---
title: "Contract for the Supply of a Distributed Acoustic Sensing Unit to the University of Birmingham"
ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-51d1a3fb-459f-4ea4-bc31-b06dafd20905"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-51d1a3fb-459f-4ea4-bc31-b06dafd20905"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-51d1a3fb-459f-4ea4-bc31-b06dafd20905.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-51d1a3fb-459f-4ea4-bc31-b06dafd20905.json"
source: "Contracts Finder"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM"
published: "2020-06-30"
---

# Contract for the Supply of a Distributed Acoustic Sensing Unit to the University of Birmingham

Buyer: THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-b5fd17-51d1a3fb-459f-4ea4-bc31-b06dafd20905

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## Summary

The contract for the Supply of a Distributed Acoustic Sensing Unit has been awarded to Silixa Ltd by the University of Birmingham. This procurement falls under the industry category of Acoustic devices and is valued at £200,000. The contract is currently active and the official award notice was published on 30 June 2020. The anticipated contract period runs from 15 June 2020 to 25 September 2020. Notably, this procurement was executed through a 'VEAT' method, indicating a unique procurement process.

This contract presents a noteworthy opportunity for businesses that specialise in high-tech goods, particularly in acoustic sensing technologies. Companies with experience in academic collaborations and those capable of providing training and support aligned with research initiatives would be particularly well-suited to compete. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are encouraged to explore similar opportunities within the educational sector, as collaborations with institutions can foster business growth and innovation.

## Notice

Silixa Ltd have already successfully collaborated with University of Birmingham on the use and development of an earlier generation of acoustic sensing equipment (Bense et al., 2016), so we know that they are prepared to act in this way and we can build on the existing relationship. Silixa have agreed to include free training for university staff on using the iDAS unit. While this might not appear exceptional, Silixa staff have co-authored three of above references and thus their knowledge and research experience will be uniquely valuable for the success of our project - we have one year remaining on the capital grant that is funding the equipment and in which to obtain robust datasets; we simply do not have time to make 'learning to use the equipment in previously untried applications' on the way. We also have a limited research budget and Silixa Ltd have included a generous discount on the normal cost of this equipment on the condition that we use it collaboratively and only for academic research. The research funding awarded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council for purchasing this equipment is a maximum of PS200,000 plus VAT.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Contracts Finder |
| Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/6e4a92c5-9730-4c73-8315-36bff1486c10 |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Goods |
| Procurement method | Not Specified |
| Procurement method details | Other - VEAT |
| Tender suitability | SME |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 30 Jun 2020 |
| Submission deadline | 11 Jun 2020 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 10 Jun 2020 |
| Contract period | 14 Jun 2020 - 25 Sep 2020 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £200,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £200,000 |
| 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 | THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM |
| Locality | BIRMINGHAM |
| Post town | Birmingham |
| Postcode | B15 2TT |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLG West Midlands (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLG3 West Midlands |
| ITL 3 | TLG31 Birmingham |
| Local authority | Birmingham |
| Electoral ward | Edgbaston |
| Westminster constituency | Birmingham Edgbaston |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

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

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 32 - Radio, television, communication, telecommunication and related equipment
- 35 - Security, fire-fighting, police and defence equipment

### Codes

- 32342400 - Acoustic devices
- 35125100 - Sensors

## Release History

- 30 Jun 2020 at 14:34 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/6e4a92c5-9730-4c73-8315-36bff1486c10

## Documents

- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/6e4a92c5-9730-4c73-8315-36bff1486c10
  30th June 2020 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder

## 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-b5fd17-51d1a3fb-459f-4ea4-bc31-b06dafd20905. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-51d1a3fb-459f-4ea4-bc31-b06dafd20905.json.