---
title: "Thermophysical Testing of Titanium Stabilised Austenitic Stainless-Steel Grades"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06de1d"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06de1d"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06de1d.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06de1d.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "UK Fusion Energy Ltd"
published: "2026-08-06"
---

# Thermophysical Testing of Titanium Stabilised Austenitic Stainless-Steel Grades

Buyer: UK Fusion Energy Ltd  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06de1d

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## Summary

UK Fusion Energy Ltd commissioned thermophysical testing of titanium-stabilised austenitic stainless-steel grades under its Materials Testing Framework for STEP. The requirement is for VIVS thermophysical tests, covering technical testing, research and experimental development, and test and evaluation services. The work is associated with UK Fusion Energy Ltd’s activities at Culham Campus, Abingdon. This is a specialist materials-testing service rather than the supply of standard products or general laboratory support. Businesses with facilities and expertise for measuring the thermophysical behaviour of titanium-stabilised austenitic stainless-steel grades would be relevant to this requirement and similar future work for the buyer.

The procurement is complete and has been awarded through a selective, competitive below-threshold framework award. NPL Management Ltd was selected for the requirement on 4 August 2026. The award is valued at £42,405 excluding tax, or £50,886 including tax. The contract period runs from 7 August 2026 to 30 September 2026. This is a framework call-off for VIVS thermophysical testing, rather than a standalone open competition. The successful supplier is NPL Management Ltd, an SME. The contracting process is recorded as complete and the award is active, with a scheduled signature milestone on 6 August 2026.

This award demonstrates demand from UK Fusion Energy Ltd for specialist thermophysical testing of titanium-stabilised austenitic stainless-steel grades within the STEP materials-testing programme. A credible competing supplier would need relevant laboratory capability, validated methods and equipment for thermophysical measurements, and the technical expertise to work with austenitic stainless steels stabilised with titanium. Experience in research, experimental development, technical testing and formal test evaluation would be directly relevant. Suppliers should also be able to deliver a defined framework call-off efficiently, produce technically robust results and support the buyer’s materials-development objectives. The award to an SME indicates that this type of specialist requirement can be delivered by a focused testing organisation, not only by a large industrial contractor.

## Notice

Under lot 5 of the Materials Testing Framework for STEP - VIVS Thermophysical Tests. Thermophysical Testing of Titanium Stabilised Austenitic Stainless-Steel Grades

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/074870-2026 |
| Notice type | UK6 - Contract Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Selective |
| Procurement method details | Below threshold - award under framework |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 6 Aug 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 4 Aug 2026 |
| Contract period | 7 Aug 2026 - 30 Sep 2026 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £42,405 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | UK Fusion Energy Ltd |
| Locality | ABINGDON |
| Postcode area | Oxford |
| Postcode | OX14 3DB |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLJ South East (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLJ1 Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire |
| ITL 3 | TLJ14 Oxfordshire CC |
| Local authority | South Oxfordshire |
| Electoral ward | Sandford & the Wittenhams |
| Westminster constituency | Didcot and Wantage |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | NPL Management Ltd |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 71 - Architectural, construction, engineering and inspection services
- 73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

### Codes

- 71632000 - Technical testing services
- 73100000 - Research and experimental development services
- 73430000 - Test and evaluation

## Release History

- 6 Aug 2026 at 15:26 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/074870-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/074870-2026
  6th August 2026 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/api/1.0/ocdsReleasePackages/ocds-h6vhtk-05699a
- 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-06de1d. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06de1d.json.