The Hong Kong Maritime Museum is placing out to tender an Expression of Interest for the development and design of their website. Please see the following:
Hong Kong Maritime Museum Contact Person:
Robert Trio
Project Officer for Technology
Murray House Ground Floor
Stanley, Hong Kong
roberttrio@hkmaritimemuseum.org
+852 9448 8893
Deadline for Submission:
Close of Business – Friday, August 5, 2011
Proposals may be submitted via email to Robert Trio or delivered to the address above.
Hong Kong Maritime Museum Background
The Hong Kong Maritime Museum (HKMM) is a privately run museum located within the community of Stanley on Hong Kong Island. Its mission is to inspire people to know more about Hong Kong’s rich maritime history and traditions. The museum sees the redevelopment of its web site as an essential part of its mission to reach people and serve as a repository for its dynamic stories and its invaluable resources.
In 2012 the museum will be relocating to Central Pier 8. This move represents a new chapter in the institution’s development as a world-class museum. The museum’s web site must serve as visual reference point to reinforce the museum’s standing in the community and the world.
Section A: Conditions of Work
• Submission of a proposal indicates acceptance by the person submitting the proposal of the terms, conditions and specifications contained in this EOI.
• HKMM reserves the right to accept or reject any and all proposals and to waive any technicalities or irregularities therein.
• During the evaluation process, HKMM reserves the right to request additional information or clarifications from those submitting proposals, and to allow corrections of errors or omissions.
• HKMM reserves the right to retain all proposals submitted and to use any ideas in any proposals submitted, regardless of whether or not that proposal is accepted.
• There is no expressed or implied obligation for HKMM to reimburse responding companies or individuals for any expenses incurred in preparing proposals in response to this EOI.
• The contents of each proposal submitted will remain confidential and not be made available to anyone except the HKMM employees involved in the evaluation, approval process and implementation of the redesigned web site. The contents of the proposal submitted by the vendor and any clarifications thereto shall become part of the contractual obligation and incorporated by reference into the ensuing agreement.
• All proposals become the property of HKMM and will not be returned to the vendor.
• Vendors will not use the name of HKMM, nor reference any endorsement from HKMM in any advertisement or otherwise for any purpose without the express prior written consent of HKMM.
• HKMM will retain the authority to restrict access to all or parts of the data. Vendors do not have any ownership over the data at any time. Privacy policies set by HKMM will be enforced.
Section B: Selection Process and Proposal Requirements
HKMM will use the following five-step process in order to determine a vendor:
1. Submission of Proposals (Sections a-e)
Submitted proposals must address the items listed below. Any proposal that does not address all of the items will be rejected. Vendors must identify a single point-of-contact within their firm and include that person’s phone number, fax number and e-mail address on the cover of the proposal.
a. Portfolio
Vendors should submit a sample portfolio that is representative of their highest quality work. Vendors should be sure to include work completed for clients in the arts or cultural industries if available. Portfolio samples submitted, as part of the proposal will not be returned.
b. Vendor Questionnaire
The answers to the specific questions listed in Vendor Questionnaire (Section E) must be included in your proposal.
c. References
References must be completed and returned as part of your proposal. Each vendor submitting a response must include a minimum of three (3) references. These references must be organizations for which the vendor has developed a web site. HKMM is particularly interested in references in the arts or cultural professional services industries. Each reference must include the name of the organization and the name, title and telephone number of a contact person within the organization.
d. Telephone/E-mail Support
Proposals must also include information about support services that will be provided by the vendor if selected. Proposals must specify the type, duration and response commitments of support to be provided.
e. Fees and Schedule
This project will be let on a fixed-price basis. Please include information on both the fee and work schedule you propose that will address the requirements listed in Section D: Preliminary Scope of Work. Please provide several cost proposals to accomplish the scope outlined below. The budget must encompass all design, production, and software acquisitions necessary for development and maintenance of the web site. The museum would like to launch the new web site by October 2011.
2. Selection of Finalists
Based on information contained in submitted and accepted proposals, HKMM will select two to three finalists.
3. Presentations by Finalists
Finalists may be asked to provide more in-depth information. It is not expected that the Vendor will make a formal presentation to HKMM senior staff. But HKMM reserves the right to make this request if necessary.
4. Notifications
Based on a combined evaluation of the proposal and subsequent inquiries, HKMM will select a vendor for this project.
5. Execution of Agreement
HKMM will work with the selected vendor to finalize the statement of work, fee and to execute all agreements.
Section C: Technology Background of HKMM
HKMM views the implementation of this web site as the centerpiece for the museum’s content delivery system to the public. It is also to serve as the portal bringing together a number of systems platforms that the museum already maintains. HKMM acknowledges that it may not be able to implement all aspects of its redesign at once; the important point to consider is that the redevelopment must be able to accommodate new modules and modifications in the future. The redevelopment should support best practice in web design and infrastructure and utilize open source platforms when available.
The museum expects that the new web site will be designed so HKMM staff of all levels will be able to access and modify information with ease. The redesign should be done with the idea that as a museum, visual references are the strongest means to convey information. The website should be designed to accommodate text, photos, video and audio. The content will be a part of a Web Content Management System, while other information will be accessed through embedded links or Application Program Interfaces (API).
Current HKMM Systems:
PastPerfect – This software is a standard in the museum for holding the intellectual knowledge of its collections. This database holds text and photo files. The software has a number of modules that allow for online exhibitions and collections. These features are not currently being utilized but the museum may wish to implement some of these features in the future.
