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Published 24 Sept 2026, 12:06 BST

Official UK procurement notice

Artificial Intelligence Innovation — UK public procurement notice

Authority: Office of Rail and Road (Central government)

ServicesBelow threshold - open competitionBelow thresholdSME suitableVCSE suitable
Sectors: IT Services & Software (72) Delivery: UK
Published estimate£100,000£120,000 inc. VAT
Submission deadline 15 Oct 202612:00 BST · 20d 14h left
Clarification cut-off 1 Oct 202612:00 BST · questions to the authority
Contract term 5 moup to 1 yr 5 mo with extensions · starts 26 Oct 2026
Bids per lot · the market 4CPV 7222 · n=27 · competition analysis ↓

What is being bought

Published requirement description

ORR is seeking a specialist Microsoft AI delivery partner to design, develop and implement three AI solutions within its Microsoft 365 environment. The requirement includes: (1) an AI-enabled records retention and SharePoint remediation solution to improve information governance, metadata management and retention compliance; (2) a Corporate Knowledge Agent to support knowledge discovery, evidence retrieval and expertise identification; and (3) a Strategic Workforce Planning Agent to support workforce forecasting, scenario modelling and resource planning. The scope includes discovery, solution design, development, configuration, testing, security assurance, deployment, documentation, training, knowledge transfer and handover, with all solutions to be fully operational and supported by ORR by project completion.

CPV: Information technology services

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · value published
Lot #1Lot 1Renewal 5 moSMEVCSEPublished value£100,000
Contract period: 26 Oct 2026 — 9 Apr 2027 (5 mo) · up to 1 yr 5 mo with extensionsEligibility: SME eligibleVCSE eligibleDelivery: UKTurnover guideline: ~£200,000/yr≈ 2× annual value
Value
£100,000 exc. VAT · £120,000 inc. VAT
Extensions
ORR may extend the contract for up to 12 months beyond the initial term where additional time is required to complete implementation activities, provide post-implementation support, undertake further knowledge transfer, deliver enhancements to the implemented solutions, or support the expansion of capabilities to additional Microsoft 365 services or business areas. Any extension will be at ORR's sole discretion and more…subject to satisfactory supplier performance, continued business need and availability of funding.
72222300 Information technology services

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

What it takes to win
i

How this buyer will score bids.

The evaluation criteria and weights exactly as published on the notice, grouped by family (price, quality, social value and so on).

Evaluation split and conditions of participation as published — the tender pack may add more
How bids are scored

The contract will be awarded on the basis of the Most Advantageous Tender (MAT), assessed against quality and price criteria. Quality will be evaluated on methodology, delivery approach and relevant experience (60% weighting). Price/value for money will be evaluated at 40%

No conditions of participation were published on the notice; check the tender documents.

Competition analysis · published record, not a forecast of who will bid

How Office of Rail and Road buys Systems and technical consultancy services (CPV 7222) — and who usually turns up

Office of Rail and Road’s own published record, next to the Greater London market for the same work. Frameworks and DPS are kept out: they attract a different number of bids. Whole-market view: Systems and technical consultancy services (CPV 7222) →

1

How the contest usually goes

Left: this authority. Right: the market where the work is delivered. Bids and award-vs-estimate pairs are per lot, from contested contracts only — direct awards (including PA 2023 transparency notices) report one bid by definition and are left out. On Procurement Act 2023 notices the count is the tenders assessed at the final stage, not every submission received; pairs compare like with like (VAT-exclusive, or VAT-inclusive on both sides). Empty means nothing was published, not filled in from elsewhere.

This authority

Office of Rail and Road

contract notices in 36 months: 4 in CPV 7222 · 5 in division 72 · 44 in all categories

Bids per lot
i

How many companies usually bid for work like this.

Middle value of published bid counts, one per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in this sector (CPV 7222), last 36 months: 1 lots. All 1 lots are from older notices, which count bids received. Small sample.

Nothing is filled in from UK-wide numbers. An empty tile means nothing usable was published.

10CPV 7222 · 36m · n=1 lots
Single-bid lots
i

How often only one company bid.

Share of lots that received exactly one bid, on the same competitions as the bids figure.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in this sector (CPV 7222), last 36 months: 1 lots. Small sample.

