Published date: 25 October 2024

Awarded contract - This means that the contract has been awarded to a supplier.


Closing: 10 September 2024, 7pm

Contract summary

Industry

  • Development consultancy services - 73220000

Location of contract

Any region

Value of contract

£69,571.77

Procurement reference

tender_458617/1419057

Published date

25 October 2024

Closing date

10 September 2024

Closing time

7pm

Contract start date

25 October 2024

Contract end date

31 March 2025

Contract type

Service contract

Procedure type

Call-off from a framework agreement

A mini-competition or direct purchase from a pre-established framework agreement.

Contract is suitable for SMEs?

Yes

Contract is suitable for VCSEs?

No

Description

Technical advice to National Highways' Drones Governance Hub & GG 954 - Drones Operations Standard Owner
National Highways is seeking specialist technical consultants to undertake research to understand whether separation distances between drones and road users, operated by/on behalf of National Highways, can be safely reduced from the currently permitted 50 metres as defined in GG 954 - Drones Operations.
Specifically, National Highways is seeking to establish whether flights at distances as low as 15 metres can be undertaken without distracting drivers, enabling the potential for many more drone flights to meet growing business needs.
This approach is based on the recommended outcome from the work package 'Road User Distraction from Drones Trial Specification' (see Appendix 1) of previous task T0323 Drone Operating Standards and Requirements. This will be achieved through implementing, and supplementing where appropriate, Phase 1 of the Road User Distraction from Drones Trial Specification developed as part of Task T0323 Drone Operating Standards & Requirements.
Should Phase 1 be inconclusive, the Phase 2 specification shall be refined based on the Phase 1 conclusions.
It should be noted that the original 'Road User Distraction from Drones Tial Specification' developed as part of T0323 Drone Operating Standards & Requirements only sought to consider the distraction effects caused by drones being operated as close as 20m from the strategic road network. However, the scope of these trials has been expanded to distances as low as 15m, based on the CAA's Atypical Air Environment proposals, as set out in CAP 2968. The CAA's proposals seek to allow Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) drone operations 'within 15m of a permanent linear structure' - considered to be a volume of airspace where it can be reasonably anticipated there to be a reduced number of conventionally piloted aircraft due to proximity of ground infrastructure.
These Atypical Air Environments are intended to allow infrastructure asset owners, such as National Highways, to conduct a wider range of drone operations to support their operation.

More information

Attachments

Award information

Awarded date

25 October 2024

Contract start date

25 October 2024

Contract end date

31 March 2025

Total value of contract

£69,571.77

This contract was awarded to 1 supplier.

Ove Arup & Partners Ltd - SPaTS

Address

Newcastle

Reference

No reference - other

Supplier is SME?

No

Supplier is VCSE?

No

About the buyer

Address

The Cube, 199 Wharfside Street
Birmingham
B1 1RN
England

Email

SPaTS2@nationalhighways.co.uk