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Engineering Biology Infrastructure Programme.

UK SHARED BUSINESS SERVICES LIMITED

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Award

22 Oct 2026 at 10:48

Award Notice
Summary of the contracting process

UK Shared Business Services Limited commissioned research and related consultancy for the Engineering Biology Infrastructure Programme, a UK-wide programme intended to help engineering biology innovations progress from laboratory research to pilot and commercial deployment. The programme addresses barriers including limited access to scale-up facilities, high access costs, fragmented infrastructure, underused assets, skills gaps and limited capital. Its infrastructure fund supports establishing new facilities and enhancing existing ones for UK innovators. The work is a research and development service (CPV 73000000) and is relevant to consultancies able to analyse engineering biology infrastructure and the needs of innovators across the United Kingdom. The wider programme forms part of UK Research and Innovation’s Engineering Biology Programme and supports government industrial strategy and science priorities.

The procurement is complete and the contract was awarded to Economic Research Services Ltd on 2 October 2026. The award value is £141,292.50. The contract period runs from 23 October 2026 to 19 March 2027. The work was procured through a selective mini-competition under the Government Commercial Agency’s Research & Insights Framework, described as a call-off from a dynamic purchasing system. The stated tender deadline was 2 October 2026 at 11:00. The procurement is presented as one requirement, with no separate lots identified. Small and medium-sized enterprises and voluntary, community and social enterprises were considered suitable to compete. The published information does not set out an evaluation weighting or scoring basis.

For research and consultancy firms, this award demonstrates demand from UK Shared Business Services Limited for analysis supporting engineering biology scale-up infrastructure. A credible competitor for similar work would need to understand the transition from laboratory research to pilot and commercial deployment, assess facility access and capacity, and examine how infrastructure, investment and operational skills affect innovators. Experience researching engineering biology and translating evidence into practical insight for a national programme would be relevant. The requirement was delivered by a small consultancy, and the procurement identified SMEs as suitable, indicating that this research service was not reserved for large suppliers. Firms with the ability to investigate the UK infrastructure landscape and the needs of engineering biology businesses are the closest fit; the wider infrastructure fund itself is not the research contract awarded here.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Engineering Biology Infrastructure Programme.

Notice Description

***** THIS IS AN AWARD NOTICE, NOT A CALL FOR COMPETITION ***** This procurement is being concluded following a mini competition under the GCA RM6126 - Research & Insights Framework. Brief overview of the requirement. The Engineering Biology Infrastructure Programme (EBIP) is a core delivery component of the wider UKRI Engineering Biology Programme (EBP) and contributes directly to the Government's Industrial Strategy and DSIT priorities. The programme addresses a critical systemic failure: the UK's inability to scale engineering biology innovations from laboratory (TRL 3-4) to pilot-commercial deployment (TRL 6-7). Despite strong research capability and SME innovation, the UK ecosystem is constrained by: * limited access to pilot and demonstration-scale infrastructure * high costs and barriers to facility access * fragmented and poorly coordinated infrastructure landscape * underutilisation of existing assets * gaps in scale-up skills and operational capability * insufficient capital for infrastructure-intensive scale-up. This results in a "scale-up bottleneck", leading to stalled commercialisation, relocation of companies overseas and loss of UK-funded IP and economic value. The Engineering Biology Infrastructure Programme (EBIP) addresses this major UK challenge in scaling engineering biology innovations from research to commercial deployment. A significant part of the programme is the Scale-up infrastructure fund (PS132m), which will establish new and enhance existing scale-up facilities to meet the needs of UK innovators.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-b5fd17-4524033b-28a1-44a1-b05b-cdf49f94ee9c
Publication Source
Contracts Finder
Latest Notice
https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/64375ef5-ab83-4ec1-a306-1509b1cdfdff
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
Award Notice
Procurement Type
Dynamic
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Selective
Procurement Method Details
Call-off from a dynamic purchasing system
Tender Suitability
SME, VCSE
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

CPV Codes

73000000 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£141,292 £100K-£500K
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
22 Oct 20265 days ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
2 Oct 20263 weeks ago
Contract Period
23 Oct 2026 - 19 Mar 2027 1-6 months
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Not Specified
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
UK SHARED BUSINESS SERVICES LIMITED
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
SWINDON
Postcode
SN2 1FF
Postcode Area
Swindon
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLK South West (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLK7 Gloucestershire and Wiltshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLK71 Swindon
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Swindon
Electoral Ward
Rodbourne Cheney
Westminster Constituency
Swindon North

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

Economic Research Services Limited

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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