Official UK procurement notice
Plant Servicing, Inspection, Maintenance and Repair (SIMAR)
Authority: ENVIRONMENT AGENCY (Public body)·On behalf of: DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionDefra have a requirement for the provision of Servicing, Inspection, Maintenance and Repair (SIMAR) services for Plant assets.
- The authority expects to re-tender this requirement around 13 Feb 2032, 23:59 GMT.
- How the procedure runs: This Competitive Flexible Procedure will not use a down-select stage but will include an optional stage after the tender process has been completed. The authority reserves the right to reissue the technical evaluation questions, pricing schedule, or any part thereof to the two highest scoring bidders, or any other bidder that has scored within 3% (total score) of the highest scoring bidder, for a Best and Final Offer (BAFO). This will allow bidders to incorporate any feedback from the Evaluation Stage 5 evaluation. This is an optional stage for the Authority to ensure that the Most Advantageous Tender is selected, that the requirement has been fully understood, and that bidders are provided a fair chance to compete where the Authority does not feel ready to award after Evaluation Stage 5 evaluation. Bidders should submit their best possible tender and price in the first instance, as it is not guaranteed that this stage will be used.
CPV: Fleet management, repair and maintenance services · Repair and maintenance of plant · Repair and maintenance services · Vehicle-fleet management services · Vehicle-fleet-support services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedWhat it takes to wini
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 morei
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).
Published sub-criteria (3)
- Technical Envelope - Technical Specification Questions: 30%
- Commercial Envelope: 50%
- Technical Envelope - Sustainability Specification Questions: 20%
Published award criteria (3)
- Technical Envelope - Technical Specification Questions
- Technical Envelope - Sustainability Specification Questions
- Commercial Envelope
- Price carries 50 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 5 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
- Services
- Notice status
- Awarded
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Yes (GPA)
- Recurring procurement
- Yes · next expected 13 Feb 2032
- First published
- 1 Apr 2025, 16:11 BST
- Last source update
- 5 Aug 2026, 16:36 BST
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 27 Apr 2026
- Authority reference
C34216- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-078768- Latest notice
- Contract details notice (UK7)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-04fb8bFind a Tender
- How it runs
This Competitive Flexible Procedure will not use a down-select stage but will include an optional stage after the tender process has been completed. The authority reserves the right to reissue the technical evaluation questions, pricing schedule, or any part thereof to the two highest scoring bidders, or any other bidder that has scored within 3% (total score) of the highest scoring bidder, for a Best and Final Offer (BAFO). This will allow bidders to incorporate any feedback from the Evaluation Stage 5 evaluation.
This is an optional stage for the Authority to ensure that the Most Advantageous Tender is selected, that the requirement has been fully understood, and that bidders are provided a fair chance to compete where the Authority does not feel ready to award after Evaluation Stage 5 evaluation. Bidders should submit their best possible tender and price in the first instance, as it is not guaranteed that this stage will be used.
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- 30 Jan 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- 9 Jan 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
The procurement documents are available for unrestricted and full direct access, free of charge, at defra-family.force.com/s/Welcome ↗
Any questions, requests to participate or tender submissions must be submitted electronically via this portal.
Timeline
1 Apr 2025 → 5 Aug 2026 · 11 dates- Planning notice published1 Apr 2025, 16:11 BST
- Market engagement15 Apr 2025, 23:59 BST
Defra Group Fleet Services (DGFS) is seeking early expressions of interest and pre-market engagement from suppliers for a proposed 3-year contract for the Service, Inspection, Maintenance and Repair (SIMAR) services for its fleet of construction and agricultural plant and equipment across the United Kingdom. If you would like to review and respond to the Request for Information, please email Angelica Ho at [email protected] for a copy of the RFI document. Please note the closing date is Tuesday 15th April 2025 at 5pm.
