Official UK procurement notice
Trackside Acoustic Detection System (TADS)
Authority: CHILTERN RAIL LIMITED (Public body)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionChiltern Rail Limited (Chiltern) is undertaking preliminary market engagement to support the planned replacement of its existing Trackside Acoustic Detection System (TADS).
TADS has been used by Chiltern since 2015 to monitor the health and condition of axle bearings and other bogie mounted rotating components. TADS is a wayside system developed by “Transportation Technology Centre Inc” (TTCI) for the purpose of detecting defective railroad bearing prior to failure. This system uses microphone-based technology to collect the acoustic signature of each bearing on a passing train. This data is processed thorough a collection of algorithms to identify defective bearings. The resulting information is used to drive critical safety, business and operational decisions.
TADS is becoming unreliable and has suffered several outages more recently therefore Chiltern is seeking information from the market regarding potential solutions and delivery approaches for its replacement.
The scope of requirement may include:
• System design and Network Rail approval.
• Decommissioning existing equipment and making the site safe.
• Civil engineering where required for the new equipment.
• Instillation of new equipment.
Read the full description (1,291 more characters)
• User interface/software package.
• Ongoing maintenance and support.
Further requirements are detailed within the draft specifications included within the documents provided.
The purpose of this RFI is to:
• Understand the solutions and delivery models currently available in the market;
• Determine whether the requirement is best delivered through lots or separate procurements;
• Test and refine the draft functional and non-functional requirements;
• Understand implementation;
• Obtain indicative pricing and commercial information;
• Identify likely implementation timescales, dependencies and risks.
The estimated contract value, contract duration and final procurement structure have not yet been determined. Suppliers are therefore being asked to provide information on available commercial models, indicative pricing, implementation timescales and the main factors affecting cost.
This is preliminary market engagement only and does not constitute an invitation to tender or a commitment by Chiltern Railways to commence a future procurement. The purpose is to help Chiltern understand market capability and develop its requirements, commercial approach and procurement strategy, which is consistent with the intended function of preliminary market engagement under the Procurement Act 2023.
CPV: Train monitoring services
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · no lot value publishedLot #1Lot 1Planned
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Services
- Notice status
- Planned procurement
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Utilities
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- No (one-off requirement)
- First published
- 6 Oct 2026, 10:11 BST
- Last source update
- 6 Oct 2026, 10:11 BST
- Authority reference
UIN2060- Latest notice
- Preliminary market engagement notice (UK2)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-078156
How it was run
- Submission deadline
- —
Timeline
4 published dates · Europe/London- Planning notice publishedearlier today6 Oct 2026, 10:11 BST
- Market engagementin 25 days30 Oct 2026, 23:59 GMT
This preliminary market engagement will be conducted electronically through Market Dojo. No physical supplier events are currently planned. The engagement will commence on Tuesday 6 October 2026. Suppliers will be provided with access to the Request for Information questionnaire, the draft more…
requirements spreadsheet and the relevant background information through Market Dojo. Suppliers wishing to participate should register with Market Dojo at the following URL: https://marketdojo.com/market-dojo-sign-up/ and once registered, use invitation code: 4AF903D4B4 to access the event. Once access has been gained, all communications relating to the engagement must take place through Market Dojo. This includes the submission of clarification questions, Chiltern Railways' responses to those questions and the submission of completed RFI responses. Clarification questions must be submitted through Market Dojo by 14:00 on Tuesday 13 October 2026. Chiltern Railways intends to issue consolidated responses to clarification questions through Market Dojo by Friday 16 October 2026. Completed responses must be submitted through Market Dojo by 14:00 on Friay 30 October 2026. Following review of the responses, Chiltern Railways may invite suppliers to participate in further market engagement discussions or solution demonstrations. Any further sessions will be arranged separately and will remain part of the preliminary market engagement process. - Tender notice expectedin 65 days9 Dec 2026, 23:59 GMT
- Contract startsin 207 days1 May 2027, 01:00 BST
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Pipeline notice- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Notice history
1 event · 1 release on Find a Tender- Preliminary market engagement notice published6 Oct 2026, 10:11 BSTUK2
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (1)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender