---
title: "Reprocessing of Sterile Bifurcated Needles"
ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-c302eb35-c427-4e9e-8d60-7006987fc8e0"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-c302eb35-c427-4e9e-8d60-7006987fc8e0"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-c302eb35-c427-4e9e-8d60-7006987fc8e0.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-c302eb35-c427-4e9e-8d60-7006987fc8e0.json"
source: "Contracts Finder"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "NHS SUPPLY CHAIN"
published: "2019-05-23"
---

# Reprocessing of Sterile Bifurcated Needles

Buyer: NHS SUPPLY CHAIN  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-b5fd17-c302eb35-c427-4e9e-8d60-7006987fc8e0

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## Summary

The NHS Supply Chain is conducting a procurement process for the "Reprocessing of Sterile Bifurcated Needles," which falls under the medical industry category. The tender was officially awarded on 21 May 2019, with a contract value of approximately £1,600,000. The contract duration extends from 22 May 2019 to 1 October 2020, and it includes a phased collection of over 62 million bifurcated needles for re-sterilisation, repackaging, and delivery back to various UK depots. Key quantities must be delivered by set dates ranging from February to October 2020, with all applicable legislation, including CE certification, to be met by the contracted supplier. The procurement method employed is an open procedure, allowing for broader participation.

This tender presents an opportunity for businesses in the medical sterilisation and packaging sectors, particularly those with the technical ability to manage large-scale operations involving specialised medical devices. Companies capable of adhering to stringent regulatory requirements and timelines are well-suited to compete in this space. Given that the service requires a unique technical capability and has shown limited competition, it may favour suppliers with specialised expertise, thus offering a clear pathway for growth within this niche market.

## Notice

This is a contract for the collection in phases (from various UK depots) of 62 469 100 bifurcated needles for re-sterilization, re-packaging and delivery back to various depots across the UK with a 5-year sterility shelf life and by the following dates: Date: Quantity: - 02/2020: 6 467 100, - 05/2020: 8 001 000, - 06/2020: 8 000 000, - 07/2020: 16 001 000, - 08/2020: 8 000 000, - 09/2020: 8 000 000, - 10/2020: 8 000 000. All applicable legislation must be followed and certification obtained (including CE Certification) in order for the product to be suitable for its original manufactured purpose for the required shelf life. Additional information: The works, supplies or services can be provided only by a particular economic operator for the following reason: absence of competition for technical reasons Explanation: NHS Supply Chain believes that the award of this contract without prior publication of a contract notice in OJEU is lawful under Article 32(2)(b)(ii) of Directive 2014/24/EU. In providing the service, the service provider must: - comply with all legislation (including certification requirements) which were followed by the manufacturer and supplier of the original product and/or such other legislation as is now applicable to bifurcated needles to ensure the goods are fit for purpose (that being use in the healthcare sector), and, - take on legal liabilities associated with the manufacture of the needles (for their entire new shelf life) - effectively as original manufacturer - when they are returned to NHS Supply Chain, and, - ensure that the entire stockpile of 62 469 100 bifurcated needles is re-sterilized, re-packaged and returned with a new 5-year shelf life before the shelf life of the current stockpile expires (timescales for the phased performance of the service were detailed in the associated Prior Information Notice noted below). As indicated above this is an extremely specialised technical service, with stringent associated legal obligations, which is required to be performed upon a large number of medical devices within a strict timescale. The contract requirements are critical and essential by virtue of the subject matter of the contract. They neither have the intention nor effect of artificially narrowing down the parameters of the procurement. In order to 'test the market', NHS Supply Chain published a Prior Information Notice on 3.4.2019 setting out its requirements and its intention to publish a Contract Notice. However, this PIN did not receive any expressions of interest (or indeed any informal enquiries) from service providers. This lack of response has led NHS Supply Chain to the conclusions that: (i) no supplier (other than the one identified in this notice) has the technical and other capacity to take on these obligations indicated above and to deliver the service required; (ii) it is extremely unlikely that any capable provider would bid for the contract if a call for competition was then issued via the intended Contract Notice (when would then excessively delay the award); and (iii) it is reasonable to conclude that competition for this award is absent for technical reasons. The service provider cited in this notice has signaled that it is in a position (in terms of technical capacity etc) to perform this contract on the terms outlined above. Given the nature and importance of the service required, it has to be outsourced and awarded to a single supplier so, in the circumstances, the authority does not believe that there is any reasonable alternative or s

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Contracts Finder |
| Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/39d606a1-3ec1-4ae3-8da8-9ec8eb6759f5 |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Goods |
| Procurement method | Open |
| Procurement method details | Open procedure (below threshold) |
| Tender suitability | SME, VCSE |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Planning, Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 23 May 2019 |
| Submission deadline | 21 May 2019 |
| Future notice date | 30 Apr 2019 |
| Award date | 20 May 2019 |
| Contract period | 21 May 2019 - 1 Oct 2020 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £1,600,000 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| 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 | NHS SUPPLY CHAIN |
| Locality | LONDON |
| Post town | South East London |
| Postcode | SE1 6LH |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLI London |
| ITL 2 | TLI4 Inner London - East |
| ITL 3 | TLI44 Lewisham and Southwark |
| Local authority | Southwark |
| Electoral ward | St George's |
| Westminster constituency | Bermondsey and Old Southwark |
| Delivery location | TLC North East (England), TLD North West (England), TLE Yorkshire and The Humber, TLF East Midlands (England), TLG West Midlands (England), TLI London, TLJ South East (England), TLK South West (England) |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | GBUK GROUP |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 33 - Medical equipments, pharmaceuticals and personal care products
- 79 - Business services: law, marketing, consulting, recruitment, printing and security

### Codes

- 33141320 - Medical needles
- 33191000 - Sterilisation, disinfection and hygiene devices
- 79921000 - Packaging services

## Release History

- 23 May 2019 at 11:15 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/39d606a1-3ec1-4ae3-8da8-9ec8eb6759f5
- 10 Apr 2019 at 14:39 - Planning - Planned Procurement Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/913b78b7-b14c-4c13-91ba-b4d5b392d659

## Documents

- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/39d606a1-3ec1-4ae3-8da8-9ec8eb6759f5
  23rd May 2019 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/913b78b7-b14c-4c13-91ba-b4d5b392d659
  10th April 2019 - Future opportunity notice on Contracts Finder
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/8494d929-7320-4971-b712-1d2a6e806cef
  PIN Notice
- https://ted.europa.eu/udl?uri=TED:NOTICE:161673-2019:TEXT:EN:HTML&src=0
  PIN Notice
- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/Attachment/add42650-06ff-4e32-a80d-0ede6f04f674
  Voluntary ex ante transparency notice
- https://ted.europa.eu/udl?uri=TED:NOTICE:240767-2019:TEXT:EN:HTML&src=0
  Voluntary ex ante transparency notice

## 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-c302eb35-c427-4e9e-8d60-7006987fc8e0. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-c302eb35-c427-4e9e-8d60-7006987fc8e0.json.