Supply of two unmanned aerial systems for land borderline segment monitoring

Closing

• Date and time: 09 November 2026 at 11:00.
• Late bids are not accepted.

Offer validity

• The offer must remain valid for 120 days from the closing date.

Supply chain management enquiries

• Email: [email protected]
• This address is for enquiries only; quotations must not be sent to it.

Technical enquiries

• Email: [email protected]

Submission

• Method: eTender portal.

Invoices

• Email: [email protected]

Submission channel

• Method: electronic submission through the eTender portal.
• Closing: 09 November 2026 at 11:00.
• Bids received after the closing time will not be considered.
• Bids sent by telefax or telegraphic means will not be considered.

Document rules

• Use the official bid forms as issued; forms may not be retyped or redrafted.
• Photocopies of the original bid documentation are acceptable provided each carries an original signature.
• Any alteration made by the bidder must be initialled; uninitialled alterations may lead to disqualification.
• Correction fluid may not be used.
• Bidders should check that no pages are missing or duplicated and that the bid is complete in all respects.

Returnable documents

• SBD 1 (Invitation to Bid, Part A): bidder and contact details, signed as the offer cover page.
• Part B (Terms and Conditions for Bidding): signed acceptance of the bidding conditions.
• CSD declaration: confirms the bidder's Central Supplier Database information is correct and current; incorrect or outdated information may disqualify the bid.
• SBD 3.1 (Pricing Schedule – Firm Prices): itemised pricing for the eight supply items.
• SBD 4 (Bidder's Disclosure): discloses any interest held by directors, members or shareholders in the state or in the procuring institution; every question must be answered.
• SBD 6.1 (Preference Points Claim): claims the 20 specific-goals points, supported by a valid B-BBEE certificate or sworn affidavit.
• SBD 7.1 (Contract Form – Purchase of Goods/Works): signed by the successful bidder as the contract.
• Board resolution / proof of authority: authorises the named signatory to bind the enterprise; must be signed by all directors, members or partners.
• SARS Tax Compliance Status PIN, or a CSD number where no PIN is available.

Disqualification risks

• Late submission.
• Omitted or unsigned returnable forms.
• Incorrect or outdated CSD information.
• Uninitialled alterations or use of correction fluid.
• Bids from persons in the service of the state, or from companies or close corporations whose directors or members are in the service of the state.

Preference point system

• System applied: 80/20.
• Price: 80 points.
• Specific goals: 20 points.
• Total: 100 points.

Specific goals allocation (20 points)

• Black ownership: 10 points — 100% black-owned scores 10; 51% to under 100% scores 5; above 0% to under 51% scores 2; 0% scores 0.
• Women ownership: 4 points — 100% scores 4; 51% to under 100% scores 2; above 0% to under 51% scores 1; 0% scores 0.
• Youth ownership: 3 points — 100% scores 3; 51% to under 100% scores 2; above 0% to under 51% scores 1; 0% scores 0.
• Military veteran ownership: 3 points — 100% scores 3; 51% to under 100% scores 2; above 0% to under 51% scores 1; 0% scores 0.
• Ownership is measured across owners, directors and shareholders.

Stages

• Administrative compliance: the returnable forms and declarations listed in the submission requirements are checked first.
• Mandatory compliance: the bid must meet the requirements of the Terms of Reference.
• Preference points: awarded for price and for the specific goals above.
• A bidder who does not submit the proof required to claim specific-goals points is treated as not claiming them.
• The Authority may require a bidder to substantiate any preference claim before or after adjudication.
• The Authority may call for presentations from shortlisted bidders, negotiate with them before or after award, verify information and documentation, and award in whole or in part.

Scope

• Two complete unmanned aerial systems for observing vulnerable segments of the land borderline, operated by Information Professionals of the National Border Targeting Centre.
• Coverage: the six land borderline sectors — Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Eswatini and Lesotho frontages — plus the approach and departure corridors serving them and the perimeters of land ports of entry where a vulnerable segment abuts a port.
• Out of scope: the maritime border law enforcement area and the aviation domain.
• The systems must operate in heat and dust on the arid Namibia and Botswana frontages and at altitude on the mountainous Lesotho frontage.
• Both systems are held and tasked centrally, so either frontage can be reinforced or both concentrated on one segment.

