Research services: UK Tenders, Buyers & Competition
CPV 73110000·Services · class·in Research & Development (R&D)
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Tenders you can still bid for.
Notices at tender stage whose deadline has not passed, counted the way the search counts them: a notice shows under every code and region it names.
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Notices published in the last 12 months.
Counted per tender, not per lot, against the 12 months before where shown.
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How many companies usually bid for a lot here.
The middle value of the bid counts that award notices publish, one per lot. Only real competitions count: direct awards and framework places are left out.
Based on 78 lots from 63 competitions run by 40 buyers, last 36 months. A buyer with many similar contests counts only up to a limit. 49 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices (bids assessed, middle 4) and 29 from older notices (bids received, middle 3).
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What a contract here is usually worth.
Middle value of published award values, VAT excluded. Framework ceilings are left out because they are not real contract values.
Based on 482 awards with a usable value, last 36 months.
Published values, not actual spend.
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How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.
Middle value in days from the bid deadline to the award date, on competitions that published both.
Based on 45 decided competitions, last 36 months.
Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.
Newest open tenders
3 of 26 open for bids now · newest first
| Notice | Authority | Deadline | Days left | Published value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI Creator Control | Intellectual Property Office | 27 Nov 2026 | 22d | £80,000 |
| VRU Learning Partner to Support Custody Based Intervention Programme | Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime | 2 Dec 2026 | 27d | £300,000 |
| Youth Engagement Services | Maidstone Borough Council | 20 Nov 2026 | 15d | £50,000 |
Codes and neighbouring classes
The 8-digit CPV codes notices in this class actually use, and the other classes of the same division
73110000 Research services551 notices · 52%73111000 Research laboratory services91 notices · 9%73112000 Marine research services24 notices · 2%- Research and development consultancy services 158 · 12m
- Research consultancy services 130 · 12m
- Development consultancy services 57 · 12m
- Research and experimental development services 48 · 12m
- Design and execution of research and development 15 · 12m
- Test and evaluation 9 · 12m
- Military research and technology 7 · 12m
- Experimental development services 3 · 12m
- Research and Development services on security and defence materials 1 · 12m
- Pre-feasibility study and technological demonstration 1 · 12m
- All of Research & Development (R&D) →
Who buysi
Which buyers publish the most notices here.
Buyers ranked by the number of notices, duplicate names merged.
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Which buyers publish the most notices here.
Buyers ranked by the number of notices, duplicate names merged.
All notices carrying this code · official UK_CA_TYPE where published (NHS bodies are central government authorities), else derived from the authority name
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What kinds of public bodies buy here.
Notices by the buyer’s type as published, otherwise by its name.
Central government52%(541 notices)
541 of 1,049 notices are Central government (52%).Other public bodies19%(202 notices)
202 of 1,049 notices are Other public bodies (19%).Education & universities7%(76 notices)
76 of 1,049 notices are Education & universities (7%).Local authorities6%(65 notices)
65 of 1,049 notices are Local authorities (6%).NHS & health0%(4 notices)
4 of 1,049 notices are NHS & health (0%).Not classified15%(161 notices)
161 of 1,049 notices are Not classified (15%).
| Contracting authority | Type | Notices | Last 12 months | Open now |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rail Safety and Standards Board | Other public bodies | 73 | 24 | 3 |
| UK Research and Innovation | Central government | 57 | 25 | 1 |
| Department for Energy Security & Net Zero | Central government | 46 | 20 | 0 |
| Department for Transport | Central government | 29 | 14 | 1 |
| Department for Business & Trade | Central government | 24 | 19 | 0 |
| Scottish Government | Central government | 24 | 2 | 0 |
| The Food Standards Agency | Central government | 23 | 6 | 0 |
| Defra Network eTendering Portal | not classified | 22 | 0 | 0 |
| Cefas | not classified | 19 | 13 | 0 |
| NATURAL ENGLAND (Defra Network eTendering Portal) | not classified | 18 | 9 | 2 |
229 distinct authorities in total · the ten most active shown.
