Official UK procurement notice
DC1 Solar Wall Principal Contractor
Authority: Natural History Museum (Central government)
What is being bought
Published requirement descriptionThe Museum is undertaking a procurement process to appoint a suitably qualified and experienced Principal Contractor with specialist façade expertise on a Design and Build basis for the design, engineering, procurement, manufacture, installation and completion of the works associated with the upgrade and replacement of the DC1 Glass Solar Wall within the Museum estate. The Contractor shall provide all resources, specialist façade design input, management, supervision and coordination necessary to deliver the works in accordance with the Contract, detailed performance specification and Employer’s Requirements.
The Darwin Centre Phase 1 (DC1) is a prominent building in the Museum complex visible from Queens Gate in South Kensington and overlooking the newly created and award winning UNP gardens. The replacement of this façade will enable this section of the site to be returned to operational functionality and integrated back into full use.
An investigative study was commissioned by the Museum following the failure of three glass panels on the South Facing ‘Solar Wall’ elevation of the DC1. The solar wall was installed in 2002, and the secondary components within façade systems such as these usually have an expected service life of 25 years if correctly maintained.
And NDA will be required before access to the tender documents can be granted. Please ensure NDAs are signed by authorised person in your organisation and returned to the NHM via the Message Centre for counter signature. Access to the tender documents will be granted when both parties have signed the NDA.
For more information about this opportunity, please visit the eSourcing portal at:
www.delta-esourcing.com/tenders/UK-UK-London… ↗
To respond to this opportunity, please click here:
CPV: Cladding works · Engineering design services · Facade work · Glazing work · Museum construction work · Special trade construction works other than roof works
The lotProcurement structure
single lot · value publishedWhat 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 (3)
- Project Specific Experience and expertise: 55%
- Price: 40%
- Social Value: 5%
Published award criteria (3)
- Price
- Social Value
- Project Specific Experience and expertise
No conditions of participation were published on the notice; check the tender documents.
- Price carries 40 of 100 points: a 10% discount moves about 4 points. The method statement decides this lot, not the discount.
- Turnover usually expected at this size: about £1,900,000 (twice the annual value).
Price arithmetic assumes straight proportional scoring; the tender pack may use another formula. Turnover is an indicative market norm (≈2× annual value), not a published condition.
Competition analysis · published record, not a forecast of who will bid
How Natural History Museum buys Roof works and other special trade construction works (CPV 4526), and who usually turns up
Natural History Museum’s published record next to the market for the same work. Frameworks and DPS are left out: they draw different bid counts. Whole-market view: Roof works and other special trade construction works (CPV 4526) →
How the contest usually goes
Winner shares use published awards; bid and price charts use contested lots.
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.
Small firms have won here. Neither number says whether you qualify; it describes who has been winning.
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. The market figure counts awards delivered in Greater London.
A local branch does not count if the registered address is elsewhere.
Most of this buyer’s recorded winners were registered in the region where that award was delivered.
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.
Half of these awards have an award date within 16 days of the bid deadline.
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.
Missing bid counts may hide more single-bid awards. This share is a minimum.
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.
1 bid9% / 18%
2–317% / 18%
4–648% / 23%
7+26% / 41%
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.
Past prices are a guide, not a bid price.
Below estimate54% / 55%
Within ±2%38% / 25%
Above estimate8% / 20%
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.
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 4521Published estimate£950k
This lot is listed as CPV 4521. The table above uses the notice category.
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.
A forecast, not a list of bidders.
1 bid2%
2–313%
4–639%
7+46%
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.
Based on 23 comparable awards. Each lot reflects its own category; forecasts for different lots of the same notice are not comparative.
A statistical guide from past awards, not a price to bid.
Middle 50%£701k–£950k
Estimate£950k
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.
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.
| Supplier | This buyer’s earlier contract | Lot | Award value | Why listed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sam Forster Associates LtdEarlier contract | OGH Beta Principal Contractorended Aug 2026 | — | £188k | Matched as the earlier contract |
| DBR (London) LimitedWorked for this buyer | Principal Contractor - Waterhouse Building Facade Restoration Programmenotice published Dec 2023 | — | — | Similar wording and category |
| D & B Facades UK LtdWorked for this buyer | Main Contractor - Refurbishment and Roof Upgrade Design & Worksnotice published Mar 2024 | — | — | Similar wording and category |
| Haworth Tompkins LtdWorked for this buyer | NHM150 Western Galleries - Base Build Lead Architectruns to Mar 2032 | — | £1.5m | Similar wording and category |
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.
