---
title: "Direct Award - Protective Marking for Protected Wreck Sites: Longevity Testing, Evidence Gathering and Distribution"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-04ea07"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-04ea07"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04ea07.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04ea07.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "HISTORIC ENGLAND"
published: "2025-03-06"
---

# Direct Award - Protective Marking for Protected Wreck Sites: Longevity Testing, Evidence Gathering and Distribution

Buyer: HISTORIC ENGLAND  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-04ea07

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## Summary

Historic England has concluded the procurement stage for a project titled "Direct Award - Protective Marking for Protected Wreck Sites: Longevity Testing, Evidence Gathering and Distribution." The procurement falls under the industry category of marine research services. This direct award, conducted below the threshold without competition, concerns examining the durability of a forensic marking product on protected wreck sites across the United Kingdom. The project aims to deter heritage crimes and has garnered interest from multiple agencies. The contract commenced on 3rd April 2025 and is scheduled to end on 1st April 2026, with a gross value of £75,000. The award to MSDS Marine was signed on 4th March 2025.

This tender provides significant opportunities for businesses specialising in marine research, forensic marking technologies, and heritage conservation. Companies equipped with expertise in archaeological diving fieldwork, product testing in marine conditions, and developing evidence procedures for heritage crime incidents are well-suited to compete in similar future tenders. The project also highlights potential collaborations with international agencies and the Ministry of Defence, offering avenues for expanding business operations and services within the heritage and conservation sectors.

## Notice

In response to a series of high-profile thefts from protected wreck sites, the 7591 project pioneered the development of a forensic marking product suitable for deployment on to high value objects on protected wreck sites around England. Several products were developed and initially tested in the laboratory and in benign sea conditions in a sheltered harbour. This project was completed in 2023, with the markers being successfully deployed onto several protected wreck sites around the coast of England. We now need to return to these sites to establish how well the product has survived in the dynamic environment of the sea, and to determine the next steps for larger scale deployment across other Protected Wrecks and Scheduled Monuments under the management of Historic England. Historic England has received multiple enquiries from partner agencies, including the MoD, and the heritage agencies of other nations, who are interested in purchasing the product for deployment on other wreck sites. This project will comprise archaeological diving fieldwork to assess the longevity of the product when deployed on shipwrecks in the marine environment, and will establish a procedure for production, deployment and evidence gathering in relation to heritage crime incidents. Publicity around the project will have the secondary benefit of deterring heritage crime aimed at Protected Wreck sites.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/008162-2025 |
| Notice type | UK7 - Contract Details Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Direct |
| Procurement method details | Below threshold - without competition |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 6 Mar 2025 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 4 Mar 2025 |
| Contract period | 2 Apr 2025 - 1 Apr 2026 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £65,000 |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Complete |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Active |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | HISTORIC ENGLAND |
| Locality | SWINDON |
| Post town | Swindon |
| Postcode | SN2 2EH |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLK South West (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLK7 Gloucestershire and Wiltshire |
| ITL 3 | TLK71 Swindon |
| Local authority | Swindon |
| Electoral ward | Mannington and Western |
| Westminster constituency | Swindon South |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | MSDS MARINE |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

### Codes

- 73112000 - Marine research services

## Release History

- 6 Mar 2025 at 10:50 - Award - UK7 - Contract Details Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/008162-2025

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/008162-2025
  6th March 2025 - Contract details notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents

## 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-04ea07. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-04ea07.json.