Where the work is deliveredi
Where the work on these notices is delivered.
Delivery regions published on the notices. A notice with several regions counts in each.
Where the work is, not where the buyer is based.
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Where the work on these notices is delivered.
Delivery regions published on the notices. A notice with several regions counts in each.
Where the work is, not where the buyer is based.
Delivery regions (ITL1) published on 321 of 1,054 notices · a notice covering several regions counts in each · competition columns: contracts awarded in the last 36 months, lots delivered in the region
| Region | Notices | Bids / lot | SME wins | Local wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greater London | 6 | 37% | 38% | |
| South East England | 6 | 33% | 19% | |
| Scotland | 2 | 40% | 46% | |
| North East England | 6 | 35% | 7% | |
| South West England | 7 | 34% | 13% | |
| East of England | 6 | 33% | 12% | |
| North West England | 6 | 29% | 6% | |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 3 | 35% | 17% | |
| East Midlands | — | 38% | 5% | |
| West Midlands | 6 | 39% | 11% | |
| Wales (Cymru) | 5 | 33% | 20% | |
| Northern Ireland | — | — | — |
Local wins = the winner’s registered region is the delivery region. Dashes: fewer than ten observations.
How it is boughti
How work here is packaged.
Notices by commercial tool: a single contract, a framework, or a dynamic purchasing system.
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How work here is packaged.
Notices by commercial tool: a single contract, a framework, or a dynamic purchasing system.
Commercial tool, procedure route and threshold as published on the notice, not a legal-regime claim
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How work here is packaged.
Notices by commercial tool: a single contract, a framework, or a dynamic purchasing system.
Contract93%(984 notices)
984 of 1,054 notices are Contract (93%).Framework6%(65 notices)
65 of 1,054 notices are Framework (6%).Dynamic purchasing system0%(5 notices)
5 of 1,054 notices are Dynamic purchasing system (0%).
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Which procedures buyers here use.
Notices by the procedure they declare: open, selective, limited or direct. Open and selective are competitions; limited and direct are not.
Open34%(362 notices)
362 of 1,054 notices are Open (34%).Direct award27%(287 notices)
287 of 1,054 notices are Direct award (27%).Limited / restricted19%(195 notices)
195 of 1,054 notices are Limited / restricted (19%).Route not published14%(152 notices)
152 of 1,054 notices are Route not published (14%).Selective6%(58 notices)
58 of 1,054 notices are Selective (6%).
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How much of this market is above the legal threshold.
Notices by whether the buyer marked them above or below the threshold that triggers the full rules.
Above threshold41%(91 notices)
91 of 223 notices are Above threshold (41%).Below threshold59%(132 notices)
132 of 223 notices are Below threshold (59%).
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How long bidders get to respond.
Middle value in days from the tender notice to its deadline.
Competition
Contracts published in the last 36 months (714) · bid counts per lot from award notices · values are net contract awards, framework and DPS ceilings excluded · SME and local status as declared
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How many bids past lots received.
Each colour is a bid-count range. Only competed lots with a published count are included.
Past bids do not predict this tender.
1 bid17%(13)
13 of 78 lots fall in 1 bid (17%).2–331%(24)
24 of 78 lots fall in 2–3 (31%).4–636%(28)
28 of 78 lots fall in 4–6 (36%).7 or more17%(13)
13 of 78 lots fall in 7 or more (17%).
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The usual range of contract values here.
The middle half of published award values, VAT excluded, with the middle value marked. Framework ceilings are left out.
Published values, not actual spend.
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How many companies usually bid for a lot here.
The middle value of the bid counts that award notices publish, one per lot. Only real competitions count: direct awards and framework places are left out.
