---
title: "Smart Sound Connect"
ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-c1e8b31e-3ce7-4116-a4ce-502b49c41d96"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-c1e8b31e-3ce7-4116-a4ce-502b49c41d96"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-c1e8b31e-3ce7-4116-a4ce-502b49c41d96.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-c1e8b31e-3ce7-4116-a4ce-502b49c41d96.json"
source: "Contracts Finder"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "PLYMOUTH CITY COUNCIL"
published: "2020-12-08"
---

# Smart Sound Connect

Buyer: PLYMOUTH CITY COUNCIL  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-b5fd17-c1e8b31e-3ce7-4116-a4ce-502b49c41d96

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## Summary

The Plymouth City Council has awarded a contract titled "Smart Sound Connect" for the provision of a secure 4G and 5G virtual mobile network. This project falls under the telecommunications industry category and is primarily located in the South West of England. The procurement process, conducted as a limited negotiation without a call for competition, has reached the award stage as of 1st October 2020. The contract is valued at £1,150,000 and has a duration from 1st December 2020 until 31st March 2022. Key milestones include the mobilisation of the network in Autumn 2020, with installation and testing of the equipment scheduled for early 2021.

This tender presents substantial opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) within the telecoms and technology sectors, particularly those with experience in delivering secure mobile networking solutions. Companies that specialise in advanced maritime technologies, research and development, or autonomous vessel operations would be well-positioned to leverage this contract's focus on innovative applications in maritime services. The opportunity to participate in ongoing testing and evaluation phases until March 2022 also allows interested businesses to showcase their capabilities in real-world environments.

## Notice

To appoint a supplier with a suitably experienced telecoms manufacturer (OEM) operating with a UK telecoms Mobile Network Operator (MNO) to deliver a self-contained ("in a box") 4G and 5G virtual mobile network as a turnkey service, managed by the Contracting Authority as the MVNO for 'MBTCNet'. MBTCNet shall be used by a mixed research and commercial maritime community delivering services to fixed assets in addition to remotely operated and autonomous vessels operating within and beyond the boundaries of 'Smart Sound Plymouth' supporting research, development and product testing of advanced marine technologies. A key aspect of the solution should involve the Contracting Authority owning the customer data ensuring that the detail is managed by the Contracting Authority and not the MNO. The network shall be operated in a secure environment taking into account national security requirements. The critical delivery dates for the Requirement are as follows: Autumn 2020 - Mobilisation Jan 2021 - Commence installation of land based 5G equipment Feb 2021- Installation & testing of 5G devices Feb 2021 - 5G equipment installed & ready for deployment Mar 2021 - 5G set up & deployed for Use Case Schemes To March 2022- Testing of Use Cases March 22 - Evaluation, Project defrayment & completion is 31st March 2022

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Contracts Finder |
| Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/7c2edd83-1603-4222-98b2-633fc1717c1d |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Limited |
| Procurement method details | Negotiated without a call for competition |
| Tender suitability | SME |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 8 Dec 2020 |
| Submission deadline | 30 Sep 2020 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 30 Sep 2020 |
| Contract period | 1 Dec 2020 - 31 Mar 2022 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £1,150,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £1,150,000 |
| 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 | PLYMOUTH CITY COUNCIL |
| Locality | PLYMOUTH |
| Post town | Plymouth |
| Postcode | PL1 3BJ |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLK South West (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLK4 Devon |
| ITL 3 | TLK41 Plymouth |
| Local authority | Plymouth |
| Electoral ward | St Peter and the Waterfront |
| Westminster constituency | Plymouth Sutton and Devonport |
| Delivery location | TLK South West (England) |

## Supplier

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

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 32 - Radio, television, communication, telecommunication and related equipment

### Codes

- 32510000 - Wireless telecommunications system

## Release History

- 8 Dec 2020 at 15:12 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/7c2edd83-1603-4222-98b2-633fc1717c1d

## Documents

- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/7c2edd83-1603-4222-98b2-633fc1717c1d
  8th December 2020 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder

## Notice URLs

- http://www.plymouth.gov.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-c1e8b31e-3ce7-4116-a4ce-502b49c41d96. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-c1e8b31e-3ce7-4116-a4ce-502b49c41d96.json.