---
title: "3023/JN - Dilution Refrigerator and Magnet System"
ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-96675943-1b77-4fc1-8ac9-7b2c27a90481"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-96675943-1b77-4fc1-8ac9-7b2c27a90481"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-96675943-1b77-4fc1-8ac9-7b2c27a90481.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-96675943-1b77-4fc1-8ac9-7b2c27a90481.json"
source: "Contracts Finder"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD"
published: "2022-07-04"
---

# 3023/JN - Dilution Refrigerator and Magnet System

Buyer: UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-b5fd17-96675943-1b77-4fc1-8ac9-7b2c27a90481

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## Summary

The University of Sheffield, a renowned institution located in Sheffield, England, has completed a procurement process for a Dilution Refrigerator and Magnet System, valued at £685,000. This procurement falls within the industry category of Laboratory, optical and precision equipment and was initiated under an open method allowing full competition. The tender was published on 1st March 2022, with a submission deadline of 4th April 2022. The contract is scheduled to commence on 5th December 2022 and conclude on 6th December 2022. The award for the contract was given on 28th June 2022, with Oxford Instruments Nanotechnology Tools Ltd identified as the successful supplier.

This tender presents significant opportunities for businesses, particularly those in the fields of laboratory equipment manufacture and design. Companies that specialise in producing precision instruments, advanced refrigeration technology, or complex scientific systems would be particularly well-suited to engage with such contracts. The open procurement method invites a diverse range of suppliers, including small and medium enterprises and voluntary, community, and social enterprises, fostering competition and innovation in response to scientific requirements at the University.

## Notice

The Department of Physics and Astronomy at The University of Sheffield, with funding from the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) requires a dilution refrigerator and magnet system for use in a search for hidden sector dark matter. The dilution refrigerator will be appropriate for cooling a two-component payload, consisting of (i) An electromagnetic resonator, such as a conducting-wall resonant cavity; and (ii) Ultra-low-noise readout electronics in as close proximity as possible to the resonator, allowing them to be coupled together. The space for the electromagnetic resonator should be threaded by a static magnetic field of nominal magnitude 8T, The ultra-low-noise readout electronics should be in a magnetic-field-free region, with magnetic field exclusion achieved via a combination of a field compensation coil and passive normal-conducting and superconducting shields mounted in the bore of the compensation coil. The operating base temperature of the refrigerator should be not more than 10mK at the mixing chamber plate, where the cooling power should be at least 12 microwatts at 20mK and at least 400 microwatts at 100mK. The experiment will run cold and at with the magnetic field threading the cavity for at least 6 months at a time without need to be warmed up. The refrigerator should utilize mechanical pre-cooling to a sufficiently low temperature for the dilution refrigerator to operate, so that the only liquid cryogens that are required are the helium3/helium4 mixture in the closed cycle dilution refrigerator unit and some liquid nitrogen that may be required for a cold trap in the gas handling unit. The system should incorporate its own reliable control system and software for ease of control, and this control system should also be remotely operable from the data acquisition system of the experiment, via an appropriate cable interface. A schedule of tests required to demonstrate function upon delivery of the apparatus are supplied in the technical specification. This is an FTS open exercise. The ITT can be downloaded by registering and expressing your interest on the University's e-tendering system https://in-tendhost.co.uk/sheffield If you have any questions or comments in relation to this tender they must be submitted via the In-tend system, this can be accessed at https://in-tendhost.co.uk/sheffield Completed tenders must be returned through the same e-tendering system.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Contracts Finder |
| Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/a331d16d-b618-4197-bcf3-4be903a5fa26 |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Goods |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Open procedure (above threshold) |
| Tender suitability | SME, VCSE |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Tender, Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 4 Jul 2022 |
| Submission deadline | 4 Apr 2022 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 27 Jun 2022 |
| Contract period | 5 Dec 2022 - 6 Dec 2022 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £685,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £700,628 |
| 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 | UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD |
| Locality | SHEFFIELD |
| Post town | Sheffield |
| Postcode | S10 2TN |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLE Yorkshire and The Humber |
| ITL 2 | TLE3 South Yorkshire |
| ITL 3 | TLE32 Sheffield |
| Local authority | Sheffield |
| Electoral ward | Broomhill and Sharrow Vale |
| Westminster constituency | Sheffield Central |
| Delivery location | TLE Yorkshire and The Humber |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | OXFORD INSTRUMENTS NANOTECHNOLOGY TOOLS LTD T/A OXFORD INSTRUMEN |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

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

### Codes

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

## Release History

- 4 Jul 2022 at 12:47 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/a331d16d-b618-4197-bcf3-4be903a5fa26
- 1 Mar 2022 at 15:03 - Tender - Tender Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/cd15132c-4d92-4023-9c95-bdb8aabae1b4

## Documents

- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/a331d16d-b618-4197-bcf3-4be903a5fa26
  4th July 2022 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/cd15132c-4d92-4023-9c95-bdb8aabae1b4
  1st March 2022 - Opportunity notice on Contracts Finder
- https://in-tendhost.co.uk/sheffield
  All tender documents can be accessed at:

## 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-b5fd17-96675943-1b77-4fc1-8ac9-7b2c27a90481. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-96675943-1b77-4fc1-8ac9-7b2c27a90481.json.