High means a thin market or an incumbent that is hard to beat.

0%CPV 7222 · 36m · n=1 lots
Award vs estimate
i

Do awards for work like this land above or below the estimate.

Estimate against award per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 36 months: 20 pairs.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

8% belowall categories · 36m · n=20 pairs
Deadline → award date
i

How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.

Middle value in days from the deadline to the first award notice, on competitions that published both dates.

Nothing published for this buyer in this sector: no award dates published.

Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.

Last 36 months.

—no award dates published
Notice updates
i

How often this buyer changes a notice after publishing it.

Middle number of amendments per notice. Deadline extensions and corrections both count.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in all categories, last 24 months: 63 notices.

Last 24 months.

0all categories · 24m · n=63 notices
Awarded without competition
i

How often this buyer awards without a competition.

Direct or limited awards as a share of its notices that say which procedure was used. These routes are legal in defined cases. This is just the record.

Based on this buyer’s tenders in this sector (CPV 7222), last 36 months: 4 notices.

Last 36 months.

0%CPV 7222 · 36m · n=4 notices
Winning award vs estimate robust · n=20
i

How often winners come in below, near or above the estimate.

Each lot with both an estimate and an award is placed by how far the award sat from the estimate.

Based on 20 lot pairs · all categories, last 36 months.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

  • Below estimate 70%
  • Within ±2% 20%
  • Above estimate 10%

20 lot pairs · all categories.

How procedures are run moderate · n=4
i

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.

Based on 4 notices · CPV 7222, last 36 months.

  • Open 100%
  • Selective 0%
  • Limited 0%
  • Direct 0%

4 notices · CPV 7222. Open and selective are competed (they feed the bid and price figures above); limited and direct are not; notices publishing no route are outside all four.

The market · authority’s region

Greater London · Systems and technical consultancy services (CPV 7222)

contract notices delivered in Greater London in 36 months: 123 in CPV 7222 (65 competed, 37 route not published) · 716 in division 72 (316 competed, 191 route not published) · the notice publishes no delivery location, so the authority’s registered region is used

Bids per lot
i

How many companies usually bid for work like this.

Middle value of published bid counts, one per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 7222), last 36 months: 27 lots. 15 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices (bids assessed, middle 3) and 12 from older notices (bids received, middle 4).

Nothing is filled in from UK-wide numbers. An empty tile means nothing usable was published.

4CPV 7222 · 36m · n=27 lots
Single-bid lots
i

How often only one company bid.

Share of lots that received exactly one bid, on the same competitions as the bids figure.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 7222), last 36 months: 27 lots.

High means a thin market or an incumbent that is hard to beat.

4%CPV 7222 · 36m · n=27 lots
Award vs estimate
i

Do awards for work like this land above or below the estimate.

Estimate against award per lot, for this buyer or this region in the same sector.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 7222), last 36 months: 20 pairs.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

at estimateCPV 7222 · 36m · n=20 pairs
Deadline → award date
i

How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.

Middle value in days from the deadline to the first award notice, on competitions that published both dates.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 7222), last 36 months: 15 notices.

Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.

Last 36 months.

70dCPV 7222 · 36m · n=15 notices
SME bidders
i

How much of this market goes to small and medium firms.

SME bidders where buyers published the split, otherwise SME winners.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 7222), last 36 months: 19 lots.

Last 36 months.

68%CPV 7222 · 36m · n=19 lots
Winners based in the region
i

How much work like this goes to companies based in the delivery region.

Awards in this category delivered here where the winner’s registered address is in the region.

Based on this region’s tenders in this sector (CPV 7222), last 36 months: 49 awards.

Registered address, so a national firm with a local branch counts as outside.

Last 36 months.

78%CPV 7222 · 36m · n=49 awards
Bids per lot robust · n=27
i

How the number of bidders is spread across lots.

Each lot with a published bid count is put in a band: one bid, two to three, four to six, seven or more. Real competitions only.

Based on 27 lots on 26 contested notices · CPV 7222, last 36 months.

  • 1 bid 4%
  • 2–3 44%
  • 4–6 26%
  • 7+ 26%

Median 4 · 27 lots on 26 contested notices · CPV 7222.

