web Sphere Application Server 6. Online Line back up Agent for DB2 under Linux (Net vault) Application Server : - IBM Web Sphere Application Server 6. IE 5.Implementation Platform Servers H/w: Rack Mount Dual CPU Servers H/W and S/W (Intel Xeon MP 2. J2EE Development Environment. Development Environment : Client users needed only to have a browser MDP session on eProcurement. 2 MB L3 cache per processor) Others : SAN Back Agent S/W For Linux(Net vault).8Ghz Processors.0 and above browser.0 with . .2 (Enterprise Server Edition) Server Protect Trend micro for Application Servers.0 (update 5) Database : Others : Front End : IBM DB2 UDB V8.Red Hat Advanced Server3. Implementation Platform-Deployment Architecture MDP session on eProcurement. NIC . NIC Business Logic Layer .Application Architecture Identity Based Authentication Role Based User Access PKI (Dig Sign) Internal Web Server Document Versioning Firewall Reports Engine DATABASE Server Application Suppliers / External Server e-payment Server Presentation Layer MDP session on eProcurement.Implementation Platform . NIC . Option for conventional payment e-Payment Reconciliation MDP session on eProcurement.Pilot at NIC Hqr .The application supported two factor authentication . as the time stamping of bids at the time of submission by vendors Issues Submission of Bids and payment of Bid fees: Last minute submission of bids by Vendors Unsuccessful e-Payments .one based on credentials maintained by the application and the other based on the credentials provided through use of PKI digital certificates Issues User Authentication: Bid security & secrecy . as well. Encryption: The application supported the industry standard for bid security through PKI based signing & encryption of bid forms/ documents.Signing.Issues.Experiences Attempts at BPR/Automation of Processes: Attempts at Organization wide Unified Item-codification structure Collaborative way of evaluation to minimize evaluation cycle time Parameterization of tender specifications to enable automated evaluation PKI enablement . Unified Item-codification Structure Category Category Code 100 COMPUTING DEVICES 200 Communication & Network Equipments 300 Softwares(300-399) 400 Infra-strcuture Equipments(400-499) 600 Office Items. NIC . Office Equipment & Equipment 800 Services(800-899) 900 Books Publications & Library Related Sub Sub Type Category Category Code Code Type Item Description Code Item Description (Tender) Example : 101 Servers 101005 Rackmount Servers 101005001 Rackmount Server RS-1U 101005001001 Intel-One Processor Server 1U 316 Image editing Softwares 316004 Remote Sensing Satallite Data Processing softwares 316004001 Image Processing Software 316004001001 Image Processing Software For Remote Sensing Satellite Data Processing For Ms Windows MDP session on eProcurement. in MDP session on eProcurement.Log-in Process. NIC .gov.Home Page https://eprocure. End of session on Pilot Implementation of e-Procurement solution at NIC Hqr MDP session on eProcurement. NIC . NIC .Government e-Procurement (GeP) Solution by NIC MDP session on eProcurement. GeP Solution - Outline Background & Evolution of GeP Envisaged Scope of GeP Functionality/Features Security/ Authentication NIC GeP System Development & Status Different Modules Security & Authentication MDP session on eProcurement, NIC Background of GeP – Why & How? As expected from an organization like NIC, an important purpose of the pilot e-Procurement project at NIC Hqr was also - to evolve/ crystallize a workable approach for wide adoption and Rollout of e-Procurement/ e-Tendering solution in government – at Central/ State levels – to meet their impending requirements in this regard. But after pursuing with the pilot implementation for a significant period, the following became obvious: Procurement procedures/ norms as well as formats and activity-flows differ widely across govt. offices and they also significantly vary depending on nature of procurement – viz: Bulk goods, Std. items, Specification based items, Works or Services etc. As such, there could not be a single Application which could fit all kinds of procurement requirements and be rolled out. MDP session on eProcurement, NIC Background of GeP – Why & How?