Each system comprises

• Air vehicle with spares.
• Sensor payload.
• Mobile ground control station.
• Encrypted high-bandwidth command and video data link.
• Battery provision for three consecutive sorties without recharging.
• Transit cases and a twelve-month maintenance and consumable set.

Air vehicle and endurance

• Endurance of at least 60 minutes per sortie with the full payload fitted.
• Operating radius of at least 10 km from the ground control station.
• Launch and recovery by one operator from a vehicle, with no prepared strip.
• Acoustic signature low enough not to be routinely audible from the ground at observation altitude.

Sensors and geolocation

• Stabilised gimbal carrying electro-optical and thermal imaging, switchable in flight.
• Performance must allow classification, not merely detection, by day and by night at the stated radius — distinguishing a person from an animal and a light vehicle from a freight vehicle.
• Geolocation of an observed object to an accuracy the supplier states and demonstrates.
• Onboard recording at full sensor resolution regardless of the state of the data link.

Ground control station

• Transportable by two people and operable from inside a vehicle, running from vehicle supply or its own.
• Display readable in direct sunlight.
• Full function with no connectivity; the sortie record is queued and synchronised on return to signal.
• Mission planning from the vulnerable segment layer, so an operator selects a named segment rather than entering coordinates.

Data link

• Encrypted and authenticated command and control, and an encrypted high-bandwidth video downlink.
• Resistant to spoofing of the control link and the positioning signal.
• Behaviour on link loss set before flight — continue the planned sortie or return to the launch point — with the loss and the action recorded.
• Onward relay from the ground control station to the Centre where bearer capacity allows; continuous relay is not required.
• All spectrum used must be lawful in South Africa and must be stated.

Geospatial integration

• Every image, video segment and detection carries position, time, sensor, altitude and operator identity as structured data.
• Output exports into the Authority's geospatial capability as a layer and as events within its incident lifecycle, under its classification and access controls.
• An observation enters as an event, not a verified incident; promotion to a verified incident requires a user holding the verification role.
• The sortie record must state what was covered and what was not, so a segment flown and found quiet is distinguishable from one never flown.

Geofencing and flight record

• Hard geofence on the international boundary with a stated buffer, not overridable in flight.
• Boundary data is loaded by the Authority from its own authoritative layer and is not supplied, held or updated by the manufacturer.
• Every sortie produces a tamper-evident flight log of the track flown, retained by the Authority.

Regulatory compliance

• Operation falls under the Civil Aviation Act and Part 101 of the Civil Aviation Regulations.
• The supplier delivers an operations manual capable of approval, the maintenance schedule and records, and the aircraft documentation needed for registration and approval.
• Remote pilot training to licence standard for each named operator.
• Where a task requires flight beyond visual line of sight, at night, or near persons or structures, the supplier identifies the additional approval required and the system must be capable of meeting its conditions.
• Third-party liability cover must be in place at commissioning.

Security, data handling and privacy

• No imagery, telemetry or flight log may be routed through a manufacturer or third-party service as a condition of the system working; firmware and boundary updates must be installable offline.
• The supplier states what the system transmits and to where; the Authority verifies this by network capture at acceptance.
• Imagery and logs encrypted at rest on both the aircraft and the ground station; the aircraft store can be erased remotely.
• Imagery of identifiable persons is personal information under POPIA, held for a stated retention period, used only for the purpose tasked, and controlled by user tier.

Training and skills transfer

• Remote pilot operation to licence standard, payload operation and imagery interpretation, first-line maintenance and battery management, mission planning from the segment layer, and administration of the flight record and geofence.
• Delivered against documented procedures with a demonstrated competence check for each named operator.

Acceptance

• Acceptance is on a real sortie against a real segment, not a demonstration flight.
• A segment from the vulnerable segment layer is flown end to end and the sortie record states what was covered and what was not.
• A person and a light vehicle are classified by day and by night at the stated radius, with positions returned to the stated accuracy.
• Observations enter the geospatial capability as events under its access controls and require the verification role to be promoted.
• The ground control station works with connectivity disabled and synchronises the sortie record on return to signal without loss.
• The geofence refuses an operator attempt to cross the international boundary and the flight log evidences the attempt and the refusal.
• Network capture shows no imagery, telemetry or log traffic leaving for a manufacturer or third-party service.
• Each named operator holds a remote pilot licence and the operations manual, maintenance schedule and aircraft documentation are delivered in a form the regulator will accept.