- Next notice expected14 Jul 2025, 23:59 BST
- Tender notice published323 days ago2 Dec 2025, 10:22 GMT
- Clarification questions by285 days ago9 Jan 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Submission deadline264 days ago30 Jan 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Award decision expected by176 days ago27 Apr 2026, 23:59 BST
- Contract starts163 days ago11 May 2026, 00:00 BST
- Assessment summaries sent161 days ago13 May 2026, 00:00 BST
- Standstill ends151 days ago22 May 2026, 23:59 BST
- Latest notice published76 days ago5 Aug 2026, 16:36 BST
Notice history
14 events · 6 releases on Find a Tender · since 1 Apr 2025- Preliminary market engagement notice published1 Apr 2025, 16:11 BSTUK2
- Tender notice published2 Dec 2025, 10:22 GMTUK4
- Published value updated to £49,000,0002 Dec 2025, 10:22 GMTwas £44,000,000
- Status changed to active2 Dec 2025, 10:22 GMT
- Procurement method changed2 Dec 2025, 10:22 GMT
- Deadline published: 30 Jan 2026, 12:00 GMT2 Dec 2025, 10:22 GMT
- Buyer details updated2 Dec 2025, 10:22 GMT
- Contract award notice published13 May 2026, 11:21 BSTUK6
- Status changed to complete13 May 2026, 11:21 BST
- Contract award notice published13 May 2026, 15:15 BSTUK6
- Contract award notice published22 May 2026, 07:52 BSTUK6
- Contract signature expected25 May 2026, 23:59 BSTscheduled
- Contract signature expected8 Jun 2026, 23:59 BSTscheduled
- Contract details notice published5 Aug 2026, 16:36 BSTUK7
Routine re-releases (6)
- 2026-05: 1 release · 13 May 2026
- 2025-12: 1 release · 2 Dec 2025
- 2025-04: 1 release · 1 Apr 2025
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| PlantexpandSME16 Nov 2026 – 15 Nov 2029 · up to 15 Nov 2032Extensions: 3 x 12 month periods · Options: Option to extend for 3 x 12 month periods | £46,943,709same award published again · counted once | 8 May 2026standstill to 22 May 2026 | Standstill |
| PlantexpandSME16 Nov 2026 – 15 Nov 2029 · up to 15 Nov 2032Extensions: 3 x 12 month periods · Options: Option to extend for 3 x 12 month periods | £46,943,709same award published again · counted once | 8 May 2026 | Awarded |
| PlantexpandSME16 Nov 2026 – 15 Nov 2029 · up to 15 Nov 2032Extensions: 3 x 12 month periods · Options: Option to extend for 3 x 12 month periods | £46,943,709 | 8 May 2026 | Awarded |
Contracts
Plant Servicing, Inspection, Maintenance and Repair (SIMAR) · PlantexpandSME
- Signed
- 7 Jul 2026
- Value
- £46,943,709
- Period
- 16 Nov 2026 – 15 Nov 2029 · up to 15 Nov 2032 with extensions
- Status
- active
- Extensions
- 3 x 12 month periods
- Options
- 3 x 12 month periods
12 agreed KPIs: 5 - Fleet Availability · 3 - Fleet Availability · 1 - Compliance …
- 5 - Fleet Availability, 95% of all routine maintenance events to be completed within one working day
- 3 - Fleet Availability, 95% first time fix rate
- 1 - Compliance, 100% of statutory or legal events completed prior to expiry date
- 4 - Fleet Availability, 95% of breakdowns attended within two hours of notification
- 2 - Fleet Availability, 95% fleet availability rate
- 10 - Quality Control, Technician competency and accreditation
- 11 - Sustainability, Minimum 5% annual reduction in carbon emissions
- 6 - Fleet Availability, 90% of all non-routine maintenance events completed within 3 working days from presentation of the asset
- 9 - Quality Control, Audits, at a minimum of 30% proportionate to work volumes, relating to work quality, supply chain, and sustainability, health and safety, and completion of ISO90001 or ISO 1400 or equivalent must be completed annually
- 12 - Social Value, Annual improvement of 7% to 10% year on year in the number of people employed or recruited to training programmes or apprenticeships from under-represented or disadvantaged groups.
- 8 - Quality Control, Monthly quality audits conducted on 2% of the work conducted by Maintenance Providers / supply chain network
- 7 - Customer Service, 100% of incidents, issues, or complaints reported by DGFS are acknowledged within 4 working hours of receipt and resolved within 6 working days
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2final-stage tenders | 1 | 0 | — |
Who bid
- wonPLANTEXPAND LIMITEDSME · South East England + PLANTEXPAND LIMITEDSME · South East England · consortium
- did not winBriggs Equipment Ltd · West Midlands + BRIGGS EQUIPMENT UK LIMITED · West Midlands · consortium
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
3 public bodies on the noticeOther public bodies
- DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRSBeneficiary authority
- Department for Environment Food & Rural AffairsProcess contact pointProcuring entityPublic authority - central governmentUndertaking project on behalf of the EA.
Bidders & participating suppliers
4 commercial parties on the notice · 2 awarded- BRIGGS EQUIPMENT UK LIMITEDBidder / tenderer
- Briggs Equipment LtdBidder / tenderer
- PLANTEXPAND LIMITEDAwarded supplier
- PLANTEXPAND LIMITEDAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications (7)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
Notices published for this procedure
- Contract details notice Contract details notice on Find a Tender
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Contract award notice Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender