Call for Expression of Interests for Building a List of Experts

The object of this call is to set up a list of external experts for data modelling, legal data, reference data management or document formats (structuring and accessibility) in the field of standardisation for the Publications Office of the European Union (OP). The experts will provide support in the creation of new products, services and/or tools in the domains.

The call covers the following profiles:

(a) data modelling experts;

(b) legal data experts;

(c) reference data management experts;

(d) experts in document structuring and accessibility of digital publishing formats.

The expert assistance shall be provided by extramuros (i.e. outside the premises of the OP), and without OP IT equipment.

Participation in meetings at the premises of the OP (i.e. intramuros) may also be requested.

The related communication will mostly be done by e-mail, online collaborative solutions, telephone or videoconference.

The working language will be English.

Publications Office of the European Union (OP), 2, rue Mercier, L-2985 Luxembourg, LUXEMBOURG.

Applications must be submitted electronically to op-appels-offres@publications.europa.eu, with the following wording in the subject field: ‘call for expressions of interest '2021/01/OP/Experts in Standardisation' – application from (applicant's name)’ followed by the letter code(s) for the profile(s) of interest as indicated above (‘a’, ‘b’, ‘c’, ‘d’).

Within four (4) weeks, the OP will inform the applicant if his/her application has been accepted. Inclusion on the list of experts entails no obligation on the part of the OP concerning the conclusion of contracts.

The following information/documents shall be provided:

1) Cover letter containing full contact details and information for which profile(s) (one or more) the application is submitted (see point 11);

2) CV and supporting documents/evidences showing that the applicant fulfils the requirements related to the profile(s) she/he is applying for (see point 11);

3) Declaration on honour (see point 10).

Applications shall be submitted in accordance with the rules set out in this notice.

The OP will draw up a list of experts who meet the criteria set out at points 10 and 11.

When need arises, the OP will assign tasks to one or more expert(s) on the basis of the match between the expert's profile and the services to be provided/tasks to be executed, in accordance with the principles of non-discrimination, equal treatment and absence of conflict of interests.

1) Processing of application requires recording and processing of personal data (such as name, address and CV), pursuant to Regulation (EU) No. 2018/1725 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the EU Institutions, Agencies and Bodies and on the free movement of such data. Unless indicated otherwise, the application and the requested personal data required to evaluate it will be processed solely for that purpose by the OP.

2) Privacy statement for the protection of personal data related to procurement procedures at the OP:

https://publications.europa.eu/en/web/about-us/legal-notices/procurement procedures

3) The applicant's personal data may be registered in the Early Detection and Exclusion System (EDES) if the applicant is in one of the situations mentioned in Article 136 of the Financial Regulation(1).

For more Information, see the privacy statement:

http://ec.europa.eu/budget/explained/management/protecting/protect_en.cfm

(1) Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 July 2018 on the financial rules applicable to the general budget of the Union, amending Regulations (EU) No. 1296/2013, (EU) No. 1301/2013, (EU) No. 1303/2013, (EU) No. 1304/2013, (EU) No. 1309/2013, (EU) No. 1316/2013, (EU) No. 223/2014, (EU) No. 283/2014, and Decision No. 541/2014/EU and repealing Regulation (EU, Euratom) No. 966/2012 (OJ L 193 of 30.7.2018, p. 1).

The list of external experts resulting from this notice will be used exclusively for provision of expert assistance related to the various aspects (business areas) of standardisation (point 11), with a maximum threshold of EUR 139 000 of total payments (including both remunerations and reimbursements) per expert.

The list resulting from this notice is valid for a duration of 5 years from the date of the publication of this notice. Interested parties may submit an application at any time prior to the last 3 months of validity of the list.

Experts shall be excluded from participation if:

(a) they are bankrupt or being wound up, are having their affairs administered by the courts, have entered into an arrangement with creditors, have suspended business activities, are the subject of proceedings concerning those matters, or are in any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure provided for in national legislation or regulations;

(b) they or persons having powers of representation, decision-making or control over them have been convicted of an offence concerning their professional conduct by a judgment of a competent authority of a Member State which has the force of 'res judicata';

(c) they have been guilty of grave professional misconduct proven by any means which the contracting authority can justify including by decisions of the European Investment Bank and international organisations;

(d) they are not in compliance with their obligations relating to the payment of social security contributions or the payment of taxes in accordance with the legal provisions of the country in which they are established or with those of the country of the contracting authority or those of the country where the contract is to be performed;

(e) they or persons having powers of representation, decision-making or control over them have been the subject of a judgment which has the force of 'res judicata' for fraud, corruption, involvement in a criminal organisation, money laundering or any other illegal activity, where such an illegal activity is detrimental to the Union's financial interests;

(f) they are subject to an administrative penalty for being guilty of misrepresentation in supplying the Information required by the contracting authority as a condition of participation in a procurement procedure or failing to supply Information, or being declared to be in serious breach of their obligation under a contract covered by the budget;

(g) they have a conflict of interest in connection with the contract; a conflict of interest could arise in particular as a result of economic interests, political or national affinities, family or emotional ties or any other relevant connection or shared interest.

