Provision and support of on-board passenger Wi-Fi

Under Section 41 of the Procurement Act 2023, a direct award is permitted where specific conditions are met. In this case, the criteria under Schedule 5, Paragraphs 5 (a and b)

5. The following conditions are net in relation to the public contract;

(a) due to a particular supplier having intellectual property rights or other exclusive rights, only that supplier can supply the goods, services or works required, and;

(b) there are no reasonable alternatives to those goods, services or works.

Icomera are the proprietors and have been responsible for the installation of the Wi-Fi infrastructure, the on-going support, maintenance and service management of the Wi-Fi Infrastructure, on SWRL's fleet since circa 2015. Currently, Icomera is heavily involved with the installation of the Wi-Fi infrastructure associated with the rollout of the 701s.

The proprietary devices become end of life circa Dec 2027. Related to this, the Fleet team are undertaking obsolescence review across the entire fleet environment, which the Wi-Fi equipment is a subset. It is therefore cost effective to allow the assets to fulfil their serviceable life following which a capex led procurement will be undertaken once all due diligence has concluded.

The justifications for this direct award are based on the following considerations:

• Proprietary Infrastructure: The Wi Fi system installed on the rolling stock uses Icomera's proprietary hardware and software platform. This includes the onboard routers, access points, and connectivity modules, all of which are specifically engineered to integrate with Icomera's cloud based management and analytics environment. Firmware updates, security patches, and performance tuning can only be delivered by Icomera, as they retain exclusive control over the configuration and maintenance of this infrastructure.
• System Integration: The Icomera solution is tightly embedded within the train's onboard systems, including power distribution, data interfaces, and physical mounting arrangements. Replacing this equipment would require a full redesign of the onboard network architecture, along with re certification of safety critical components and significant re engineering of train systems to support alternative hardware.
• Proprietary Monitoring & Management: Icomera's Network Operations Centre (NOC) and remote monitoring ecosystem are purpose built for their proprietary hardware and software stack. Third party providers do not have access to the diagnostic protocols, configuration utilities, or service APIs required to operate, troubleshoot, or maintain the system. As a result, effective management of the infrastructure can only be performed through Icomera's own tools and support channels.
• Transition Complexity & Operational Risk: Switching to a new supplier would require full decommissioning of the existing Icomera equipment, procurement and installation of replacement systems, and close coordination with train manufacturers to support integration and testing. This process introduces substantial cost, extended timelines, and elevated operational risk - particularly given the need to maintain continuous service across active fleets.