---
title: "Barometer Upgrade for Drifting Buoys Procurement"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06f9f3"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06f9f3"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f9f3.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f9f3.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "Met Office"
published: "2026-09-15"
---

# Barometer Upgrade for Drifting Buoys Procurement

Buyer: Met Office  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06f9f3

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## Summary

The Met Office procured barometer upgrades for Scripps Institution of Oceanography Iridium-SVP drifting buoys, supporting its surface observations operations. This is a goods requirement for marine equipment, with delivery to the United Kingdom. The equipment is intended to upgrade the barometers fitted to drifting buoys used in ocean and surface-weather observation. The requirement was managed by the Met Office, a central government public authority based in Exeter. The selected supplier is Scripps Institution of Oceanography (UC San Diego), based in La Jolla, California. The work therefore suits businesses that supply, manufacture or integrate marine observation equipment, particularly barometers or compatible components for drifting buoy systems and related operational deployments.

The procurement is complete and has been awarded. The Met Office used a below-threshold limited competition, described as a three-quote process. Three suppliers were known in the market, but only one could provide the requirement because supply was unavailable elsewhere; one compliant quotation was therefore considered. Scripps Institution of Oceanography (UC San Diego) was awarded the single lot. The award date was not recorded, and the contract was signed on 3 September 2026. The active contract runs from 4 September 2026 to 26 November 2026 and is worth £31,400 gross. The agreed delivery outcome is supply of the goods to the stipulated Met Office location by 26 November 2026, allowing for manufacturing and shipping lead time.

This procurement shows demand for specialist marine observation equipment that can be integrated with Iridium-SVP drifting buoys and used in surface observations operations. A credible competitor for a future requirement would need to supply suitable barometer upgrades or closely compatible marine instrumentation, understand the technical constraints of drifting buoy systems, and demonstrate that its equipment can be manufactured and shipped reliably. Evidence of product availability would be particularly important where the buyer needs a specific upgrade rather than a general catalogue item. Relevant suppliers are likely to include marine-equipment manufacturers, oceanographic instrumentation businesses, buoy-system integrators and specialist distributors with dependable international fulfilment. The successful supplier was recorded as an SME, indicating that this scale of specialist goods procurement can suit a focused technical business.

## Notice

A three-quote procurement process was undertaken for the acquisition of barometer upgrades for SIO Iridium-SVP drifting buoys, to support Surface Observations Operations. Of the 3 known suppliers in the market only one supplier was able to provide the requirement due to no supply available. Consequently, only one compliant quotation was received for consideration.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/087229-2026 |
| Notice type | UK7 - Contract Details Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Goods |
| Procurement method | Limited |
| Procurement method details | Below threshold - limited competition |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | SME |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 15 Sep 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | Not specified |
| Contract period | 4 Sep 2026 - 26 Nov 2026 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £31,400 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | Met Office |
| Locality | EXETER |
| Postcode area | Exeter |
| Postcode | EX1 3PB |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLK South West (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLK4 Devon |
| ITL 3 | TLK43 Devon CC |
| Local authority | Exeter |
| Electoral ward | Pinhoe |
| Westminster constituency | Exmouth and Exeter East |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | Scripps Institution of Oceanography (UC San Diego) |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 34 - Transport equipment and auxiliary products to transportation

### Codes

- 34930000 - Marine equipment

## Release History

- 15 Sep 2026 at 11:46 - Award - UK7 - Contract Details Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/087229-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/087229-2026
  15th September 2026 - Contract details notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- https://scripps.ucsd.edu/
- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents
- https://www.metoffice.gov.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-06f9f3. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06f9f3.json.