UK Simons Observatory (SO:UK) Consortium - Small Apeture Telescope Platform (SATP)

Official notice

Authority: UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER (Education)

GoodsAward procedure without prior publication of a call for competition

Sectors: Radio, television, communication, telecommunication and related equipment (32) Delivery: North West (UKD)

Budget not disclosedValue not published

Awarded 2 Sept 2022no call for competition

Awarded to VERTEX ANTENNENTECHNIK GmbH

What is being bought

Published requirement description

A Request for Proposals (RFP) was conducted by University of California, San Diego, in May 2018 for a vendor to design and construct small aperture camera platforms for the Simons Observatory (SO) which is a US-led international project to construct a group of CMB telescopes in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile. It has been designed to address new science challenges, and is due to begin operations in 2023.

In order to address its primary science goals, the SO collaboration has designed a single experiment that is unique amongst its peers in the field of CMB studies .

The major UK contribution to SO is to specifically build, deploy, commission and operate an array of two small aperture telescopes (the SO:UK instrument) to exactly match the existing (US) SO instrument proprietary plans awarded under Purchasing Agreement SD-18-1025.

The UK instrument will form a major component of the SO, providing 50% of its sensitivity to primordial B-modes. The additional sensitivity that will be provided by the SO:UK instrument has the potential to bring a compelling class of inflation models within our reach, for the first time.

In building the instrument, we will incorporate a number of innovative features including the first use of a new detector technology (Kinetic Inductance Detectors, KIDs) in a CMB B-mode experiment.

In addition to KIDs, the instrument work also includes the development and demonstration of novel meta-material (MM) quasi-optical components and high-performance detector readout technology.

CPV: Satellite platforms

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · no lot value published

Lot #1Awarded

Delivery: North West · The University of Manchester

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record

Procedure method: Award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition
Legal basis: CELEX · 32014L0024 Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (Directive 2014/24/EU)
Procurement category: Goods
Notice status: Awarded without competition
Procurement threshold: Unspecified in notice
Regulatory regime: Standard
Commercial structure: Stand-alone contract (no framework)
Competition type: Direct award (no call for competition)
GPA / WTO covered: Yes (GPA)
Recurring procurement: Unspecified in notice
First published: 5 Sept 2022, 11:35 BST
Last source update: 5 Sept 2022, 11:35 BST
Authority reference: 2022-1942-SATP-MB-PC
FTS notice number: 2022/S 000-024783
Classification (CPV): Satellite platforms
Delivery area: North West (UKD)
Official registry OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-0365c0 Find a Tender

Why no open competition: The works, supplies or services can be provided only by a particular economic operator due to absence of competition for technical reasons
Published justification: A Request for Proposals (RFP) was conducted by University of California, San Diego, in May 2018 for a vendor to design and construct small aperture camera platforms for the Simons Observatory (SO) which is a US-led international project to construct a group of CMB telescopes in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile. It has been designed to address new science challenges, and is due to begin operations in 2023.
In order to address its primary science goals, the SO collaboration has designed a single experiment that is unique amongst its peers in the field of CMB studies .
The major UK contribution to SO is to specifically build, deploy, commission and operate an array of two small aperture telescopes (the SO:UK instrument) to exactly match the existing (US) SO instrument proprietary plans awarded under Purchasing Agreement SD-18-1025.
The UK instrument will form a major component of the SO, providing 50% of its sensitivity to primordial B-modes. The additional sensitivity that will be provided by the SO:UK instrument has the potential to bring a compelling class of inflation models within our reach, for the first time.
In building the instrument, we will incorporate a number of innovative features including the first use of a new detector technology (Kinetic Inductance Detectors, KIDs) in a CMB B-mode experiment.
In addition to KIDs, the instrument work also includes the development and demonstration of novel meta-material (MM) quasi-optical components and high-performance detector readout technology.

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast

Awards 1

Bids received 1

Contracts signed 1latest 2 Sept 2022

Awarded to	Value	Date	Status
VERTEX ANTENNENTECHNIK GmbH	€2,507,689 †	—	Awarded

Contracts

UK Simons Observatory (SO:UK) Consortium - Small Apeture Telescope Platform (SATP) · VERTEX ANTENNENTECHNIK GmbH
Signed
2 Sept 2022
Value
€2,507,689
Status
active

Bid statistics published by the authority

Bids	SME	VCSE	Valid bid range
1bids	—	—	—

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER

Contracting authorityEducationBody governed by public lawEducation GB-UKPRN: 10007798 Room G010,John Owens Building, Oxford Road, MANCHESTER, North West, M139PLContact name, email, phone

Dispute resolution & review bodies

The High Court of Justice of EnglandReview body London
The University of ManchesterReview contact point ManchesterContact email

Bidders & participating suppliers

1 commercial party on the notice

VERTEX ANTENNENTECHNIK GmbHAwarded supplier Baumstraße 46-50, Duisburg, DE, 47198

Official documents & specifications

Official links; attachments are not copied

No document links were published on the notice.