260101 - Contract for Supply, Delivery, Installation & Commissioning and Maintenance of a High Throughput Live-Cell Imaging System

QUEEN'S UNIVERSITY BELFAST

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

22 Jun 2026 at 12:57

Tender

19 Apr 2026 at 14:06

Planning

18 Apr 2026 at 22:06

Summary of the contracting process

Queen's University Belfast, a public authority under Northern Irish devolved regulations, has recently completed the procurement process for the supply, delivery, installation, commissioning, and maintenance of a High Throughput Live-Cell Imaging System for the Future Medicines Institute (FMI). The process culminated in the awarding of the contract on 22 June 2026, with Sartorius UK Ltd being selected as the supplier. This procurement, conducted through an open procedure, falls under the category of goods and is valued at £975,000. The contract period commences on 2 July 2026 and extends until 1 July 2028, with an optional extension up to 2036. The contract supports FMI's objective of enhancing its drug discovery capabilities by providing real-time live cell imaging under optimal growth conditions at the university's Belfast location (Region UKN06). Key deadlines include the standstill period ending on 1 July 2026 and the potential for additional purchases if future funding permits.

This tender represents a significant opportunity for businesses involved in the supply of advanced scientific imaging equipment to engage in a high-value contract with a leading academic and research institution. Businesses with expertise in manufacturing and maintaining high-resolution fluorescence and bright field imaging systems, particularly those capable of supporting high-throughput drug screening projects, are well-suited to this procurement. The contract provides an avenue for growth and collaboration, allowing businesses to contribute to cutting-edge research in cellular studies, drug discovery, and translational research. Suppliers with a focus on sustainability, ease of use, and servicing and maintenance capabilities are particularly aligned with the university's evaluation criteria, which prioritise both price and technical quality.

How relevant is this notice?

Notice Title

260101 - Contract for Supply, Delivery, Installation & Commissioning and Maintenance of a High Throughput Live-Cell Imaging System

Notice Description

The Future Medicines Institute (FMI) requires a high throughput live-cell imaging system to enable FMI scientists and collaborators to monitor live cell imaging in real time under optimal conditions of cell growth in a properly maintained carbon dioxide and humidity environment to enable the efficient capture of cellular changes as they happen in the incubator. The objective of procuring a live cell imaging system is to enhance FMI's capacity to monitor cells in real time, in an optimally controlled environment, to support and strengthen its drug discovery capabilities. The proposed system must: * Be capable of multiplate/vessel imaging, up to a capacity of 6 plates/vessels and including capacity to image 6 384 well plates, to meet the volume of analysis that the centre is undertaking and support high throughput drug screening projects. * Enable high resolution fluorescence and bright field images to be captured and recorded in real time over hours, days, or weeks. * Offer flexibility to enable users to observe and quantify complex biological changes over time in cells and 3d structures such as spheroids and organoid models. * Include a fully integrated image acquisition system to capture real-time insight into morphological and phenotypic changes and allow multiple users the opportunity to perform complex cellular assays. * Offer versatile assay configurations, supporting various experimental formats such as 2d cell systems and 3d spheroid, and organoid models. The procurement of this live cell imaging system directly supports FMI's broader goals of: * Accelerating drug discovery through rapid identification and characterisation of therapeutic candidates * Providing screening capabilities in high-throughput format * Facilitating translational research by bridging fundamental cellular studies with therapeutic applications. The procurement of a live cell imaging system will provide direct benefit to research scientists within FMI, and wider stakeholders such as partner organisations and the wider academic community in Queens University Belfast (QUB) by: * Significantly enhance its cellular screening capabilities. * Enhancing live cell imaging capabilities and data acquisition throughput in optimised cellular conditions. * Reducing time in setting up multiple vessels for multiple time point experiments. * Reducing plasticware consumables and expensive reagents currently used in setting up multiple time point experiments. If funding becomes available to address future expansion needs the University reserves the right to purchase additional Live-Cell Imaging Systems during the life of the contract. Subject to the availability of funding, the University may optionally purchase additional Live Cell Imaging Systems during the term of the contract. Any such additional purchases shall be non guaranteed, limited to the optional items and maximum quantities and/or values set out in the Pricing Schedule, and shall have been included in the estimated contract value for the purposes of this procurement.

Lot Information

Lot 1

Renewal: option to extend maintenance/consumables, software updates or development, beyond this period for a further period of up to 10 years or the end of useful life of the equipment

Planning Information

Queen’s has conducted Preliminary Market Engagement with a number of suppliers in order to: • develop the understanding of our requirements and the proposed approach to the procurement; • gain a better understanding of what the market can offer and if the market was capable of responding to a tender in relation to this requirement; • identify potential suppliers for the requirement; • understand potential lead times; • gain an understanding of the commercial profile for the requirement; • communicate sustainability targets and minimum requirements to confirm the market has the capability to deliver on these. • identify opportunities to reduce the environmental impact of the requirement. The information gathered from PME will be used to shape any forthcoming procurement strategy to ensure that requirements can be subject to reasonable competitive tension. Participation in preliminary market engagement is not a prerequisite for any future tender exercise

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-0685cf
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/058539-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Planning, Tender, Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Goods
Procurement Method
Open
Procurement Method Details
Open procedure
Tender Suitability
SME
Awardee Scale
Large

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

33 - Medical equipments, pharmaceuticals and personal care products

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


CPV Codes

33110000 - Imaging equipment for medical, dental and veterinary use

38430000 - Detection and analysis apparatus

38510000 - Microscopes

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
£975,000 £500K-£1M
Lots Value
£975,000 £500K-£1M
Awards Value
£975,000 £500K-£1M
Contracts Value
Not specified

Notice Dates

Publication Date
22 Jun 20262 days ago
Submission Deadline
20 May 2026Expired
Future Notice Date
19 Apr 2026Expired
Award Date
21 Jun 20263 days ago
Contract Period
1 Jul 2026 - 1 Jul 2028 2-3 years
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
QUEEN'S UNIVERSITY BELFAST
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
BELFAST
Postcode
BT7 1NN
Post Town
Northern Ireland
Country
Northern Ireland

Major Region (ITL 1)
TLN Northern Ireland
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLN0 Northern Ireland
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLN06 Belfast
Delivery Location
TLN06 Belfast

Local Authority
Belfast
Electoral Ward
Central
Westminster Constituency
Belfast South and Mid Down

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

SARTORIUS

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

JSON Markdown

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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