Preparatory Commission for the                                                PC-X/A/1

Organisation for the Prohibition                                                8 February 1995

of Chemical Weapons                                                                     Original:   ENGLISH

NOTE BY THE EXECUTIVE SECRETARY

Request for Information on Organisations Qualified to Prepare a Security Study of Standard and Trusted Environments for Processing Data

1.         As part of its responsibilities the Technical Secretariat of the OPCW will process data on chemical substances and industry activities within its Information Management System (IMS).  Some data is confidential in nature and will require handling in a secure environment.  The Provisional Technical Secretariat  is currently preparing the organisational and technical environment for the IMS.

2.         As part of this process, the Secretariat  requires  advice to be provided by  a security study on matters related to information security of standard and trusted environments.

3.         In order to facilitate this effort, the Secretariat needs to identify those organisations in Member States that might be interested in and qualified to prepare such a study.  Member States are therefore requested to provide to such organisations copies of this Note and to encourage them to respond directly to the address provided in paragraph 8 below.

4.         Organisations having expertise in all of the following areas are invited to respond:

           security threat analysis for data systems;

           commercial and governmental data management;

           security policy (technical, organisational and physical security); and

           information security with emphasis upon PC LANS and UNIX based systems.

5.         Statements from organisations on their qualifications should include at least five examples of relevant experience in the above listed areas, completed within the past five years. Each summary of experience should specify:

           performing organisation, address, project manager's name and phone number;

           contract or project number and period of performance;

           customer name or type of customer, address, point of contact name and phone number; and

           brief description of work performed and methodology used.

6.         The period of performance of this study is approximately 3 - 5 months, beginning as early as April 1995.  The deadline for responses is not later than 10 March 1995.  Responses should be provided on A4 paper, with 1 inch margins, in 12 point type, single spaced and should be limited to ten pages.

7.         A selection will be made on the basis of responses received. Selected organisations will be placed an a bidder's list. They will receive a formal solicitation, to be released by 24 March 1995.

8.         The information requested should be sent by post or fax to:

Procurement Officer

Administration Division

PTS/OPCW

Laan van Meerdervoort 51

2517 AE Den Haag,

The Netherlands

Tel:  (31) 70 376 1700

Fax: (31) 70 360 9044

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