Laboratory Medicine Building Queen Elizabeth University Hospital Campus Obsolete BEMS Replacement – Phase 2

NHS GG&C require the Building Energy Management System (BEMS) at the Laboratory Medicine Building Queen Elizabeth University Hospital Campus to be upgraded to meet the criteria detailed with the BRE Energy Management and Building Controls briefing paper. This means that a full ’turnkey’ project encompassing a fully designed, supplied, installed and commissioning of the project is needing to be delivered. The project will upgrade the existing control installation including the design of revised control strategies, supply and installation of new controls panels along with all required sensors, hardware & software to allow the BEMS to be a managed protocol, remotely accessible system which meets the full criteria of “Class A” of the BRE paper is required. This will need to be completed by End March 2024 to meet financial deadlines imposed by the Scottish Government.

There are 4 distinct systems involved with the BEMS project at the Laboratory Medicine Building Queen Elizabeth University Hospital Campus Namely, Andover Continuum, Schneider KNX, EcoStruxure Building Operation, and Schneider Power Monitoring Expert.

The project will involve concurrent work across each of these systems and software integration to manage the interfacing of data points.

Recognised manufacturer accreditation of all systems, including the software tools for configuration, and access to software licenses, is a requirement of the project. NHS GGC believe Schneider Electric, as the manufacturer are the only organisation able to meet this criteria.

Furthermore, as the site is a complex and live healthcare environment, sound working knowledge of the installed systems and their hosted plant is essential to minimise the risk of unforeseen downtime impacting patient care services. Schneider Electric installed the systems when the building was originally constructed, and, as the incumbent, has operated and maintained the building controls systems since. NHS GGC believe is the only organisation able to demonstrate manufacturer qualified staff, in all of the required disciplines and systems, with access to the required software engineering tools and support, and in-depth knowledge of the building and current controls installation.

Consequently awarding to another supplier would cost a significant amount money and disruption to NHSGGC Staff and Patients. Therefore the best course of action to insure compliance with procurement regulations, and ensure the installation building energy controls is provide by the timescales stated ,is to publish a voluntary ex ante transparency (VEAT) notice.