Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd has gone out to tender with a framework contract for Civils Examination Framework Agreement - Structures with an estimated value of £163.2 million (inc VAT).
Civils examinations within Network Rail refer to the inspection, examination and reporting of structural assets to ensure the safety, reliability, and longevity of railway infrastructure. The examinations help identify defects, monitor structural integrity, and determine necessary maintenance or repair works to prevent failures and ensure continued safe operation of the rail network.
The framework's scope will cover critical infrastructure, including bridges, culverts, retaining walls, coastal and estuary defences, underwater structures and tunnels.
All spend is estimated and may vary depending on demand and requirements - currently the estimated spend under the framework is put at £113 million (ex VAT) over the 8 year period of the framework.
Current estimated start and end contract dates are 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2031 with further possible extension options up to 30 June 2034.
The contract is being tendered in the following Lots:
- Lot 1. Wales & Western Tunnels £11.871 million inc VAT) Civils Examination of Tunnels
- Lot 2. Bridges, Culverts, Retaining Walls, Underwater, Coastal & Estuary, Ancillaries - Civils Examinations (£124.083 million inc VAT)
Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd is looking to appoint up to three suppliers to the framework.
The framework will operate under a schedule of rates which will be used to determine the cost of an annual work bank. For the commercial evaluation of the framework each bidder will provide a range of costs within a pricing document which will then create a total cost to be used in evaluation.
For Lot 1, the supplier will receive 100% of the work bank and the suppliers 1 / 2 for Lot 2 will receive 100% of the work bank for its allocated route within the region
Deadline to submit enquiries about the tender is 11:59 pm on 4 November 2025 and deadline to submit requests to participate is 11:59pm on 11 November 2025.
Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd expects to announce the award decision date in April 2026.
The procurement process will consist of a conditions of participation stage (requiring completion of a Procurement Specific Questionnaire (PSQ) followed by a multi- stage tender process consisting of 2 stages down selecting each stage as follows:
- Stage 1 - PSQ - Technical - 100% Weighting - Top 5 Consultants to Progress
- Stage 2 - ITT (Invitation To Tender)- Technical 60% - Commercial 40% - No. Consultants awarded - Lot 1 - 1
- Consultant - Lot 2 - 2 Consultants - 1 aligned to each route
For further information and to access the documents below click here to access Bravo, Network Rail's end-to-end procurement system.
i. Bravo Project Reference - project_42363 - #40144 - CEFA Structures Examinations
ii. PQQ: pqq_3727 - W&W Civils Examination Framework Agreement
Network Rail Infrastructure Ltd expects to announce the award decision in April 2026.
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