Find a TenderAwardedContract award notice
Published 12 Sept 2025, 14:25 BST

Official UK procurement notice

City Quays 3 Fit Out of Floors 6, 5 and part 4

Official notice

Authority: Belfast Harbour (Public body)·On behalf of: W H STEPHENS LIMITED

WorksCompetitive flexible procedureAbove thresholdUtilitiesSME suitable
Published estimate£6,600,000£6,600,000 inc. VAT17.4% above published estimate
Submissions closed 13 Oct 2025awarded 3 Dec 2025
Award (standstill) to John Graham Construction Ltd
Contract term 4 moends 4 May 2026 · starts 5 Jan 2026

What is being bought

Published requirement description

The works consist of Category A (Cat A) and Category B (Cat B) fit out works of Floors 6, 5 and part Floor 4, within the 16 storey grade A office development known as City Quays 3. The approximate combined floor area of the fit out works is in the region of 34,500 sq.ft. In conjunction with the typical grade A office fit out works, further works are required to install new internal staircases linking Floors 4 - 5 and 5 - 6. This will require a structural cut-out in the existing floor slabs.

  • How the procedure runs: It is anticipated that the tender process will proceed through the following stages: 1. Tender Notice published and pre-qualification documentation made available. 2. Pre-Qualification submissions evaluated and shortlist of Applicants selected. 3. Invitation to tender and associated documents issued to shortlisted Applicants. 4. Tender submissions evaluated. 5. Optional BAFO/value engineering stage. 6. BAFO submissions (if requested) evaluated. 7. Issue assessment summaries and publish contract award notice 8. Standstill period 9. Contract award finalised BHC reserves the right at any time to: • Reject any or all responses and to cancel or withdraw from this tender process at any time; • Award a contract without prior notice; • Change the basis of, the procedures and timescales set out or referred to within the tender documents; • Require a bidder to clarify any submissions in writing and/or to provide additional information. The costs of responding to this notice and participation in this process will be borne by each bidder. All discussions and correspondence will be deemed strictly subject to contract until a formal contract is entered into. The formal contract shall not be binding until it has been signed and dated by the duly authorised representatives of both parties. If at any time during the tender process or post award it comes to the attention of BHC (by whatever means) that a supplier has become 'excluded' or 'excludable' (as defined by section 57 of the Procurement Act 2023) BHC, after complying with its obligations under the Procurement Act 2023, reserves the right to exclude that supplier from the procurement process or terminate any contract awarded to that supplier. Applicants are advised that BHC has appointed certain independent professional services firms to act on its behalf in relation to this procurement process, as named in the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire. Given these parties' prior involvement in the preparation for and/or during the procurement process, none of these parties may be part of an Applicant's team or advisors in relation to this procurement process. Applicants must not contact these parties, directly or indirectly, with a view to obtaining information in relation to this procurement process. All requests for clarification must be submitted strictly in accordance with the clarification procedure set out in this document

CPV: Building completion work · Building construction work · Electrical installation work · Mechanical installations · Plumbing and sanitary works

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · value published
Lot #1Awarded 4 moSMEPublished value£6,600,000
Contract period: 5 Jan 2026 – 4 May 2026 (4 mo)Value: £6,600,000 exc. VAT · £6,600,000 inc. VAT
Delivery: Northern IrelandEligibility: SME eligible
Second stage: up to 6 candidates invited to tender
Pre-qualification & selection criteria (PQQ)3
  • Economic & financial standing

    Conditions of Participation are as stated in the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire.

  • Technical & professional ability

    Conditions of Participation are as stated in the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire.

  • Condition of participation

    Subject to a sufficient number of compliant responses being received, BHC intends (according to the process described in the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire) to invite a maximum of the top 6 (six) ranked compliant Applicants to the invitation to tender stage of the process, provided that BHC, acting at its discretion, reserves the right to invite less than 6 (six) Applicants to tender.

    Where there is a tie for 6th (sixth) place, all Applicants in 6th (sixth) place will be invited to tender. For the purposes of this exercise, a tie for 6th (sixth) place is deemed to occur where two or more Applicants have identical scores.

    shortlisting

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 were scored
Price: 100%
Published sub-criteria (1)
  • Tender Price: 100%
Published award criteria (1)
  • Tender Price: Price
Conditions of participation3
  • Economic & financial standing

    Conditions of Participation are as stated in the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire.