Winning award vs estimate robust · n=20
i

How often winners come in below, near or above the estimate.

Each lot with both an estimate and an award is placed by how far the award sat from the estimate.

Based on 20 lot pairs · CPV 7222, last 36 months.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

  • Below estimate 35%
  • Within ±2% 35%
  • Above estimate 30%

20 lot pairs · CPV 7222.

robust · n=20
i

Where this tender’s estimate would land if the usual pattern repeats.

We apply the buyer’s usual movement between estimate and award (or the region’s) to the estimate on this notice.

Based on this buyer’s own usual movement over 20 lots (all categories), applied to the £100,000 estimate on this notice.

A benchmark, not a price to bid.

Awards in Office of Rail and Road (all categories, n=20 pairs) land a median 8% below: on this notice’s £100,000 that is about £92,200. Context for a bid, not a recommended price.
Coverage and what to read with care
  • Each tile explains itself. The on a figure says what it is, how it is counted and which scope this notice’s own record came from (class, division, all categories, or the authority’s 24-month row). The two columns are never blended and nothing is filled from a UK-wide figure; an empty tile means the source published nothing usable. Long form: Methodology.
  • Coverage. Roughly 40 % of notices publish a bid count; about half publish an ITL1 delivery location, so the market column reads the authority’s registered region when the notice has none (labelled). About 30 % of award-vs-estimate pairs are exact matches — the buyer published the award at the estimate. n is on every figure; a thin sample is muted, never hidden.
  • “Match” and “relevance” are model scores from the nightly matcher, not published facts. Find a Tender does not publish who is bidding. Never shown: contact details, payment behaviour, or a recommended price.

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record
Procedure method
Below threshold - open competition
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Services
Notice status
Open for tender
Procurement threshold
Below threshold
Regulatory regime
Standard
Commercial structure
Stand-alone contract (no framework)
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Unspecified in notice
Recurring procurement
No (one-off requirement)
First published
24 Sept 2026, 12:06 BST
Last source update
24 Sept 2026, 12:06 BST
Authority reference
ORR CT 26-34
Latest notice
Tender notice (UK4)
Classification (CPV)
Information technology services
Delivery area
UK
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-077964 Find a Tender

How to participate & submission route

Official notice Submit via Jaggaer
Submission portal named on this notice: Jaggaer · Who buys & how to bid on JAGGAER
Supplier login requiredElectronic submission allowed
Access & registration note: Free; latest Chrome/Edge/Firefox only — corporate browsers fail
Expression of interest (EOI)
—
Tender submission deadline
15 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
Clarification deadline
1 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
Submission channel
Official e-sourcing portal
Electronic submission
Allowed
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release
Tenders must be submitted electronically via the ORR eTendering Portal @ https://orr.ukp.app.jaggaer.com/go/8296696501A0D3091277 All bids must be uploaded to the portal before the stated deadline. The system allows suppliers to upload revised versions of their submissions up until the closing time, but late tenders will not be accepted. All clarification questions must also be submitted through the electronic portal for audit purposes. Responses will be shared with all more…bidders without identifying the source of the question. No electronic auction will be used in this procurement. Guidance on registering and using the portal can be found at: https://www.orr.gov.uk/about/procuring-goods-and-services/e-tendering
Published estimate £100,000 excludes VAT (£120,000 including VAT).

Timeline

4 published dates · Europe/London
  1. Tender notice publishedearlier today
    24 Sept 2026, 12:06 BST
  2. Clarification questions byin 7 days
    1 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
  3. Submission deadlinein 21 days
    15 Oct 2026, 12:00 BST
  4. Contract startsin 31 days
    26 Oct 2026, 00:00 GMT

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Nothing awarded yet
Awards (0)
No award published
Contracts (0)
No contract published
Bid statistics
No aggregate bid statistics published

Notice history

1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender
  1. Tender notice published
    24 Sept 2026, 12:06 BSTUK4

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

Office of Rail and Road

Contracting authorityPublic authority - central government GB-PPON: PMPH-6471-MDYY 25 Cabot Square, London, London, E14 4QZ [email protected]

Official documents & specifications (4)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Tender pack and attachments

Notices published for this procedure

  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender