Published date: 1 July 2024
This notice was replaced on 1 July 2024
This notice does not contain the most up-to-date information about this procurement. The most recent notice is:
Opportunity (published 1 July 2024, last edited 1 July 2024)
Closed opportunity - This means that the contract is currently closed. The buying department may be considering suppliers that have already applied, or no suitable offers were made.
Contract summary
Industry
Industrial robots - 42997300
Research and development services and related consultancy services - 73000000
Design and execution of research and development - 73300000
Project-design services other than for construction work - 79421200
Waste analysis services - 79723000
Specialty design services - 79930000
Location of contract
CA24 3HU
Value of contract
£5,000,000 to £9,500,000
Procurement reference
CF-0154700D4L000000iAvzUAE
Published date
1 July 2024
Closing date
30 July 2024
Closing time
12pm
Contract start date
1 April 2025
Contract end date
31 March 2029
Contract type
Service contract
Procedure type
Innovation partnership (above threshold)
There is a need to purchase a good or service that is unavailable on the market. A number of companies may participate throughout the process.
This procedure can be used for procurements above the relevant contract value threshold.
Contract is suitable for SMEs?
Yes
Contract is suitable for VCSEs?
No
Description
The NDA and its operating companies recognise that robotics and automation have a key role to play in reducing the time, cost and risk associated with our decommissioning mission. Auto-SAS aims to push the boundaries of robotic systems in the NDA group, acting as a steppingstone to the routine use of autonomous systems and continuous operations.
An area where robotic technologies provide a significant opportunity is nuclear waste handling. The characterisation, sentencing and disposal of radioactive waste is complicated, time consuming and expensive. It also poses both conventional and radiological risks to workers. Ideally waste would be handled once, segregated at source to the most appropriate waste route, properly utilising the waste hierarchy. Safety measures, alongside resource, time and space constraints, make in-situ sentencing challenging, meaning that accurate segregation is not always possible.
Auto-SAS will build upon the learning from the NDA funded Integrated Innovation for Nuclear Decommissioning - Sorting and Segregation (IIND-SAS) competition delivered through Innovate UK, which sought to demonstrate the feasibility of autonomous sort and segregation of mixed nuclear waste through the supply chain. Auto-SAS will go further by deploying an integrated system on a nuclear licenced site, for the sorting and segregation of specific radioactive waste material. The Nuclear Restoration Services (NRS) Strategic Innovation Team will be responsible for the overall delivery of the project, supported by an integrated team from across the NDA group.
Auto-SAS will be separated into two sequential phases. These phases are as follows:
1. Off-site Design, Testing and Build
2. On-Site Deployment and operation
The Autonomous Waste Sorting and Segregation (Auto-SAS) Innovation Partnership will be structured into 2 phases:
• Phase 1: Off-Site Development - Design, manufacture, commission and test an integrated sorting and segregation platform, in line with the requirements in section 7. Iterate and prototype as necessary, and thoroughly test the system to give confidence of suitable performance when brought to site. This will be verified by a successful and thorough Factory Acceptance Test and compliance with the NRS Safety and Design Justification Process (shared at ITT). Facilitate
stakeholder demonstrations of the developed platform.
• Phase 2: On-Site Deployment - Install and commission the SAS platform developed offsite, including Site Acceptance Testing (SATs). Operate it for a number of cycles within a defined time period to achieve the learning outcomes in the learning plan. Assist in the decisions around further development and future uses of the developed platform.
Estimated value
Phase Maximum Budget
Phase 1 - Off-Site Development £5,500,000
Phase 2 - On-Site Deployment £4,000,000
About the buyer
Contact name
Madeline Jones
Address
Herdus House Ingwell Drive
Moor Row, Cumbria
CA24 3HU
GB
Share this notice
All content is available under the
