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Tenders

Services-Framework-Provision of Sample Courier Services for Laboratory Services

Open
Deadline
101 days left
July 05, 2026
Contract Details
Category
Restricted Procedure
Reference
013638-2026
Value
£11,520,000
Location
North West England, United Kingdom
Published
March 19, 2026
CPV Code
Project Timeline

Tender Published

February 13, 2026

Deadline for Questions

June 28, 2026

Submission Deadline

July 05, 2026

Contract Start Date

July 05, 2026

Budget
£11,520,000
Duration
97 months
Location
North West England
Type
Restricted Procedure
58
Quality Score/100
Fair

Original Tender Description

United Utilities Laboratory Services require a courier service for the transportation of samples from sites across the Company to the central Laboratory at Lingley Mere (Warrington) on a daily basis. It is a requirement of OFWAT (The Water Services Regulation Authority) that the Company constantly undertakes analysis of water/waste water samples from various sample points throughout the North-West Region. Water Quality Officers, Network Owners, Wastewater Operatives, Trade Effluent Officers, Agricultural Advisors and Project Staff obtain the samples requiring analysis. Samples are left at drop off points for collection by the dedicated courier in a refrigerated van. Samples need to be transported under refrigerated conditions to ensure that they are maintained at a temperature of between 2 and 7 degrees centigrade. It is a requirement to maintain evidence that this has been achieved to enable United Utilities to adhere to regulatory requirements with respect to the transportation of accredited samples under the Environment Agency's Monitoring Certification Scheme (MCERTs), Drinking Water Test Specifications (DWTS) and ISO 17025. On collection, the courier takes the samples to a Sample Registration Centre (SRC) or directly to Lingley Mere Laboratories Sample Reception. An additional dedicated courier service is then required to operate between the SRC's and the Laboratories at Lingley Mere, where required. Consignment Notes or Delivery Notes detailing the sample load carried and all other required information to the Laboratory at Lingley Mere are part of the hand-over procedure at the SRCs and the Laboratory. These are currently in paper form, the Company would like to move this to an electronic format, where reports should consist of (minimum requirement): • Sample bottle barcode number • crate barcode number • vehicle registration • collection date and time • collection location • time samples dropped off • location of sample drop off Route optimisation will also be a requirement of the tender, with bidders expected to demonstrate how routes will be optimised to ensure efficiency, reliability, and timely delivery of samples while maintaining required temperature controls. Detailed dates and milestones will be share in the tender documentation.

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Requirements & Qualifications

12 requirements across 2 categories

Submission (1)
Technical (11)
SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS1
--Submit the bid by the deadline: 2026-07-06T00:00:00+01:00.
TECHNICAL CAPABILITY REQUIREMENTS11
--Provide daily courier service for water/wastewater samples from sites across the Company to the central Laboratory at Lingley Mere (Warrington).
--Transport samples under refrigerated conditions, maintaining a temperature of between 2 and 7 degrees Celsius.
--Maintain evidence that required temperature conditions have been achieved during transport.

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Documents

4 documents available with AI summaries

OCDS RecordDOC
013638-2026_ocds_record.json

This OCDS record provides the official structured data for the United Utilities courier services tender, detailing the contracting authority and tender initiation.

OCDS Release PackageDOC
013638-2026_ocds_release.json

United Utilities requires a refrigerated courier service for daily transportation of water and wastewater samples to its central laboratory, demanding strict regulatory compliance, electronic consignment notes, and optimized routes.

Official PDF VersionPDF
013638-2026_official.pdf

United Utilities requires a courier service for daily refrigerated transport (2-7°C) of water/wastewater samples across the North-West, demanding regulatory compliance (MCERTs, DWTS, ISO 17025), electronic consignment notes, and demonstrated route optimization.

Tender NoticeHTM
013638-2026.html

This tender notice from United Utilities seeks a courier service for daily refrigerated transportation of water/wastewater samples to their central laboratory, requiring electronic consignment notes and route optimization.

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58
Fair

Tender Quality Score

This tender outlines a highly specialized courier service with clear technical requirements but is significantly hampered by a lack of transparency regarding evaluation criteria and a critical inconsistency in key dates.

Score Breakdown

Legal Compliance75/100

The tender provides a reasonable submission timeframe (from today's date), correctly assigned CPV codes, and no reported disputes. The procedure type is stated, and the value is above thresholds, implying formal procedures. However, the absence of detailed evaluation criteria in the provided information raises concerns about full disclosure and adherence to all legal transparency requirements.

Lack of detailed evaluation criteria in the provided summary.
Clarity60/100

The description of the required service, including technical specifications like temperature control, regulatory compliance, and electronic reporting, is very clear and unambiguous. However, the critical absence of specified evaluation criteria significantly reduces the overall clarity for potential bidders, making it difficult to understand how proposals will be assessed.

No evaluation criteria specified.
Completeness65/100

Basic information such as title, reference, organization, value, duration, and location are complete. Technical requirements are well-defined. However, the overview lacks explicit evaluation criteria and a comprehensive summary of all tender documents (beyond administrative notices), which are crucial for a complete tender package.

Missing explicit evaluation criteria.
Incomplete overview of full tender documentation.
Fairness55/100

The tender's value is disclosed, and the timeframe for submission (from today's date) is generous. However, the complete absence of objective and transparent evaluation criteria is a major fairness concern, as bidders cannot adequately prepare or trust the assessment process. The lack of e-submission also presents a barrier to equal access.

No evaluation criteria specified.
No e-submission support.
Practicality40/100

The tender lacks support for electronic submission and a direct document URL in the provided information. A significant practical issue is the contract start date being identical to the submission deadline, which is a logical impossibility and indicates a data entry error, making this field unreliable.

No e-submission support.
Contract start date is identical to submission deadline (logical error).
Data Consistency60/100

Most key fields are populated, and there are no reported disputes or suspensions. However, the contract start date being the same as the submission deadline represents a critical logical inconsistency and a clear data error, undermining the reliability of the timeline information.

Contract start date is identical to submission deadline.
Sustainability20/100

The tender shows no explicit focus on green procurement, social aspects, or innovation beyond operational efficiency requirements. While route optimization contributes to efficiency, it is not framed as a sustainability initiative. The tender is not identified as EU funded, which often implies higher sustainability standards.

No explicit green procurement criteria.
No social criteria.

Strengths

Clear and detailed technical requirements for the specialized service.
Generous submission period (from today's date) for bid preparation.
High estimated value and long duration indicate a significant contract opportunity.
Appropriate CPV code and unambiguous service description.

Concerns

Critical absence of evaluation criteria, severely impacting clarity and fairness.
Major data inconsistency with the contract start date being the same as the submission deadline.
Lack of electronic submission support, hindering modern procurement practices.
Limited focus on sustainability (environmental, social, innovation aspects).
Incomplete overview of full tender documentation beyond administrative notices.

Recommendations

1. Immediately publish detailed evaluation criteria, including weighting and methodology, to ensure transparency and fairness.
2. Correct the contract start date to a realistic date following the evaluation and award process.
3. Consider enabling electronic submission to streamline the process and enhance accessibility for bidders.

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