The Environment Agency has awarded a contract for Incident Management Forecasting System software support, maintenance and development services with an estimated value of almost £18 million (inc VAT) to Netherlands-headquartered firm Stichting Deltares.
The Incident Management Forecasting System (IMFS) is the Environment Agency's primary flood forecasting system and uses Deltares owned Delft-FEWS software as a platform to run models for flood forecasting, groundwater modelling, bathing water quality forecasting, and other services. The National Groundwater Modelling Service (NGMS) also uses Delft-FEWS software.
Contract start and end dates are 20 October 2025 to 19 October 2030 with possible further extension options up to 19 October 2035.
Key performance indicator requirements ( with a reporting frequency of three months for each) under the contract include:
- Help desk availability The help desk must be available on business days from 8am to 5pm.
- Severity 1 incident resolution time The incident must be resolved in 8 hours.
- Severity 1 incident response time A response must be received within 15 minutes
The Environment Agency made the single supplier contract award without going out to competitive tender on the grounds that competition was absent for technical reasons.
Stichting Deltares are the sole owners and licensor of Delft-FEWS and there are no alternatives available to the Environment Agency without rewriting all forecasting models.
The Environment Agency took the view that the decision to award the contract for the supply and support of the Delft-FEWS software on the basis that as Stichting Deltares own the intellectual property for the software, and develop and support the specialist Delft-FEWS software, and therefore no reasonable alternative exists, nor can another organisation supply and support the product.
The Agency also awarded the contract for the supply and support of the Delft-FEWS software on the basis that at this time, no alternative solution is available because any decision to deviate from Delft-FEWS would require a redevelopment of all Environment Agency models,
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