Optical instruments tenders in the UK
We track 157 awarded optical instruments contracts (CPV 386*) in the UK. 11 of them have a published end date between 7 Jan 2027 and 7 Apr 2028. The median published award value is £151k, and half of awards fall between £33k and £321k (153 awards with a value). 64 award notices in this category did not publish an end date.
Ending in 3-18 months11
Open tenders1
Median award£151k
Contracts tracked157
Contracts ending soonest (10 of 11)
| Contract | Buyer | Incumbent supplier(s) | Value | Ends | Region |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brunel Medical School - Camera & Recording/Analysis System
Contracts Finder · CPV 38651600 |
Brunel University | Laerdal Medical Limited | £199k | 9 Feb 2027
re-tender may already be under way
|
UK-wide |
| Sniper In-Line Low Light System (SILLS) Weapon Sight 1 (WS1) - Contract Award Notice
Contracts Finder · CPV 38633000 |
Ministry of Defence | Qioptiq Limited | £1.4m | 12 Mar 2027
re-tender may already be under way
|
South West |
| UKRI-5695 STFC CLF Post Compressor Diagnostics Telescope Chamber
Find a Tender · CPV 38630000 |
UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) | Alca Technology Srl | £131k | 12 Apr 2027
re-tender likely from ~12 Oct 2026
|
South West |
| 9003203 - K14 SWIFT Beamline M1 and M2 Mirror Systems for Diamond Light Source
Find a Tender · CPV 38622000 |
Diamond Light Source Limited | INSTRUMENT DESIGN TECHNOLOGY LIMITED | £736k | 12 Jul 2027
re-tender likely from ~12 Jan 2027
|
South East |
| Contract for the Supply, delivery, commission, installation, consumables, & maintenance of a Femtosecond Laser Workstation
Find a Tender · CPV 38636100 |
Queen's University Belfast | Oxford Lasers Ltd | £712k | 20 Aug 2027
re-tender likely from ~20 Feb 2027
|
Northern Ireland |
| High Speed Camera System
Find a Tender · CPV 38651000 |
The University Of Kent | Specialised Imaging Limited | £222k | 23 Aug 2027
re-tender likely from ~23 Feb 2027
|
UK-wide |
| 9004002 - Supply of Harmonics Rejection Mirror Systems for 14 SWIFT Beamline at Diamond Light Source
Find a Tender · CPV 38622000 |
Diamond Light Source Limited | XDS OXFORD LIMITED | £320k | 30 Sep 2027
re-tender likely from ~30 Mar 2027
|
South East |
| 3D Motion Capture System
Find a Tender · CPV 38651600 |
Nottingham Trent University | Individual / sole trader (name not shown) | £102k | 31 Dec 2027
re-tender likely from ~30 Jun 2027
|
East Midlands |
| 9005401 - Supply of K14 SWIFT Beamline KB Mirror System
Find a Tender · CPV 38622000 |
Diamond Light Source Limited | XDS OXFORD LIMITED | £355k | 9 Jan 2028
re-tender likely from ~9 Jul 2027
|
South East |
| 9004476 - Supply of B23 Mirror System for Diamond Light Source
Find a Tender · CPV 38622000 |
Diamond Light Source Limited | Bestec GmbH | £312k | 11 Jan 2028
re-tender likely from ~11 Jul 2027
|
South East |
See all 11 in the renewal radar
Open tenders (1 of 1)
| Opportunity | Buyer | Value | Deadline | Region |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 715889472-Tender Notice
Find a Tender · CPV 38633000 |
Defence Equipment and Support | £4.2m | 13 Nov 2026, 23:59 UK time expression of interest |
South West |
All open tenders in this category
Expiring by quarter
Q1 2027 (2)Q2 2027 (1)Q3 2027 (4)Q4 2027 (1)Q1 2028 (3)Q2 2028 (1)By region
| Region | Contracts | Ending in window |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 50 | 4 |
| South West | 19 | 3 |
| West Midlands | 13 | 0 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 10 | 0 |
| East of England | 7 | 0 |
| East Midlands | 6 | 1 |
| North East | 5 | 0 |
| London | 5 | 0 |
| North West | 4 | 0 |
| Northern Ireland | 2 | 1 |
| Wales | 1 | 0 |
| Scotland | 1 | 0 |
Top buyers
| Buyer | Contracts | Value |
|---|---|---|
| UK Research & Innovation | 47 | £16.8m |
| UK SHARED BUSINESS SERVICES LIMITED | 17 | £420k |
| Ministry of Defence | 12 | £680.7m |
| DIAMOND LIGHT SOURCE LIMITED | 6 | £2.6m |
| University of Warwick | 4 | £830k |
| United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority | 3 | £2.0m |
| UNIVERSITY OF YORK | 3 | £1.2m |
| University of Bristol | 3 | £760k |
| UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) | 3 | £481k |
| Telford & Wrekin Council | 3 | £400k |
Most frequent incumbents
| Supplier | Contracts | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Photonic Solutions Ltd | 5 | £6.1m |
| Toptica Photonics AG | 5 | £2.1m |
| Andor Technology Ltd | 5 | £633k |
| Ian Edgar (Liverpool) Ltd | 4 | £382.0m |
| Newport Spectra-Physics Limited | 4 | £891k |
| Manx Precision Optics Ltd | 4 | £199k |
| INSTRUMENT DESIGN TECHNOLOGY LIMITED | 3 | £1.6m |
| University of Durham | 3 | £1.2m |
| Scanlite Visual Communications Ltd | 3 | £400k |
| Qioptiq | 2 | £270.0m |
Sub-categories
Astronomical and optical instruments (123)Photographic equipment (74)Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data from Find a Tender and Contracts Finder; updated every 2 hours. Where a notice doesn't publish a contract end date we show "end date not published" - we never guess.