--- title: "UKRI-1713 Exascale Hardware" ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-040be9" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-040be9" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-040be9.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-040be9.json" source: "Find A Tender Service" current_stage: "Tender" buyer: "UK RESEARCH & INNOVATION" published: "2023-10-17" --- # UKRI-1713 Exascale Hardware Buyer: UK RESEARCH & INNOVATION Current stage: Tender OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-040be9 [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-040be9) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-040be9.json) ## Summary The UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) has initiated a public procurement process for the acquisition of an Exascale Supercomputing capability under the title "UKRI-1713 Exascale Hardware." The procurement falls under the goods category and is currently in the planning stage. The deadline for the completion and submission of Pre-market Questionnaire (PMQ) responses is 27th October 14:00 (UK time). The procurement aims to invest in public exascale computing capability with an estimated budget range of £296m to £348m. UKRI intends to conduct pre-market engagement events during October and November 2023 to engage with potential vendors prior to the formal tender process. The procurement process led by UKRI presents significant business growth opportunities for vendors in the supercomputing industry. Businesses capable of providing Exascale computing solutions are well-suited to compete in this tender. The procurement seeks to foster market engagement and gather feedback for the development of advanced computing infrastructure. Vendors interested in participating can register for various engagement activities, including responding to a PMQ, attending virtual Vendor Briefing Days, and arranging face-to-face meetings with UKRI representatives during specific events. The procurement process is designed to encourage market participation and collaboration for achieving the UK's compute needs effectively. ## Notice This Prior Information Notice (PIN) is being issued in order to formally commence market engagement activities with specific regards to the potential requirement for the sourcing of an Exascale Supercomputing capability, briefly detailed in Section 2. For clarity, this PIN is not a Call for Competition. Not registering an interest shall not prevent any organisation from participating in any potential future procurement, nor is it intended that any information supplied as part of the preliminary market consultation shall place any organisation at an advantage in any potential future procurement process. ### Lot Information Lot 1 The purpose of this Prior Information Notice (PIN) is that UKRI would like to advise the market in advance concerning the plans and expectations of any potential upcoming procurement of Exascale capable Supercomputing hardware, for which Edinburgh University is currently the preferred hosting location for Phase1, and also to gather feedback from the market. The need to invest in public exascale computing capability was outlined in the Independent Review of The Future of Compute, published in Mar 2023 [https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/future-of-compute-review/the-future-of-compute-report-of-the-review-of-independent-panel-of-experts]. The report outlines the significance of compute to the UK, the current international landscape, where demand for compute is right now, and makes a number of recommendations for meeting the UK's compute needs. Following this review, the Chancellor announced an investment of PS900 million in the 2023 Spring Budget which included the development of an Exascale capable Supercomputer subject to business case approval. The current estimated budget for an Exascale Hardware solution is in the range of PS296m to PS348m (excl VAT). Exascale capability is currently anticipated to be delivered in two phases with Phase1 being a 250pF system to be completed by Dec 2025. Full UK exaFlop capability would be delivered in Phase2. The current estimated budgets are in the range of PS74m to PS103m for the Phase1 system and PS222m to PS245m for Phase2. The applicability of the Social Value Act (SVA), tackling wider social, economic, and environmental benefits is considered for procurements, and as such, vendors will be expected to comply with UKRI's Responsible Procurement Charter, which will be shared following registration. Therefore, UKRI intends to conduct pre-market engagement events during Oct and Nov 2023. UKRI's market engagement plan will comprise of the following steps and will run sequentially with vendors participating in each step as applicable: Step 1 - Pre-Market Questionnaire (PMQ): Vendors will be required to respond to a PMQ prior to a Vendor Briefing Day. The deadline for the completion and submission PMQ responses is 23rd Oct 14:00 (UK time). Step 2 - Virtual Engagement Week (VEW) (Zoom - w/c 30th October): UKRI will be holding a VEW between 30th Oct 2023 and 3rd Nov 2023. All interested vendors are invited to participate to Vendor Briefing Day (VBD) on 30th of Oct from 2pm to 5pm (UK time) via Zoom. UKRI will also be organizing individual meetings with vendors interested in and capable of bidding for this requirement during that week. These individual meetings will be available to vendors from Tue, 31st Oct to Fri, 3rd Nov with a total of 8 sessions available (times will be shared following registration). An individual meeting slot will be allocated to vendors registered for VBD on a first come first served basis. The links to register to Delta e-sourcing portal for the PMQ and to the VBD can be found in Section II.2.14 Additional Information. Step 3 - In-Person Engagement (SC23): UKRI wishes to arrange face to face pre-market engagement meetings with vendors that are in attendance at SC23 during Nov 12-17 at Denver. Please email to supercomputer@ukri.org using the following title 'UKRI-1713 - SC23' to register your interest and provide available meeting options. The meetings would be max 2 hrs. Please note that the date relating to the publication of the contract notice is tentative and is subject to approval of the Business Case by the UK Government. All future tender documentation will be made available via UKRI's e-sourcing portal and bidders should register on this portal to ensure they have access to all tender documentation when tender is published. Additional information: *To register the webinar: https://ukri.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_QwwFjbuhSIiqPaEjG3Td3A *To access the Market Engagement Questionnaire: https://ukri.delta-esourcing.com/tenders/UK-UK-Swindon:-Super-computer./3RBWZGVZ3S *For In-Person Engagement (SC23 Nov 12-17): email to supercomputer@ukri.org using the following title 'UKRI-1713 - SC23' to provide your available meeting options. ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Find A Tender Service | | Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/030644-2023 | | Notice type | Planning Notice | | Procurement type | Standard | | Procurement category | Goods | | Procurement method | Not Specified | | Procurement method details | Not specified | | Tender suitability | Not specified | | Awardee scale | Not specified | | All stages | Planning, Tender | ## Dates | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication date | 17 Oct 2023 | | Submission deadline | Not specified | | Future notice date | 29 Apr 2024 | | Award date | Not specified | | Contract period | Not specified | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | £348,000,000 | | Lots value | Not specified | | Awards value | Not specified | | Contracts value | Not specified | ## Status | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender status | Planned | | Lots status | Planned | | Awards status | Not specified | | Contracts status | Not specified | ## Buyer | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Main buyer | UK RESEARCH & INNOVATION | | Locality | SWINDON | | Post town | Swindon | | Postcode | SN2 1FL | | Country | England | | ITL 1 | TLK South West (England) | | ITL 2 | TLK7 Gloucestershire and Wiltshire | | ITL 3 | TLK71 Swindon | | Local authority | Swindon | | Electoral ward | Rodbourne Cheney | | Westminster constituency | Swindon North | | Delivery location | Not specified | ## CPV Codes ### Divisions - 30 - Office and computing machinery, equipment and supplies except furniture and software packages ### Codes - 30211100 - Super computer ## Release History - 17 Oct 2023 at 15:05 - TenderUpdate - Tender Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/030644-2023 - 13 Oct 2023 at 13:05 - Planning - Planning Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/030297-2023 ## Notice URLs - http://www.ukri.org - https://ukri.delta-esourcing.com/delta/viewNotice.html?noticeId=815287849 - https://ukri.delta-esourcing.com/delta/viewNotice.html?noticeId=816666234 - https://ukri.delta-esourcing.com/tenders/UK-UK-Swindon:-Super-computer./3RBWZGVZ3S - https://ukri.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_QwwFjbuhSIiqPaEjG3Td3A - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/future-of-compute-review/the-future-of-compute-report-of-the-review-of-independent-panel-of-experts ## 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-h6vhtk-040be9. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-040be9.json.