  • Technical & professional ability

    Conditions of Participation are as stated in the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire.

  • Condition of participation

    Subject to a sufficient number of compliant responses being received, BHC intends (according to the process described in the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire) to invite a maximum of the top 6 (six) ranked compliant Applicants to the invitation to tender stage of the process, provided that BHC, acting at its discretion, reserves the right to invite less than 6 (six) Applicants to tender.

    Where there is a tie for 6th (sixth) place, all Applicants in 6th (sixth) place will be invited to tender. For the purposes of this exercise, a tie for 6th (sixth) place is deemed to occur where two or more Applicants have identical scores.

    shortlisting
What this means for your bid
  • Price carries 100 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 10 points. This one is won on the number: sharpen the price before polishing the prose.

Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record
Procedure method
Competitive flexible procedure
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Works
Notice status
Awarded
Procurement threshold
Above threshold (FTS publication)
Regulatory regime
Utilities
Commercial structure
Stand-alone contract (no framework)
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Yes (GPA, CPTPP)
Recurring procurement
Unspecified in notice
First published
12 Sept 2025, 14:25 BST
Last source update
4 Dec 2025, 14:40 GMT
Award evaluation window
Submission end – 8 Dec 2025
Authority reference
P.454
FTS notice number
2025/S 000-056230
Latest notice
Contract award notice (UK6)
Classification (CPV)
Building completion workBuilding construction workElectrical installation workMechanical installationsPlumbing and sanitary works
Delivery area
Northern Ireland (UKN06)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-059986 Find a Tender
Contract terms summary

Refer to draft Conditions of Contract.

Contract value is estimated to be £5.5 million (ex VAT). The Total value stated above therefore represents BHC's best estimate of the total potential cost of the contract.

Applicants should note that:

  • BHC reserves the right to require bonds, deposits, guarantees or other forms of security to ensure proper contractual performance. The financial capacity conditions of participation for this tender process (as set out in the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire) also set out specific requirements in this regard.
  • Subject to the status and involvement of the parties, BHC may require the parties to commit to joint and several liability in respect of the contract. Alternatively, BHC may require the lead operator to take total responsibility or a consortium to form a legal entity before entering into any contract.
How it runs

It is anticipated that the tender process will proceed through the following stages:

  1. Tender Notice published and pre-qualification documentation made available.
  2. Pre-Qualification submissions evaluated and shortlist of Applicants selected.
  3. Invitation to tender and associated documents issued to shortlisted Applicants.
  4. Tender submissions evaluated.
  5. Optional BAFO/value engineering stage.
  6. BAFO submissions (if requested) evaluated.
  7. Issue assessment summaries and publish contract award notice
  8. Standstill period
  9. Contract award finalised

BHC reserves the right at any time to:

  • Reject any or all responses and to cancel or withdraw from this tender process at any time;
  • Award a contract without prior notice;
  • Change the basis of, the procedures and timescales set out or referred to within the tender documents;
  • Require a bidder to clarify any submissions in writing and/or to provide additional information.

The costs of responding to this notice and participation in this process will be borne by each bidder. All discussions and correspondence will be deemed strictly subject to contract until a formal contract is entered into. The formal contract shall not be binding until it has been signed and dated by the duly authorised representatives of both parties.

If at any time during the tender process or post award it comes to the attention of BHC (by whatever means) that a supplier has become 'excluded' or 'excludable' (as defined by section 57 of the Procurement Act 2023) BHC, after complying with its obligations under the Procurement Act 2023, reserves the right to exclude that supplier from the procurement process or terminate any contract awarded to that supplier.

Applicants are advised that BHC has appointed certain independent professional services firms to act on its behalf in relation to this procurement process, as named in the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire. Given these parties' prior involvement in the preparation for and/or during the procurement process, none of these parties may be part of an Applicant's team or advisors in relation to this procurement process. Applicants must not contact these parties, directly or indirectly, with a view to obtaining information in relation to this procurement process.

All requests for clarification must be submitted strictly in accordance with the clarification procedure set out in this document

How it was run

Official notice
Run through: portal not identified
Electronic submission not allowedLanguage: EN
Requests to participate (first stage)
13 Oct 2025, 12:00 BST
Submission deadline
13 Oct 2025, 12:00 BST
Clarification deadline
5 Oct 2025, 17:00 BST
Submission channel
Official e-sourcing portal
Electronic submission
Not allowed
Accepted languages
en
Detailed submission instructions & authority contactsFrom official release

Requests to participate (i.e. completed Pre-Qualification Questionnaires) must be submitted by email to [email protected] in accordance with the instructions specified in the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire.

