← Back to search results

planningFind a Tender · planning Update

Natural History Museum - Bulk Storage Solution

Buyer: Natural History Museum →

BuyerNatural History Museum
Statusplanning
DeadlineNot published
Value£0
Published22 Jun 2026

What is being bought

The Natural History Museum ("NHM") intends to initiate a procurement exercise in 2026 for a modern, cloud-aligned Bulk Data Storage and Lifecycle Management Solution to deliver scalable capacity that meets growing research demand and aligns with the Museum's digital transformation strategy. The solution is anticipated to be the primary bulk storage infrastructure supporting over 300 scientists across multiple research domains including CT scanning, bioinformatics, molecular biology, and imaging analysis. We envisage (based on the museums current cloud strategy) , a hybrid architecture with intelligent on-premise caching and cloud-native object storage and archive in AWS, delivered as a fully managed service with multi-tier data lifecycle management and robust access control. The NHM currently intends to undertake a single procurement utilising an outcome-based functional requirements approach. The procurement will seek a comprehensive managed service encompassing both the storage platform infrastructure and ongoing operational support, with the supplier assuming responsibility for 24/7 monitoring, capacity planning, security patching, backup and disaster recovery, and service delivery under contractual Experience Level Agreements (XLAs). Any supplier would need to be certified to ISO27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus. This Preliminary Market Engagement Notice relates to the development of the solution as a unified managed service procurement. The NHM is seeking supplier engagement to validate requirements, explore innovative approaches to outcome-based service delivery, and inform commercial models including consumption-based pricing, XLAs and meaningful KPIs, and leased equipment options. This notice is solely for the purpose of engaging the market to gather information. It does not constitute a call for competition or form part of a competitive process. Participation in this engagement will not confer any advantage or disadvantage in any future procurement, nor will it bind the NHM to proceed with any specific course or action. For more information about this opportunity, please visit the Delta eSourcing portal at: https://www.delta-esourcing.com/tenders/UK-UK-South-Kensington:-Data-services./YBHX95RYZ2 To respond to this opportunity, please click here: https://www.delta-esourcing.com/respond/YBHX95RYZ2

Categories

Data services 72300000Data storage services 72317000

Lot details

Lot 1

No lot description published.

Statusplanning
Contract periodFrom 1 Jul 2026 to 30 Jun 2031

What is included

ItemCategoryQuantity
1Data services, Data storage servicesNot published

Comparable-procurement analytics

Benchmarked against retained Find a Tender procedures with CPV division 72. The category anchor is Data services (72300000); this is a deliberately broad market comparator. The comparison is shown at several levels rather than pretending one company or region is always the best benchmark.

Comparison setProceduresReported bids per procedureNamed award suppliersPrice evidence
Market: CPV division 725,9791 median · 14.4 average (2,178 of 5,979 with a bid count)1.9 average (2,596 of 5,979 with named award suppliers)Not published
Same buyer0Not publishedNot publishedNot published

“Reported bids” is an official aggregate, sometimes reported per lot; it is the closest available competition measure. “Named award suppliers” are winners, not all applicants.

Price-outcome signal

Not enough comparable procedures currently publish both a GBP tender value and a usable lowest-valid-bid value to calculate a responsible price-reduction benchmark. Tenderline deliberately does not infer a saving from named award suppliers or from missing award values.

Procurement strategy & market signals

Framework agreementNot published
Dynamic purchasing systemNot published
Competitive procurementNot published
Recurring requirementNot published
Procurement method rationaleNot published
Rationale classificationsNot published
Special regimeNot published
Covered byNot published
Submission policyNot published
Selection criteriaNot published
Risk detailsNot published

Planning & early market engagement

BudgetValue not published
No-engagement rationaleNot published
Planning documents1
Planning milestones1
MilestoneTypeDueStatus
The engagement will take place via collection of information via a questionnaire accessible via an e-tendering portal. The NHM is seeking supplier engagement to validate requirements, explore innovative approaches to outcome-based service delivery, and inform commercial models including consumption-based pricing, XLAs and meaningful KPIs, and leased equipment options. This notice is solely for the purpose of engaging the market to gather information. It does not constitute a call for competition or form part of a competitive process. Participation in this engagement will not confer any advantage or disadvantage in any future procurement, nor will it bind the NHM to proceed with any specific course or action.engagement12 Jan 2026scheduled

Related procurements

No linked framework, prior procurement or reprocurement published.

