United Kingdom4 days leftOpen

Design, Removal, and Re-Livery of Locomotives

Tender Overview

LOCATION

Cumbria, United Kingdom

VALUE

£504,000

DEADLINE

February 06, 2026 at 15:00

CATEGORY

Other

CPV CODE

50221000

REFERENCE

000943-2026

Project Timeline

Contact Information

View Original

Original Tender Description

DRS does not consider itself bound by the Procurement Act 2023 (PA23) and associated procurement legislation (together the “UK procurement legislation”) on the basis that, operating commercially, it is not a public authority, nor does it carry out any utility activities. Accordingly, this Procurement is not, and does not purport to be, subject to UK procurement legislation. For the avoidance of doubt, Tenderers are put on notice that the publication of this document and any other document that relates to this Procurement (including the relevant tender notice) is published voluntarily and nothing in this document, or any other document that DRS publishes in relation to this Procurement, should be construed as purporting to give rise to rights or obligations under UK procurement legislation. That said, DRS intends to operate a fair process which broadly aligns with certain key aspects of the competitive flexible procedure under the PA23 and which aligns with the objectives of section 12(1)-(3) of the PA23.
⚠️

MANDATORY EXCLUSION GROUNDS

  • No specific mandatory exclusion grounds are detailed in the provided tender information, as the contracting authority explicitly states it is not bound by UK procurement legislation.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

  • No specific eligibility requirements are detailed in the provided tender information.
🔧

TECHNICAL CAPABILITY REQUIREMENTS

  • Ability to provide services for the design, removal, and re-livery of locomotives.
💰

FINANCIAL REQUIREMENTS

  • No specific financial requirements are detailed in the provided tender information.
📋

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

  • Submit the tender by the deadline of 2026-02-06 at 15:00:00.

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PDF
Official PDF Version
PDF000943-2026_official.pdf
Summary:
This tender notice from Direct Rail Services Limited invites bids for locomotive design, removal, and re-livery services, with an estimated value of £420,000 and a tender submission deadline of 6 February 2026, noting that the process, while fair, is not legally bound by UK procurement legislation.

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67
Good

Tender Quality Score

This tender, despite its stated intent to align with PA23 principles, suffers from a critical lack of detailed requirements and supporting documentation, significantly hindering transparency and fair competition. The explicit disclaimer regarding non-binding UK procurement legislation creates legal ambiguity and potential risks for tenderers.

Score Breakdown

Legal Compliance100/100

The contracting authority explicitly states it is not bound by UK procurement legislation, operating voluntarily outside the statutory framework. While it aims to align with PA23 objectives, this disclaimer removes legal recourse and protection typically afforded to bidders in public procurement.

Explicit non-binding nature to UK procurement legislation.
Lack of statutory legal framework for the procurement process.
Clarity40/100

The description of the service is clear, but the overall clarity of the procurement process is severely compromised by the absence of detailed requirements and supporting documents. Tenderers lack essential information to understand the full scope, evaluation criteria, and contractual terms.

Absence of detailed technical specifications.
Lack of clear evaluation criteria.
Completeness83/100

The tender is highly incomplete. Critical sections such as mandatory exclusion grounds, eligibility requirements, detailed technical capabilities, financial requirements, and crucially, all supporting documents are missing. This makes it impossible for potential bidders to prepare a comprehensive and compliant offer.

No documents attached.
Missing mandatory exclusion grounds.
Fairness60/100

The absence of detailed requirements, evaluation criteria, and a binding legal framework raises significant concerns about fairness and equal treatment. Without clear rules, the process is susceptible to arbitrary decisions, potentially favoring pre-selected suppliers or those with insider knowledge.

Lack of clear and objective evaluation criteria.
Absence of a binding legal framework to ensure fair treatment.
Practicality40/100

From a bidder's perspective, preparing a tender for this procurement is highly impractical due to the severe lack of information. Without detailed specifications, terms, and evaluation criteria, bidders cannot accurately scope the work, estimate costs, or assess risks. This will likely deter qualified bidders or lead to non-comparable submissions.

Insufficient information for bidders to prepare a comprehensive offer.
High risk of non-comparable bids due to lack of detail.
Data Consistency100/100

The provided data is internally consistent, but its limited scope makes a thorough consistency check difficult. The main inconsistency is the stated intent to align with PA23 objectives while explicitly disclaiming legal adherence, which creates a philosophical rather than data-level inconsistency.

Sustainability0/100

There is no mention of green procurement, social criteria, or innovation focus within the provided information. This indicates a complete absence of sustainability considerations in the tender design.

No green procurement criteria.
No social criteria.

Strengths

Clear title and reference number.
Organization and description provided.
Estimated value disclosed.
CPV code provided for classification.

Concerns

Explicit disclaimer from UK procurement legislation, creating legal ambiguity.
Complete absence of supporting documents.
Missing detailed eligibility, financial, and technical requirements.
Lack of clear evaluation criteria.
Significant risk to fairness and transparency due to lack of detail and legal framework.

Recommendations

1. Develop and publish comprehensive tender documents, including detailed specifications, terms and conditions, and evaluation criteria.
2. Clarify the legal framework and the extent to which PA23 principles will be legally binding or enforceable.
3. Provide specific eligibility, financial, and technical capability requirements to ensure fair competition and qualified bidders.

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Tender Quality Score
67/ 100 · Good

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