The pre-qualification documents are available for unrestricted and full direct access, free of charge at www.belfast-harbour.co.uk/corporate/tenders ↗.

Applicants who wish to participate in this tender process will be required to provide their contact details before downloading the pre-qualification documents. Applicants who fail to provide their details to BHC or register in this manner will not receive any clarifications or updated information provided by BHC during the tender process.

Applicants are advised not to include marketing information, brochures or links to other documents within their Pre-Qualification Questionnaire responses.

Emails which contain suspicious contents or links to third party servers or websites may be quarantined or rejected by the BHC email filtering systems.

It is the Applicant's responsibility to ensure that a delivery receipt is received for Pre-Qualification Questionnaire submissions.

BHC does not accept any responsibility for the premature opening or mishandling of PQQ documents that are not submitted in accordance with these instructions.

Timeline

12 Sept 2025 → 5 Jan 2026 · 8 dates
  1. Tender notice published
    12 Sept 2025, 14:25 BST
  2. Clarification questions by382 days ago
    5 Oct 2025, 17:00 BST
  3. Submission deadline374 days ago
    13 Oct 2025, 12:00 BST
  4. Assessment summaries sent322 days ago
    4 Dec 2025
  5. Latest notice published322 days ago
    4 Dec 2025, 14:40 GMT
  6. Award decision expected by317 days ago
    8 Dec 2025, 23:59 GMT
  7. Standstill ends310 days ago
    15 Dec 2025, 23:59 GMT
  8. Contract starts290 days ago
    5 Jan 2026

Notice history

5 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 12 Sept 2025
  1. Tender notice published
    12 Sept 2025, 14:25 BST
    UK4
  2. Contract award notice published
    4 Dec 2025, 14:40 GMT
    UK6
  3. Status changed to complete
    4 Dec 2025, 14:40 GMT
  4. Procurement method changed
    4 Dec 2025, 14:40 GMT
  5. Contract signature expected
    16 Dec 2025, 23:59 GMT
    scheduled

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast
Awards 1
Awarded value (inc. VAT) £7,750,0001 award inc. VAT; no net value published
Bids received 31 from SMEs
Named bidders 3published on the award notice
Awarded toValueDateStatus
John Graham Construction Ltd16 Dec 2025 – 1 May 2026£7,750,000 inc. VAT3 Dec 2025standstill to 15 Dec 2025Standstill

Bid statistics published by the authority

BidsSMEVCSEValid bid range
3final-stage tenders10—

Who bid

Bidders as named on the Procurement Act 2023 award notice. “Won” means the bidder holds an award on this notice.

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

2 public bodies on the notice

Belfast Harbour

Contracting authorityPublic undertakingNorthern Irish devolved regulations apply GB-PPON: PGGW-7911-WZGZ Harbour Office, Corporation Square, Belfast, Northern Ireland, BT1 3ALContact email

Other public bodies

  • W H STEPHENS LIMITEDProcuring entityClient appointed Quantity SurveyorGB-COH: NI627859GB-PPON: PHZB-8543-TXZD Belfast, Northern IrelandContact email

Bidders & participating suppliers

3 commercial parties on the notice · 1 awarded
  • GILBERT-ASH LIMITEDBidder / tendererGB-COH: NI002345GB-PPON: PWLW-5914-WJGL 60 Boucher Place, Belfast, Northern Ireland, BT12 6HT
  • JAMES F MCCUE LIMITEDBidder / tendererGB-COH: NI005090GB-PPON: PCWG-5496-HBLT 2 Sloefield Drive, Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland, BT38 8GX
  • JOHN GRAHAM CONSTRUCTION LIMITEDAwarded supplierGB-COH: NI003503GB-PPON: PGTW-4456-TGCY 5 Ballygowan Road, Hillsborough, Northern Ireland, BT26 6HXContact email

Official documents & specifications (3)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Tender pack and attachments

  • Bidding documents and specifications tenderBidding documents and specificationsList of associated tender documents is provided in the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire, which is available at https://www.belfast-harbour.co.uk/corporate/tenders

Notices published for this procedure

  • Contract award notice awardContract award noticeUK6Contract award notice on Find a Tender
  • Tender notice tenderTender noticeUK4Tender notice on Find a Tender