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.
| Supplier | Won in this category | Live contracts | Award vs estimate |
|---|---|---|---|
| £3.7m6 awards in 36m · last 3 months ago | None on file | 12% below n=2 | |
| £1.4bn61 awards in 36m · last 1 months ago | 1 live · £21m iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | 7% above n=9 | |
| £84m22 awards in 36m · last 2 months ago | 1 live iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | 11% below n=2 | |
| £5.7m5 awards in 36m · last 1 months ago | 2 live · £1.6m iPublic contracts this supplier still holds. Its awards whose published end date is still in the future, with their values. Many contracts publish no end date, so this is a floor, not the whole book. Unexpired says nothing about spare capacity. | 25% below n=3 | |
| £11m3 awards in 36m · last this month | None on file | 35% above n=1 |
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.
What this replaces i
Who has done similar work for this buyer.
Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.
47% title match.
A past supplier may not bid again.
i
Who has done similar work for this buyer.
Past contracts are matched by buyer, title and type of work.
47% title match.
A past supplier may not bid again.
The prior contract this notice most likely re-tenders · matched by title and category (47% title match), the holder is not guaranteed to re-bid
OGH Beta Principal Contractor — held by Sam Forster Associates Ltd; the published contract ends 31 Aug 2026.
Procedure terms & legal framework
From the official record- Procedure method
- Below threshold - open competition
- Legal basis
- UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
- Procurement category
- Works
- Notice status
- Open for tender
- Procurement threshold
- Below threshold
- Regulatory regime
- Standard
- Commercial structure
- Stand-alone contract (no framework)
- Competition type
- Competitive procedure
- GPA / WTO covered
- Unspecified in notice
- Recurring procurement
- Unspecified in notice
- First published
- 10 Sept 2026, 10:03 BST
- Last source update
- 2 Oct 2026, 15:31 BST
- FTS notice number
2026/S 000-093466- Latest notice
- Tender notice (UK4)
- Classification (CPV)
- Delivery area
- Official registry OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06f657Find a Tender
How to participate & submission route
Official notice Submit via Delta eSourcing- Requests to participate (first stage)
- —
- Tender submission deadline
- 4 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Clarification deadline
- 16 Oct 2026, 17:00 BST
- Submission channel
- Official e-sourcing portal
- Electronic submission
- Allowed
Timeline
10 Sept 2026 → 13 Dec 2026 · 6 dates- Planning notice published46 days ago10 Sept 2026, 10:03 BST
- Market engagement35 days ago21 Sept 2026, 23:59 BST
An online survey has been created ahead of the tender being published on Delta in late September.
We invite potential bidders to complete a short survey to provide some information about their experience and capacity, and to provide input into some elements of the tender requirements.
Please use the following link to access the survey: forms.cloud.microsoft/e/RbefqHyRsv ↗
The deadline for completing this engagement is 21 September 2026.
- Tender notice published24 days ago2 Oct 2026, 15:31 BST
- Clarification questions by10 days ago16 Oct 2026, 17:00 BST
- Today26 Oct 2026
- Submission deadlinein 9 days4 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT
- Contract startsin 47 days13 Dec 2026
Notice history
5 events · 2 releases on Find a Tender · since 10 Sept 2026- Preliminary market engagement notice published10 Sept 2026, 10:03 BSTUK2
- Tender notice published2 Oct 2026, 15:31 BSTUK4
- Status changed to active2 Oct 2026, 15:31 BST
- Procurement method changed2 Oct 2026, 15:31 BST
- Deadline published: 4 Nov 2026, 12:00 GMT2 Oct 2026, 15:31 BST
Commercial outcome & contract awards
Nothing awarded yet- Awards (0)
- No award published
- Contracts (0)
- No contract published
- Bid statistics
- No aggregate bid statistics published
Contracting authority & participating public bodies
Official documents & specifications (2)
Official links; attachments are not copiedNotices published for this procedure
- Tender notice Tender notice on Find a Tender
- Preliminary market engagement notice Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender