Africa Hall Project, Main Renovation Works (Pre-qualification REOI)

1. The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) is issuing this Request for Expression of Interest (REOI) to seek interest from qualified companies with required expertise and experience, from all countries, for pre-qualification as a potential Main Contractor for the provision of Main Renovation Works of the Africa Hall building located at the UNECA campus in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. 2. Vendors expressing interest should note that this REOI serves as a pre-qualification of the companies that will be invited to participate in the tender process that will follow. As explained below in the Mandatory Requirements, only Vendors that meet the minimum pre-qualification criteria set out in this REOI will be invited to participate in the ensuing competitive bidding exercise. BACKGROUND OF THE REQUIREMENT 3. Renovation object The Africa Hall building is of great cultural significance and is to be renovated as a modern conference facility and monument to modern African history, including a visitor centre/permanent exhibition whilst addressing the existing functional, structural, health and safety and universal/equitable access inadequacies to meet international best practice. The main building is approximately 5,500 sqm over 5 levels and was constructed in 1961. Designed by prominent Italian architect Arturo Mezzedimi, the building is modernist in style and constructed primarily in reinforced concrete. Inherent with concrete structures over 50 years of age, the fabric has become brittle and has begun to deteriorate. Invasive structural works are required to ensure the building is able to be utilized into the future. The project is for the complete conservation and modernisation of structure, services and finishes. More details on the building are provided through the following link provided below. Vendors should follow the instructions below to access the Project documents: A FileZilla client should be installed on the Vendors Computer first. The link to download the client is: https://filezilla-project.org/download.php. Once the client is installed, the following settings should be done on the sw: Go to File (on the left top) Site Manager create a new site called ‘ecaftp.uneca.org’ Host- ‘ecaftp.uneca.org’ Protocol- FTP Encryption- Require explicit FTP over TLS Logon type – Normal Username- rfpsolicitation9 Password- Hereweare2021 And finally ‘CONNECT’. Note: ‘’If client is behind and enterprise firewall the following ports need to be opened 50000-50020 TCP passive FTP in addition to standard ftp ports’’. Please accept the certificate from the system and start copying files from the server. 4. Project scope The focus of the project is on conservation and modernisation. The works are planned for an estimated period of maximum 30 months. All upgrades to the building have been carefully detailed in order to be sympathetic with the original design; a goal being at the conclusion of the project, that the building is safe and functionally operational. The planning principles consider the building’s original design intent in order not to adversely impact either the fabric or its cultural significance. All works will conform with Ethiopian Building Standards, Published UN Standards and nominated International Standards stated within project documentation, including but not limited to Eurocode, British Standards, International Organization for Standardization, Australian and New Zealand Building Standards, South African National Building Regulations and International Building Codes or equivalent. International best-practice construction technical ability, safety and standards will be enforced throughout the execution of the works by a dedicated UN project management team that is supported by professional consulting firms. Project complexities include: • Blast-resistant façade • Original fabric conservation • Significant structural upgrades • Fire isolation • Working within a live campus with ongoin