Tender Summary: Equipment Calibration – Flow Laboratory

Objectives

The primary objective is to procure comprehensive calibration services for a wide array of laboratory instrumentation used in flow measurement and related physical parameters. The contract ensures all equipment maintains measurement accuracy, operational reliability, and full compliance with international quality standards throughout the 2027 service period.

Scope

The scope covers calibration of equipment categorized into three groups:

• Mass and Volume: Cast iron and brass mass pieces (0.002 kg to 1000 kg), Salter load cells, platform scales (30 kg to 1500 kg), volume tanks (10 L and 150 L), and measuring cylinders (100 ml to 2000 ml).
• Time, Temperature and Humidity: Timer indicators, stopwatches, timer/counters, digital thermometers, RTD temperature probes, dry block calibrators, hygrometers, and weather stations.
• Flow, Pressure and Electrical: Differential pressure transmitters, digital and analog pressure gauges, Beamex hand pump pressure calibrator, dual display and clamp-on multimeters, and an earth leakage tester.

Calibration may be conducted onsite or offsite as indicated per item. Quotations must be valid for sixty days and include all applicable taxes.

Technical Requirements

• All calibration activities must comply with ISO/IEC 17025:2017 laboratory accreditation standards.
• Item-specific calibration protocols apply, including SANS 1697 & 1698 for mass pieces, four-point calibration for volume tanks, five-point calibration for timers, and defined tolerance limits (e.g., 0.05% for scales, 0.1% for tanks).
• Quotations must be submitted on official company letterheads, specify brand names where required, and be inclusive of all taxes.
• Mandatory administrative submissions include Central Supplier Database (CSD) registration, valid Tax Clearance Certificate, compliant BBBEE certificate or sworn affidavit, proof of municipal rates not older than ninety days, and fully executed MBD forms (MBD 3.1, MBD 4, MBD 6.1, MBD 8, MBD 9).
• Evaluation utilizes an 80/20 scoring model: eighty points for price competitiveness and twenty points for designated socio-economic goals.

Skills Requirements

Although not explicitly itemized, the tender inherently requires bidders to demonstrate advanced metrological competence and laboratory accreditation capabilities. Essential skills include:

• Proven expertise in calibrating precision mass, volumetric, thermal, temporal, pressure, and electrical instrumentation.
• Technical proficiency with specialized calibration tools (e.g., dry block calibrators, Fluke multimeters, Beamex systems, RTD probe testers).
• Ability to produce traceable calibration certificates meeting ISO/IEC 17025:2017 traceability and uncertainty requirements.
• Operational capacity to safely execute both onsite and offsite calibrations without compromising instrument integrity or measurement accuracy.

Key Terms and Concepts Explained

• ISO/IEC 17025:2017: The global standard defining competence, impartiality, and consistent operation requirements for testing and calibration laboratories.
• PPPFA 2000 & 80/20 Scoring: South African procurement legislation mandating preference points. The 80/20 system allocates eighty percent of evaluation weight to price and twenty percent to socio-economic objectives, such as black-owned SMME status.
• SANS 1697 & 1698: South African National Standards detailing classification, manufacturing, and calibration procedures for precision mass pieces.
• CSD Registration: A mandatory national supplier registry required for eligibility in all public sector procurement.
• MBD Forms: Standardized Municipal Bidding Documents used to verify legal compliance, financial standing, anti-collusion declarations, and preference point claims.