Roles and main competences
The Industrial Ombudsman for ESA and Alternate Industrial Ombudsman provide an independent interface between ESA and the industry or between industrial partners – the prime and their subcontractors.
In this role, the Industrial Ombudsman and Alternate can be involved in five areas:
- Procurement review procedure: to facilitate the resolution of disputes between industry and ESA on potential procedural breach of the Agency’s Procurement Regulations in the pre-contractual phase in accordance with Part VI of ESA Procurement Regulations (ESA/REG/001)
- Best practices: to facilitate the resolution of disputes among industry during procurements in the frame of ‘Best Practices’;
- Contractual matters between industry: Facilitate communications between bidders, potential bidders, and between contractors and bidders in the resolution of matters arising in the frame of an Agency procurement;
- Participate as a member in Dispute Adjudication Boards for amicable resolution of disputes between the Agency and the contractor and during this phase, facilitate where needed communications between contractors
- Framework Supply Agreements: upon authorisation by Council, participate in mediation and arbitration of disputes under Framework Supply Agreements between industrial parties and required by competition law in one or several of the ESA Member States.
- Pilot case: in the particular frame of the next procurement for EOEP-Earth Explorer 9 mission, intervene as arbitrator, upon request, in any dispute between economic operators, regarding the application of the minimal requirements that will be formulated by the Director General for application to the selection of the consortium offer requested for this procurement.
The Ombudsman and Alternate conduct all activities necessary in the framework of these investigations independently and without seeking or accepting instructions from anyone whatsoever.
