Section one: Contracting authority/entity
one.1) Name and addresses
Ministry of Defence
MOD ABBEY WOOD (SOUTH)
Bristol
BS34 8JH
Country
United Kingdom
Region code
UK - United Kingdom
Internet address(es)
Main address
one.4) Type of the contracting authority
Ministry or any other national or federal authority
one.5) Main activity
Defence
Section two: Object
two.1) Scope of the procurement
two.1.1) Title
TAIPAN E3 TESTING PHASE 2
two.1.2) Main CPV code
- 75220000 - Defence services
two.1.3) Type of contract
Services
two.1.4) Short description
E3 TESTING
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: £82,476
two.2) Description
two.2.2) Additional CPV code(s)
- 35722000 - Radar
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UK - United Kingdom
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
E3 TESTING
two.2.5) Award criteria
Price
two.2.11) Information about options
Options: No
two.2.13) Information about European Union Funds
The procurement is related to a project and/or programme financed by European Union funds: No
Section four. Procedure
four.1) Description
four.1.1) Type of procedure
Negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice
- No tenders or no suitable tenders/requests to participate in response to negotiated procedure with prior publication of a contract notice
- The products involved are manufactured purely for the purpose of research, experiment, study or development
- 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 Artillery Systems Team within Defence Equipment and Support, part of the UK Ministry of Defence, intends to place a single source contract Malvern Optical to conduct E3 testing of the TAIPAN capability as part of the capability certification process required to gain SRO authorisation to introduce it into service.
The Mobile Artillery Monitoring Battlefield (MAMBA) Mid Life Enhancement (MLE) is an equipment update project to address obsolescence issues with the current In-Service MAMBA fleet. The project will address obsolescence, in order to maintain MAMBA Weapon Locating System (WLS) capabilities until it's Out of Service Date (OSD) of Dec 2026. The MAMBA Radar locates and identifies enemy mortar, artillery, rocket firing positions and facilitates the delivery of timely and accurate counter fires. The project will be delivered by the Artillery Systems Delivery Team. The project is planning to provide Initial Operating Capability (IOC) by Quarter 2 FY 24/25 and will replace the current MAMBA Fleet which was procured as an Urgent Operational Requirement (UOR) for operations in Afghanistan in 2002.
The single-source justification for contracting Malvern Optical due to technical reasons is as follows:
a. Height of the system + 2.93 m for Bowman antennas, Malvern Optical is the only accredited chamber that is large enough to accommodate the system and afford the required 0.3 m separation between tip of the Radiation Absorbent Material (RAM) and the tip of the antenna.
b. Malvern Optical are the only accredited facility for Antenna Radiation Patterns.
c. Malvern Optical are the only accredited facility for SINAD and MEMIC measurements:
d. DRE04 measurements need to be taken at the same facility as this feeds SINAD and MEMIC frequency selection.
e. TacCIS ID&C testing of VSWR and RF bonding from other facilities has identified issues with measurement technique and measurement locations which effectively voids most (if not all) testing and any opportunity for read across to similar platforms. This is because other facilities are automotive-centric, whereas Malvern Optical are communications-centric (which is the whole purpose of the ID&C testing).
four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: No
Section five. Award of contract/concession
Contract No
711086450
Title
TAIPAN E3 TESTING PHASE 2
A contract/lot is awarded: Yes
five.2) Award of contract/concession
five.2.1) Date of conclusion of the contract
7 March 2024
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
MALVERN OPTICAL LIMITED
Hangar 3 Pershore Airfield, Long Lane, Worcestershire, England
Throckmorton
WR10 2JH
Country
United Kingdom
NUTS code
- UK - United Kingdom
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: £82,476
five.2.5) Information about subcontracting
The contract/lot/concession is likely to be subcontracted
Section six. Complementary information
six.4) Procedures for review
six.4.1) Review body
DEFENCE EQUIPMENT & SUPPORT
MOD ABBEY WOOD (SOUTH)
BRISTOL
BS34 8JH
Country
United Kingdom