Find a TenderPlanned procurementPreliminary market engagement notice
Published 28 Oct 2026, 13:54 GMT

Official UK procurement notice

Dynamic Market for the Provision of Portable Ultra-Low-Field (ULF) MRI Systems

Authority: Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (Central government)

Dynamic marketGoodsAbove thresholdSME suitable
Sectors: Medical Devices & Pharma (33) Delivery listed: Guernsey (GG)Isle of Man (IM)Jersey (JE)
+1 moreUK
Planned pipeline value£10,000,000pipeline notice, not a live tender
Tender notice expected Date not publishedfrom the planned procurement notice
Market period 2 yrsends 31 Jan 2029 · up to 31 Jan 2035 with extensions · starts 1 Feb 2027

What is being bought

Published requirement description

This Dynamic Market will be for the supply of ultra-low-field magnetic resonance imaging (ULF MRI) systems and associated goods. The Dynamic Market may include, but is not limited to, ULF MRI scanners, imaging and reconstruction software, operator workstations, radiofrequency coils, accessories, peripherals, spare parts, replacement components, consumables and ancillary equipment. Systems may be fixed, mobile, transportable or portable and suitable for deployment across healthcare, diagnostic, community, research and point-of-care settings. The Dynamic Market may also include software licences, system upgrades and other goods required for the installation, operation and maintenance of ULF MRI systems.

CPV: Magnetic resonance imaging equipment

How this dynamic market works

From the published notice
Type
Dynamic market
Market period
2 yrs · up to 8 yrs from 1 Feb 2027

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · no lot value published
Lot #1PlannedRenewal 2 yrsSME
Contract period: 1 Feb 2027 – 31 Jan 2029 (2 yrs) · up to 31 Jan 2035 with extensions
Delivery listed: Guernsey (GG), Isle of Man (IM), Jersey (JE), UKEligibility: SME eligible
Extensions: Extension options published

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
What this means for your bid
  • “Dynamic Market for the Provision of Portable Ultra-Low-Field (ULF) MRI…” is a dynamic market: the contest is a place on its panel, not a single contract.

Pipeline intelligence · planning stage: how this market runs before the tender is published

How Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust buys Imaging equipment for medical, dental and veterinary use (CPV 3311), and who usually turns up

The market side is the UK-wide market, including every region. The notice also lists overseas delivery. Compared with other frameworks and DPS only. Whole-market view: Imaging equipment for medical, dental and veterinary use (CPV 3311) →

1

How the contest usually goes

Winner shares use published awards; bid and price charts use contested lots.

Question for the bidWhat to do with it
How often do SMEs win?
i

How often small and medium firms win.

Share of awards where the winner’s size is known.

The counts under this question show how many awards have a known supplier size.

Last 36 months.

Buyer: 159 of 206 known-size awards · market: CPV 3311 · UK-wide, n=45
77%44%

Small firms have won here. Neither number says whether you qualify; it describes who has been winning.

How often do local suppliers win?
i

How often local firms win similar work.

Winners with a registered address in the delivery region, out of awards with a known address.

Local means the winner is registered in the region where that award was delivered.

A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.

Last 36 months.

Buyer: 155 of 189 known-location awards · market: CPV 3311 · UK-wide, n=31
82%10%

Most of this buyer’s recorded winners were registered in the region where that award was delivered.

How long to a decision?
i

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.

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

Last 36 months.

Buyer: 10 decided notices · market: division 33 · UK-wide, n=106
44 days55 days

Half of these awards have an award date within 44 days of the bid deadline.

How often single-bid or direct?
i

How often work is awarded with no recorded rival.

Direct awards and tenders where every published lot count shows one bid.

The market share is a minimum: some awards have no bid count.

Thin markets produce this too; it is not proof of a tailored specification.

Last 36 months.

Buyer: 28 procurements with awards; rival share unknown · market: CPV 3311 · UK-wide, n=16
—88%

Awards are recorded, but published direct routes and bid counts do not establish this buyer’s share.

How many bids did past lots attract?

i

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.

Last 36 months.

This buyer33 lots with bid counts · all categories
9% had one bid
The market469 lots with bid counts · division 33 · UK-wide
11% had one bid
Buyer / market · select a colour for counts
1 bid9% / 11%
Buyer: 3 of 33 lots with published bid counts. Market: 50 of 469 lots with published bid counts.
2–327% / 21%
Buyer: 9 of 33 lots with published bid counts. Market: 99 of 469 lots with published bid counts.
4–624% / 31%
Buyer: 8 of 33 lots with published bid counts. Market: 147 of 469 lots with published bid counts.
7+39% / 37%
Buyer: 13 of 33 lots with published bid counts. Market: 173 of 469 lots with published bid counts.

How did awards compare with estimates?

i

Where winning prices landed against estimates.

Each colour shows awards below, close to or above the published estimate, one lot at a time.

