---
title: "NU/1246-6 LABSAFE Commercialisation of university research through provision of management skills to assist in successful spin-out company creation"
ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-13b96471-b4e1-4be4-a2ea-8ed26d506ce5"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-13b96471-b4e1-4be4-a2ea-8ed26d506ce5"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-13b96471-b4e1-4be4-a2ea-8ed26d506ce5.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-13b96471-b4e1-4be4-a2ea-8ed26d506ce5.json"
source: "Contracts Finder"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY"
published: "2018-02-02"
---

# NU/1246-6 LABSAFE Commercialisation of university research through provision of management skills to assist in successful spin-out company creation

Buyer: NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-b5fd17-13b96471-b4e1-4be4-a2ea-8ed26d506ce5

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## Summary

The procurement process involves Newcastle University seeking a tender for the position of CEO to manage LabSafe Limited, a new company born from the commercialisation of university research in the financial consultancy services sector. The procurement was initiated with the aim of supporting successful spin-out company creation, with an announced budget of £25,000. The contract period is set to commence on 1st February 2018, lasting until 31st January 2019. Although the tender period ended on 15th January 2018, the award date for the successful bidder, IPHL Ltd, was noted as 25th January 2018, with published results released on 2nd February 2018. The project is centred in Newcastle upon Tyne, within the North East region of the UK.

This tender presents significant growth opportunities for businesses, particularly those specialising in strategic management and consultancy services. Companies with a focus on developing and managing innovative software products, especially in the field of financial consultancy, would find themselves well-suited to participate in this tender process. Given the aim to establish LabSafe Limited as a commercially viable entity, businesses that can demonstrate strong commercial acumen and experience in supporting start-ups are likely to be appealing candidates for the role of CEO.

## Notice

It is proposed that a CEO be supported to create and manage a company called LabSafe Limited. This opportunity has emerged from the work of an established Durham spinout company, Olexsys Limited which was spun out from Durham Chemistry in 2010. Olexsys developed "LabSafe" software during work adjacent to their main technical activity (X-Ray crystallography) during 2015-17. The Olexsys Board now consider that the LabSafe software has good commercial potential, but it could distract from the core Olexsys mission. They therefore propose that a new company, LabSafe Limited is formed to focus on the commercial exploitation of the software. A CEO designate is therefore required to bring strong commercial skills and leadership to this business. To date the LabSafe product has demonstrated initial sales through provision of a successful product to Durham Chemistry Department and is presently negotiating a contract to roll the product out across the University. Examples of specific tasks for the CEO (not in any particular order) are: * Review the existing business ambitions and formulate a sustainable Business Plan. * Establish Labsafe as an independent business * Raise finance through investment or sales to support general business administration and new staff as identified in the business plan * Secure first new customer sales. Manage sales contracts and customer contacts.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Contracts Finder |
| Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/a66ea8fd-61c1-4155-a029-c098a780f917 |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Not Specified |
| Procurement method details | Other - |
| Tender suitability | SME |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 2 Feb 2018 |
| Submission deadline | 15 Jan 2018 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 25 Jan 2018 |
| Contract period | 1 Feb 2018 - 31 Jan 2019 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £25,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £25,000 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Not specified |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY |
| Locality | NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE |
| Post town | Newcastle upon Tyne |
| Postcode | NE1 7RU |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLC North East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLC4 Northumberland, Durham and Tyne & Wear |
| ITL 3 | TLC43 Tyneside |
| Local authority | Newcastle upon Tyne |
| Electoral ward | Monument |
| Westminster constituency | Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West |
| Delivery location | TLC North East (England) |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | IPHL |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 66 - Financial and insurance services

### Codes

- 66171000 - Financial consultancy services

## Release History

- 2 Feb 2018 at 08:42 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/a66ea8fd-61c1-4155-a029-c098a780f917

## Documents

- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/a66ea8fd-61c1-4155-a029-c098a780f917
  2nd February 2018 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder

## Notice URLs

- https://www.ncl.ac.uk

## Provenance

This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-13b96471-b4e1-4be4-a2ea-8ed26d506ce5. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-13b96471-b4e1-4be4-a2ea-8ed26d506ce5.json.