Official UK procurement notice
Purchase of Closed-Cycle Helium Cryogenic System
Authority: Heriot-Watt University (Education)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe University is seeking a contractor to supply, deliver and install a closed-cycle helium
cryogenic system for quantum-optics experiments,
CPV: Electrical machinery, apparatus, equipment and consumables; lighting · Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses)
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedLot #1The University is seeking a contractor to supply, deliver and install a closed-cycle…Awarded
The University is seeking a contractor to supply, deliver and install a closed-cycle helium cryogenic system for quantum-optics experiments capable of cooling small semiconductor chips to a temperature of 4K, which are mounted with on-chip optical and electrical connections.
The chips should be optically addressable using a low working distance
objective.
The system will be used for a range of experiments in quantum optics and
quantum technologies, with particular focus on characterising devices in silicon carbide where solid-state defect spins are coupled to optomechanical microcavities.
The system will be situated in an optics lab at the University’s Edinburgh campus
What 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 (2)
- Technical: 70%
- Commercial: 30%
Published award criteria (2)
- Technical: 70
- Commercial: 30
- Economic & financial standing
Bidders will be required to have a minimum “general” yearly turnover of the amount listed below, for the last 2 years. Where turnover information is not available for the time period requested, the bidder will be required to state the date which they were set up/started trading.
The Successful Contractor will be required to provide two years audited accounts, or equivalent prior to awarded to the Contract, or confirm in their tender submission the publicly accessible, free, online location of accounts if available in such a format. There must be no qualification or contra-indication from any evidence provided in support of the Contractor’s economic and financial standing.
It is a requirement of this contract that bidders hold, or can commit to obtain prior to the commencement of any contract, the types and levels of insurance listed below.
Bidders also must confirm they can provide the following supporting evidence at point of award.
Minimum: Turnover Requirements: Bidders will be required to have a minimum “general” yearly turnover of 440,000 GBP for the last 2 years. Insurance Requirements: It is a requirement of this contract that bidders hold, or can commit to obtain prior to the commencement of any contract, the …
- Price carries 30 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 3 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record · publisher note attached- Procedure method
- Open procedure
- Legal basis
- CELEX · 32014L0024 Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (Directive 2014/24/EU)
- Procurement category
- Goods
- Notice status
- Awarded
- Procurement threshold
- Unspecified in notice
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Yes (GPA)
- Recurring procurement
- No (one-off requirement)
- First published
- 23 Jan 2026, 11:01 GMT
- Last source update
- 29 Apr 2026, 08:53 BST
- Award evaluation window
- 23 Feb 2026 – …
- Authority reference
HWU-UK-2526-237-00- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-038915- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-060d16Find a Tender
- Electronic trading
- e-invoicing allowed · electronic ordering · electronic payment
Publisher note: Economic operators may be excluded from this competition if they are in any of the situations referred to in regulation 58 of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015. Tenderers will be asked to submit the following forms. These forms are for information only and will not be scored. Form of Tender Bona Fide Tender Freedom of Information Supply Chain Code of Conduct The Successful Tenderer must confirm that they comply with the requirements of the Modern Slavery Act 2015. The Successful Tenderer will be required to provide two years audited accounts, or equivalent prior to awarded to the Contract, or confirm in their tender submission the publicly accessible, free, online location of accounts if available in such a format. There must be no qualification or contra-indication from any evidence provided in support of the Contractor’s economic and financial standing. Where the capability & capacity of a subcontractor, members of a consortia or any other body will be relied on, separate SPD(s) are required from each of those other parties relied on. Where subcontractors are to be used but their capability & capacity are not relied on, the University may choose to request separate SPD(s). The buyer is using PCS-Tender to conduct this ITT exercise. The Project code is 31036. The ITT code is itt_62580. (SC Ref:830620)
How it was run
Official notice- Submission deadline
- 23 Feb 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Submission channel
- {"electronicSubmission"}
- Accepted languages
- en
- Bids opened
- 23 Feb 2026, 12:00 GMT
Timeline
23 Feb 2026 → 29 Apr 2026 · 3 dates- Submission deadline241 days ago23 Feb 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Bids opened241 days ago23 Feb 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Notice published176 days ago29 Apr 2026, 08:53 BST
Notice history
1 event · 2 releases on Find a Tender- Status changed to complete29 Apr 2026, 08:53 BST
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| attocube systems AGSME | £165,174 † | — | Awarded |
Contracts
Contract 038915-2026-HWU-UK-2526-237-00-1 · attocube systems AGSME
- Signed
- 27 Apr 2026
- Value
- £165,174
- Status
- active
Bid statistics published by the authority
| Bids | SME | VCSE | Valid bid range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7bids · 7 electronic · 7 from abroad | 7 | — | — |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
2 public bodies on the noticeOther public bodies
- European UnionFunder
Dispute resolution & review bodies
- Edinburgh Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace CourtReview body
Bidders & participating suppliers
1 commercial party on the notice- attocube systems AGAwarded supplier
Official documents & specifications
Official links; attachments are not copiedNo document links were published on the notice.