Find a TenderOpen for tender
Published 21 Sept 2026, 16:50 BST

Official UK procurement notice

Backup & Recovery Solution

Authority: University of Dundee (Education)

ServicesOpen procedure
Published estimate£317,000exc. VAT
Submission deadline 26 Oct 202612:00 GMT · 34d 8h left
Bids per lot · this authority 4all categories · n=16 · competition analysis ↓

What is being bought

Published requirement description

The University is seeking the provision, implementation, transition and ongoing support of a SaaS Enterprise Backup and Recovery solution.

The scope of this procurement includes:

- Provision of the backup and recovery platform.

- Associated cloud storage services.

- Software licensing for protected workloads.

- Professional services required to support implementation, configuration and service transition.

- Testing, validation and knowledge transfer activities.

- Training and supporting documentation.

- Ongoing software maintenance, platform updates and vendor support.

The SaaS solution shall integrate with the University's existing infrastructure and support the protection of workloads hosted across VMware, Microsoft Hyper-V, Proxmox and physical server environments.

CPV: Data management services · Design and execution of research and development · Design support services · Specialty design services

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · value published
Lot #1The option is a cloud-based design platform, accessible via a secure web interface, offering enhanced scalability and reduced infrastructure overheadPublished value£750,000
The option is a cloud-based design platform, accessible via a secure web interface, offering enhanced scalability and reduced infrastructure overhead. The solution will integrate with a University of Dundee-hosted virtual machine to enable secure data exchange and computational workflows. Installation of server-side components will be managed by the DDU Data Management and Computational Chemistry teams, with network provisioning supported by DTS. Ongoing maintenance and updates will be provided by the vendor.
Delivery: Scotland · DundeeTurnover guideline: ~£1,500,000/yr≈ 2× annual value
Variant bids
not allowed
73300000 Design and execution of research and development79930000 Specialty design services79933000 Design support 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
Quality: 60%Price: 40%
Published award criteria (2)
  • Quality60
  • price40

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

Staff
Names and qualifications of delivery staff must be submitted

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

How University of Dundee buys Specialty design services (CPV 7993) — and who usually turns up

University of Dundee’s own published record, next to the Scotland market for the same work. Frameworks and DPS are kept out: they attract a different number of bids. Whole-market view: Specialty design services (CPV 7993)

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

University of Dundee

contract notices in 36 months: 3 in CPV 7993 · 9 in division 79 (1 without competition · 2 route not published) · 43 in all categories (9 without competition · 2 route not published)

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 all categories, last 36 months: 16 lots. All 16 lots are from older notices, which count bids received.

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

4all categories · 36m · n=16 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 all categories, last 36 months: 16 lots.

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

0%all categories · 36m · n=16 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: 5 pairs.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

at estimateall categories · 36m · n=5 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: 33 notices.

Last 24 months.

3all categories · 24m · n=33 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 7993), last 36 months: 3 notices.

Last 36 months.

0%CPV 7993 · 36m · n=3 notices
Bids per lot robust · n=16
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 16 lots on 15 contested notices · all categories, last 36 months.

  • 1 bid 0%
  • 2–3 44%
  • 4–6 25%
  • 7+ 31%

Median 4 · 16 lots on 15 contested notices · all categories.

Winning award vs estimate robust · n=5
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 5 lot pairs · all categories, last 36 months.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

  • Below estimate 40%
  • Within ±2% 40%
  • Above estimate 20%

5 lot pairs · all categories.

The market · delivery region

Scotland · Specialty design services (CPV 7993)

contract notices delivered in Scotland in 36 months: 10 in CPV 7993 (8 competed, 2 route not published) · 552 in division 79 (411 competed, 62 route not published)

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 industry (CPV 79), last 36 months: 314 lots. 6 lots are from Procurement Act 2023 notices (bids assessed, middle 3.5) and 308 from older notices (bids received, middle 4).

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

4division 79 · 36m · n=314 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 industry (CPV 79), last 36 months: 314 lots.

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

16%division 79 · 36m · n=314 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 industry (CPV 79), last 36 months: 143 pairs.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

at estimatedivision 79 · 36m · n=143 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 industry (CPV 79), last 36 months: 7 notices.

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

Last 36 months.

90ddivision 79 · 36m · n=7 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 industry (CPV 79), last 36 months: 307 lots.

Last 36 months.

70%division 79 · 36m · n=307 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 7993), last 36 months: 3 awards.

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

Last 36 months.

100%CPV 7993 · 36m · n=3 awards
Bids per lot robust · n=314
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 314 lots on 264 contested notices · division 79, last 36 months.

  • 1 bid 16%
  • 2–3 29%
  • 4–6 27%
  • 7+ 28%

Median 4 · 314 lots on 264 contested notices · division 79.

Winning award vs estimate robust · n=143
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 143 lot pairs · division 79, last 36 months.

A past pattern, not a price to bid.

  • Below estimate 42%
  • Within ±2% 46%
  • Above estimate 12%

143 lot pairs · division 79.

robust · n=5
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 5 lots (all categories), applied to the £317,000 estimate on this notice.

A benchmark, not a price to bid.

Awards in University of Dundee (all categories, n=5 pairs) land a median at estimate: on this notice’s £317,000 that is about £317,000. Context for a bid, not a recommended price.
2

Who you are likely to meet
i

Who you may be up against.

Suppliers on this buyer’s earlier similar contracts, and suppliers whose record fits this tender.

A guess from the record. Buyers do not publish who is bidding.

Suppliers on this authority’s earlier similar contracts, then suppliers with a matching track record — from published award history, not a bid list

Suppliers with a similar track record — and how they price
i

Suppliers with a similar track record, and how they price.

Suppliers matched on wins in this category, history with this buyer, location and size. Their award vs estimate is from their own past wins.

A guess from the record, not a bidder list.

SupplierEvidenceLast awardTheir award vs estimateRelevance
The Digital Age (tda!) SME1 class wins32 months agono comparable pairs58%
The Union Advertising Agancy SME1 class wins46 months agono comparable pairs51%
STUCO SME1 class wins54 months agono comparable pairs50%
Paneltech Industries Ltd SME1 class wins22 months agono comparable pairs49%
Studio MB Ltd SME2 class wins51 months agono comparable pairs46%

Matched by the nightly worker on class wins, buyer history, delivery geography, scale and notice text; relevance is a 0–100% heuristic score, not a probability of bidding. “Their award vs estimate” is that supplier’s median on its own comparable single-supplier wins, CPV 7993 first. Nobody here is known to be bidding.

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 · publisher note attached
Procedure method
Open procedure
Legal basis
CELEX · 32014L0024 Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (Directive 2014/24/EU)
Procurement category
Services
Notice status
Open for tender
Procurement threshold
Unspecified in notice
Regulatory regime
Standard
Commercial structure
Stand-alone contract (no framework)
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Yes (GPA)
Recurring procurement
No (one-off requirement)
First published
21 Sept 2026, 16:50 BST
Last source update
21 Sept 2026, 16:50 BST
Award evaluation window
26 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT — …
Authority reference
UoD-SYS192-TC-2026
Classification (CPV)
Data management servicesDesign and execution of research and developmentDesign support servicesSpecialty design services
Delivery area
Scotland (UKM71)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-0776db

Publisher note: NOTE: To register your interest in this notice and obtain any additional information please visit the Public Contracts Scotland Web Site at https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/Search/Search_Switch.aspx?ID=843499. The buyer has indicated that it will accept electronic responses to this notice via the Postbox facility. A user guide is available at https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/sitehelp/help_guides.aspx. Suppliers are advised to allow adequate time for uploading documents and to dispatch the electronic response well in advance of the closing time to avoid any last minute problems. (SC Ref:843499) Download the ESPD document here: https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/ESPD/ESPD_Download.aspx?id=843499

How to participate & submission route

Submit via Public Contracts Scotland
Submission portal named on this notice: Public Contracts Scotland · Who buys & how to bid on PCS
Supplier login requiredLanguage: EN
Access & registration note: Free single registration for Scotland; PCS-Tender (Jaggaer) for full bidding

Tender documents are also served through a separate tool: https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk

Expression of interest (EOI)
Tender submission deadline
26 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
Clarification deadline
Submission channel
{"electronicSubmission","written"}
Accepted languages
en
Bids opened
26 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release

Timeline

4 published dates · Europe/London
  1. Notice publishedearlier today
    21 Sept 2026, 16:50 BST
  2. Submission deadlinein 34 days
    26 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
  3. Bids openedin 34 days
    26 Oct 2026, 12:00 GMT
  4. Bids must remain valid untilin 190 days
    30 Mar 2027, 23:59 BST

Commercial outcome & contract awards

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

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

University of Dundee

Contracting authorityEducationBody governed by public lawEducation Procurement, 3rd Floor, Tower Building, Nethergate, Dundee, Scotland, DD1 4HN Published organisation website ↗

Dispute resolution & review bodies

  • Dundee Sheriff CourtReview bodyReview contact point Dundee

Official documents & specifications (2)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Tender pack and attachments

  • Economic and financial selection criteriatenderEconomic and financial selection criteria
  • Technical selection criteriatenderTechnical selection criteria