Award

Unit4 Renewal

UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX(THE)

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Award

27 Mar 2025 at 14:28

Summary of the contracting process

The University of Sussex has completed a procurement process for the renewal of the UNIT4 Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, a primary finance system critical for the university’s operations. This contract, with an estimated value of £71,622, focuses on the support and maintenance services required to sustain the UNIT4 system. The award was made on 21 March 2025 to UNIT4 Business Software Limited, a large enterprise headquartered in London. This procurement falls under the IT services category, encompassing consulting, software development, Internet services, and support. The procurement method was limited, conducted without prior publication due to the absence of competitive alternatives for technical reasons.

This tender offers significant business growth opportunities for companies specialising in ERP systems, particularly those with experience in university finance operations and IT services. Businesses adept in providing software support, maintenance, and integration will find this contract suitable given the technical demands and specific nature of the university’s operational requirements. The limited procurement method underscores the importance of having established expertise and capabilities in managing such systems, providing an advantage for specialised IT service providers looking to secure similar contracts with other educational institutions.

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Notice Title

Unit4 Renewal

Notice Description

UNIT4 is the University's main Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

Lot Information

Lot 1

UNIT4 is the primary finance system for the University, used for raising purchase orders, paying invoices, authorizing expenses and so on. This contract is for support and maintenance of our UNIT4 system.

Procurement Information

The tender procedure followed for this requirement was a direct award in line with the Public Contracts Regulations 2015, regulation 32. "(2) The negotiated procedure without prior publication may be used for public works contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts in any of the following cases:- (b) where the works, supplies or services can be supplied only by a particular economic operator for any of the following reasons:- (ii) competition is absent for technical reasons, and (iii) the protection of exclusive rights, including intellectual property rights". UNIT4 has been on a long term contract starting on 01.01.2026 as a result of a tender process and contract award from December 2024. Replacing this system would be impossible in the given timescale of end of April 2025 and delay in renewing might cause disruption to working practices around invoicing and expenses for the entire University. The University new Cloud Unit 4 service provision is to commence January 2026 with a duration until December 2027.

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-04f993
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/011582-2025
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Limited
Procurement Method Details
Award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support


CPV Codes

72000000 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£71,622 Under £100K

Notice Dates

Publication Date
27 Mar 202511 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
21 Mar 202511 months ago
Contract Period
Not specified - Not specified
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Complete
Lots Status
Cancelled
Awards Status
Active
Contracts Status
Active

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX(THE)
Contact Name
Not specified
Contact Email
kasia.thomas@sussex.ac.uk
Contact Phone
Not specified

Buyer Location

Locality
FALMER, BRIGHTON
Postcode
BN1 9RH
Post Town
Brighton
Country
England

Major Region (ITL 1)
TLJ South East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLJ2 Surrey, East and West Sussex
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLJ21 Brighton and Hove
Delivery Location
TLC North East (England), TLD North West (England), TLE Yorkshire and The Humber, TLF East Midlands (England), TLG West Midlands (England), TLH East (England), TLI London, TLJ South East (England), TLK South West (England)

Local Authority
Brighton and Hove
Electoral Ward
Coldean & Stanmer
Westminster Constituency
Brighton Pavilion

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

UNIT4 BUSINESS SOFTWARE

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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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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