--- title: "715890474 Thermoteknix EC - UK5" ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-077fec" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-077fec" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077fec.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077fec.json" source: "Find A Tender Service" current_stage: "Award" buyer: "Defence Equipment and Support" published: "2026-10-02" --- # 715890474 Thermoteknix EC - UK5 Buyer: Defence Equipment and Support Current stage: Award OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-077fec [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-077fec) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077fec.json) ## Summary Defence Equipment and Support, part of the Ministry of Defence, is buying continued through-life support, maintenance and repair for the British Army’s in-service Thermal Clip-On Sight (TCOS), as well as additional sights and associated ancillaries. TCOS is a thermal sighting system fitted to existing equipment; the requirement is to sustain the assured capability and maintain commonality across the fleet, with additional units supporting growth towards the Army’s total fleet requirement. The contract covers the same in-service system, not a replacement capability. Delivery is in the United Kingdom. The procurement combines goods (telescopic sights, CPV 38633000) with associated support services. It is a single-lot requirement. The procurement is complete and an award has been made to Thermoteknix Systems Ltd; the award is recorded as pending. The contract is due to run from 30 November 2026 to 30 November 2032, aligning with the planned end of the capability’s service life. The estimated award is £42 million excluding VAT (£50.4 million including VAT). This is a maximum estimate for potential orders, not guaranteed spending; the Authority may place no orders. The route was a direct award without competition: technical reasons were cited for support, maintenance and repair, and the additional systems were treated as repeat goods. The stated basis is that the incumbent is the equipment’s original manufacturer and design authority, with the technical information and expertise needed to support the existing capability and supply compatible units. The original capability contract was competitively awarded. This award shows that the requirement depends on proprietary equipment knowledge, access to technical data and software, design authority, specialist tooling, engineering expertise and configuration control. A supplier seeking to compete for comparable support would need to demonstrate that it can maintain the existing assured capability to the required technical, safety and operational standards, while managing verification, validation, safety assurance and configuration. For additional equipment, compatibility with the in-service system and established support and assurance arrangements is central; alternatives that introduce separate training, maintenance or logistics would not meet the stated fleet-commonality rationale. The procurement therefore favours the original equipment manufacturer for this specific system, rather than a general thermal-optics supplier. The requirement is defence-related, with cyber risk assessed at Level 1 Foundational. Any future capability after this system’s planned service life is to be reassessed separately. ## Notice Description of Procurement The Ministry of Defence (MOD) intends to award a contract to Thermoteknix Systems Ltd for the continued through-life support, maintenance and repair of the in-service Thermal Clip-On Sight (TCOS) capability, together with the provision of additional TCOS systems and associated ancillaries as required during the contract period. The original contract for this capability was awarded following a competitive procurement conducted under the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations (DSPCR). Thermoteknix Systems Ltd designed and delivered the capability and is the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and Design Authority (DA) for the equipment currently in service. The proposed direct award is limited to sustaining the existing assured in-service capability, including the procurement of additional units of the same assured capability, until it's planned Out of Service Date (OSD). Estimated Contract Value PS42,000,000 (estimated) Contract Duration The contract duration aligns with the current planned Out of Service Date (OSD) of the TCOS capability and is limited to sustaining the existing assured in-service capability during its remaining service life. The advertised contract value is the maximum estimated value of all potential orders that may be placed under the contract during its term. It does not represent a guaranteed level of expenditure. The Authority reserves the right not to place any orders under the contract and is not obliged to spend the full advertised value, or any value, during the lifetime of the contract. ### Procurement Information Justification for Direct Award The Authority intends to award the contract without prior competition in reliance upon: Schedule 5, Paragraph 6 of the Procurement Act 2023 (Single Supplier: Technical Reasons) for support, maintenance, and repair services; and Schedule 5, Paragraph 7 of the Procurement Act 2023 (Additional or Repeat Goods, Services or Works) for the procurement of additional TCOS systems and associated ancillaries. A. Single Supplier for Technical Reasons (Schedule 5, Paragraph 6) Thermoteknix Systems Ltd, as OEM and Design Authority, retains access to the technical data, software, design