Find a TenderPlanned procurementPreliminary market engagement notice
Published 24 Mar 2026, 11:32 GMT

Official UK procurement notice

S1138 (2027) The Hire, Erection and Dismantling of Scaffold Services

Authority: Northern Ireland Electricity Networks Limited (Public body)

Framework agreementWorksAbove thresholdUtilitiesSME suitable
Planned pipeline value£6,434,000pipeline notice, not a live tender
Tender notice expected 18 Dec 2026from the planned procurement notice
Framework period 4 yrsends 1 Jan 2032 · up to 1 Jan 2036 with extensions · starts 1 Jan 2028

What is being bought

Published requirement description

NIE Networks is conducting a Preliminary Market Engagement (PME) to gather insights from the market before initiating a procurement process for Contract S1138 Hire, Erection and Dismantling of Scaffold. This engagement aims to assess the market's interest and capabilities in delivering Contract S1138 (2027), identify potential solutions and innovative approaches, and develop an effective procurement strategy. This PME is open to all suppliers and is intended to be a collaborative effort to ensure a robust and successful procurement process.

The Hire, Erection and Dismantling of Scaffold Services may include as follows:

  • Hire, Erection and Dismantling of Scaffold (Distribution Overhead lines),
  • Hire, Erection and Dismantling of Scaffold (Distribution and Transmission Substations and Transmission Overhead Lines)

The services will include:

Hire, Erection and Dismantling of Scaffold (Distribution Overhead Lines)

  • The design, erection, inspection and dismantling of scaffold to facilitate NIE Networks’ teams with:
  • the erection / maintenance / replacement of electricity poles
  • the installation and repair of Low Voltage under eave wires and cables at customer properties
  • Erection and dismantling of scaffold to facilitate NIE Networks’ fault and emergency response works where required

Hire, Erection and Dismantling of Scaffold (Distribution and Transmission Substations and Transmission Overhead Lines)

  • The design, erection, inspection and dismantling of scaffold to facilitate NIE Networks’ teams with:
  • the installation / maintenance / replacement of substation plant and apparatus
  • the erection / maintenance / replacement of electricity poles and towers
  • Roadside protection schemes to assist with raising and lowering of overhead lines
  • Erection and dismantling of scaffold to facilitate NIE Networks’ fault and emergency response works where required

CPV: Equipment for scaffolding · Scaffolding · Scaffolding dismantling work · Scaffolding erection work · Scaffolding structures · Scaffolding work

How this framework works

From the published notice
Framework period
4 yrs · up to 8 yrs from 1 Jan 2028

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · no lot value published
Lot #1PlannedRenewal 4 yrsSME
Contract period: 1 Jan 2028 – 1 Jan 2032 (4 yrs) · up to 1 Jan 2036 with extensions
Delivery: Northern IrelandEligibility: SME eligible
Extensions: Extension options published

Who is likely to bid for this lot ↓

What it takes to win
i

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 more
What this means for your bid
  • “S1138 (2027) The Hire, Erection and Dismantling of Scaffold Services” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, not a single contract.

Pipeline intelligence · planning stage: how this market runs before the tender is published

How Northern Ireland Electricity Networks Limited buys Structures and parts of structures (CPV 4421), and who usually turns up

Northern Ireland Electricity Networks Limited’s published record next to the market for the same work. Compared with other frameworks and DPS only. Whole-market view: Structures and parts of structures (CPV 4421) →

1

How the contest usually goes

Winner shares use published awards; bid and price charts use contested lots.

Question for the bidWhat to do with it
How often do SMEs win?
i

How often small and medium firms win.

Share of awards where the winner’s size is known.

The counts under this question show how many awards have a known supplier size.

Last 36 months.

Buyer: 21 of 40 known-size awards · market: CPV 4421 · UK-wide, n=12
53%67%

Small firms have won here. Neither number says whether you qualify; it describes who has been winning.

How often do local suppliers win?
i

How often local firms win similar work.

Winners with a registered address in the delivery region, out of awards with a known address.

Local means the winner is registered in the region where that award was delivered.

A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.

Last 36 months.

Buyer: 14 of 19 known-location awards · market: CPV 4421 · UK-wide, n=16
74%69%

Most of this buyer’s recorded winners were registered in the region where that award was delivered.

How long to a decision?
i

How long buyers here take to decide after bids close.

Middle value in days from the bid deadline to the award date, on competitions that published both.

Only decided tenders count, so slow ones still waiting are not in.

Last 36 months.

Buyer: 8 decided notices · market: CPV 4421 · UK-wide, n=5
241 days122 days

Half of these awards have an award date within 241 days of the bid deadline.

How often single-bid or direct?
i

How often work is awarded with no recorded rival.

Direct awards and tenders where every published lot count shows one bid.

Both shares are minimums: some awards have no bid count.

Thin markets produce this too; it is not proof of a tailored specification.

Last 36 months.

Buyer: at least 17 of 35 procurements with awards had no recorded rival · market: CPV 4421 · UK-wide, n=11
49%45%

Direct awards or one recorded bid are common here. Check the route before spending time on a bid.

How many bids did past lots attract?

i

How many bids past lots received.

Each colour is a bid-count range. Only competed lots with a published count are included.

Past bids do not predict this tender.

Last 36 months.

This buyer39 lots with bid counts · all categories
10% had one bid
The market65 lots with bid counts · CPV 4421 · UK-wide
6% had one bid
Buyer / market · select a colour for counts
1 bid10% / 6%
Buyer: 4 of 39 lots with published bid counts. Market: 4 of 65 lots with published bid counts.
2–331% / 11%
Buyer: 12 of 39 lots with published bid counts. Market: 7 of 65 lots with published bid counts.
4–631% / 22%
Buyer: 12 of 39 lots with published bid counts. Market: 14 of 65 lots with published bid counts.
7+28% / 62%
Buyer: 11 of 39 lots with published bid counts. Market: 40 of 65 lots with published bid counts.

How did awards compare with estimates?

i

Where winning prices landed against estimates.

Each colour shows awards below, close to or above the published estimate, one lot at a time.

On a framework or DPS, prices are agreed when work is called off.

Past prices are a guide, not a bid price.

Last 36 months.

Not comparable on a framework or DPS: the price is set later, on each call-off.

2

Assess each lot
i

What past awards tell you about each lot.

See the forecast, this buyer’s earlier suppliers and firms with relevant wins.

No supplier is confirmed as a bidder.

Open a lot for its forecast, this buyer’s previous supplier and possible competitors, from published award history, not a bid list

Lot #1CPV 442148 monthsSME suitablePublished estimate£6.4m
Expected competition
i

How many bids this lot may attract.

The forecast uses similar past competitions. The bar shows either that forecast or past bid counts; the line below says which.

Each lot shows its own forecast based on its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative. The bar shows 65 past lots.

A forecast, not a list of bidders.

—No model forecast yet6% chance of a single bid
Past bids on 65 similar lots
1 bid6%
4 of 65 similar past lots received 1 bid (6%).
2–311%
7 of 65 similar past lots received 2–3 (11%).
4–622%
14 of 65 similar past lots received 4–6 (22%).
7+62%
40 of 65 similar past lots received 7+ (62%).
Comparable past lots usually drew 10 bids.
Commercial price forecast
i

Where the award price may land.

The forecast uses similar awards and the buyer’s estimate. The band covers the middle half of likely prices.

No comparable awards for this lot yet.

A statistical guide from past awards, not a price to bid.

—Priced at call-off
On a framework or DPS the price is agreed on each call-off, so there is no award price to forecast here: the published figure is a ceiling.

Who has supplied this buyer on similar work?
i

Who has done similar work for this buyer.

Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.

A past supplier may not bid again.

No earlier contract of this buyer matches this lot on the published record.

Who could compete for this lot?
i

Who could compete for this lot?

Firms with relevant past wins. On a framework, we show firms on that agreement.

None is confirmed as a bidder.

Candidate suppliers for this notice have not been worked out yet, so this is not a verdict that nobody fits.

About this data
  • Source. Official UK public procurement notices (Find a Tender), reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. New notices arrive through the day; the figures are rebuilt nightly.
  • Two views, kept apart. The authority’s own track record and the wider market for the same kind of work sit side by side and are never mixed. Where the local picture is too thin, a figure widens to a broader market and says which one it used.
  • Forecasts are labelled. The price forecast and its range, possible competitors and the earlier-work matches are our estimates from past awards: not published facts, not win chances and not price advice. Official notices do not say who is bidding.
  • Every figure shows what it rests on. Not every notice publishes a bid count, a value or a delivery region, so each figure carries the number of records behind it, and one built on few records is marked as such. The on a figure explains it; the counting rules are in the methodology. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record
Legal basis
UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
Procurement category
Works
Notice status
Planned procurement
Procurement threshold
Above threshold (FTS publication)
Regulatory regime
Utilities
Commercial structure
Framework agreement
Who may use this agreement
Not stated in the notice; call-off rights may be limited to the establishing authority
Competition type
Competitive procedure
GPA / WTO covered
Unspecified in notice
Recurring procurement
Unspecified in notice
First published
24 Mar 2026, 11:32 GMT
Last source update
1 Apr 2026, 10:08 BST
Authority reference
S1138 (2027)
FTS notice number
2026/S 000-030147
Latest notice
Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
Classification (CPV)
Equipment for scaffoldingScaffoldingScaffolding dismantling workScaffolding erection workScaffolding structuresScaffolding work
Delivery area
Northern Ireland (UKN)
Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06727d Find a Tender