Based on 78 lots from 63 competitions run by 40 buyers, last 36 months. A buyer with many similar contests counts only up to a limit. 49 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices (bids assessed, middle 4) and 29 from older notices (bids received, middle 3).
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How much of this market is actually put out to competition.
Notices run as an open or selective procedure, out of all notices that say which procedure was used. Direct awards count as not competed.
234 of 661 notices that state a procedure, last 36 months. 53 more are call-offs or give no procedure and are left out.
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What share of bids come from small and medium firms.
SME bids divided by all bids, on lots where the buyer published the split.
181 SME bids out of 308, on 70 lots where the buyer published the split.
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What share of contracts go to small and medium firms.
Awards to a single supplier that declared its size. SME divided by all.
137 of 382 awards where the winner declared its size.
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How much work here goes to companies based in the region.
Contract awards where the winner’s registered address is in this region, out of awards where the address is known.
Registered address, so a national firm with a local branch counts as outside.
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Do winners come in above or below the buyer’s estimate.
For each lot we compare the published estimate with the award, like for like. Below means the winner was paid less than estimated, above means more.
Based on 68 lots with both an estimate and an award, last 36 months.
A past pattern, not a price to bid.
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How often a tender ends with no award.
Notices cancelled, withdrawn or marked unsuccessful, plus terminated ones that never got an award.
14 of 714 notices, last 36 months.
Only what buyers published. Tenders that quietly went nowhere are not counted.
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How many companies apply to get onto a framework or DPS here.
Middle value per lot, frameworks and dynamic markets only. Getting onto a panel is not the same as winning work, so it is kept separate.
Based on 23 lots from 14 framework and DPS notices, last 36 months.
Who winsi
Which suppliers win the most here.
Suppliers ranked by the number of tenders won, not by money. A supplier on one big framework with many call-offs does not outrank one that won many separate competitions.
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Which suppliers win the most here.
Suppliers ranked by the number of tenders won, not by money. A supplier on one big framework with many call-offs does not outrank one that won many separate competitions.
Ranked by distinct procedures won on notices carrying this code, then award records · 871 awards to 594 suppliers · the five most frequent winners hold 6% of contract awards in the last 36 months
| Supplier | Procedures | Awards | Last 12 months | Buyers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER | 17 | 17 | 5 | 8 |
| IFF Research Ltd | 12 | 13 | 3 | 10 |
| OVE ARUP & PARTNERS LIMITED | 8 | 8 | 3 | 5 |
| Ricardo AEA Ltd | 7 | 8 | 2 | 3 |
| LGC LIMITED | 6 | 8 | 4 | 3 |
| University of Birmingham | 6 | 6 | 2 | 5 |
| University of Exeter | 6 | 6 | 3 | 4 |
| UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON | 5 | 6 | 4 | 4 |
Where to submiti
Where bids for this work are submitted.
Notices by the portal in their submission link, where one is published.
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Where bids for this work are submitted.
Notices by the portal in their submission link, where one is published.
E-sourcing portals named in the submission address · 273 of 1,054 notices name one · each portal page explains registration
Open tenders in research services
26 open for bids now · soonest deadline first
About this data
- Source. Official UK public procurement notices (Find a Tender), reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. New notices arrive through the day; the figures are rebuilt nightly. Contracts Finder contracts appear on the Retender Radar, not yet in these figures.
- What counts here. Every notice with a CPV code starting 7311. A notice with several codes counts in each sector it names. Notices from 2021 to 4 Nov 2026.
- Competition. Bids and winners cover the last three years and count each lot as its own contest; frameworks and dynamic purchasing systems are shown apart from ordinary contracts.
- Why no total spend. Notice estimates often repeat a framework’s ceiling, so adding them up would overstate the market. Typical contract values are shown instead.
- Every figure shows what it rests on. Not every notice publishes a bid count, a value or a delivery region, so each figure carries the number of records behind it, and one built on few records is marked as such. The on a figure explains it; the counting rules are in the methodology. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.