On a framework or DPS, prices are agreed when work is called off.

Past prices are a guide, not a bid price.

Last 36 months.

Not comparable on a framework or DPS: the price is set later, on each call-off.

2

Assess each lot
i

What past awards tell you about each lot.

See the forecast, this buyer’s earlier suppliers and firms with relevant wins.

No supplier is confirmed as a bidder.

Open a lot for its forecast, this buyer’s previous supplier and possible competitors, from published award history, not a bid list

Lot #1CPV 331124 monthsSME suitablePublished estimate£10m

The notice lists UK and non-UK delivery areas for this lot. The figures below use UK market history and may not describe competition across every area.

Expected competition
i

How many bids this lot may attract.

The forecast uses similar past competitions. The bar shows either that forecast or past bid counts; the line below says which.

Each lot shows its own forecast based on its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative. Published delivery includes UK and non-UK areas, so the UK model may not describe every area. The bar shows 469 past lots.

A forecast, not a list of bidders.

—No model forecast yet11% chance of a single bid
Past bids on 469 similar lots
1 bid11%
50 of 469 similar past lots received 1 bid (11%).
2–321%
99 of 469 similar past lots received 2–3 (21%).
4–631%
147 of 469 similar past lots received 4–6 (31%).
7+37%
173 of 469 similar past lots received 7+ (37%).
Comparable past lots usually drew 5 bids.
Commercial price forecast
i

Where the award price may land.

The forecast uses similar awards and the buyer’s estimate. The band covers the middle half of likely prices.

No comparable awards for this lot yet.

A statistical guide from past awards, not a price to bid.

—Priced at call-off
On a framework or DPS the price is agreed on each call-off, so there is no award price to forecast here: the published figure is a ceiling.

Who has supplied this buyer on similar work?
i

Who has done similar work for this buyer.

Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.

A past supplier may not bid again.

No earlier contract of this buyer matches this lot on the published record.

Who could compete for this lot?
i

Who could compete for this lot?

Firms with relevant past wins. On a framework, we show firms on that agreement.

None is confirmed as a bidder.

Candidate suppliers for this notice have not been worked out yet, so this is not a verdict that nobody fits.

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.
  • Two views, kept apart. The authority’s own track record and the wider market for the same kind of work sit side by side and are never mixed. Where the local picture is too thin, a figure widens to a broader market and says which one it used.
  • Forecasts are labelled. The price forecast and its range, possible competitors and the earlier-work matches are our estimates from past awards: not published facts, not win chances and not price advice. Official notices do not say who is bidding.
  • 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.

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Goods
Notice status
Planned procurement
Procurement threshold
Above threshold (FTS publication)
Regulatory regime
Standard
Commercial structure
Dynamic market
Who may use this agreement
Any qualifying supplier may apply while the market is open
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Unspecified in notice
Recurring procurement
Unspecified in notice
First published
28 Oct 2026, 13:54 GMT
Last source update
28 Oct 2026, 14:01 GMT
Authority reference
DM/01/MRI/26/JH
FTS notice number
2026/S 000-102111
Latest notice
Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
Classification (CPV)
Magnetic resonance imaging equipment
Delivery area in notice
Guernsey (GG)Isle of Man (IM)Jersey (JE)UK
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-079278 Find a Tender

How it was run

Official notice
Admission period ends
—

Timeline

28 Oct 2026 → 1 Feb 2027 · 3 dates
  1. Planning notice published31h ago
    28 Oct 2026, 13:54 GMT
  2. Today
    29 Oct 2026
  3. Market engagementin 13 days
    11 Nov 2026, 23:59 GMT

    The purpose of this engagement notice is to invite suppliers to participate in preliminary market engagement with a view to developing the Authority's requirements and preparing tender documents. Suppliers participating in this market consultation are not guaranteed to receive either an Invitation to Tender (if Invitations to Tender are issued), or a place on any Dynamic Market which may be awarded following an Invitation to Tender.

    Please fill out the form at forms.cloud.microsoft/e/Y5MB7FZU8k ↗ to express interest in taking part in this market engagement process. We will then be in contact to arrange the next steps.

  4. Contract startsin 94 days
    1 Feb 2027

Notice history

2 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 28 Oct 2026
  1. Preliminary market engagement notice published
    28 Oct 2026, 13:54 GMT
    UK2
  2. Preliminary market engagement notice published
    28 Oct 2026, 14:01 GMT
    UK2

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Pipeline notice
Awards (0)
No award published
Contracts (0)
No contract published
Bid statistics
No aggregate bid statistics published

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

COUNTESS OF CHESTER HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUST

Contracting authorityPublic authority - central government GB-NHS: RJR · GB-PPON: PGCG-2135-TXWL Liverpool Road, Chester, North West, CH2 1ULContact email

Official documents & specifications (2)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Notices published for this procedure