Award

Acoustic Liquid Handler

UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH

This public procurement record has 1 release in its history.

Award

26 Feb 2025 at 00:00

OJEU - F3 - Contract Award Notice
Summary of the contracting process

The University of Edinburgh has completed the procurement of an Acoustic Liquid Handler for their Edinburgh Genome Foundry, which falls under the industry category of Education. The procurement process reached the award stage on 26th February 2025, with the contract being signed on 19th February 2025. Located in Edinburgh, this procurement was executed through a limited method without prior publication of a call for competition, highlighting the unique and specialised nature of the equipment required. The total contract value amounts to GBP 384,551.65, and the successful supplier is Beckman Coulter United Kingdom Limited, based in High Wycombe.

This tender represents a significant opportunity for businesses operating in the medical research and laboratory equipment sectors, particularly those that specialise in cutting-edge, novel technologies. Companies with expertise in providing highly precise, sustainable, and efficient laboratory equipment stand to benefit greatly, as such procurements often require unique and technically advanced solutions. Small and large enterprises experienced in similar technologies or capable of offering innovative solutions for academic research settings will find lucrative opportunities in similar tenders.

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Notice Information

Notice Title

Acoustic Liquid Handler

Notice Description

Purchase of a Acoustic Liquid Handler to be used for the medical research being carried out at the Edinburgh Genome Foundry.

Lot Information

Lot 1

Pre-market engagement was carried out to evaluate market capacity for the supply of Acoustic Liquid Handling machines. It was evident that the technology is novel and cutting-edge, with only a single supplier being to supply this specific item of equipment. It was therefore deemed suitable to carry out a non-competitive action given the absence of competition.

Procurement Information

Echo Acoustic Liquid Handler is the only liquid handler on the market that uses sound energy to precisely transfer a variety of liquid types without contact or using pipette tips, nozzles or tubing. Since the inception of the Foundry we have been using the Echo acoustic dispenser (model Echo 550) for our needs. The reasons behind this are: - Precise low-volume transfer of reagents and samples allowing us to reduce costs through reagent miniaturisation. - Speed of transfer saves valuable time. -No contact between source and destination plate; as a result there is extremely low possibility of cross-contamination. - The combination of the tipless nature of the system combined with the reduced reagent volume means it is offering a highly sustainable solution allowing us to reduce our carbon footprint. Other nanoliter resolution instruments in the market such as the dispendix i-DOT they use specialised plastic nozzles and therefore have increased operational cost and higher carbon footprint. EGF already has 2 older Echos and the team has ~10 years of experience in operating these. We need the newer Echo as it will offer us novel capabilities in handling large DNA genomes and mammalian cells. We need this specific instrument because: - The necessary training will be minimal as we already have extensive expertise on the operation of a similar instrument; thus costs for this aspect will remain low. - The Echo 525 could be easily integrated on our fully automated platform without any additional expenses for integration. - We have already developed a lot of protocols and SOPs for the Echo. Using a different system would mean that a significant amount of time would be necessary to transfer this to a different platform resulting in extended downtime in our operations. - We have standardised the way we interact with the instrument and have developed bespoke software to it in order to deliver our research. For data processing and integrity and continuity of research it is essential we continue with this instrument. - Lastly, Echo is one of the very few pieces of kit found in most Biofoundries globally. This allows protocol exchange and enhances collaborative research. For the reasons above, it is deemed justifiable to opt for non-competitive action given the absence of competition for technical reasons.

Notice Details

Publication & Lifecycle

Open Contracting ID
ocds-r6ebe6-0000791419
Publication Source
Public Contracts Scotland
Latest Notice
https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=FEB524655
Current Stage
Award
All Stages
Award

Procurement Classification

Notice Type
OJEU - F3 - Contract Award Notice
Procurement Type
Standard
Procurement Category
Goods
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

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

CPV Codes

38000000 - Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses)

Notice Value(s)

Tender Value
Not specified
Lots Value
Not specified
Awards Value
Not specified
Contracts Value
£384,551 £100K-£500K

Notice Dates

Publication Date
26 Feb 202512 months ago
Submission Deadline
Not specified
Future Notice Date
Not specified
Award Date
19 Feb 20251 years ago
Contract Period
Not specified - Not specified
Recurrence
Not specified

Notice Status

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

Buyer & Supplier

Contracting Authority (Buyer)

Main Buyer
UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH
Contact Name
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Email
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →
Contact Phone
Available with D3 Tenders Premium →

Buyer Location

Locality
EDINBURGH
Postcode
EH1 1HT
Post Town
Edinburgh
Country
Scotland
Major Region (ITL 1)
TLM Scotland
Basic Region (ITL 2)
TLM1 East Central Scotland
Small Region (ITL 3)
TLM13 City of Edinburgh
Delivery Location
TLM75 City of Edinburgh
Local Authority
City of Edinburgh
Electoral Ward
City Centre
Westminster Constituency
Edinburgh East and Musselburgh

Supplier Information

Number of Suppliers
1
Supplier Name

BECKMAN COULTER UNITED KINGDOM

Further Information

Notice Documents

Open Contracting Data Standard (OCDS)

View full OCDS Record for this contracting process

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