---
title: "Contract to Upgrade Minster Compass to Minster Edge WMS"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06d72a"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06d72a"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06d72a.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06d72a.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "HERTFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL"
published: "2026-07-30"
---

# Contract to Upgrade Minster Compass to Minster Edge WMS

Buyer: HERTFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06d72a

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## Summary

Hertfordshire County Council has undertaken a procurement process to upgrade Herts FullStop's operational platform from Minster Compass to Minster Edge WMS, a modern SaaS warehouse management solution. This project falls under the services category, specifically inventory management software development services, with a focus on operational improvement and digital capability enhancement within UK region code UKH23. The procurement stage is the Award, marked by the contract's completion status and a direct award procurement method due to specific technical justifications. Noteworthy dates include the contract start date on 12th August 2026, with a potential extension leading up to 11th August 2028, after the initial one-year period.

This tender provides growth opportunities for technology firms specialising in SaaS solutions and integration services. It highlights the need for expertise in data migration, system automation, and software integration, thereby offering significant business prospects for SMEs in the IT and software development industry, particularly those with a background in educational resource management. Firms capable of delivering customised solutions that improve digital capabilities and operational efficiencies, while addressing existing infrastructure compatibility, would be particularly well-suited to compete in this segment. Such projects not only enhance the service offerings of the businesses involved but also establish a foothold in government contracting, fostering long-term growth and sustainability.

## Notice

The contract is for the upgrade and migration of Herts FullStop's core operational platform from the existing Minster Compass system to Minster Edge WMS, a modern Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) warehouse management solution. The service includes the provision of the Minster Edge WMS software together with supporting components such as the IntaData integration platform, barcode scanning services and reporting databases. The objective is to modernise HFS's educational resources and warehouse operations while retaining compatibility with existing business processes, data structures and integrations. The contracted services cover the full implementation lifecycle, including requirements analysis, solution configuration, system implementation, data migration, systems integration, acceptance testing, user acceptance testing, staff training, go-live support and transition activities. Minster will migrate existing Compass data into Edge WMS, recreate and manage integrations with key business systems, provide onsite training, and support the delivery of a minimum viable product targeted for early 2027. The contract is structured around delivery milestones covering discovery, build releases, integration testing, user testing and stabilisation after go-live. In addition, Minster will provide hosting, maintenance and transitional support services following implementation. This includes cloud hosting on Microsoft Azure, software updates and maintenance releases, service desk support with defined response and resolution times, business continuity arrangements, security management, and GDPR-compliant data processing. The solution is intended to improve operational visibility, reporting, customer and staff experience, digital capability and future self-service opportunities while ensuring continuity of critical HFS operations.

### Procurement Information

Herts FullStop (HFS) has undertaken three separate procurement exercises over several years to replace its core business management platform. The first procurement failed to identify any supplier capable of meeting the Council's requirements. The second resulted in a contract award, but the supplier withdrew during discovery due to unresolved issues regarding intellectual property and liability allocation. A third procurement through a Crown Commercial Service framework progressed to contract negotiations but was ultimately deemed unaffordable because implementation costs exceeded the Council's available funding. These repeated exercises demonstrated that no alternative solution currently available in the market can meet HFS's operational, technical, implementation and affordability requirements. HFS currently relies on Minster Computer Systems' Compass platform to run critical business operations. The proposed contract is for the upgrade and migration to Minster Edge WMS, including implementation, integration, data migration, training and transition services. Minster Computer Systems owns the software, intellectual property, technical architecture, data structures, integrations and licensing rights associated with both the existing and proposed platforms. As a result, only Minster can legally and technically deliver the required upgrade and migration services, meaning there is no reasonable alternative supplier capable of providing the same solution. The direct award is therefore justified under Procurement Act exemption 6.4.3 (exclusive rights and technical reasons). It is also justified under exemption 6.4.5 because changing supplier would require replacement of the entire application estate, redevelopment of integrations, business process redesign, user retraining and reimplementation of multiple system interfaces, creating disproportionate technical complexity, cost and operational risk. Furthermore, exemption 6.4.9 applies because previous competitive procurements failed to deliver a suitable and affordable outcome, providing strong evidence that further competition would be unlikely to achieve a different result. The proposed upgrade to Minster Edge WMS offers a cost-effective and low-risk route to modernisation within the approved budget. It will provide a modern SaaS warehouse management platform, improved reporting and operational visibility, enhanced customer and staff experience, greater digital capability and a foundation for future self-service improvements. Failure to proceed would leave HFS dependent on increasingly outdated technology, limiting operational efficiency, business growth and the organisation's ability to maximise financial returns for Hertfordshire County Council. Consequently, the Council considers the direct award to Minster Computer Systems to be the most economically advantageous, technically viable and operationally secure option available.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/072008-2026 |
| 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 | 30 Jul 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 23 Jul 2026 |
| Contract period | 11 Aug 2026 - 11 Aug 2027 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £297,000 |
| 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 | HERTFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL |
| Locality | STEVENAGE |
| Post town | Stevenage |
| Postcode | SG1 2FQ |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLH East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLH2 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire |
| ITL 3 | TLH26 North and East Hertfordshire |
| Local authority | Stevenage |
| Electoral ward | Symonds Green |
| Westminster constituency | Stevenage |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | MINSTER COMPUTER SYSTEMS |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

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

### Codes

- 72212430 - Inventory management software development services

## Release History

- 30 Jul 2026 at 08:40 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/072008-2026
- 30 Jul 2026 at 08:21 - Award - UK5 - Transparency Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/071991-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/072008-2026
  30th July 2026 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/071991-2026
  30th July 2026 - Transparency notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- http://www.hertfordshire.gov.uk
- 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-06d72a. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06d72a.json.