Award

Multi-Mode Radio Post Design Support Contract

MINISTRY OF DEFENCE

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Award

21 Feb 2025 at 13:25

Summary of the contracting process

The UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) has awarded a contract to L3Harris Communications Systems UK Limited for the provision of Post Design Services (PDS) for Multi Mode Radio (MMR) systems. This contract, which started on 21st February 2025 and will run for five years, focuses on the maintenance and support of Harris PRC-152/152A Handheld and PRC-117F/117G Manpack radios. The contract falls under the industry category of Integrated Telecommunications Services and aims to ensure the integrity, safety, and security of the MMR systems. This procurement process followed a limited procurement method, specifically negotiated without the publication of a contract notice due to technical reasons, as L3Harris is the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and possesses the necessary technical expertise and design information.

This contract presents significant opportunities for businesses involved in telecommunications services, especially those specialising in contractor technical support and engineering expertise. Companies with a background in electronic warfare, secure communications, and defence technology could greatly benefit from this contract. SMEs with innovative approaches to system design, firmware management, and technical publications may find additional sub-contracting opportunities. The contract not only ensures ongoing revenue over its five-year span but also enables participating businesses to develop expertise and strengthen their portfolio in the high-demand defence sector.

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Notice Title

Multi-Mode Radio Post Design Support Contract

Notice Description

The Tactical Systems (TacSys) Service Executive (SE) within Defence Digital, part of the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD), intends to place with L3Harris Communications Systems UK Limited a 5 year contract for the provision of Post Design Services (PDS) for the different variants of Multi Mode Radios that were procured. These radio types are the Harris PRC-152 and PRC-152A Handheld radios and the Harris PRC-117F and PRC-117G Manpack radios.

Lot Information

Lot 1

The MMR PDS contract is being placed to sustain the integrity, safety and security of the MMR. The top-level tasks met by the PDS Contract are: Controlled Firmware releases, Obsolescence management (hardware and software), Maintenance of the MMR Safety and Environmental documentation, Incident and problem management, Ad Hoc PDS Tasking, Release and re-certification management, System level documentation and technical publications, advice, guidance and Help Desk, Technical assurance, Product, interface and system design, and the provision of System level knowledge and engineering expertise.

Procurement Information

In accordance with regulation 4 of the Defence and Security Public Contracts (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (SI 2019/697) this procurement falls to be regulated under the provisions of the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011 as amended (in particular by SI 2019/697 and SI 2020/1450). Prior publication of a contract notice in the Official Journal of the European Union is no longer appropriate. It is considered that the award of the contract without prior publication of a contract notice in the UK e-notification service (as required by the relevant legislation) is lawful in accordance with Regulation 16(1)(a)(ii) of the DSPCR 2011 for technical reasons. To address obsolescence impacting tactical communications the MMR project was initiated in 2022 to replace legacy systems with modern radios for man-portable Tactical Satellite (TacSat) and Ground-to-Air (G2A) capabilities. Awarded to L3Harris Communication Systems UK, the contract delivered MMR systems. However, the contract, set to expire in June 2025, did not include the provisions for post-design service support, which is now required to maintain the safety, operability, and availability of the MMR capability beyond the contract's expiration. L3Harris are the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and have the specific technical skills, know-how and experience in providing the necessary Contractor Technical Support and Services to support, maintain and upgrade the equipment when required. They are also the only supplier who has access to the product design information to enable them to undertake any support and design modifications to the MMR fleet. Choosing to compete this requirement would introduce the possibility of contravention of the Defence Safety Authority (DSA) regulations as it would not be possible to ensure that another contractor could be sufficiently qualified within the requisite time frames to undertake design and manufacture activities without including an associated unacceptable level of risk. This would result in the Authority not being able to fulfil safety requirements which are required to ensure the safe functioning of the User community. Due to the above reasons the requirement will continue as a single source requirement.

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-04e682
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/006733-2025
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Limited
Procurement Method Details
Negotiated without publication of a contract notice
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

64 - Postal and telecommunications services


CPV Codes

64227000 - Integrated telecommunications services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£3,500,000 £1M-£10M

Notice Dates

Publication Date
21 Feb 20251 years ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
21 Feb 20251 years ago
Contract Period
Not specified - Not specified
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
MINISTRY OF DEFENCE
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
BRISTOL
Postcode
BS34 8JH
Post Town
Bristol
Country
England

Major Region (ITL 1)
TLK South West (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLK5 West of England
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLK52 Bath & North East Somerset and South Gloucestershire
Delivery Location
Not specified

Local Authority
South Gloucestershire
Electoral Ward
Stoke Park & Cheswick
Westminster Constituency
Filton and Bradley Stoke

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

L3HARRIS COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS

Further Information

Notice URLs

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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The Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS) is a framework designed to increase transparency and access to public procurement data in the public sector. It is widely used by governments and organisations worldwide to report on procurement processes and contracts.

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