Scope
Reference
NW3046
Description
Northumbrian Water Limited (NWL) operate flowmeters ( Discharge Flow, Flow Pass Forward and Event Duration Monitoring) across 215 sites that require MCERTs Inspections to comply with regulatory requirements. Each site must be re-inspected every 5 years by a registered MCERTs Inspector. The programme is designed so that roughly one fifth of the sites will be inspected in each contract year.
NWL's sites are spread over a geographical area from the North East Coast, up to the Scottish Borders, across to Cumbria, and down to North Yorkshire.
Overview of requirements
- CSA Appointed and Approved MCERTS Site Inspector Service Provider.
- MCERTs inspections of flow metres to ensure NWL comply with regulatory requirements. ·
- Standard MCERTS site inspection on Sewage or Water Treatment Works with single or multiple flow meters and/or difficult to access flow installations (e.g.: large inlet flume). ·
- Flow and QMS Audits
- Following completion of Flow and QMS Audits the supplier shall apply to CSA Sira Certification for the MCERTS certificate on behalf of NWL.
Contract Period
The period of any contract(s) resulting from this procurement will be number 5 years from the contract start date.
Total value (estimated)
- £1,100,000 excluding VAT
- £1,320,000 including VAT
Above the relevant threshold
Contract dates (estimated)
- 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2031
- 5 years
Main procurement category
Services
CPV classifications
- 38421110 - Flowmeters
- 50433000 - Calibration services
Contract locations
- UKC1 - Tees Valley and Durham
- UKC2 - Northumberland and Tyne and Wear
Participation
Particular suitability
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SME)
Submission
Enquiry deadline
5 January 2026, 12:00pm
Submission type
Tenders
Tender submission deadline
9 January 2026, 12:00pm
Submission address and any special instructions
Applicants are asked to note that this procurement process will be conduced electronically
with all documents and communication being managed through the Northumbrian Water eSourcing Spend Management portal called 'Ariba' (https://s1.ariba.com).
Expressions of interest from this notice must be sent to the e-mail address
lewis.timmins@nwl.co.uk before the deadline date of the 5th January 2026 at
12:00hrs. Once expression of interest has been received that contains the details below,
applicants will be given access to the Ariba portal within 48 hours from request. This
portal will contain all the tender documents associated with this procurement that are
available at the time. An email link will also be provided to the email address you provide
to access the portal.
The deadline for return of the completed Tenders is the 9th January 2026 at 12noon.
When sending expression of interest, applicants must provide the following information: 1)
Full company name 2) Main contact details of the person who will be given access to the
Ariba portal - Name, job title, E mail address and telephone number.
Tenders may be submitted electronically
Yes
Languages that may be used for submission
English
Award decision date (estimated)
1 February 2026
Award criteria
| Name | Type | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Price | 70% |
| Quality Questions | Quality | 30% |
Other information
Conflicts assessment prepared/revised
Yes
Procedure
Procedure type
Competitive flexible procedure
Special regime
Utilities
Competitive flexible procedure description
Stage 1: Invitation to participate
Stage 1 commenced with the issuing of a Tender Notice.
Stage 2: Invitation to submit initial tenders
Stage 2 commenced with the notification, inviting those suppliers which have successfully been shortlisted at Stage 1 of this Procurement to submit initial tenders and the publication of this document.
This document includes a request for initial tenders which all suppliers are required to complete and must be submitted in accordance with the Procurement Timetable and instructions set out in this document and any additional information provided.
Following the deadline for submission of initial tenders, NWL will assess initial tenders in accordance with the assessment process and award criteria set out in the Tender Notice and described in this document. The assessment process will identify which suppliers are to be selected to participate in the negotiation/dialogue stage as set out in Stage 3.
Once the assessment of initial tenders has concluded, suppliers will be notified in writing whether they have successfully been invited to Stage 3. Any suppliers not invited to participate in Stage 3 will be provided with reasons in writing to explain why they have not been successful.
Stage 3: Invitation to participate in dialogue [and/or negotiate]
Stage 3 will commence with the notification inviting suppliers that have successfully passed Stage 2 to attend one or more dialogue and/or negotiation meetings.
The notification will also provide details of any new information made available to suppliers at this stage in this Procurement.
The notification will also describe how the dialogue and/or negotiations will be conducted, including the location and dates for the relevant meetings, as well as the attendee arrangements.
Stage 4: Invitation to submit a Best and Final Offer (BAFO)
Stage 4 will commence with the issuing of a letter inviting suppliers that have been successfully shortlisted at Stage 3 to submit their Best and Final Offers.
Best and Final offers must be submitted in accordance with the Procurement Timetable and instructions set out in this document and any additional information provided.
After the deadline for submission of best and final offers, NWL will reconsider, in respect of each supplier that submitted, whether the supplier or any related persons within its corporate group, associated suppliers relied on to meet the conditions of participation, or proposed sub-contractors, are excluded or excludable suppliers and will consider whether to disregard the best and final offer submitted in accordance with its obligations under the Act. If the supplier is an excluded or excludable supplier only by virtue of an associated supplier or proposed sub-contractor, NWL will notify the supplier of its intention to disregard its tender and provide the supplier with a reasonable opportunity to replace the associated supplier or sub-contractor. If as a consequence of this process NWL disregards a tender from an excluded or excludable supplier or is aware of an associated supplier or sub contractor having been replaced, it will give notice of this fact within 30 days of its decision to the Procurement Review Unit (PRU)
NWL will conduct an assessment of all Best and Final Offers in order to identify the supplier which has submitted the most advantageous tender in accordance with the assessment methodology and award criteria set out in the Tender Notice and described in this document. In carrying out this assessment. NWL will disregard any final tender from a supplier who does not satisfy the Conditions of Participation.
Once the assessment has concluded, NWL will provide an assessment summary to all suppliers that submitted a Best and Final offer to:
a. inform them whether they have been successful in being awarded the contract
b. provide an explanation of the assessment of the supplier's tender against the relevant award criteria, in accordance with the requirements of the Act
c. where different to the supplier concerned, provide information in respect of the most advantageous tender submitted, including details of the assessment of this tender against the relevant award criteria and the supplier's name
Once the assessment summaries have been provided to the suppliers that submitted Best and Final offers, NWL will also publish a contract award notice on the Central Digital Platform to commence the mandatory standstill period.
Subject to completion of the mandatory standstill period, Stage 4 will end with NWL entering into preferred supplier stage with the preferred supplier.
Stage 5: Preferred supplier stage
The highest scoring supplier will be invited to engage in further discussions with NWL as part of a preferred supplier stage. This stage will be used to finalise the draft contract terms and conditions, in accordance with the limitations set out in the Act.
Stage 5 will end with NWL entering into the contract with the preferred supplier
Documents
Associated tender documents
https://s1.ariba.com
Technical specifications to be met
https://s1.ariba.com
Contracting authority
NORTHUMBRIAN WATER LIMITED
- Companies House: 02366703
- Public Procurement Organisation Number: PRLG-5541-VHHG
Northumbria House
Pity Me
DH1 5FJ
United Kingdom
Email: lewis.timmins@nwl.co.uk
Region: UKC14 - Durham CC
Organisation type: Private utility