Documents & submission route

Source data inventory

Diagnostic view. “Not published” means this current release does not provide a value.

OCIDocds-h6vhtk-05f247
Latest release ID058682-2026
Latest release timestampMon Jun 22 2026 15:52:13 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)
Sourcefind-a-tender
Official notice URLNot published
Tender statusplanning
Procurement methodNot published
Procurement method detailsNot published
Main procurement categoryservices
Above thresholdYes
Legal basis2023/54
Tender period: startNot published
Tender period: endNot published
Expression of interest deadlineNot published
Enquiry deadlineNot published
Award period: startNot published
Award period: endNot published
Submission method detailsNot published
Submission languagesNot published
Electronic catalogue policyNot published
Total tender value£0
Tender lots in source1
Tender items in source1
Tender documents in source0
Awards in latest release0
Contracts in latest release0
Parties in latest release1

Notice history

DateEventReference
22 Jun 2026planningUpdate058682-2026
9 Dec 2025planning081263-2025

All source data

Unmodified official OCDS data retained by Tenderline for this procurement process.

Complete current OCDS release JSON
{
  "id": "058682-2026",
  "tag": [
    "planningUpdate"
  ],
  "date": "2026-06-22T16:52:13+01:00",
  "ocid": "ocds-h6vhtk-05f247",
  "buyer": {
    "id": "GB-PPON-PJBJ-4723-MZPX",
    "name": "Natural History Museum"
  },
  "tender": {
    "id": "ocds-h6vhtk-05f247",
    "lots": [
      {
        "id": "1",
        "status": "planning",
        "hasRenewal": true,
        "contractPeriod": {
          "endDate": "2031-06-30T23:59:59+01:00",
          "startDate": "2026-07-01T00:00:00+01:00",
          "maxExtentDate": "2033-06-30T23:59:59+01:00"
        }
      }
    ],
    "items": [
      {
        "id": "1",
        "relatedLot": "1",
        "additionalClassifications": [
          {
            "id": "72300000",
            "scheme": "CPV",
            "description": "Data services"
          },
          {
            "id": "72317000",
            "scheme": "CPV",
            "description": "Data storage services"
          }
        ]
      }
    ],
    "title": "Natural History Museum - Bulk Storage Solution",
    "value": {
      "amount": 0,
      "currency": "GBP",
      "amountGross": 0
    },
    "status": "planning",
    "amendments": [
      {
        "id": "058682-2026",
        "description": "Update to Preliminary Market Engagement Notice\nFollowing completion of the preliminary market engagement exercise, the Natural History Museum has reviewed the information received and considered the most appropriate route to market for this requirement.\nNHM now intends to progress the requirement through Lot 4a of the CCS Technology Services 4 framework agreement (RM6190) and the framework's competitive selection process, rather than by commencing a standalone competitive tender procedure.\nThis update does not alter the purpose of this notice, which was published for preliminary market engagement only. The notice does not constitute a call for competition and does not bind NHM to any specific procurement route, timetable or award decision. Any future competition will be conducted in accordance with the rules and terms of the Technology Services 4 framework and will be open only to suppliers appointed to Lot 4a.\nSuppliers who participated in the preliminary market engagement are thanked for their input. The information received has helped NHM refine its requirement and route to market strategy."
      }
    ],
    "legalBasis": {
      "id": "2023/54",
      "uri": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents",
      "scheme": "UKPGA"
    },