How it was run

Official notice
Appointment period ends
—

Timeline

24 Mar 2026 → 1 Jan 2028 · 5 dates
  1. Planning notice published215 days ago
    24 Mar 2026, 11:32 GMT
  2. Latest notice published207 days ago
    1 Apr 2026, 10:08 BST
  3. Market engagement190 days ago
    17 Apr 2026, 23:59 BST

    Interested parties should register their interest and attendance via eSourcing NI (as below) by 5.00pm on Friday 17th April 2026 providing the name(s) and contact email addresses of who will attend. Attendance shall be limited to a maximum of 3 attendees per organization. Registration for the PME briefing event(s) shall only be through eSourcing NI.

    pqq_4729 has been created on eSourcing NI where parties can register their interest to attend the session via the secure messaging function. Upon receipt of Suppliers' Expressions of Interest, we will provide additional information with further instructions on how to participate in the PME Briefing Event.

    The PME briefing event shall consist of a presentation by NIE Networks Ltd with an opportunity afterwards for interested parties to raise clarification questions. Interested parties should note that any questions regarding the content of the PME briefing event or procurement process raised in advance of the PME briefing event through eSourcing NI will not be responded to by NIE Networks Ltd.

    Please note that NIE Networks Ltd will be conducting this PME exercise in accordance with the principles of equal treatment, non-discrimination and transparency. To that end, it is important to stress that the structure, specification and all other aspects of the procurement will not be designed to give direct or indirect advantage to any interested party and all information concerning the forthcoming procurement will be disseminated to all interested parties.

    It is important to note that this PME Notice and the PME briefing event do not constitute a call for competition, selection process or a current tender opportunity. This PME Notice has been produced solely for the purpose of conducting a pre-market engagement exercise. All interested parties will need to express a formal interest in any future tender opportunity in due course once a contract notice (as appropriate) is published.

    NIE Networks Ltd welcomes interest from all interested parties. Interested parties will not be prejudiced by any response or failure to respond to this PME Notice or the PME briefing event. Participation or non-participation in the PME exercise shall not prevent any interested parties from participating in any subsequent procurement exercise. All information shared with interested parties as part of the PME exercise (including, for the avoidance of doubt, a copy of the PME presentation and any questions and answers provided) will be made available to all parties that express an interest in participating in any subsequent procurement exercise. For the avoidance of doubt however, NIE Networks Ltd will not disclose any specific comments or feedback provided by any interested party, nor the identity of any party that chose to take part in the PME process.

    NIE Networks Ltd may, at its absolute discretion, consider any questions or feedback provided during the PME exercise in finalising its procurement strategy, procurement process and/or any aspects of the procurement. NIE Networks Ltd also reserves the right to request additional information from any interested party in relation to any question raised or feedback provided as part of the PME exercise. The information provided in this PME Notice and as part of the PME exercise is preliminary in nature and is subject to amendment/updating by NIE Networks Ltd. No reliance may be placed by any party on the information contained in this PME Notice or provided as part of the PME exercise and no representation or warranty, express or implied, is or will be made in relation to such information.

  4. Today
    25 Oct 2026
  5. Tender notice expectedin 55 days
    18 Dec 2026, 23:59 GMT
  6. Contract starts
    1 Jan 2028

Notice history

2 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 24 Mar 2026
  1. Preliminary market engagement notice published
    24 Mar 2026, 11:32 GMT
    UK2
  2. Preliminary market engagement notice published
    1 Apr 2026, 10:08 BST
    UK2

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Pipeline notice
Awards (0)
No award published
Contracts (0)
No contract published
Bid statistics
No aggregate bid statistics published

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

Northern Ireland Electricity Networks Limited

Contracting authorityPrivate utilityNorthern Irish devolved regulations apply GB-COH: NI026041 120 Malone Road, Belfast, UK, BT9 5HTContact email

Official documents & specifications (2)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Notices published for this procedure