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Contract to Upgrade Minster Compass to Minster Edge WMS

Hertfordshire County Council

This public procurement record has 3 releases in its history.

Award

19 Aug 2026 at 15:49

UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Award

30 Jul 2026 at 09:40

UK6 - Contract Award Notice
Award

30 Jul 2026 at 09:21

UK5 - Transparency Notice
Summary of the contracting process

Hertfordshire County Council commissioned the upgrade and migration of Herts FullStop’s core warehouse and business management platform from Minster Compass to Minster Edge WMS. The requirement covers Minster Edge SaaS warehouse management software, the IntaData integration platform, barcode scanning services, barcode scanners and label printers, reporting databases, hosting, maintenance and support. Implementation services include requirements analysis, configuration, data migration, systems integration, acceptance and user acceptance testing, training, go-live support and transition. The solution is intended to modernise educational-resources and warehouse operations while retaining existing processes, data structures and integrations. It also covers cloud hosting on Microsoft Azure, service desk support, business continuity, security management and GDPR-compliant data processing. Delivery is for Herts FullStop’s operations in Hertfordshire, United Kingdom.

The procurement is complete and was awarded directly to Minster Computer Systems Limited on 24 July 2026 under a single-supplier technical and proprietary-rights justification. The award value is £297,000 gross, including services classified as inventory management software development. The contract was signed on 14 August 2026 and runs from 14 August 2026 to 11 August 2027, with a possible single 12-month extension up to 11 August 2028. The award followed a standstill ending on 11 August 2026. The Council concluded that only Minster could provide the Edge WMS software and migrate the existing Compass environment because of exclusive intellectual property, licensing and technical knowledge. The contract is above the relevant threshold and uses one completed lot.

This award indicates demand for specialist warehouse-management software modernisation within an education-resources operation, but the selected supplier was the incumbent platform proprietor. A credible competitor for comparable work would need demonstrable expertise in SaaS warehouse-management systems, legacy-platform migration and proprietary data structures, with the rights or authorisation needed to work across existing software, interfaces, integrations and workflows. Relevant capability includes solution discovery and configuration, systems integration, barcode hardware and services, reporting, data migration, testing, user training, go-live stabilisation and transition support. Suppliers would also need to provide reliable Azure hosting, maintenance releases, service-desk performance, business continuity, security controls and GDPR-compliant data processing, while preserving operational continuity and compatibility with established business processes.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Contract to Upgrade Minster Compass to Minster Edge WMS

Notice Description

The project is for the upgrade and migration of Herts FullStop's core operational platform from the existing Minster Compass system to Minster Edge WMS, a modern Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) warehouse management solution. The service includes the provision of the Minster Edge WMS software together with supporting components such as the IntaData integration platform, barcode scanning services and reporting databases. The objective is to modernise HFS's educational resources and warehouse operations while retaining compatibility with existing business processes, data structures and integrations. The services cover the full implementation lifecycle, including requirements analysis, solution configuration, system implementation, data migration, systems integration, acceptance testing, user acceptance testing, staff training, go-live support and transition activities. Introduction of barcode scanners and barcode label printers is part of this project. Minster will migrate existing Compass data into Edge WMS, recreate and manage integrations with key business systems, provide onsite training, and support the delivery of a minimum viable product targeted for early 2027. The project structured around delivery milestones covering discovery, build releases, integration testing, user testing and stabilisation after go-live. In addition, Minster will provide hosting, maintenance and transitional support services following implementation. This includes cloud hosting on Microsoft Azure, software updates and maintenance releases, service desk support with defined response and resolution times, business continuity arrangements, security management, and GDPR-compliant data processing. The solution is intended to improve operational visibility, reporting, customer and staff experience, digital capability and future self-service opportunities while ensuring continuity of critical HFS operations.

Procurement Information

Herts FullStop (HFS), part of Hertfordshire County Council's Resources Directorate, has undertaken extensive and repeated market engagement over several years to identify and procure a replacement core business management platform for its Educational Resources operation. Despite significant effort and investment of time and resources, these procurement activities have not resulted in a viable and deliverable replacement solution that met the Council's operational, commercial and financial requirements. Three separate procurement exercises have been undertaken. The first competitive procurement exercise did not result in any bids that were capable of meeting the Council's requirements and consequently no contract could be awarded. A second procurement exercise successfully identified a supplier and a contract was awarded; however, during the discovery phase the supplier elected to terminate the arrangement through the contractual break provisions because agreement could not be reached regarding intellectual property ownership, and allocation of liabilities without materially altering the procured contract and creating procurement compliance concerns. Subsequently, a third procurement exercise undertaken through an approved Crown Commercial Service framework reached the stage of contract negotiations and agreement on terms and conditions. However, following executive consideration, the Council determined that the scale of investment required to implement and deliver the proposed solution could not be supported within the available funding envelope due to wider cost pressures and therefore the procurement could not proceed. These repeated procurement exercises have demonstrated that there is currently no reasonable alternative solution available to HFS which satisfies the Council's operational requirements, implementation timescales and affordability constraints. Previous replacement programmes required estimated capital investment of c. PS1.6 million, with approximately PS1.1 million directly attributable to software acquisition and implementation costs being paid to the main contractor. Following a review of priorities and available funding, the Council has established a revised project budget of approximately PS800,000 for the business transformation programme. Within this revised affordability envelope, a full market replacement of the existing core platform is no longer deliverable. HFS currently operates critical business processes through Minster Computer Systems Limited's Compass platform. Minster Computer Systems Limited is the proprietor of the existing software, associated intellectual property, underlying data structures, interfaces, integrations, workflows and technical architecture. The proposed solution is an upgrade and migration from the existing Compass platform to Minster Edge WMS, together with associated implementation, integration and transition services. Only Minster Computer Systems Limited possesses the necessary proprietary rights, technical knowledge, source systems expertise and software licensing authority required to undertake this migration and provide the associated implementation services. No third party supplier is able to provide the Minster Edge WMS software, nor undertake the upgrade of the existing Compass environment, without the consent, involvement and intellectual property rights held exclusively by Minster Computer Systems Limited. The proposed award therefore satisfies the grounds contained within Regulation 6.4.3, as only one supplier can provide the required goods and services due to proprietary intellectual property rights, exclusive licensing arrangements and technical reasons, and there are no reasonable alternatives capable of achieving the required outcome within the Council's financial and delivery constraints. In addition, the proposed award satisfies Regulation 6.4.5. The project represents the replacement and modernisation of an existing solution provided by the incumbent.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-h6vhtk-06d72a
Publication Source
Find A Tender Service
Latest Notice
https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/079134-2026
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
UK7 - Contract Details Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Services
Procurement Method
Direct
Procurement Method Details
Direct award
Tender Suitability
Not specified
Awardee Scale
SME

Common Procurement Vocabulary (CPV)

CPV Divisions

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

CPV Codes

72212430 - Inventory management software development services

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
£297,000 £100K-£500K
Contracts Value
£297,000 £100K-£500K

Notice Dates

Publication Date
19 Aug 20261 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
24 Jul 20262 months ago
Contract Period
14 Aug 2026 - 11 Aug 2027 6-12 months
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
Hertfordshire County Council
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
STEVENAGE
Postcode
SG1 2FQ
Postcode Area
Stevenage
Country
England
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLH East (England)
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLH2 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLH26 North and East Hertfordshire
Delivery Location
Not specified
Local Authority
Stevenage
Electoral Ward
Symonds Green
Westminster Constituency
Stevenage

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

MINSTER COMPUTER SYSTEMS LIMITED

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

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