Published date: 22 February 2021
This notice was replaced on 20 April 2021
This notice does not contain the most up-to-date information about this procurement. The most recent notice is:
Awarded contract (published 20 April 2021)
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
Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses) - 38000000
Location of contract
South East
Value of contract
£58,900
Procurement reference
2020UoS-0087
Published date
22 February 2021
Closing date
7 December 2020
Closing time
12pm
Contract start date
18 December 2020
Contract end date
18 December 2021
Contract type
Supply contract
Procedure type
Open procedure (below threshold)
Any interested supplier may submit a tender in response to an opportunity notice.
This procedure can be used for procurements below the relevant contract value threshold.
Contract is suitable for SMEs?
Yes
Contract is suitable for VCSEs?
Yes
Description
The University of Southampton is one of the UK's leading research institutions and is in the top 1 per cent of universities worldwide. There are currently in excess of 22,000 students on campus in the UK. Using conventional business metrics, the University is a large enterprise with an annual turnover of £500m and a staff establishment in excess of 5,000 FTE.
Through world-leading research and enterprise activities, the University of Southampton connects with businesses to create real-world solutions to global issues. Through its educational offering, it works with partners around the globe to offer a world-class education. This connectivity is key to Southampton's offering and market presence.
Further information can be found at http://www.southampton.ac.uk/
The Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) is one of the world's leading institutes for photonics research, based in the Zepler Institute for Photonics and Nanoelectronics, at the University of Southampton. This procurement is for the hollow core fibre group, which works within the ORC.
Our research focusses on the fabrication, characterisation and applications of hollow core fibres; these are a relatively recent development in specialty optical fibres and we have several large research programmes dedicated to this work. One of the advantages of hollow core fibres is that they can be designed to operate beyond the spectral transmission window of more conventional, all-silica fibres. This includes transmission into the mid-infrared. Over recent years, we have made many mid-infrared guiding hollow core fibres but we struggle to characterise them as we have much more limited characterisation equipment for this spectral range. However, the mid-infrared is a growing research area and new optical sources and detectors are becoming available which would help us with characterisation. Recently, we secured funding to purchase some of this equipment, including a mid-infrared supercontinuum source (the focus of this procurement). This would be used as a light source to characterise our hollow core fibres.
The project is for the supply of a Mid-Infrared Supercontinuum. As mentioned above, this is a light source and we would use the output light and couple it into our hollow core fibres and use it to measure the optical properties of our fibres, such as attenuation and bend loss. We do not have any commercial mid-infrared supercontinuum sources within the ORC but have experience of using similar sources at near-infrared wavelengths. The key advantages for us in purchasing a mid-infrared supercontinuum would be: broad spectral range, high power spectral density, good output power stability and turn-key operation. All proposals should include delivery of the system, training, operating manuals, commissioning, successful user acceptance testing and at least a 12-month warranty with an option to extend the warranty subject to agreement by the University.
More information
Additional text
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The University is utilising an electronic tendering tool, In-Tend (https://intendhost.co.uk/ universityofsouthampton) to manage this procurement and to communicate with tenderers (as appropriate).
All documentation in relation to this tender can be downloaded from In-Tend. Tenderers are advised that there will be no hard copy documents issued and all communications with the University, including the submission of Selection Stage and/or Invitation to Tender responses will be conducted via In-
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Tend. Regular monitoring of the portal is the responsibility of the tenderer.
If you are not already registered as a supplier with the University of Southampton, you will need to register in In-Tend in order to access the procurement documentation.
Once you have logged in as a supplier: click on 'Tenders'; locate the relevant project; and click 'View Details'. Once you are in the project screen, you will be able to register your organisation against the project and access all documentation by clicking 'Express Interest'.
Tenderers are advised that formal expressions of interest in the project must be by way of completion and return of the relevant documents via In-Tend.
Further instructions for the submission of responses are below:
To submit your return:
1. Log in
2. Click 'Tenders'
3. Locate the relevant project
4. View details
5. Click on the tab relating to the relevant project stage (e.g. 'Invitation to Tender')
6. Click on the 'Attach Documents' button and upload your return.
7. Check ALL your response documents are uploaded and displayed in the 'My Tender Return' panel. The system will only permit your organisation to make one return.
8. Click the red 'Submit Return' button.
Please note, to preserve the integrity of the procurement, all communications with the University must be made via the correspondence function within In-Tend.
Publication of Award Details: In accordance with Regulation 50, paragraph (2) of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 and subject to Article 5 and Annex 5, Part D (13) of Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (if applicable), the University intends to publish the value of any resulting contract at the award stage, and reserves the right to do so. By submitting a response, tenderers are consenting to publication of this information unless otherwise agreed in advance with the University.
Tenderers are solely responsible for their costs and expenses incurred in connection with the preparation and submission of responses and participation in this and all future stages of this procurement. Under no circumstances will the University be liable for any costs or expenses borne by potential suppliers/tenderers or any of their supply chain, partners or advisers in this procurement
About the buyer
Contact name
Jo Fotheringham
Address
Highfield
SOUTHAMPTON
SO171BJ
England
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