Official UK procurement notice
4D Animate Platform/Power Technologies (4DAPT)
Authority: Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionDefence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and Agence de l'innovation de défense (AID) are jointly launching a call for expressions of interest (EOI) aimed at identifying French Universities and Public Laboratories and British Universities who can address scientific questions raised in the field of 4D printing. The aim is to accelerate the use of intelligent 3D printed materials through design, manufacturing and modelling to provide intelligent or animated components for self-adaptive platforms. Despite the potential benefits of 4D printing, many challenges remain before it can be widely applied.
- How the procedure runs: The Authority will use the response to the criteria in the EOI documention to create a shortlist of tenderers who: (1) are eligible to participate; (2) best meet the selection criteria set out in this notice and the EOI documentation. An invitation to tender will then be published through the Defence Sourcing Portal, inviting eligible tenderers to participate that responded to the EOI. Details of the negotiation and award criteria will be available in the tender documentation.
- No preliminary market engagement: A notice has previously been published regarding this requirement - 2024/S 000-002086.
CPV: Research and development services and related consultancy services
How this framework works
From the published notice- Type
- Closed framework · open framework scheme (admission reopens)
- Call-offs
- call-offs are awarded directly to appointed suppliers, without further competition
- Framework period
- 3 yrs from 1 Apr 2026
- Scheme runs until
- 31 Mar 2029
Published description of the framework
No business whatsoever is guaranteed under any resulting Framework Agreement or contract indeed there is no guarantee that any Framework Agreement or contract will be put in place in relation to this notice. No compensation etc will be paid if a tender or resulting Framework Agreement is withdrawn for any reason. Bidders should take part in this process only on the basis that they fully understand and accept this position.
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedLot #1CancelledPublished value£1,300,000
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).
- TBC
- “4D Animate Platform/Power Technologies (4DAPT)” is a framework: the contest is a place on its panel, not a single contract, and call-offs are awarded directly: getting appointed is the whole game.
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
- Cancelled
- Procurement threshold
- Above threshold (FTS publication)
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Open framework scheme
- 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 Sept 2025, 09:58 BST
- Last source update
- 29 Oct 2025, 08:48 GMT
- Award evaluation window
- Submission end – 1 Apr 2026
- FTS notice number
2025/S 000-059103- Latest notice
- Procurement termination notice (UK12)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-05a0abFind a Tender
- How it runs
The Authority will use the response to the criteria in the EOI documention to create a shortlist of tenderers who:
(1) are eligible to participate;
(2) best meet the selection criteria set out in this notice and the EOI documentation.
An invitation to tender will then be published through the Defence Sourcing Portal, inviting eligible tenderers to participate that responded to the EOI.
Details of the negotiation and award criteria will be available in the tender documentation.
How it was run
Official notice- Requests to participate (first stage)
- 24 Oct 2025, 12:00 BST
- Appointment period ends
- 24 Oct 2025, 12:00 BST
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
- Accepted languages
- en
The ITT will be published on contracts.mod.uk ↗ following receipt of EOI forms.
Timeline
24 Sept 2025 → 1 Apr 2026 · 5 dates- Tender notice published398 days ago24 Sept 2025, 09:58 BST
- Admission / appointment period ends368 days ago · period end, not a bid countdown24 Oct 2025, 12:00 BST
- Latest notice published363 days ago29 Oct 2025, 08:48 GMT
- Contract starts210 days ago1 Apr 2026, 00:00 BST
- Award decision expected by209 days ago1 Apr 2026, 23:59 BST
Notice history
4 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 24 Sept 2025- Tender notice published24 Sept 2025, 09:58 BSTUK4
- Tender notice published22 Oct 2025, 11:25 BSTUK4
- Procurement termination notice published29 Oct 2025, 08:48 GMTUK12
- Status changed to cancelled29 Oct 2025, 08:48 GMT
Published amendments (1)
Updated version of EOI document uploaded, removing the Author's details.
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast| Awarded to | Value | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| supplier not published | — | 29 Oct 2025 | CancelledOriginal notice published in error as procurement will be exempt from Procurement Act 2023 - EOI submissions received by the deadline of 24/10/2025 are still valid and those qualifying will receive the ITT when it is published on Defence Sourcing Portal. |
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (5)
Official links; attachments are not copiedTender pack and attachments
- Bidding documents and specifications Your reply to this EOI should be emailed to FUURI@dstl.gov.uk Deadline for submissions is 24th October 2025 (at 12:00 GMT)
- Bidding documents and specifications Please send responses to this document to FUURI@dstl.gov.uk by 12pm on 24th October 2025.
Notices published for this procedure
- Procurement termination notice Procurement termination notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender