Award

6-off Broadband Ocean-Bottom Seismographs

  • Durham University

F15: Voluntary ex ante transparency notice

Notice identifier: 2025/S 000-002439

Procurement identifier (OCID): ocds-h6vhtk-04d5da

Published 23 January 2025, 4:58pm



Section one: Contracting authority/entity

one.1) Name and addresses

Durham University

Mountjoy Centre, Stockton Road

DURHAM

DH13LE

Contact

Rachael Devlin

Email

rachael.devlin@durham.ac.uk

Telephone

+44 1913348682

Country

United Kingdom

Region code

UKC14 - Durham CC

Companies House

RC000650

Internet address(es)

Main address

www.durham.ac.uk

one.4) Type of the contracting authority

Body governed by public law

one.5) Main activity

Education


Section two: Object

two.1) Scope of the procurement

two.1.1) Title

6-off Broadband Ocean-Bottom Seismographs

Reference number

RFN00061

two.1.2) Main CPV code

  • 38000000 - Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses)

two.1.3) Type of contract

Supplies

two.1.4) Short description

The University has a requirement to purchase 6-off Broadband Ocean-Bottom Seismographs

The University has published this VEAT notice and intends to award a contract to Nanaometrics following the expiry of 10 days from the date of publication of this notice.

two.1.6) Information about lots

This contract is divided into lots: No

two.1.7) Total value of the procurement (excluding VAT)

Value excluding VAT: £511,360

two.2) Description

two.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)

  • 38290000 - Surveying, hydrographic, oceanographic and hydrological instruments and appliances

two.2.3) Place of performance

NUTS codes
  • UKC1 - Tees Valley and Durham

two.2.4) Description of the procurement

The University has a requirement to purchase 6-off Broadband Ocean-Bottom Seismographs

The University has published this VEAT notice and intends to award a contract to Nanaometrics following the expiry of 10 days from the date of publication of this notice.

two.2.11) Information about options

Options: No


Section four. Procedure

four.1) Description

four.1.1) Type of procedure

Negotiated without a prior call for competition

  • The works, supplies or services can be provided only by a particular economic operator for the following reason:
    • absence of competition for technical reasons

Explanation:

The Ocean-Bottom Instrumentation Facility (OBIF) has a successful track record of deploying a range of autonomous sensors on the seabed for over 20 years. OBIF is funded by the UK Research and Innovation's (UKRI) Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and operated jointly by the Universities of Durham and Southampton to support researchers across a broad range of environmental science disciplines. Instrumentation deployments are routinely carried out in water depths ranging from a few 10's of m to over 5000 m, for periods lasting from a few days to more than a year, to measure parameters such as ground vibration, pressure, and electric and magnetic field strengths to address a broad range of specific Earth and environmental science applications.

OBIF currently have a fleet of more than 60 autonomous seabed instruments, including a small sub-set of instruments fitted with seismometers that are used for broadband, lower frequency, long deployment duration global seismicity studies.

The sole purpose of this procurement is to expand (double) the sub-set of broadband, lower frequency, long deployment-capable instruments to meet increasing user demands and the specific scientific and data requirements of those users. The funding for this purchase was awarded on the basis that the instrumentation purchased is identical to that existing.

Consequently, there is a fundamental requirement that the instruments to be purchased are identical in design, capability, operation, sensors and output to the existing set within the Facility. The instruments to be purchased must also be entirely compatible with existing Facility' systems (hardware and software) and approaches to instrument communication (seabed to sea surface) and release (from seabed), and data formatting, harvesting and conversation, QC systems and approaches, and meta data recording. Furthermore, to ensure cost-effective operation within the current financial climate and funding programmes, the systems to be purchased must be compatible with the entire pool of OBIF's existing instruments in terms of consumable types and the interchangeability of recovery sub-systems and spares, to ensure that all operational aspects are consistent across the entire combined pool of instruments.

four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)

The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: Yes


Section five. Award of contract/concession

A contract/lot is awarded: Yes

five.2) Award of contract/concession

five.2.1) Date of conclusion of the contract

22 January 2025

five.2.2) Information about tenders

The contract has been awarded to a group of economic operators: No

five.2.3) Name and address of the contractor/concessionaire

Nanometrics Inc

3001 Solent Road, Kanata, Ontario, Canada

K2K 2MB

Country

Canada

NUTS code
  • CA - Canada
Justification for not providing organisation identifier

Not on any register

The contractor/concessionaire is an SME

No

five.2.4) Information on value of contract/lot/concession (excluding VAT)

Total value of the contract/lot/concession: £511,360


Section six. Complementary information

six.4) Procedures for review

six.4.1) Review body

Durham University

Durham

DH1 3LE

Country

United Kingdom