    "description": "The Natural History Museum (\"NHM\") intends to initiate a procurement exercise in 2026 for a modern, cloud-aligned Bulk Data Storage and Lifecycle Management Solution to deliver scalable capacity that meets growing research demand and aligns with the Museum's digital transformation strategy. The solution is anticipated to be the primary bulk storage infrastructure supporting over 300 scientists across multiple research domains including CT scanning, bioinformatics, molecular biology, and imaging analysis. We envisage (based on the museums current cloud strategy)  , a hybrid architecture with intelligent on-premise caching and cloud-native object storage and archive in AWS, delivered as a fully managed service with multi-tier data lifecycle management  and robust access control.\nThe NHM currently intends to undertake a single procurement utilising an outcome-based functional requirements approach. The procurement will seek a comprehensive managed service encompassing both the storage platform infrastructure and ongoing operational support, with the supplier assuming responsibility for 24/7 monitoring, capacity planning, security patching, backup and disaster recovery, and service delivery under contractual Experience Level Agreements (XLAs). Any supplier would need to be certified to ISO27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus.\nThis Preliminary Market Engagement Notice relates to the development of the solution as a unified managed service procurement. The NHM is seeking supplier engagement to validate requirements, explore innovative approaches to outcome-based service delivery, and inform commercial models including consumption-based pricing, XLAs and meaningful KPIs, and leased equipment options.\nThis notice is solely for the purpose of engaging the market to gather information. It does not constitute a call for competition or form part of a competitive process. Participation in this engagement will not confer any advantage or disadvantage in any future procurement, nor will it bind the NHM to proceed with any specific course or action.\nFor more information about this opportunity, please visit the Delta eSourcing portal at:\nhttps://www.delta-esourcing.com/tenders/UK-UK-South-Kensington:-Data-services./YBHX95RYZ2\nTo respond to this opportunity, please click here:\nhttps://www.delta-esourcing.com/respond/YBHX95RYZ2",
    "aboveThreshold": true,
    "mainProcurementCategory": "services"
  },
  "parties": [
    {
      "id": "GB-PPON-PJBJ-4723-MZPX",
      "name": "Natural History Museum",
      "roles": [
        "buyer"
      ],
      "address": {
        "region": "UKI33",
        "country": "GB",
        "locality": "South Kensington",
        "postalCode": "SW7 5BD",
        "countryName": "United Kingdom",
        "streetAddress": "Cromwell Road"
      },
      "details": {
        "classifications": [
          {
            "id": "publicAuthorityCentralGovernment",
            "scheme": "UK_CA_TYPE",
            "description": "Public authority - central government"
          }
        ]
      },
      "identifier": {
        "id": "PJBJ-4723-MZPX",
        "scheme": "GB-PPON"
      },
      "contactPoint": {
        "email": "s-TS-Procurement-Forms@nhm.ac.uk"
      }
    }
  ],
  "language": "en",
  "planning": {
    "documents": [
      {
        "id": "058682-2026",
        "url": "https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/058682-2026",
        "format": "text/html",
        "noticeType": "UK2",
        "description": "Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender",
        "documentType": "marketEngagementNotice",
        "datePublished": "2026-06-22T16:52:13+01:00"
      }
    ],
    "milestones": [
      {
        "id": "engagement",
        "type": "engagement",
        "status": "scheduled",
        "dueDate": "2026-01-12T23:59:59Z",
        "description": "The engagement will take place via collection of information via a questionnaire accessible via an e-tendering portal. The NHM is seeking supplier engagement to validate requirements, explore innovative approaches to outcome-based service delivery, and inform commercial models including consumption-based pricing, XLAs and meaningful KPIs, and leased equipment options.\nThis notice is solely for the purpose of engaging the market to gather information. It does not constitute a call for competition or form part of a competitive process. Participation in this engagement will not confer any advantage or disadvantage in any future procurement, nor will it bind the NHM to proceed with any specific course or action."
      }
    ]
  },
  "initiationType": "tender"
}
Complete JSON history (2 releases)
22 Jun 2026 · 058682-2026 · planningUpdate
{
  "id": "058682-2026",
  "tag": [
    "planningUpdate"
  ],
  "date": "2026-06-22T16:52:13+01:00",
  "ocid": "ocds-h6vhtk-05f247",
  "buyer": {
    "id": "GB-PPON-PJBJ-4723-MZPX",
