--- title: "Provision of Testing Service for Total Protein, Immunoglobulins (IgG) and Albumin from apheresis donor and donation samples." ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-0685e9" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-0685e9" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0685e9.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0685e9.json" source: "Find A Tender Service" current_stage: "Planning" buyer: "NHS BLOOD AND TRANSPLANT" published: "2026-04-20" --- # Provision of Testing Service for Total Protein, Immunoglobulins (IgG) and Albumin from apheresis donor and donation samples. Buyer: NHS BLOOD AND TRANSPLANT Current stage: Planning OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-0685e9 [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-0685e9) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0685e9.json) ## Summary This procurement process involves NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT), a prominent public authority under central government, planning to secure a service for testing total protein, immunoglobulins (IgG), and albumin from apheresis donor and donation samples. Located in Bristol, UK, NHSBT is in the planning stage and is conducting preliminary market engagement, with communication scheduled through questionnaires and possibly video calls in May 2026. Interested parties are required to express their interest by 01/05/2026 at 12:00 hrs GMT. The engagement aims to gather insights from suppliers to inform the decision on whether to outsource these testing services or bring them in-house starting in 2027. The opportunity presents significant business growth potential for laboratory service providers with expertise in blood testing and analysis, particularly those capable of efficiently managing sample delivery and integration with NHSBT's IT systems. Ideal candidates are businesses with robust experience in handling delicate biomaterials, managing inventory of assay-specific reagents, and operating sophisticated analysers for protein assays. The potential contract spans five years with extensions, amounting to a projected value of £1,512,000, thus inviting competitive bids from capable and innovative service providers that can support NHSBT’s service objectives and enhance healthcare outcomes through precise testing protocols. ## Notice NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) are responsible for collecting plasma and platelet donations in England. There is a requirement for NHSBT to undertake total protein testing on these donations and the donors. NHSBT currently outsource this testing to a third party. NHSBT are considering bringing this testing in house from 2027 and we have already undertaken Preliminary Market Engagement with suppliers of analysers that can run total protein, IgG and albumin assays. However, no decision has been made on whether NHSBT will definitely bring this in-house, therefore we are now looking to undertake Preliminary Market Engagement with suppliers who can provide this testing on behalf of NHSBT. Please note a final decision on whether this testing will be brought in-house or continue to be outsourced will be informed by, among other things, information obtained from market engagement. As part of the Preliminary Market Engagement exercise, we are seeking to engage with potential suppliers who can provide testing of total protein, IgG and albumin assays on behalf of NHSBT. 1. General Requirements - Background: For Donor Safety: All apheresis donors require a total protein test on their first donation, and this is repeated at every 8th donation and at least annually. Serum total protein must not be less than 60g/L. For Quality Monitoring: Total protein is tested in: a. 1% of recovered plasma donations (from whole blood donations); b. 1% of apheresis plasma donations; c. 1% of concurrent apheresis plasma donations (obtained during platelet donation); and d. A small number of washed products, which is typically below 0.5g/L. Plasma total protein must not be less than 50g/L. 2. Requirement: The requirement would be for a supplier to provide testing of Total Protein, IgG and Albumin from samples provided by NHSBT. As a general overview, the contracted supplier would be responsible for: a. Receiving daily deliveries of samples from NHSBT sites (including Filton, Colindale and Manchester); b. Providing a testing service (including the staffing, key consumables (including assay-specific reagents), the analysers to test the samples and anything else required to provide a full testing service); c. Providing the results in a timely manner to NHSBT, preferably directly into our existing IT system. 3. Contract Duration: The contract duration is still under consideration. The current assumption is 5 years plus 2 x 1-year options. The estimated contract value is based on 7 years. ### Planning Information If you are interested in taking part in the market engagement, please contact: james.marshall2@nhsbt.nhs.uk by no later than 12:00 hrs (GMT) on 01/05/2026. Market engagement is likely to take place via a questionnaire and potentially video calls in May 2026. There is no guarantee that a formal procurement process will be launched as a result of this preliminary market engagement exercise, nor that any contract(s) will be placed. No remuneration or compensation etc will be paid to organisations who take part in this preliminary market engagement exercise. Suppliers should take part in this process only on the basis that they fully understand and accept this position. ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Find A Tender Service | | Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/035465-2026 | | Notice type | UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice | | Procurement type | Standard | | Procurement category | Services | | Procurement method | Not Specified | | Procurement method details | Not specified | | Tender suitability | Not specified | | Awardee scale | Not specified | | All stages | Planning | ## Dates | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication date | 20 Apr 2026 | | Submission deadline | Not specified | | Future notice date | 31 Jul 2026 | | Award date | Not specified | | Contract period | 1 Jan 2027 - 31 Dec 2031 | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | £1,260,000 | | Lots value | Not specified | | Awards value | Not specified | | Contracts value | Not specified | ## Status | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender status | Planning | | Lots status | Planning | | Awards status | Not specified | | Contracts status | Not specified | ## Buyer | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Main buyer | NHS BLOOD AND TRANSPLANT | | Locality | BRISTOL | | Post town | Bristol | | Postcode | BS34 7QH | | 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 | Filton | | Westminster constituency | Filton and Bradley Stoke | | Delivery location | Not specified | ## CPV Codes ### Divisions - 71 - Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection services ### Codes - 71900000 - Laboratory services ## Release History - 20 Apr 2026 at 09:03 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/035465-2026 ## Documents - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/035465-2026 20th April 2026 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender ## Notice URLs - https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents - https://www.nhsbt.nhs.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-0685e9. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-0685e9.json.