Find a TenderAwarded without competitionContract details notice

Published 14 Jan 2026, 12:42 GMT

Official UK procurement notice

UKRI-5559 Maintenance contract for BIGFOOT 7 cell sorter

Authority: UK Research and Innovation (Central government)

Direct award

Sectors: Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses) (38)Repair & Maintenance (50) Delivery: East of England (UKH12)

Awarded value£201,200published award · exc. VAT

Awarded 13 Jan 2026no call for competition

Awarded to Life Technologies Ltd

What is being bought

Published requirement description

The Medical Research Council (MRC) have appointed a supplier to provide a fully comprehensive maintenance contract for a period of 4 years for a BIGFOOT 7 cell sorter including parts, labour and 3 business day on-site response for faults.

The lotProcurement structure

single lot · no lot value published

Lot #1Awarded

Delivery: East of England

38000000 Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses)50000000 Repair and maintenance services

Procedure terms & legal framework

From the official record

Procedure method: Direct award
Legal basis: UKPGA · 2023/54 Procurement Act 2023
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: 14 Jan 2026, 12:42 GMT
Last source update: 2 Feb 2026, 11:26 GMT
Authority reference: UKRI-5559
FTS notice number: 2026/S 000-008860
Latest notice: Contract details notice (UK7)
Delivery area: East of England (UKH12)
Official registry OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-0605a4 Find a Tender

Why no open competition: Single Suppliers Technical Reasons
Published justification: As the manufacturer of the BIGFOOT 7 cell sorter Life Technologies Ltd are the only supplier able to provide the required OEM parts and software support for this system. No other parts are compatible with this equipment.

How it was run

Official notice

Submission deadline: —

Timeline

23 Jan 2026 → 2 Feb 2026 · 2 dates

Standstill ends276 days ago
23 Jan 2026, 23:59 GMT
Notice published266 days ago
2 Feb 2026, 11:26 GMT

Notice history

4 events · 3 releases on Find a Tender · since 14 Jan 2026

Transparency notice published
14 Jan 2026, 12:42 GMT
UK5
Contract award notice published
14 Jan 2026, 13:16 GMT
UK6
Contract signature expected
27 Jan 2026, 23:59 GMT
scheduled
Contract details notice published
2 Feb 2026, 11:26 GMT
UK7

Commercial outcome & contract awards

Published awards, contracts and bid statistics, not a forecast

Awards 1

Awarded value £201,2001 award exc. VAT

Contracts signed 1latest 30 Jan 2026

Awarded to	Value	Date	Status
Life Technologies Ltd11 Mar 2026 – 10 Mar 2030	£201,200	13 Jan 2026	Awarded

Contracts

UKRI-5559 Maintenance contract for BIGFOOT 7 cell sorter · Life Technologies Ltd
Signed
30 Jan 2026
Value
£201,200
Period
11 Mar 2026 – 10 Mar 2030
Status
active
No agreed KPIs: Not applicable

Contracting authority & participating public bodies

UK Research & Innovation (UKRI)

Contracting authorityPublic authority - central government GB-PPON: PDQJ-7126-JDHG Polaris House, Swindon, Wiltshire, South West, SN2 1FLContact name, email, phone

Bidders & participating suppliers

1 commercial party on the notice

Life Technologies LtdAwarded supplierGB-PPON: PNBB-8555-WJLQ 3 Fountain Drive, Inchinnan Business Park, Paisley, Scotland, PA4 9RFContact email

Official documents & specifications (3)

Official links; attachments are not copied

Notices published for this procedure

Contract details notice contractContract details noticeUK7Contract details notice on Find a Tender2 Feb 2026, 11:26 GMT
Contract award notice awardContract award noticeUK6Contract award notice on Find a Tender14 Jan 2026, 13:16 GMT
Transparency notice awardTransparency noticeUK5Transparency notice on Find a Tender14 Jan 2026, 12:42 GMT