---
title: "Purchase of a Two-Photon Microscope"
ocid: "ocds-r6ebe6-0000800656"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-r6ebe6-0000800656"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-r6ebe6-0000800656.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-r6ebe6-0000800656.json"
source: "Public Contracts Scotland"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH"
published: "2025-06-04"
---

# Purchase of a Two-Photon Microscope

Buyer: UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-r6ebe6-0000800656

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## Summary

The University of Edinburgh has completed the procurement process for the purchase of a Two-Photon Microscope, with the contract awarded to Bruker UK Ltd. Classified under the education category, this procurement falls under goods for the UK DRI UOE Centre's medical research in Edinburgh, Scotland (UKM75 region). The tender, identified by NCA31108, employs a limited procurement method, specifically an award procedure without prior publication due to technical reasons unique to Bruker's product. The contract was signed on 29th May 2025, valued at £305,520.72, marking the award stage of the procurement cycle.

This tender presents growth opportunities for businesses specialising in medical research equipment, particularly sophisticated imaging systems like multiphoton microscopes. The rationale for the procurement method suggests a niche market focusing on innovative technologies. Companies with expertise in cutting-edge optical and photonic solutions that can offer comparable features could potentially be well-suited to compete in similar future tenders. Larger enterprises with advanced technical capabilities are likely to benefit most from collaborations in this market segment, given the specialised nature of the equipment involved.

## Notice

Purchase of a Two-Photon Microscope

### Procurement Information

Bruker's multiphoton microscope, Ultima 2Pplus, have features that are crucial to the UK DRI UOE Centre's medical research and that are unique to this system as compared to other commercially available two-photon microscopes: 1. It is critical to rapidly monitor the activity of neurons located at different cortical depth (layers). To this purpose, the Ultima 2p Plus includes a unique, patented electrically tunable lens (ETL) capable of fast imaging in multiple depths (450um travel with Nikon 16x objective with variable step sizes) without physically moving the microscope objective. As such, this technology is much faster than conventional piezos devices used in other commercial systems that mechanically move the objective up and down. Importantly, the ETL allows for the decoupling of the stimulation and imaging path, so that the photostimulated neurons and the imaged neurons can be a different depth. This utilizes Bruker Patent: US11243394B2, CN112997103B. 2. Collection efficiency of the system is key to optimised imaging depth and reducing the laser power needed at the sample. The Bruker 2P Plus system has 14 degree collection angles in all configurations and 2 inch collection optics to ensure diverging photons end up hitting the photo cathode of the detectors. The detectors translate in Z along with the objective, maintaining optimal distance from the back aperture of the objective, further increasing efficiency. This distance is not increased even with the objective is mounted off-axis. Bruker is unique in these all working in conjunction and without these, there is an increased risk of photodamage through using more laser power to compensate. 3. It's important that the system can be upgraded with a range of functionalities in the future, to avoid obsolescence and future higher investments in new systems. Uniquely, the Bruker 2P Plus system can be outfitted with a voltage imaging module and a Spatial Light Modulator, which would allow rapid closed loop works in the future.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Public Contracts Scotland |
| Latest notice | https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=JUN531752 |
| 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 | 4 Jun 2025 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 29 May 2025 |
| Contract period | Not specified |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | Not specified |
| Contracts value | £305,520 |

## 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 | BRUKER |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 38 - Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses)

### Codes

- 38000000 - Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses)

## Release History

- 4 Jun 2025 at 00:00 - Award - OJEU - F3 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=JUN531752

## Documents

- https://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/search/show/search_view.aspx?ID=JUN531752
  Purchase of a Two-Photon Microscope - Purchase of a Two-Photon Microscope

## Notice URLs

- http://
- http://www.ed.ac.uk
- https://api.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk/v1/Notice?id=ocds-r6ebe6-0000800656

## 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-r6ebe6-0000800656. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-r6ebe6-0000800656.json.