---
title: "DiRAC Further Upgrade"
ocid: "ocds-r6ebe6-0000582063"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-r6ebe6-0000582063"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-r6ebe6-0000582063.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-r6ebe6-0000582063.json"
source: "Public Contracts Scotland"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH"
published: "2019-04-29"
---

# DiRAC Further Upgrade

Buyer: UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-r6ebe6-0000582063

[View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-r6ebe6-0000582063)  
[Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-r6ebe6-0000582063.json)

## Summary

The University of Edinburgh has successfully completed a procurement process titled "DiRAC Further Upgrade" under the education sector. This procurement was executed through a limited method without prior publication, specifically for goods required to upgrade the HPE 8600 system at the EPCC's Advanced Computing Facility in Edinburgh. The award was made to Hewlett Packard Enterprise on 28th March 2019, with a contract value of £560,000. The process was justified under regulations permitting negotiated procedures due to the unique technical requirements and lack of competitive alternatives.

This tender presents substantial opportunities for businesses, particularly those specialising in IT infrastructure, computing systems, and technical support services. Given the exclusive nature of the procurement method and the technical specifications involved, companies with proven expertise in providing solutions compatible with HPE products would be well-positioned to engage with similar future contracts. Such businesses can leverage this experience to expand their market presence, especially in the education and technology sectors.

## Notice

See Annex D1

### Lot Information

Lot 1

Under Regulations Reg 33(1)(b)(ii), and Reg 33(4)(b) of the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations 2015, a contracting authority may use the negotiated procedure without the prior publication in the case of a public contract, based on the following justification: Reg 33(1)(b)(ii): Competition is absent for technical reasons (only if it is not caused by artificial narrowing down of the parameters of the procurement and no reasonable alternative or substitute exists) Reg 33(4)(b): compatibility issues or disproportionate technical difficulties.

### Procurement Information

Reg 33(1)(b)(ii): Hewlett Packard Enterprise are the only possible source for maintenance due to exclusive rights for the HPE 8600 system installed in the Advanced Computing Facility and operated by the University of Edinburgh under grant funding for the Science and Technology Facilities Council, and which was competitively procured under the SSSNA framework MT0768 in 2018 and upgraded in Jan 2019.Reg 33(4)(b): Integrating a hierarchical storage manager (HSM) with the existing HPE provided filesystem could only be supported by HPE, without risk of compatibility issues and disproportionate technical difficulties since HPE would not support tightly coupled use of their filesystem with another vendor's products.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Public Contracts Scotland |
| Latest notice | https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=MAY353087 |
| Notice type | OJEU - F3 - Contract Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Goods |
| Procurement method | Limited |
| Procurement method details | Award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition |
| Tender suitability | Not specified |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 29 Apr 2019 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 28 Mar 2019 |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £560,000 |

## Status

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

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH |
| Locality | EDINBURGH |
| Post town | Edinburgh |
| Postcode | EH1 1HT |
| Country | Scotland |
| ITL 1 | TLM Scotland |
| ITL 2 | TLM1 East Central Scotland |
| ITL 3 | TLM13 City of Edinburgh |
| Local authority | City of Edinburgh |
| Electoral ward | City Centre |
| Westminster constituency | Edinburgh East and Musselburgh |
| Delivery location | TLM75 City of Edinburgh |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 30 - Office and computing machinery, equipment and supplies except furniture and software packages

### Codes

- 30211100 - Super computer
- 30233100 - Computer storage units

## Release History

- 29 Apr 2019 at 00:00 - Award - OJEU - F3 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=MAY353087

## Documents

- https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=MAY353087
  DiRAC Further Upgrade - See Annex D1

## Notice URLs

- http://
- http://www.ed.ac.uk/schools-departments/procurement/supplying
- https://api.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/v1/Notice?id=ocds-r6ebe6-0000582063

## 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-r6ebe6-0000582063. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-r6ebe6-0000582063.json.