Technical specifications interpretation and tailoring

Guidance on needs identification The EU legal framework on public procurement The EU legal framework on digital products and services relevant to LDTs Technical specifications interpreting and tailoring


1. Introduction

The technical specifications (Annex 7 to each Tender Specifications document) documents developed for cities and communities serve as foundational templates designed to address standard requirements across various use cases. These documents are intentionally adaptable and customisable to meet each city's unique needs and priorities. The customisation process, particularly for sections related to functional and technical requirements, requires careful consideration of city-specific goals, operational constraints, and stakeholder inputs.

This guideline provides a structured step-by-step procedure to assist cities in tailoring these documents effectively. It outlines the necessary steps, highlights key stakeholders to involve, and offers practical recommendations to ensure the resulting specifications align with the city’s unique context.

2. Understanding technical specifications

Technical specifications are detailed requirements and technical descriptions that define the characteristics, performance, and methods of execution of the goods, services, or works subject to the contract. These specifications are essential to ensure that the supplier meets the standards required by the Contracting Authorities (CAs) and their needs. The provided technical specifications include information such as functionality, compatibility, performance requirements, development methods, quality tests, certifications, and service levels. For these reasons, they are fundamental references to explain the CA’s expectations and to verify that the tender proposals meet these requirements. In general, technical specifications are provided to:

  • Describe the required product or service, establishing what needs to be provided or executed.
  • Ensure quality and compliance, guaranteeing the product or service meets certain quality and safety standards.

3. Assessing technical specifications for each community

Understanding and assessing the proposed technical specifications in relation to the city's specific needs is crucial to ensure the success of a project. Follow the steps below to ensure the correct assessment of the CA’s needs:

Step 1: Define the city’s objectives and priorities

  1. Set up a project team: Form a multidisciplinary team comprising representatives from relevant departments (e.g., IT, urban planning, public services) and external experts if needed.
  2. Identify key objectives: Define what the city aims to achieve through the technical solution.
  3. Prioritise needs: Rank the identified objectives based on their importance and urgency.

Step 2: Review and analyse the template

  1. Understand the baseline document: Familiarise the team with the template’s structure, including the functional and technical requirements sections.
  2. Identify relevant sections: Highlight sections that are most relevant to the city’s objectives.
  3. Mark areas for customisation: Identify placeholders, numerical values, or other elements requiring city-specific details (generally references in orange).

Step 3: Conduct stakeholder consultations

  1. Identify stakeholders: Include representatives from:
    • City Administration: Decision-makers and budget controllers.
    • End-users: Departments or individuals who will use or benefit from the solution.
    • Technical experts: IT teams, system integrators, and external consultants.
    • Regulatory authorities: Ensure compliance with local, national, and international regulations.
  2. Gather input: Organise workshops, surveys, or interviews to collect feedback on city-specific requirements and challenges.
  3. Consolidate feedback: Summarise key insights to inform the customisation process.

For more information about needs identification, refer to Guideline on needs identification. This guideline should be a preliminary step before starting the technical specification tailoring process outlined in this document. Additionally, Guideline on criteria and considerations for using templates can help CAs manage risks more effectively and make informed decisions during the template customisation process.

4. Tailoring technical specifications

As explained in Guideline on how to use templates and guidelines, tailoring and customising technical specifications within the templates ensures a clear and correct use of the procurement material. Following the assessment phase mentioned above, CAs are recommended to pursue the steps below while tailoring technical specifications:

Step 1: Customise functional and technical requirements

  • Functional requirements:
    • Translate the city’s objectives into specific functional requirements, and you can probably find relative functional requirements that suit your use case. Otherwise, you might need to add/remove some requirements. Regarding AI/ML functional requirements, refer to Guideline on AI and /ML
  • Technical requirements:
    • Specify technical parameters such as system architecture, interoperability standards, and scalability needs. For AI/ML technical requirements, refer to Guideline on AI and /ML.
    • Define measurable outcomes (e.g., response time, data accuracy).
    • Adjust numerical placeholders (references in orange) to reflect city-specific data

Step 2: Validate customisations

The following steps outline recommendations for CAs to consider while tailoring technical specifications. The steps provided are neither prescriptive nor mandatory; their order and inclusion should be determined based on the specific use case and unique requirements of the project at hand. CAs are encouraged to adapt these practices to ensure they align with their initiatives' scope, objectives, and constraints.