information, specialist tooling, engineering expertise and configuration knowledge necessary to support, maintain and repair the TCOS capability currently in service with the British Army. The continued provision of support and maintenance services requires access to proprietary technical information, specialist knowledge and design understanding that are not available to alternative/third-party suppliers. The Authority requires continued support of the existing assured capability throughout its remaining service life. Any attempt to transfer support activities to an alternative supplier would require extensive technical investigation, verification, validation, safety assurance, and configuration management activities, resulting in unacceptable technical, safety and operational risk. Accordingly, competition is absent for technical reasons and Thermoteknix Systems Ltd is considered the only supplier capable of providing support and maintenance for the existing assured capability to the required technical, safety and operational standards during its remaining service life. There are no reasonable alternatives. B. Additional Goods (Schedule 5, Paragraph 7) The contract also includes provision for the procurement of additional TCOS systems and associated ancillaries to support fleet management, growth towards the Total Fleet Requirement and operational requirements throughout the remaining life of the capability. Whilst alternative solutions may exist within the wider market, those solutions would constitute different platforms to the assured capability currently in service. Procuring alternative equipment would require Defence to introduce separate training, assurance, maintenance, and support arrangements, creating disproportionate technical difficulties in operation and maintenance and increasing complexity and logistical burden. Only Thermoteknix Systems Ltd is capable of supplying additional units that are the same in-service, assured solution to the existing assured capability and fully compatible with the established support, maintenance, and assurance arrangements. The direct award is therefore limited to the procurement of additional units of the same in-service capability currently operated by Army personnel. The advertised contract value is the maximum estimated value of all potential orders that may be placed under the contract during its term. It does not represent a guaranteed level of expenditure. The Authority reserves the right not to place any orders under the contract and is not obliged to spend the full advertised value, or any value, during the lifetime of the contract. Future Procurement Strategy This direct award does not seek to establish a replacement capability or meet any future requirement beyond the current capability planned service life. Upon reaching the planned Out of Service Date, the Authority intends to reassess its future requirement and determine the appropriate procurement strategy, including competition where appropriate Additional Information Original contract competitively awarded under DSPCR. Thermoteknix Systems Ltd is the Original Equipment Manufacturer and Design Authority. Support activities require access to technical data, specialist knowledge and configuration control held by Thermoteknix Systems Ltd. Additional systems are required to support growth towards the Total Fleet Requirement while maintaining fleet commonality. Additional units must be the same as the assured capability currently in service. The direct award is limited to sustaining the existing assured capability until its planned OSD. The Cyber Risk Level associated with this project has been assessed as Level 1 Foundational. Risk Assessment Reference: RAR-TC4JQNC ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Find A Tender Service | | Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093432-2026 | | Notice type | UK5 - Transparency Notice | | Procurement type | Standard | | Procurement category | Goods | | Procurement method | Direct | | Procurement method details | Direct award | | Tender suitability | SME | | Awardee scale | SME | | All stages | Award | ## Dates | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication date | 2 Oct 2026 | | Submission deadline | Not specified | | Future notice date | Not specified | | Award date | Not specified | | Contract period | 30 Nov 2026 - 30 Nov 2032 | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | Not specified | | Lots value | Not specified | | Awards value | £42,000,000 | | 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 | Defence Equipment and Support | | Locality | BRISTOL | | Postcode area | Bristol | | Postcode | BS34 8JH | | 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 | Stoke Park & Cheswick | | Westminster constituency | Filton and Bradley Stoke | | Delivery location | Not specified | ## Supplier | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Number of suppliers | 1 | | Supplier names | THERMOTEKNIX SYSTEMS LIMITED | ## CPV Codes ### Divisions - 38 - Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses) ### Codes - 38633000 - Telescopic sights ## Release History - 2 Oct 2026 at 15:00 - Award - UK5 - Transparency Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093432-2026 ## Documents - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/093432-2026 2nd October 2026 - Transparency notice on Find a Tender ## Notice URLs - https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/defence-equipment-and-support - 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-077fec. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-077fec.json.