Section one: Contracting authority
one.1) Name and addresses
Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd
Waterloo General Offices
London
SE1 8SW
Telephone
+44 1908781000
Country
United Kingdom
Region code
UK - United Kingdom
Internet address(es)
Main address
one.2) Information about joint procurement
The contract is awarded by a central purchasing body
one.3) Communication
Additional information can be obtained from the above-mentioned address
one.4) Type of the contracting authority
Ministry or any other national or federal authority
one.5) Main activity
General public services
Section two: Object
two.1) Scope of the procurement
two.1.1) Title
Infrastructure Monitoring Location Positioning
two.1.2) Main CPV code
- 38112100 - Global navigation and positioning systems (GPS or equivalent)
two.1.3) Type of contract
Supplies
two.1.4) Short description
Historically inspection and analysis of ultrasonic rail flaws has been a largely manual activity that required regular intrusive access to the infrastructure. The use of ultrasonic walking stick and hand probe equipment meant that this remained a labour-intensive exercise. Manual inspection also didn’t necessarily identify all the areas of concern on the network as quickly or frequently. As a result, a train borne measurement system was developed and Ultrasonic Testing Units (UTUs) were introduced.
A fundamental part of any train borne inspection process is a method of reliably, repeatably and accurately positioning measurements against a fixed reference. This ensures that maintenance teams are dispatched to the correct location to verify suspect locations identified by the UTUs. The positioning system currently deployed on the UTU fleet has been in existence since their introduction in the early 2000s.
What is now required is a further step change in terms of absolute positional accuracy and a positioning service that further improves service resilience and is capable of supporting future recording system modernisation.
two.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots: No
two.2) Description
two.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
- 42961300 - Vehicle location system
- 72222300 - Information technology services
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UK - United Kingdom
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
Network Rail are seeking to identify a solution that provides absolute positional accuracy and a positioning service for data that is collected from Ultrasonic Testing Units collected from a train borne measurement system.
The purpose of this PIN is to:
a) Engage with suppliers to generate and register interest.
b) Provide clarity on the requirement and indicative procurement timelines.
c) Identify the existing solutions available in the market and solutions that are likely to be ready within 6-12 months of this notice.
d) Obtain feedback in relation to the requirement as currently defined so Network Rail can consider any suggested changes or updates before issuing the potential future tender.
e) Ensure suppliers who are interested in any potential future tender activity relating to this requirement, are aware of the procurement platform and provide them with the steps to register on this platform (should they not have already done so).
Responding to this PIN is an excellent opportunity to engage, share relevant information and provide each other with feedback. Should you wish to respond to this PIN please follow the instructions below:
1. Follow the link: https://networkrail.bravosolution.co.uk/web/login.html
2. From the welcome screen, access the “View Current Opportunities” link and select “#35112 - UTU Locational System Tender - AIS”.
3. Click on the attachment “Ultrasonic Rail Testing Data positioning - RFI Submission Template”. Suppliers should be responding to questions in the excel document.
4. Once completed please send your RFI Submission Template via email to: mark.adams3@networkrail.co.uk with the email subject " Ultrasonic Rail Testing Data positioning RFI".
two.3) Estimated date of publication of contract notice
1 October 2024
Section four. Procedure
four.1) Description
four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: No