AWARD OUTCOME
What happened
Met Office published contract details for sunshine-duration sensors, a LIDAR network heater and associated cables. The record identifies EQUINOX INSTRUMENTS LTD as the supplier for the single lot.
Published outcomeA contract record (ID 1) is active and explicitly records a signature date of 16 July 2026.
Market significanceThis is a below-threshold goods procurement for meteorological instruments, with a stated gross contract value of £31,509.
AWARDED SUPPLIERS AND LOTS
1 supplier record analysed
EQUINOX INSTRUMENTS LTD
99% confidenceAward 1 · Lots 1 · £31,509 gross; £26,258 excluding VAT GBP · Verified supplier; award active
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Award 1 names supplier GB-COH-05535553. Supplier verification matched company number 05535553 to EQUINOX INSTRUMENTS LTD. The contract value is recorded at contract level for contract 1, which links to award 1.
LIFECYCLE
Award or contract stage
Published notice
99% confidenceContract details notice published 19 October 2026
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Contract document 098290-2026 has datePublished 2026-10-19T09:27:11+01:00.
Tender status
98% confidenceComplete
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Tender DN822487 has status 'complete'; lot 1 is also marked complete.
Award status
98% confidenceActive
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Award 1 has status 'active'.
Contract status
98% confidenceActive
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Contract 1 has status 'active'.
Contract signature
99% confidence16 July 2026
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Contract 1 explicitly states dateSigned 2026-07-16T00:00:00+01:00.
VALUES
Published values explained
Contract value excluding VAT
99% confidence£26,258
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Contract 1 value.amount is 26258 GBP.
Contract value including VAT
99% confidence£31,509
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Contract 1 value.amountGross is 31509 GBP.
Threshold status
98% confidenceBelow threshold
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Contract 1 states aboveThreshold: false; tender procurementMethodDetails is 'Below threshold - unknown'.
TIMELINE
Procurement timeline
Contract start
99% confidence16 July 2026
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Contract 1 period.startDate is 2026-07-16T00:00:00+01:00.
Contract end
99% confidence31 July 2026
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Contract 1 period.endDate is 2026-07-31T23:59:59+01:00.
Notice publication
99% confidence19 October 2026
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The contract details notice was published on 2026-10-19.
SCOPE
What was awarded
Requirement
99% confidenceSunshine-duration sensors, a LIDAR network heater and associated cables
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Tender title and description state: 'Sunshine duration sensors, LIDAR Network heater & associated cables.'
Procurement category
99% confidenceGoods
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Award 1 mainProcurementCategory is 'goods'.
Classification
99% confidenceMeteorological instruments (CPV 38120000)
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Award item 1 lists CPV 38120000, described as Meteorological instruments.
Delivery geography
96% confidenceUnited Kingdom
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Award item delivery address specifies region UK and country GB.
Lot structure
99% confidenceOne lot (lot 1)
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Tender data contains lot 1 only, and award 1 relates to lot 1.
PROCEDURE
Procedure and competition
Procedure detail
99% confidenceBelow threshold - unknown
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Tender procurementMethodDetails is recorded as 'Below threshold - unknown'.
Competition information
99% confidenceUnknown
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Information not supplied in the published notice.
Award date
99% confidenceUnknown
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No award date is provided in the supplied award record.
CONTRACT TERMS
Published contract terms
Contract period
99% confidence16 July 2026 to 31 July 2026
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Contract 1 period specifies these start and end dates.
Stated duration
95% confidence16 calendar days, inclusive
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Calculated from the explicit contract period of 16 July 2026 through 31 July 2026.
Extension or renewal terms
99% confidenceUnknown
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Information not supplied in the published notice.
COMMERCIAL VIEW
Commercial observations
Value context
99% confidenceThe published contract value is £26,258 excluding VAT (£31,509 gross).
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Contract 1 provides both amount and amountGross in GBP.
Supply profile
96% confidenceA short-duration, single-lot goods requirement for meteorological instrumentation and associated equipment.
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The contract period runs from 16 to 31 July 2026; award 1 covers lot 1 and is categorised as goods under CPV 38120000.
DATA QUALITY
Gaps and source limitations
Award date
99% confidenceNot published
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No award date is provided in the supplied award record.
Competition and evaluation
99% confidenceNot published
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Information not supplied in the published notice, including bidder count, evaluation methodology and award rationale.
Lot-level pricing
98% confidenceNot separately published
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The notice gives a contract-level value only; there is one lot, but no separate lot value field is supplied.
Publication timing
99% confidenceContract details were published after the stated contract end date
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The contract end date is 31 July 2026, while the notice publication date is 19 October 2026.
SOURCE DATA LIMITATIONS
Information not supplied in the published notice
- The published notice does not provide an award date.
- Information not supplied in the published notice: bidder count, evaluation criteria, tender prices, award rationale and competition information.
- No extension or renewal terms are published.
- No separate lot-level value or detailed pricing breakdown is published.
MARKET THEMES
Relevant award themes
Met OfficeEQUINOX INSTRUMENTS LTDmeteorological instrumentssunshine duration sensorsLIDAR network heaterFind a Tendercontract award
COMMON QUESTIONS
About this award
Who won the Met Office sunshine duration sensor and LIDAR heater contract?
EQUINOX INSTRUMENTS LTD, verified against company number 05535553, is named as the supplier for award 1.
What is the contract value?
The published contract value is £26,258 excluding VAT and £31,509 including VAT.
When does the contract run?
The published contract period runs from 16 July 2026 to 31 July 2026, and the contract record explicitly gives a signature date of 16 July 2026.
ProcuraAxis award analysis supplements, but does not replace, the official award notice, contract data or procurement documents. “Awarded” does not by itself prove that a contract has been signed.