---
title: "Provision and support of on-board passenger Wi-Fi"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06d14c"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06d14c"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06d14c.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06d14c.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "SOUTH WESTERN RAILWAY LIMITED"
published: "2026-07-22"
---

# Provision and support of on-board passenger Wi-Fi

Buyer: SOUTH WESTERN RAILWAY LIMITED  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06d14c

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## Summary

South Western Railway Limited has concluded a procurement process for the provision and support of onboard passenger Wi-Fi services. The contract, awarded on 22nd July 2026, involves Icomera UK Limited as the supplier. This award, categorised under IT services with a code of 72000000, covers regions across the UK such as UKI, UKJ, and UKK. The total contract value is £1,981,179.24, excluding VAT. The procurement was conducted via a direct award method to ensure continuity of service due to the proprietary nature of the Wi-Fi infrastructure. The contract period is from 1st August 2026 to 31st December 2027, with an extension option up to June 2028. A milestone for contract signature is scheduled for 1st August 2026.

This procurement presents a substantial opportunity for businesses in the IT and telecommunications sector, particularly those specialising in network services and supporting technologies for transport systems. The contract is ideal for firms with expertise in providing secure and efficient internet connectivity solutions for public transport environments. Due to the complexities and specialised requirements of this project, only businesses with proprietary technologies and capabilities similar to Icomera's would have been suitable candidates under these conditions. Companies positioned in regions like London, South East, and South West England may find this project particularly beneficial to expanding their presence and capabilities in large-scale transport infrastructure projects.

## Notice

The provision of services associated with the support and maintenance of on-board passenger Wi-Fi. Icomera is responsible for the provision of onboard Wi-Fi and the associated support on multiple fleet classes, 15x, 444, 450, 458, 484 and Class 701. The Wi-Fi infrastructure is proprietary to Icomera, and SWRL requires a contract to be in place to ensure service continuity.

### Procurement Information

Under Section 41 of the Procurement Act 2023, a direct award is permitted where specific conditions are met. In this case, the criteria under Schedule 5, Paragraphs 5 (a and b) 5. The following conditions are net in relation to the public contract; (a) due to a particular supplier having intellectual property rights or other exclusive rights, only that supplier can supply the goods, services or works required, and; (b) there are no reasonable alternatives to those goods, services or works. Icomera are the proprietors and have been responsible for the installation of the Wi-Fi infrastructure, the on-going support, maintenance and service management of the Wi-Fi Infrastructure, on SWRL's fleet since circa 2015. Currently, Icomera is heavily involved with the installation of the Wi-Fi infrastructure associated with the rollout of the 701s. The proprietary devices become end of life circa Dec 2027. Related to this, the Fleet team are undertaking obsolescence review across the entire fleet environment, which the Wi-Fi equipment is a subset. It is therefore cost effective to allow the assets to fulfil their serviceable life following which a capex led procurement will be undertaken once all due diligence has concluded. The justifications for this direct award are based on the following considerations: * Proprietary Infrastructure: The Wi Fi system installed on the rolling stock uses Icomera's proprietary hardware and software platform. This includes the onboard routers, access points, and connectivity modules, all of which are specifically engineered to integrate with Icomera's cloud based management and analytics environment. Firmware updates, security patches, and performance tuning can only be delivered by Icomera, as they retain exclusive control over the configuration and maintenance of this infrastructure. * System Integration: The Icomera solution is tightly embedded within the train's onboard systems, including power distribution, data interfaces, and physical mounting arrangements. Replacing this equipment would require a full redesign of the onboard network architecture, along with re certification of safety critical components and significant re engineering of train systems to support alternative hardware. * Proprietary Monitoring & Management: Icomera's Network Operations Centre (NOC) and remote monitoring ecosystem are purpose built for their proprietary hardware and software stack. Third party providers do not have access to the diagnostic protocols, configuration utilities, or service APIs required to operate, troubleshoot, or maintain the system. As a result, effective management of the infrastructure can only be performed through Icomera's own tools and support channels. * Transition Complexity & Operational Risk: Switching to a new supplier would require full decommissioning of the existing Icomera equipment, procurement and installation of replacement systems, and close coordination with train manufacturers to support integration and testing. This process introduces substantial cost, extended timelines, and elevated operational risk - particularly given the need to maintain continuous service across active fleets.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/069381-2026 |
| Notice type | UK6 - Contract Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Direct |
| Procurement method details | Direct award |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 22 Jul 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 21 Jul 2026 |
| Contract period | 31 Jul 2026 - 31 Dec 2027 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £1,651,816 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | SOUTH WESTERN RAILWAY LIMITED |
| Locality | LONDON |
| Post town | South East London |
| Postcode | SE1 9LQ |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLI London |
| ITL 2 | TLI4 Inner London - East |
| ITL 3 | TLI44 Lewisham and Southwark |
| Local authority | Southwark |
| Electoral ward | Borough & Bankside |
| Westminster constituency | Bermondsey and Old Southwark |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | ICOMERA |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

### Codes

- 72000000 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

## Release History

- 22 Jul 2026 at 18:31 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/069381-2026
- 22 Jul 2026 at 18:17 - Award - UK5 - Transparency Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/069380-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/069381-2026
  22nd July 2026 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/069380-2026
  22nd July 2026 - Transparency notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- http://www.icomera.com
- 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-06d14c. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06d14c.json.