---
title: "TAIPAN E3 TESTING PHASE 2"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-04467c"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-04467c"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04467c.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04467c.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "MINISTRY OF DEFENCE"
published: "2024-03-07"
---

# TAIPAN E3 TESTING PHASE 2

Buyer: MINISTRY OF DEFENCE  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-04467c

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## Summary

The Ministry of Defence, part of the UK government, has awarded a contract for the 'TAIPAN E3 TESTING PHASE 2' project within the Defence services industry category. The procurement method was 'Negotiated without publication of a contract notice', and the contract value is 82,476 GBP. The contract was signed on March 7, 2024, and the work will be carried out in the UK. This tender process has now reached the award stage.

This contracting opportunity involving E3 testing with the Ministry of Defence presents a specialised service requirement within the Defence industry sector. Businesses with expertise in radar technology and defence services could find this contract suitable for competitive bidding. The procurement process, which has now progressed to the award stage, signals a vital opportunity for businesses looking to expand through government contracts in the defence sector.

## Notice

E3 TESTING

### Procurement Information

The Artillery Systems Team within Defence Equipment and Support, part of the UK Ministry of Defence, intends to place a single source contract Malvern Optical to conduct E3 testing of the TAIPAN capability as part of the capability certification process required to gain SRO authorisation to introduce it into service. The Mobile Artillery Monitoring Battlefield (MAMBA) Mid Life Enhancement (MLE) is an equipment update project to address obsolescence issues with the current In-Service MAMBA fleet. The project will address obsolescence, in order to maintain MAMBA Weapon Locating System (WLS) capabilities until it's Out of Service Date (OSD) of Dec 2026. The MAMBA Radar locates and identifies enemy mortar, artillery, rocket firing positions and facilitates the delivery of timely and accurate counter fires. The project will be delivered by the Artillery Systems Delivery Team. The project is planning to provide Initial Operating Capability (IOC) by Quarter 2 FY 24/25 and will replace the current MAMBA Fleet which was procured as an Urgent Operational Requirement (UOR) for operations in Afghanistan in 2002. The single-source justification for contracting Malvern Optical due to technical reasons is as follows: a. Height of the system + 2.93 m for Bowman antennas, Malvern Optical is the only accredited chamber that is large enough to accommodate the system and afford the required 0.3 m separation between tip of the Radiation Absorbent Material (RAM) and the tip of the antenna. b. Malvern Optical are the only accredited facility for Antenna Radiation Patterns. c. Malvern Optical are the only accredited facility for SINAD and MEMIC measurements: d. DRE04 measurements need to be taken at the same facility as this feeds SINAD and MEMIC frequency selection. e. TacCIS ID&C testing of VSWR and RF bonding from other facilities has identified issues with measurement technique and measurement locations which effectively voids most (if not all) testing and any opportunity for read across to similar platforms. This is because other facilities are automotive-centric, whereas Malvern Optical are communications-centric (which is the whole purpose of the ID&C testing).

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/007384-2024 |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Limited |
| Procurement method details | Negotiated without publication of a contract notice |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 7 Mar 2024 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 7 Mar 2024 |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £82,476 |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Not specified |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Active |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | MINISTRY OF DEFENCE |
| Locality | BRISTOL |
| Post town | Bristol |
| Postcode | BS34 8JH |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLK South West (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLK5 West of England |
| ITL 3 | TLK52 Bath & North East Somerset and South Gloucestershire |
| Local authority | South Gloucestershire |
| Electoral ward | Stoke Park & Cheswick |
| Westminster constituency | Filton and Bradley Stoke |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | MALVERN OPTICAL |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 35 - Security, fire-fighting, police and defence equipment
- 75 - Administration, defence and social security services

### Codes

- 35722000 - Radar
- 75220000 - Defence services

## Release History

- 7 Mar 2024 at 15:33 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/007384-2024

## Notice URLs

- https://des.mod.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-h6vhtk-04467c. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04467c.json.