Section one: Contracting authority/entity
one.1) Name and addresses
NHS Blood and Transplant
500 North Bristol Park
Bristol
BS34 7QH
Contact
Louise Wilson
Telephone
+44 1179217239
Country
United Kingdom
Region code
UKK11 - Bristol, City of
Internet address(es)
Main address
Buyer's address
one.4) Type of the contracting authority
Body governed by public law
one.5) Main activity
Health
Section two: Object
two.1) Scope of the procurement
two.1.1) Title
Fixed Bed Bioreactor
two.1.2) Main CPV code
- 38434510 - Cytometers
two.1.3) Type of contract
Supplies
two.1.4) Short description
One-off requirement, for a single fixed-bed bioreactor, for the production of viral vectors for advanced cell and gene therapies using mammalian cell culture.
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: £171,411.82
two.2) Description
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UK - United Kingdom
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
One-off requirement, for a single fixed-bed bioreactor, for the production of viral vectors for advanced cell and gene therapies using mammalian cell culture.
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
Award of a contract without prior publication of a call for competition in the cases listed below
- The procurement falls outside the scope of application of the regulations
Explanation:
This one-off requirement, for a single fixed-bed bioreactor, for the production of viral vectors for advanced cell and gene therapies (using mammalian cell culture), had to be medium-scale, GMP-compatible, and had to be suitable for process development and GMP-compatible clinical manufacturing. The selected instrument had to provide a colonisable surface area for cell growth of 10-30m2 with working media volumes between one and up to four litres, and the possibility of integrated in-line harvest of the product.
Analysis of different suppliers’ instruments, made it clear that there is currently only one suitable instrument to fulfil the requirements of an intermediate-scale fixed-bed bioreactor, noting that the colonisable surface area or potential current competitor’s instruments were unfortunately either too small , or massively too large for the criteria outlined above.
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
13 March 2023
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
Univercells Technologies S A
Chemin de la Vieille Cour 56a and b 1400 Nivelles
Nivelles
Country
Belgium
NUTS code
- BE - Belgium
The contractor/concessionaire is an SME
Yes
five.2.4) Information on value of contract/lot/concession (excluding VAT)
Initial estimated total value of the contract/lot/concession: £171,411.82
Lowest offer: £171,411 / Highest offer: £171,412 taken into consideration
Section six. Complementary information
six.4) Procedures for review
six.4.1) Review body
The High Court
The Strand
London
WC2A 2LL
Country
United Kingdom
Internet address
https://www.judiciary.uk/courts-and-tribunals/high-court/
six.4.2) Body responsible for mediation procedures
The High Court
The Strand
London
WC2A 2LL
Country
United Kingdom
Internet address
https://www.judiciary.uk/courts-and-tribunals/high-court/
six.4.4) Service from which information about the review procedure may be obtained
The High Court
The Strand
London
WC2A 2LL
Country
United Kingdom