Geographic coverage

• The six land borderline sectors: Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Eswatini and Lesotho frontages.
• Includes the approach and departure corridors serving those sectors and the perimeters of land ports of entry where a vulnerable segment abuts a port.
• The systems must work across all six sectors.

Operating conditions

• Heat and dust on the arid Namibia and Botswana frontages.
• Altitude on the mountainous Lesotho frontage, where reduced air density cuts available lift and endurance.

Out of scope

• The maritime border law enforcement area and the aviation domain; over-water operation and recovery would require endurance, airframe and recovery arrangements these systems are not being bought to provide.

Standards

• Goods supplied must conform to the standards stated in the bidding documents and specifications.

Inspection and testing

• All pre-bidding testing is for the bidder's account.
• Where inspection is a bid condition, the bidder's or contractor's premises must be open at all reasonable hours to a representative of the department or its appointed organisation.
• If inspections, tests or analyses show compliance, the purchaser bears the cost; if they show non-compliance, the supplier bears the cost whether or not the supplies or services are accepted.
• Non-compliant supplies and services may be rejected.
• Rejected supplies are held at the supplier's cost and risk and must be removed and replaced at the supplier's cost; if the supplier fails to substitute them, the purchaser may buy replacements at the supplier's expense.
• The purchaser may inspect the supplier's records and have them audited by its appointed auditors.
• The supplier may not disclose contract documents or information to anyone other than employees performing the contract, and must return all copies to the purchaser on completion if required.

Pricing basis

• SBD 3.1 Pricing Schedule – Firm Prices applies; only firm prices are accepted and non-firm prices, including prices subject to exchange-rate variation, will not be considered.
• A separate pricing schedule must be submitted for each delivery point where different delivery points affect pricing.
• Unit prices are quoted excluding VAT, with VAT at 15% and the grand total shown as the bid price in Rand including all applicable taxes.
• The total cost must cover all costs associated with the supply, and all delivery costs must be included in the bid price for delivery at the prescribed destination.
• Lead time must be stated in days or weeks.
• The offer must remain valid for 120 days from the closing date.

Items to price (quantity 2 each unless stated)

• Complete unmanned aerial system with sensor payload and spares.
• Mobile ground control station, vehicle-operable.
• Encrypted high-bandwidth command and video data link.
• Battery provision for three consecutive sorties per system.
• Transit cases and twelve-month maintenance and consumable set.
• Remote pilot and payload operator training to licence standard (1).
• Operations manual, maintenance schedule and aircraft documentation (1).
• Commissioning and acceptance testing per the Terms of Reference (1).

Bidder declarations on the schedule

• Brand and model, country of origin, whether the offer complies with the specification, any deviations, the period required for delivery and whether delivery is firm.
• Invoices are submitted to [email protected].

Pricing

• Only firm prices are accepted; non-firm prices, including prices subject to exchange-rate variation, will not be considered.
• Where different delivery points affect pricing, a separate pricing schedule must be submitted for each delivery point.
• Prices must include all delivery costs to the prescribed destination.
• VAT is shown at 15% and the grand total is the bid price in Rand with all applicable taxes included.
• The total cost must cover all costs associated with the supply.
• The offer must remain valid for 120 days from the closing date.

Pricing schedule items (quantity 2 each unless stated)

• Complete unmanned aerial system with sensor payload and spares.
• Mobile ground control station, vehicle-operable.
• Encrypted high-bandwidth command and video data link.
• Battery provision for three consecutive sorties per system.
• Transit cases and twelve-month maintenance and consumable set.
• Remote pilot and payload operator training to licence standard (1).
• Operations manual, maintenance schedule and aircraft documentation (1).
• Commissioning and acceptance testing per the Terms of Reference (1).

Payment

• Payment in South African Rand on a fixed price inclusive of VAT.
• Payment within 30 days of receipt of an approved invoice, against an agreed payment schedule.
• Payment is against key deliverables, provided professional-level quality standards are met; disputes over what is a reasonable standard go to an agreed arbitration provider.
• Disbursements may not exceed 10% of the total amount paid and are paid only against original receipts for expenses agreed in advance.

