Planning

Drones Downlink

THE POLICE & CRIME COMMISSIONER FOR SUSSEX

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

PlanningUpdate

30 Jul 2025 at 08:17

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
PlanningUpdate

29 Jul 2025 at 07:16

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Planning

29 Jul 2025 at 07:15

UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Police & Crime Commissioner for Sussex, in collaboration with the Police & Crime Commissioner for Surrey, is seeking to appoint a supplier for the "Drones Downlink" project. This procurement process falls under the goods category and involves supplying drone downlink functionalities capable of streaming live drone footage into police systems in Surrey and Sussex. The tender is currently at the planning stage, with market engagement documents published on 30th July 2025. Interested suppliers must register by 12th August 2025 to access the request for information. A competitive tender, potentially open or framework-based, is anticipated to be published in early 2026. The planned contract period extends from 29th March 2026 to 28th March 2028, with potential renewals up to 2036. The project is located in Lewes, United Kingdom, and the procurement is intended to be in line with UK public authority sub-central government guidelines.

This tender offers a significant opportunity for businesses specializing in communication, telecommunication, security devices, unmanned aerial vehicles, and related equipment. It caters particularly to firms capable of integrating advanced drone technology with police systems, ensuring secure transmission and storage of live footage. Businesses with expertise in digital encoding (H.265), communications software, and secure data handling will find this project aligns well with their capabilities. Firms offering solutions compatible with multiple devices and stakeholders will also benefit. Engagement in this project can enhance business portfolios and establish long-term collaborations with public sector entities in security and emergency response sectors.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Drones Downlink

Notice Description

The Police and Crime Commissioner for Sussex, acting also on behalf of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Surrey, are tendering to appoint a single supplier for the provision of Drone Downlink functionality. As part of the pre-market engagement we are asking suppliers to submit request for information, this will be used to help scope the Authorities specification, align budgets and determine route to market. The Competitive tender, whether this be via a framework or an open/competitive flexible opportunity will then be published in early 2026. The scope of the project is for the solution to enable the streaming of live drone images into force systems allowing any Surrey Police and Sussex Police user who has been granted permission, to view and to do so on any force device. The imagery should also be able to be streamed to respective Sussex and Surrey FRS control rooms. Requirements Summary * Live images from Drone Operators controller (HDMI output) to a location (Force Control Rooms), Anyone who has permissions to access live footage from Drones * Availability for use on multiple devices i.e. Tablets, MDTs.... * Availability across SSP (Surrey/Sussex Police) * Viewing to include Stakeholder partners i.e. Fire Rescues, Ambulance etc * Ability to integrate Single sign on (SSO) with Azure Active Directory (Surrey & Sussex Police AAD) with auditing * 9 downlinks with min 5 users concurrent per downlink * Digital encoding of video stream using H.265 encoding for transmission and storage. * Absolute minimum video resolution 720p, ideally up to 1080p * Securely store streamed footage for 30 days within the boundaries of the UK * Transmission network capacity to support a minimum of 5Mbps (for 720p video, will be higher if a higher resolution is transmitted) per downlink/per drone operator. * Ability to view live footage and to be able to "rewind" footage. * Ability to download stored footage in MPEG-4 format * Data must be secured at ASE128 in transit and AES256 at rest * The system for transmitting footage should have sufficient battery capacity to transmit for at least 3 hours * Robust audit trail to record who has viewed any live stream footage - with each action or event being linked to a user ID, device ID (IP address), date, time, and location * View live/recorded footage from drone's cameras that can be operated in a variety of lighting levels and have infrared capability

Planning Information

Suppliers who wish to respond to this request for information should register on the following link: https://sell2.in-tend.co.uk/blpd/ Once registered onto the site, log in and in the top right corner click portals. Scroll down until you find Sussex Police and click the connect to organisation button. You should then be able to access the opportunity to register your interest and download the request for information documents.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-056792
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/044080-2025
Current Stage
Planning
All Stages
Planning

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Goods
Procurement Method
Not Specified
Procurement Method Details
Not specified
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Not specified

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

32 - Radio, television, communication, telecommunication and related equipment

35 - Security, fire-fighting, police and defence equipment

38 - Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses)

48 - Software package and information systems

60 - Transport services (excl. Waste transport)

64 - Postal and telecommunications services

71 - Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection services

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

CPV Codes

32000000 - Radio, television, communication, telecommunication and related equipment

35000000 - Security, fire-fighting, police and defence equipment

35120000 - Surveillance and security systems and devices

35613000 - Unmanned aerial vehicles

38651000 - Cameras

48219700 - Communications server software package

60400000 - Air transport services

64200000 - Telecommunications services

71354200 - Aerial mapping services

72212510 - Communication software development services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
30 Jul 20256 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
5 Jan 2026Expired
Award Date
Not specified
Contract Period
29 Mar 2026 - 28 Mar 2028 2-3 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

Tender Status
Planning
Lots Status
Planning
Awards Status
Not Specified
Contracts Status
Not Specified

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
THE POLICE & CRIME COMMISSIONER FOR SUSSEX
Contact Name
Not specified
Contact Email
jointprocurementservice@surrey.police.uk
Contact Phone
Not specified

Buyer Location

Locality
LEWES
Postcode
BN7 2FZ
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)
TLJ22 East Sussex CC
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Lewes
Electoral Ward
Lewes Bridge
Westminster Constituency
Lewes

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

Download

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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