Award

TROO0487 IEP Escrow Verification Services

DEPARTMENT FOR TRANSPORT

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Award

13 Mar 2026 at 11:18

UK5 - Transparency Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The Department for Transport is overseeing the procurement process for the IEP Escrow Verification Services. This process is located in London, United Kingdom, and falls under the "Technical services" category. The procurement stage has been completed, with the award pending for NCC Services Limited, the supplier appointed through a direct award method due to intellectual property and technical reasons. Key dates include the award notice published on 13th March 2026 and the contract period spanning from 26th March 2026 to 25th March 2031. The procurement is designed to maintain independent Escrow for software ensuring business continuity in the event of supplier failure.

This contract presents significant opportunities for businesses involved in technical verification services, particularly those capable of providing independent evaluation of complex software systems. Companies with expertise in escrow services and business continuity management are well-suited to compete in such government contracts. The ongoing nature of the contract offers potential steady business growth and expansion over several years, with NCC Services Limited taking the lead due to their proven capabilities in managing escrow and verification services across technical domains.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

TROO0487 IEP Escrow Verification Services

Notice Description

Under the IEP ECML contract, the Department, along with Agility Trains East (ATE) and Hitachi Rail Limited (HRL), were obliged to enter into an IP Escrow Agreement with NCC Group (NCC). As part of this Agreement, the cost of any verification works by NCC shall be borne by the Department. NCC are now commencing the works to verify the material deposited in escrow which can be rebuilt completely independently of HRL by the NCC technical team. Hence a Direct Award with NCC in order to provide payment and fulfil our obligations. The primary focus of the engagement with NCC is to validate that the source code, assets, and components deposited in escrow can be rebuilt independently simulating the steps that would need to be replicated in the event of supplier failure. By conducting this level of verification, the Department are ensuring that the escrow protection in place can be utilised for Business Continuity purposes. IEP (InterCity Express Programme) require the provision of services with NCC to validate that the source code, assets, and components deposited in escrow can be rebuilt independently simulating the steps that would need to be replicated in the event of supplier failure. By conducting this level of verification, the Department are ensuring that the escrow protection in place can be utilised for Business Continuity purposes. IEP understand that this service will be ongoing through-out the duration of the Master Availability and Reliability Agreement (MARA ) and Train Availability and Reliability Agreement (TARA) contracts and the life span of the current trains. IEP would like to consider the use of a different way to procure these services which last longer than a single year at a time after.

Procurement Information

Contracts held by the Department with Agility Trains East and Agility Trains West contain a binding joint obligation between the parties to maintain an independent Escrow for software code for essential onboard train systems. Ncc is specified in each of the two contracts. Failure to enact an Escrow in the event of supplier failure could represent significant service delivery risk.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06698a
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/022844-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK5 - Transparency Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Direct
Procurement Method Details
Direct award
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

71 - Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection services

CPV Codes

71356000 - Technical services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£398,729 £100K-£500K
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
13 Mar 2026Yesterday
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
13 Mar 2026Yesterday
Contract Period
26 Mar 2026 - 25 Mar 2031 Over 5 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
DEPARTMENT FOR TRANSPORT
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
LONDON
Postcode
SW1P 4DR
Post Town
South West London
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLI London
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLI3 Inner London - West
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLI35 Westminster and City of London
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Westminster
Electoral Ward
Vincent Square
Westminster Constituency
Cities of London and Westminster

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

NCC SERVICES

Further Information

Notice Documents

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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