Security and warranty

• Performance security: the successful bidder must furnish it within 30 days of notification of award, in the amount stated in the Special Conditions of Contract, as a bank guarantee, irrevocable letter of credit, or cashier's or certified cheque.
• The performance security is released no later than 30 days after completion of the supplier's obligations, including warranty obligations.
• Warranty: goods must be new, unused and current models; the warranty runs for 12 months after delivery and acceptance, or 18 months after shipment, whichever ends first.
• Delays: a supplier in delay is liable to a penalty calculated on the delivered price of the delayed goods at the current prime interest rate for each day of delay.

Registration and tax

• Registration on the Central Supplier Database is required, with a signed declaration that the CSD information is correct and up to date; incorrect or outdated information may disqualify the bid.
• A SARS Tax Compliance Status PIN must be submitted, or a CSD number where no TCS PIN is available.
• Consortia, joint ventures and subcontractors must each submit a separate TCS certificate, PIN or CSD number.
• Bids will not be considered from persons in the service of the state, companies with directors in the service of the state, or close corporations with members in the service of the state.

B-bbee

• A valid B-BBEE status level verification certificate, or a sworn affidavit for EMEs and QSEs, must be submitted to claim the 20 specific-goals points.
• No proof means no preference points are claimed.

Authority and employment

• Proof of authority to sign, such as a company resolution signed by all directors, members or partners, must accompany the bid.
• Employees who are not South African citizens may not be used unless they are vetted and hold a work permit; non-compliance may lead to contract termination.

Returnable forms

• SBD 1, Part B terms and conditions, CSD declaration, SBD 3.1, SBD 4, SBD 6.1 and SBD 7.1, each completed and signed as applicable.

Warranty

• Goods must be new, unused and of the most recent or current models, incorporating recent design and material improvements, and free of defects from design, materials or workmanship.
• Warranty period: 12 months after delivery and acceptance at the final destination, or 18 months after shipment from the source country, whichever ends first, unless the Special Conditions of Contract state otherwise.
• The purchaser notifies claims in writing; the supplier must repair or replace defective goods or parts at its own cost within the period stated in the Special Conditions of Contract.
• If the supplier fails to remedy the defect, the purchaser may act at the supplier's risk and expense.

Payment

• Payment method and conditions are set in the Special Conditions of Contract.
• Invoices must be accompanied by a copy of the delivery note and any other obligations must be fulfilled.
• Payment is made no later than 30 days after submission of an invoice or claim, in Rand unless the Special Conditions of Contract state otherwise.

Prices and amendments

• Prices may not vary from those quoted, except for adjustments authorised in the Special Conditions of Contract or on extension of bid validity.
• No variation of contract terms except by written amendment signed by both parties.
• The supplier may not assign its obligations without the purchaser's prior written consent.
• Subcontracts must be notified to the purchaser in writing and do not relieve the supplier of liability.

Delays and penalties

• Delivery must follow the schedule in the contract; the supplier must notify the purchaser in writing of any delay, its likely duration and its cause.
• The purchaser may extend the time for performance, with or without penalties, by contract amendment.
• A delay renders the supplier liable to a penalty calculated on the delivered price of the delayed goods or unperformed services at the current prime interest rate for each day of delay.
• On delay beyond the delivery period the purchaser may buy substitute supplies of similar quality up to the same quantity, return late deliveries at the supplier's cost and risk, or cancel the contract and claim damages.

Termination

• The purchaser may terminate in whole or in part on written notice if the supplier fails to deliver within the specified period or any extension, fails to perform any other obligation, or has engaged in corrupt or fraudulent practices.
• On termination the purchaser may procure similar goods or services and the supplier is liable for any excess cost.
• The purchaser may impose a restriction penalty barring the supplier from public-sector business for up to 10 years; the supplier has 14 days to give reasons why the restriction should not be imposed.

Preference point system

• 80/20 system applies.
• Price: 80 points; specific goals: 20 points; total 100.

Specific goals (20 points)

• Black ownership: 10 points (100% = 10; 51% to under 100% = 5; above 0% to under 51% = 2; 0% = 0).
• Women ownership: 4 points (100% = 4; 51% to under 100% = 2; above 0% to under 51% = 1; 0% = 0).
• Youth ownership: 3 points (100% = 3; 51% to under 100% = 2; above 0% to under 51% = 1; 0% = 0).
• Military veteran ownership: 3 points (100% = 3; 51% to under 100% = 2; above 0% to under 51% = 1; 0% = 0).

Other

• Bidders who do not submit the required proof are treated as not claiming specific-goals points.
• The Authority may require substantiation of any preference claim before or after adjudication.