(Contd.) It is much more difficult to attempt rollout of an e-tendering solution with ‘strict parametric pre-defined form based’ approach in creating online tender specifications and also in evaluation of bids. The problem is more because of lack of standard practices and formats/ documents in organizing backend procurement activities. It is difficult to evolve a reasonable & acceptable rollout model for government departments, if the solution’s ownership belongs to a third party. As such, NIC decided to attempt evolving/ developing an eprocurement solution where the ownership would be of NIC itself and the solution could be of a more general nature, rather than specific for wider implementation. MDP session on eProcurement, NIC The tabular Response Form(s) were to be dynamically definable (like EXCEL) for vendor responses in one column. which is normally used in most cases. It was targeted to be fully configurable for different tendering practices – 1/2/3 packet bid-systems. Full range of Access control & Security related features were to be built around the main basic functionality. based mainly on the upload/ download and submission of Tender (RFP/ RFQ document) & Bids as text based documents. usable for all kind of Tenders by all users. with a few tables. EOI etc.Evolution of GeP System Basic framework of Gep was decided to be a generic solution. It was to be largely non-parametric. NIC . MDP session on eProcurement. Expression of Interest Hybrid Mode of Operation Electronic and Paper Based Bid Submission (Initial Stages of Implementation) Mode of Payments (Tender Fee. Limited.) MDP session on eProcurement. Works and Services – all kinds Types of Tenders .Envisaged Scope Procurement of Goods. EMD) e-Payment. as well as Conventional Payment Modes (DD etc.Open. NIC . Envisaged scope . Submit securely Secure Bid Opening and Decryption SOR based Financial Bid Evaluation for Works Tender Publishing of Contract Details (Rate Contract/ Work Order/ PO) Communication of Tender Award to respective Tenderers Interface with User’s existing Tender Portal/ website MDP session on eProcurement. Prepare bid.Functionalities User Registration and Database of Registered Contractors Creation/ Publishing of NIT. download. Addendum/ Corrigendum Bidding: Search. Pay. Sign/Encrypt. Prepare Bidenvelopes.. Tender docs. NIC . Online User Help/ Manuals/ Documents. User Activity. Archival of Electronic Records System Administration (by NIC) and Appl.Envisaged Scope .Solution Features Capturing of important transaction data/meta data at Various Stages of Procurement Cycle Auto Notification/ Mail Alerts. Bidding. Award of Contract. Audit Trail etc./ DB Admn (by User Dept) MDP session on eProcurement. Help Desk Reliability – Failsafe Deployment. Tender Summary. NIC . Evaluation. Validation of Data (Client/ Server end) Time Stamping and confidentiality of Bid Documents MIS on e-Payment/ Reconciliation. Tendering. Firewalls Digital Signing/ Verification of Data & Documents Structured data as well as documents to be uploaded in the system would be signed using DSC (Class II and above) issued by any valid Certifying Authority in India While accepting digitally signed content. server side verification required. History Tables. NIC .Security/ PKI Secured Login and Authentication Role Based Access Control Audit Logging.Envisaged Scope . so as to ensure that the document is not tampered Encryption (/Decryption) of Sensitive Data & Documents Secured Communication between Client & Server (128 bit SSL) Security Audit of GeP software MDP session on eProcurement. Haryana Govt. PostgreSQLs Database. The initial software version came out in Jan. First pilot implemented in Tamilnadu Government Pilot implementations also going on in select departments of Orissa.NIC GeP System – Development & Status After our Requirement Specifications. MDP session on eProcurement. Online payment gateways of SBI. NIC .Linux.e. JEE and Jasper Reports. ICICI & AXIS banks also implemented (optional). 2008 Platform used: Open Source/ open standard s/w tools. i. actual development was at Tamilnadu State Unit of NIC. Apache Tomcat. UP. . Modules Registration – Dept.NIC GeP system . Clarify. Corrigendum/ Addendum Submit bids Bid Management – Download. Publish.) and Part-II (Financial) Bid evaluation – Technical & Financial Award of contract MDP session on eProcurement. Users and Suppliers Tender Management – Create. NIC . Prepare & Bid Opening – Part-I (Technical/ Pre-Qual. Publisher.NIC GeP system . NIC . Logs-in and Registers his DSC (eToken of Sify/nCode/ TCS) Class II or Class III –Required for log-in and enables signing & encryption Valid for one or two years Currently integrated .User Registration Departmental user Created by Administrator Roles like Tender Creator. nCode & TCS