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Official procurement procedure
Mechanical Cryostat for Characterisation of Advanced Materials Down to 4K
Laboratory
optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses)
UK
Published value
Not published
Submission deadline Not published
Lots published1
Procurement Executive Summary
AI & Search Synopsis
Generated from official OCDS record
Tenderline Synopsis: National Physical Laboratory: "Mechanical Cryostat for Characterisation of Advanced Materials Down to 4K". Published status: complete. Published value: Value not published. 1 published lot. Submission deadline not published. See the official notice for participation instructions.
| Contracting Authority | National Physical Laboratory | Scope & Categories | Not published | Submission Window | complete No deadline published |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Submission Gateway | Direct notice route | Legal Basis & Regime | Standard procurement | Estimated Value (exc. VAT) | Not published |
Bidder Intelligence · Authority Profile: National Physical Laboratory
Market Analytics
Derived from OCDS awards & bid statistics
Published history for National Physical Laboratory. These figures describe retained records, not a forecast of bids or a measure of buyer bias.
Published-to-award variance
Not availableInsufficient comparable data
Competition Density
3.5Bids / Report
Supplier ConcentrationNo estimate
Insufficient attributable awardsNo concentration estimate availablePayment Terms
Check noticePublished terms
Coverage: 59 active published awards; 23 bid reports (which may be per lot). Supplier values exclude multi-supplier awards, frameworks and DPS, and use GBP only. They are published award values, not payments. Published-to-award variance compares single-lot, single-award, single-supplier GBP procedures with explicitly non-framework/non-DPS status; increases remain in the average. Unpublished data stays unknown. Awarded suppliers are winners, not all bidders.
Procedure terms
Contracting AuthorityNational Physical Laboratory | Procedure methodNot published | Procurement categoryNot published |
Statuscomplete | Framework / DPSNot published | CompetitionNot published |
Above thresholdNot published | Legal basisNot published | Tender period startsNot published |
Clarification deadlineNot published | Electronic submissionNot published | Submission languagesNot published |
Published31 Oct 2022, 10:49 GMT | Last source update31 Oct 2022, 10:49 GMT | Recurring procurementNot published |
ClassificationLaboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses) | ||
Delivery area UK | ||
OCIDocds-h6vhtk-037d8e | ||
What is being bought
A cryogenic mechanical test station comprising of a 250 kN hydraulic test frame and a 250 kN load rated cryostat. The cryostat must be suitable for mechanical testing at 4K by immersing test rigs in liquid helium, at 20K in gaseous helium, at 77K in liquid nitrogen and room temperature. The mechanical test frame must have a top mounted hydraulic actuator with sufficient working distance to enable the halves of the cryostat to be separated on specimen removal and loading. Liquid helium and liquid nitrogen dewar feeds are required.
What changed
From the official release history
- Status changed to complete
31 Oct 2022, 10:49 GMT - Official notice release published
31 Oct 2022, 10:49 GMT - Buyer information updated
31 Oct 2022, 10:49 GMT
Lots and requirements (1)
Published by the contracting authority
- Lot 1 · #1Individual lot title not publishedStatus not publishedPublished valueNot publishedA 250 kN Servo Hydraulic Fatigue 2 column test system with actuator in crosshead with stroke of ±75mm. The test system should have a 1200 mm Tee slot table @590 mm from the floor. Height should provide at least 2690 mm working distance between table and underside of crosshead. Fitted with telescopic lift cylinders. Actuator displacement measurement accuracy of better than ±0.2% of transducer full travel. Load measurement accuracy to 1/250th of loadcell full scale. Adaptive control system allowing continuous update of PID settings at 1 kHz. Control loop update (10 kHz) on call control axes and continuous synchronous data acquisition at 10 kHz on all sensor channels. Mixed-mode control technology allowing bi-modal and tri-modal control techniques to be used. Mechanical test system fitted with a 250 kN fully Reverse-Cycle-Fatigue-Cryostat consisting of a self-reacting load frame and cryogenic test chamber that mounts to the underside of the test machine’s upper crosshead. The cryostat should be suitable for quasi-static and mechanical testing at fixed point temperatures of 295 K, 77 K and 4 K. The cryostat should include hardware necessary to conduct temperature-controlled tests at intermediate test temperatures in the range from 20 K to 300 K. Cryostat and test fixturing must be instrumented with temperature sensors and resistive heating elements. A four channel PID temperature controller should be provided to monitor the specimen and chamber temperature and to supply the heating power.Contract periodNot publishedEligibilityNot publishedOptions / renewalNot published
Timeline
- Procedure published
31 Oct 2022, 10:49 GMT - Award active
Not published · Not published - Contract active
Signed 31 Oct 2022, 00:00 GMT · £318,000
Commercial outcome and competition
Awards Instron Not published · Not published · active |
Contracts Contract £318,000 · signed 31 Oct 2022, 00:00 GMT · active |
Bid statisticsNo aggregate bid statistics published |
Buyer and organisations in this procedure
National Physical Laboratory
Contracting authority GB-FTS-155Documents (0)
Official links; attachments are not copied
No linked documents are published
Related procedures (0)
No related procedures published
Planning and rationale
Planning budgetNot published |
No-engagement rationaleNot published |
Procedure rationaleInstron is the only vendor that can provide a servo-hydraulic test system that is fully compatible with the existing mechanical test infrastructure within the Mechanical Test Facility at NPL. This specifically relates to existing Instron hardware (test frames, adaptors, fixtures, fittings and load cells) and software, as well as coverage under existing maintenance and calibration contracts.
Unique features of the Materials Reliability cryostat include:
(i) the cryostat is thermally and economically efficient for cryogenic tests at 4 K. Its low mass and heat load are key elements responsible for its cryogenic thermal efficiency.
(ii) The RCF test cryostat is extremely versatile regarding types of materials and test specimens that can be tested and has common threaded adapters that provide simple adaptation to different specimen styles.
(iii) The cryostat is designed with concentric indexing, axial alignment and zero backlash features to meet the demanding requirements of fully-reverse-cycle fatigue test specifications.
(iv) The cryostat has a 4-channel commercial cryogenic temperature controller and hardware to provide specimen test temperature control to ± 1K at 20 K in gaseous helium environment
(v) The cryogenic chamber is designed to operate with specimen in a positive pressure (up to 0.5 bar) sealed environment. The proven pressure seals enable the efficient use of liquid or gaseous helium with a controlled vent system to enable the capture of spent helium gas.
(vi) The system has a feedthrough spool assembly with 6 ports;
a. (2) liquid cryogen ports (1 ea. fill and exhaust ports)
b. (2) 25 mm quick connect o-ring seal ports
c. (2) 38 mm dia clearance feedthroughs ports with KF flange seal-off |