    "name": "Natural History Museum"
  },
  "tender": {
    "id": "ocds-h6vhtk-05f247",
    "lots": [
      {
        "id": "1",
        "status": "planning",
        "hasRenewal": true,
        "contractPeriod": {
          "endDate": "2031-06-30T23:59:59+01:00",
          "startDate": "2026-07-01T00:00:00+01:00",
          "maxExtentDate": "2033-06-30T23:59:59+01:00"
        }
      }
    ],
    "items": [
      {
        "id": "1",
        "relatedLot": "1",
        "additionalClassifications": [
          {
            "id": "72300000",
            "scheme": "CPV",
            "description": "Data services"
          },
          {
            "id": "72317000",
            "scheme": "CPV",
            "description": "Data storage services"
          }
        ]
      }
    ],
    "title": "Natural History Museum - Bulk Storage Solution",
    "value": {
      "amount": 0,
      "currency": "GBP",
      "amountGross": 0
    },
    "status": "planning",
    "amendments": [
      {
        "id": "058682-2026",
        "description": "Update to Preliminary Market Engagement Notice\nFollowing completion of the preliminary market engagement exercise, the Natural History Museum has reviewed the information received and considered the most appropriate route to market for this requirement.\nNHM now intends to progress the requirement through Lot 4a of the CCS Technology Services 4 framework agreement (RM6190) and the framework's competitive selection process, rather than by commencing a standalone competitive tender procedure.\nThis update does not alter the purpose of this notice, which was published for preliminary market engagement only. The notice does not constitute a call for competition and does not bind NHM to any specific procurement route, timetable or award decision. Any future competition will be conducted in accordance with the rules and terms of the Technology Services 4 framework and will be open only to suppliers appointed to Lot 4a.\nSuppliers who participated in the preliminary market engagement are thanked for their input. The information received has helped NHM refine its requirement and route to market strategy."
      }
    ],
    "legalBasis": {
      "id": "2023/54",
      "uri": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents",
      "scheme": "UKPGA"
    },
    "description": "The Natural History Museum (\"NHM\") intends to initiate a procurement exercise in 2026 for a modern, cloud-aligned Bulk Data Storage and Lifecycle Management Solution to deliver scalable capacity that meets growing research demand and aligns with the Museum's digital transformation strategy. The solution is anticipated to be the primary bulk storage infrastructure supporting over 300 scientists across multiple research domains including CT scanning, bioinformatics, molecular biology, and imaging analysis. We envisage (based on the museums current cloud strategy)  , a hybrid architecture with intelligent on-premise caching and cloud-native object storage and archive in AWS, delivered as a fully managed service with multi-tier data lifecycle management  and robust access control.\nThe NHM currently intends to undertake a single procurement utilising an outcome-based functional requirements approach. The procurement will seek a comprehensive managed service encompassing both the storage platform infrastructure and ongoing operational support, with the supplier assuming responsibility for 24/7 monitoring, capacity planning, security patching, backup and disaster recovery, and service delivery under contractual Experience Level Agreements (XLAs). Any supplier would need to be certified to ISO27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus.\nThis Preliminary Market Engagement Notice relates to the development of the solution as a unified managed service procurement. The NHM is seeking supplier engagement to validate requirements, explore innovative approaches to outcome-based service delivery, and inform commercial models including consumption-based pricing, XLAs and meaningful KPIs, and leased equipment options.\nThis notice is solely for the purpose of engaging the market to gather information. It does not constitute a call for competition or form part of a competitive process. Participation in this engagement will not confer any advantage or disadvantage in any future procurement, nor will it bind the NHM to proceed with any specific course or action.\nFor more information about this opportunity, please visit the Delta eSourcing portal at:\nhttps://www.delta-esourcing.com/tenders/UK-UK-South-Kensington:-Data-services./YBHX95RYZ2\nTo respond to this opportunity, please click here:\nhttps://www.delta-esourcing.com/respond/YBHX95RYZ2",