  • Internal review: Conduct a review with the project team to ensure all modifications align with the city’s goals and constraints.
  • External validation: Engage external experts or consultants from procurement, legal, and technical departments to validate the customised requirements for feasibility, accuracy and completeness.
  • Stakeholder approval: Present the customised document to key stakeholders for final feedback and approval.

Step 3: Finalise and document customisations

  • Incorporate feedback: Revise the document based on stakeholder input.
  • Ensure consistency: Verify that all sections are coherent and aligned with the overall objectives.
  • Document changes: Maintain a record of all customisations and justifications for future reference.

4.1 Checklist of recommendations

When customising templates, it is important to follow specific recommendations to ensure consistency, accuracy, and alignment with project goals. This checklist is a set of supplemental considerations that apply throughout the step-by-step tailoring process outlined in Section 4. By integrating these recommendations into each step, CAs can enhance the quality and robustness of the technical specifications.

  1. Compliance check: When making changes, refer to relevant guidelines and standards to avoid conflicts with existing regulations or best practices (for more information about the legal framework, you can refer to Guideline on EU procurement legal framework.
  2. Collaborative approach: Foster open communication among all stakeholders to ensure diverse perspectives are considered;
  3. Data-driven decisions: Use data and evidence to inform customisation choices, such as historical usage trends or projected demands;
  4. Future-proofing: Anticipate potential changes in city needs or technological advancements and incorporate flexibility into the specifications;
  5. Compliance assurance: Ensure all customisations adhere to relevant legal, regulatory, and technical standards.

For more information about recommendations and risks using the template, refer to Guideline on criteria and considerations to use the templates.

4.2 Technical specifications and the link to the evaluation criteria

As the technical specifications outline the specific requirements, standards, and expectations that the product/service must meet, they serve as the foundation for assessing the quality and suitability of the proposals. Therefore, the evaluation criteria are directly derived from these specifications, ensuring that the offers are evaluated based on how well they meet the detailed requirements outlined in the technical documents.

For example, if the technical specifications call for certain performance standards or specific materials, the evaluation criteria should include how well each bid adheres to these standards. Additionally, the criteria should reflect the importance of meeting deadlines, ensuring compliance with safety regulations, or providing post-delivery support, as stated in the technical specifications.

The clearer and more precise the technical specifications, the more objective and transparent the evaluation process will be, helping to identify the most suitable supplier or contractor for the project. In this context, there should be a seamless connection between the technical specifications and the evaluation criteria to ensure that the selection process is fair, accurate, and aligned with the project's needs and goals.

Please note that the customisation of technical specifications can be an iterative process. Feedback obtained during internal reviews, external validation, or stakeholder consultations may require adjustments to the specifications. This process should be approached with flexibility, considering that refinement and revision are essential to achieving a set of specifications that align with project objectives and stakeholder expectations.

There are numerous references to the technical specifications in the Tender Specification document. Specifically, the evaluation and award section is strongly linked to the functional and technical requirements. Consequently, after the finalisation of the mentioned section, CAs must ensure that the two documents are compliant with each other. For more information about the evaluation and award process, refer to Guideline on conditionalities definition contractualisation and Quality Assurance.

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These services are provided as part of the Local Digital Twins toolbox procurement - Advancing initial stages for the transformation of Smart Communities - Lot 1 and Lot 2, as described in the Digital Europe programme, and funded by the European Union.

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