Registered DSC’s can be cancelled/ blacklisted Contractors/bidders Digital Signature Certificates MDP session on eProcurement. Later User registers his DSC Registers online by filling up a form DSC is attached if available else later Password sent by mail. Bid Opener & Evaluator are defined as needed Password sent by mail.DSC’s from NIC-CA and e-Tokens from SIFY. Financial Bid. Class of Tender/ Contractor.online/ offline/ exempt Dates of Events. Formation of committees Tender Publishing Pre-bid Clarifications/ meetings – Queries/ replies uploaded Creation/ Publishing of Tender Corrigendum MDP session on eProcurement. NIC . BOQ Form (Item-rate or % Rate based) Tender Configuration: Open/limited/EOI. of Packets. Validity etc No. Forms. Contract Terms & Conditions (Genl/ Spcl/ Adnl) Qualification Criteria.NIC GeP system . Tender fees/EMD . Various Proforma/ Declaratn. Drawing (in Design Web Format) ITB. specs.Tender Management Tender Creation/ Preparation of documents: Description/ Tech. NIC .MDP session on eProcurement. NIC .MDP session on eProcurement. Gets a time-stamped Bid-summary/ Receipt. NIC . Signs/ encrypts & uploads bid documents Submits securely. He downloads Gets clarifications. Prepares Bid documents/ Forms (in PDF) Starts Bid-submission by Accepting T&Cs. then Paying fees Online/ Offline (fills details/ uploads scans and sends physically) Fills BOQ form/ rates.NIC GeP system . Bidder can withdraw an online bid and re-submit Bidder can also submit manual bids MDP session on eProcurement.Bid Management Tender document download Bid preparation Payment of Fees – Electronically or Traditional Modes Bid submission Bidder must be prior registered with the site along with his DSC He Logs-in securely and Searches/ Selects the desired tender Selected Tender gets moved to ‘My Tender’ section. Metadata on offline/manual bids can also be updated if received. NIC . Bid: Opened by designated officials.NIC GeP system . using their DSCs Bidders need not be physically present Each activity is time stamped (presently server time) Bidders selected (as per criteria) for Tech. Opening of 1st Part/ Tech. Evaluation Summary of proceedings updated. MDP session on eProcurement.Bid Receipt & Opening Receipt of bids:Remain encrypted till the opening of bids. NIC GeP system . • Financial Bid Evaluation: • Fin. Bids are printed & evaluated manually • Fin. Evaluation Recommendations are updated • Bidders are informed of the results • Award of Contract: Final award published on the web-site MDP session on eProcurement.Evaluation & Award • Technical Bid Evaluation: • Bid documents are printed & evaluated manually • Tech. Evaluation Recommendations are updated • Selected bidders are informed of Financial bid opening dates • Opening of 2nd Part/ Finl. NIC . Bid: Similar to Tech. Good backup policy Security Audited by independent third party using a mix of Sym. MDP session on eProcurement.GeP system ./ Asymmetric (opener ’s Public Key) Approach.Security & Authentication • • • • • • • • Secured Hosting facility Web security – 128 bits SSL encryption Two factor Authentication with DSCs Confidentiality – Encryption of all Bids documents Audit trail of each activity Time stamping of all events. NIC . Sensitive fields also at DB level. gov. NIC .gov.in [also www.tn.in & demoetenders.tn.in] MDP session on eProcurement.tenders.nic.A live GeP e-Tendering website of Tamilnadu Government www.tntenders. End of session on Govt. e-Procurement solution (GeP) by NIC MDP session on eProcurement. NIC . Handling Encryption Keys MDP session on eProcurement. NIC .Issues in e-Procurement e-Payment Issues: Gateway Integration – Diverse Gateway Interfacing Requirements. often dictated by the Banking s/w in use. Adoption in Government – Issues in Wide scale and uniform adoption of e-Receipts/ e-Payments in government Digital Certificates (DSCs) Issues: Relating to Integration Change of CPS/ DSC fields Need for standard interface/ API from CAs for integration into any Application Usage . Issues in e-Procurement (.Repeated Fee. Bid Secrecy/Time-stamping – Need of a common trusted ‘Third Party Repository’ till bid opening Electronic Archival/ Retrieval – Need of a Secure Archiving Repository for Govt. NIC . in case of global tender invitations/ participation.Contd) (DSC Issues …Contd) Adoption in Government . organizations MDP session on eProcurement. Transfers Interoperability – Inter-usability of DSCs of CAs mandated by CCA of India and those of other countries.. NIC .MDP session on eProcurement.