    "aboveThreshold": true,
    "mainProcurementCategory": "services"
  },
  "parties": [
    {
      "id": "GB-PPON-PJBJ-4723-MZPX",
      "name": "Natural History Museum",
      "roles": [
        "buyer"
      ],
      "address": {
        "region": "UKI33",
        "country": "GB",
        "locality": "South Kensington",
        "postalCode": "SW7 5BD",
        "countryName": "United Kingdom",
        "streetAddress": "Cromwell Road"
      },
      "details": {
        "classifications": [
          {
            "id": "publicAuthorityCentralGovernment",
            "scheme": "UK_CA_TYPE",
            "description": "Public authority - central government"
          }
        ]
      },
      "identifier": {
        "id": "PJBJ-4723-MZPX",
        "scheme": "GB-PPON"
      },
      "contactPoint": {
        "email": "s-TS-Procurement-Forms@nhm.ac.uk"
      }
    }
  ],
  "language": "en",
  "planning": {
    "documents": [
      {
        "id": "058682-2026",
        "url": "https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/058682-2026",
        "format": "text/html",
        "noticeType": "UK2",
        "description": "Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender",
        "documentType": "marketEngagementNotice",
        "datePublished": "2026-06-22T16:52:13+01:00"
      }
    ],
    "milestones": [
      {
        "id": "engagement",
        "type": "engagement",
        "status": "scheduled",
        "dueDate": "2026-01-12T23:59:59Z",
        "description": "The engagement will take place via collection of information via a questionnaire accessible via an e-tendering portal. The NHM is seeking supplier engagement to validate requirements, explore innovative approaches to outcome-based service delivery, and inform commercial models including consumption-based pricing, XLAs and meaningful KPIs, and leased equipment options.\nThis notice is solely for the purpose of engaging the market to gather information. It does not constitute a call for competition or form part of a competitive process. Participation in this engagement will not confer any advantage or disadvantage in any future procurement, nor will it bind the NHM to proceed with any specific course or action."
      }
    ]
  },
  "initiationType": "tender"
}
9 Dec 2025 · 081263-2025 · planning
{
  "id": "081263-2025",
  "tag": [
    "planning"
  ],
  "date": "2025-12-09T19:05:46Z",
  "ocid": "ocds-h6vhtk-05f247",
  "buyer": {
    "id": "GB-PPON-PJBJ-4723-MZPX",
    "name": "Natural History Museum"
  },
  "tender": {
    "id": "ocds-h6vhtk-05f247",
    "lots": [
      {
        "id": "1",
        "status": "planning",
        "hasRenewal": true,
        "contractPeriod": {
          "endDate": "2031-06-30T23:59:59+01:00",
          "startDate": "2026-07-01T00:00:00+01:00",
          "maxExtentDate": "2033-06-30T23:59:59+01:00"
        }
      }
    ],
    "items": [
      {
        "id": "1",
        "relatedLot": "1",
        "additionalClassifications": [
          {
            "id": "72300000",
            "scheme": "CPV",
            "description": "Data services"
          },
          {
            "id": "72317000",
            "scheme": "CPV",
            "description": "Data storage services"
          }
        ]
      }
    ],
    "title": "Natural History Museum - Bulk Storage Solution",
    "value": {
      "amount": 0,
      "currency": "GBP",
      "amountGross": 0
    },
    "status": "planning",
    "legalBasis": {
      "id": "2023/54",
      "uri": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents",
      "scheme": "UKPGA"
    },