POS – This software is used to operate the museum’s point of sale features in the museum’s gift shop. This system is not connected to an inventory or the museum’s accounting system. The museum may be willing to move to a web based system in combination with online web sales.
Flickr – The museum maintains a flickr account with a number of photos for public view. The site is currently being used as a way to share photos of the museum’s collections with an outside design firm. Flickr’s API provides an opportunity to combine current photos into the museum’s redesign project.
YouTube – The museum does not currently have a YouTube account but sees it as a viable solution as a video hosting site. The museum has concerns that embedded YouTube may not be available to constituents in Mainland China, a growing audience base for the museum.
Library Collection – The museum wishes to provide an online catalog to its non-lending library. The museum has identified Dublin Core as a standard for organizing this information. It is also interested in joining data systems in open source platforms such as OMEKA, which support both Dublin Core and PastPerfect.
Section D: Preliminary Scope of Work
The proposal is to be based on the following preliminary scope of work. It is the intention of HKMM to finalize the scope of work, fee and schedule with the winning vendor.
Project Objectives:
Project Objectives are divided into four categories: Mission, Infrastructure, Design and Accessibility. Vendors are requested to address these key points as they answer questions located in the questionnaire.
Mission
HKMM wants to redesign our web site in order to support the strategic communications and educational goals of our institution. These include:
• Provide up to date bi-lingual information for visitors (Calendar, Events, Hours, Directions)
• Provide Museum Resources (Text based information and also dynamic multi-media content such as film, audio and animation.)
• Provide a mechanism to send content directly to constituents in the form of an eNewsletter, RSS feed and email updates.
• Provide an eCommerce site where visitors may purchase goods from the bookstore, tickets and make donations.
Infrastructure
We feel that these project objectives can be met in the following ways:
• Structuring the web site within a WCMS
• Providing multiple templates to insert multi-media content
• Providing database capabilities to store information on members and friends of the museum
• Integration of the web site into already existing platforms that the museum controls
• Having the capacity to grow with the museum by providing more operations modules in the future
Web-based User Interface:
The HKMM site should make it easy and convenient for visitors to navigate, locate, evaluate and select information on the site. Vendors are encouraged to identify new and innovative approaches to organizing present and future content, services and information for the site. The user interface must be widely accessible.
Process Improvement:
An important role the Vendors will play is in helping HKMM understand how processes and services can be improved and streamlined. Therefore an analytics component of the web site that will allow the museum to glean meaningful information about the site’s web traffic will be required.
Integration with Back-end Systems:
Integration with back-end systems and existing databases and information systems is critical to the Web site. Proposals must indicate how the vendor would approach the task of implementing the new Web site on top of existing back-end databases and information systems. (See question 12 in Section E: Vendor Questionnaire)
Transition Plan:
Vendors who submit proposals must provide a transition plan. This plan must describe what tasks and activities, with identified timelines, must be performed in order to transfer the new Web site to HKMM. For these purposes, transition is defined as the process of moving files and software provided by the vendor to HKMM with minimal disruption of services to users. Transition would occur at the termination of the contract. HKMM web site must remain operational during any transition period.
Design
We recognize that a redesign of the visual of the web site is necessary. The entire web site will present a more contemporary, sophisticated and powerful image. We desire a site that has a Hong Kong look, one that is clean and uncluttered. We have identified the Peabody Essex Museum (www.pem.org) as one example of the type of look we are trying to achieve.
• Use visual techniques to reinforce museum’s established brand (logo, colour and typeface.)
• Update look and feel
• Improve User Interface Design
• Use colour, graphics and text that improve the user experience
Accessibility
Vendors must make the online system accessible via popular browsers such as Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, Safari and Firefox. The museum is also interested in mobile platforms. The web site must also be as accommodating as possible to disabled and visually impaired visitors.
Section E: Vendor Questionnaire
The following pages contain questions and statements that should be addressed in the proposal submitted by the vendor.
1. How long has your company been in the business of developing Web sites and pages?
2. How long has your company been in business?
3. What percent of your current business is devoted to Web site development?
4. How many employees does your company employ? How many of these employees develop Web sites and pages? Of those employees, how many are graphic designers, how many are programmers and how many are copyeditors or writers?
5. For the employees included in your answer to question 4, how many years of Web site design, programming or copyediting experience does each have?
6. Of these employees listed in question 5, how many are full-time, how many are part-time or freelance?
7. If HKMM selects your company to develop the Web site, what percent of the development work will be done by your internal staff and what percent through contractor programmers and designers?
8. List the types of software programs your employees and contractors use for Web site and graphical development?
9. What is your company’s experience creating Web sites with both Cantonese and English sites?
10. Explain the process your company will use to provide preliminary designs and to arrive at a final design?
11. There are many sites on the Internet and some are much better than others. What makes one site better than another? What are the characteristics of an outstanding Web site? What do you think are the three top design issues that HKMM should consider when redesigning its site?
12. Please describe the scale and scope of your previous experience integrating Web site designs with servers making use of SQL Server 2000 technologies. Do you, taking into account your prior experience, anticipate any difficulties in achieving a successful outcome for this project?
Section F: References
Please provide the contact details for at least 3 references.
Checklist
• Provide Point of Contact
• Submit Portfolio of Work
• Answer Questionnaire Based on Scope of Work and HKMM Background
• Submit a Timetable and Fee Structure of Work
• Provide Information about Companies Support Services
• Submit Three References
Robert Trio Museum Consulting 