Before signing a contract experts shall provide a declaration on their honour stating that they are not in one of the situations of exclusion listed above. In case of doubt, they may be requested to provide supporting evidence of non-exclusion.

All experts must have:

— duly documented experience of minimum three (3) years in the described areas if the candidate holds a university degree in the field,

— duly documented experience of minimum six (6) years in the described areas, if the candidate does not have a university degree in the field,

— clear writing skills in English,

— very good knowledge of English (Level B2 — CEFR).

(a) Additional requirements for data modelling experts

Minimum requirements:

— proven experience in metadata modelling and processing,

— proven experience in modelling data expressed in standard formats like XML, RDF, SKOS, OWL,

— proven experience in projects transforming data in a given business domain into systematic representations and/or semantic representations,

— proven experience in analysing complex data representation,

— capacity to document the findings resulting from analysis,

— capacity to provide complete and to the point proposals for requested solutions,

— comprehension of complex environments with data extraction and transformation, transfer, storage and dissemination.

Experience in the following areas would be considered as an advantage:

— modelling of complex text file formats in XML,

— transformation of metadata from one representation to another,

— visualisation of metadata/data coming from a complex representation,

— setting up validation methods for the compliance of data/metadata,

— VocBench: use and configuration.

(b) Additional requirements for legal data experts

Minimum requirements:

— proven experience in dealing with legal data,

— proven experience in the field of XML, XML schema, Schematron, XSLT, document processing (format conversions),

— ability to translate business requirements into technical specifications,

— sound knowledge of information organisation practice,

— proven experience in document modelling.

Experience in the following area would be considered as an advantage:

— knowledge of Standards in the field of legal data, e.g. Akoma Ntoso.

(c) Additional requirements for reference data management experts

Minimum requirements:

— proven experience in metadata processing,

— solid understanding and knowledge of standard formats like XML, RDF, SKOS, OWL,

— proven experience of project documentation development and support,

— ability to identify, document business needs and facilitate resolution,

— capacity to provide complete and to the point proposals for requested Solutions,

— comprehension of complex environments with data extraction and transformation, transfer, storage and dissemination,

— controlled vocabulary management tools: use and configuration,

— controlled vocabulary alignment and mapping validation.

Experience in the following areas would be considered as an advantage:

— metadata modelling,

— transformation of metadata from one representation to another,

— visualisation of metadata/data coming from a complex representation,

— setting up validation methods for the compliance of data/metadata,

— building training material,

— delivering training sessions and workshops,

— VocBench: use and configuration,

— knowledge of Python libraries for machine learning/deep learning,

— knowledge of Perl,

— experience in natural language processing techniques,

— knowledge of SPARQL and SHACL.

(d) Additional requirements for experts in documents structuring and accessibility of digital publishing formats

Minimum requirements:

— proven experience in structuring and enriching documents,

— proven experience in exploiting, disseminating and testing documents,

— proven experience with templates (MS Word, HTML, etc.),

— proven experience with formats such as HTML, PDF and EPUB,

— solid understanding of Standards and techniques for content structuring (XML).

Experience in the following area would be considered as an advantage:

— knowledge of document standards such as BITS (Book Interchange Tag Suit) and DITA (Darwin Information Typing Architecture),

— knowledge of accessibility standards in the context of various digital Publishing formats (for instance, PDF UA),

— experience with accessible forms,

— knowledge of assistive technologies and their use in producing and testing accessible documents,

— knowledge of editorial aspects of accessibility (alt text, plain language),

— experience with 'Easy-to-read' documents.

The experts will be paid EUR 450 per day (EUR 225 for half a day). The main condition of payment for an expert fee is that the provided assistance must be specific to the project/activity concerned and reflected in related documentation, for example, minutes, e-mail or note.

If the activity takes place at the premises of the OP in Luxembourg, the expert is entitled to reimbursement of travel and accommodation expenses, as well as to the daily subsistence alIowa nee.

The travel must be organised on the basis of the most appropriate means of transport and trying to benefit from the most economical travel rates.

Accommodation expenses shall be reimbursed on the basis ofthe hotel invoice, up to EUR 148 per night.

Daily subsistence allowances, maximum EUR 98 shall be calculated according to the length of the trip (including the work time):

— six (6) hours or less: 20 % ofthe daily allowance,

— more than six (6) but not more than twelve (12) hours: half the daily allowance,

— more than twelve (12) hours but not more than twenty-four (24) hours: daily allowance,

— each successive twelve (12) hour period: half the daily allowance.

For the purposes of transparency, a list of the experts who signed contracts with the Institution must be published annually on the website of the relevant service. This list must indicate the specific task, the names of individuals, their localisation (region at NUTS 2 Ievel 2) and their remuneration if it exceeds EUR 15 000 per signed contract.