    "description": "The Natural History Museum (\"NHM\") intends to initiate a procurement exercise in 2026 for a modern, cloud-aligned Bulk Data Storage and Lifecycle Management Solution to deliver scalable capacity that meets growing research demand and aligns with the Museum's digital transformation strategy. The solution is anticipated to be the primary bulk storage infrastructure supporting over 300 scientists across multiple research domains including CT scanning, bioinformatics, molecular biology, and imaging analysis. We envisage (based on the museums current cloud strategy)  , a hybrid architecture with intelligent on-premise caching and cloud-native object storage and archive in AWS, delivered as a fully managed service with multi-tier data lifecycle management  and robust access control.\nThe NHM currently intends to undertake a single procurement utilising an outcome-based functional requirements approach. The procurement will seek a comprehensive managed service encompassing both the storage platform infrastructure and ongoing operational support, with the supplier assuming responsibility for 24/7 monitoring, capacity planning, security patching, backup and disaster recovery, and service delivery under contractual Experience Level Agreements (XLAs). Any supplier would need to be certified to ISO27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus.\nThis Preliminary Market Engagement Notice relates to the development of the solution as a unified managed service procurement. The NHM is seeking supplier engagement to validate requirements, explore innovative approaches to outcome-based service delivery, and inform commercial models including consumption-based pricing, XLAs and meaningful KPIs, and leased equipment options.\nThis notice is solely for the purpose of engaging the market to gather information. It does not constitute a call for competition or form part of a competitive process. Participation in this engagement will not confer any advantage or disadvantage in any future procurement, nor will it bind the NHM to proceed with any specific course or action.\nFor more information about this opportunity, please visit the Delta eSourcing portal at: \nhttps://www.delta-esourcing.com/tenders/UK-UK-South-Kensington:-Data-services./YBHX95RYZ2\nTo respond to this opportunity, please click here: \nhttps://www.delta-esourcing.com/respond/YBHX95RYZ2",
    "aboveThreshold": true,
    "mainProcurementCategory": "services"
  },
  "parties": [
    {
      "id": "GB-PPON-PJBJ-4723-MZPX",
      "name": "Natural History Museum",
      "roles": [
        "buyer"
      ],
      "address": {
        "region": "UKI33",
        "country": "GB",
        "locality": "South Kensington",
        "postalCode": "SW7 5BD",
        "countryName": "United Kingdom",
        "streetAddress": "Cromwell Road"
      },
      "details": {
        "classifications": [
          {
            "id": "publicAuthorityCentralGovernment",
            "scheme": "UK_CA_TYPE",
            "description": "Public authority - central government"
          }
        ]
      },
      "identifier": {
        "id": "PJBJ-4723-MZPX",
        "scheme": "GB-PPON"
      },
      "contactPoint": {
        "email": "s-TS-Procurement-Forms@nhm.ac.uk"
      }
    }
  ],
  "language": "en",
  "planning": {
    "documents": [
      {
        "id": "081263-2025",
        "url": "https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/081263-2025",
        "format": "text/html",
        "noticeType": "UK2",
        "description": "Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender",
        "documentType": "marketEngagementNotice",
        "datePublished": "2025-12-09T19:05:46Z"
      }
    ],
    "milestones": [
      {
        "id": "engagement",
        "type": "engagement",
        "status": "scheduled",
        "dueDate": "2026-01-12T23:59:59+00:00",
        "description": "The engagement will take place via collection of information via a questionnaire accessible via an e-tendering portal. The NHM is seeking supplier engagement to validate requirements, explore innovative approaches to outcome-based service delivery, and inform commercial models including consumption-based pricing, XLAs and meaningful KPIs, and leased equipment options. \nThis notice is solely for the purpose of engaging the market to gather information. It does not constitute a call for competition or form part of a competitive process. Participation in this engagement will not confer any advantage or disadvantage in any future procurement, nor will it bind the NHM to proceed with any specific course or action."
      }
    ]
  },
  "initiationType": "tender"
}