RFP QuestBeta
OpenStage · planning

UK Hydrographic Office

Supply, Delivery, Installation & On-Site Maintenance of Digitisation Scanning Equipment

Laboratory EquipmentCPV 38520000
Value£80k
Deadline
Published8 Jun 2026
RegionNationwide
Who to contact
procurement@ukho.gov.uk

The procurement contact named on the official notice.

Contract value in context
£80ktotal contract value
median £70k
this tender£0£588k

This sits in the upper-middle of the Laboratory & Precision Equipment band — a substantial contract for the sector. Based on 9,869 valued Laboratory & Precision Equipment tenders in our corpus.

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The brief

The objective of this tender is to procure brand-new digitisation equipment and accompanying software (with licence) to support the high-quality, digital capture of a wide range of archival and heritage materials of varying size, thickness and weight in this Financial Year.

We require a large format floor mounted image scanner (up to A0 size) with a mobile scanning bed.

Among other features, it must be capable of manual access, integrated quality control, resolution up to 600PPI optical (however higher levels can be offered) and integrated software with OCR ability.

The equipment required includes: • Overhead planetary scanner for fragile, rare, or bound documents like books and maps with a stand mounted camera system to capture images without any contact with the document. • The ability for the scanner to scan oversized documents, such as folios, plans, surveys, maps, atlases, books, illustrations, paintings, sketches and charts. • It should have the flexibility to allow for scanning of historic books that are unable to be fully opened due to their spine integrity and delicate condition.

System Depth of Field - should be capable of scanning thick books and folded materials.

Cradle/Stage/Platform requirements: • Adjustable bed frame or camera position with manual or automated control • Book cradle table for originals up to 645 mm x 860 mm (>A0) and self-aligning and height-adjustable (motorised) able to accommodate books up to 50 cm thick and weighing up to 50Kgs • Image Quality - Resolution from 300 PPI - 600PPI.

Scans need to have even and uniform illumination - even at the image corners and edges.

The Scanner requires controlled lighting within book curves to prevent loss of image details. • Conservation lighting - Modern, LED lighting concept (UV / IR and ozone free).

Glare and flicker-free lighting during capturing (no flash effects).

Colour temperature from 5,500 to 6,500 Kelvin.

Adjustable light intensity from 1,000 to 3,500 lux.

Scanning Outputs • Internal colour depth: 48-bit colour. • 24/48-bit colour, 8/16 bit grey and 1 bit B/W. • Colour ranges: sRGB, Adobe 1998 RGB, or according to ICC standard • File formats: Archival TIFF/RAW, JPEG, JPEG 2000, PDF, PDF-A, PDF OCR (searchable content), Multipage TIFF and PDF. • System Data Transfer rate - Use of USB 3.0 and USB 3.1 connectivity with data transfer rate of 5GB per second. i.

Functional Requirements o Image Quality: The primary goal is to create images that are as legible as the original. o Resolution (PPI): Up to 600 PPI for documents. o Colour Depth: Scan ordinary documents up to 48-bit colour as required ii.

Performance Requirements o Image Integrity: Scans should capture the entire page with a clear border, be size-for-size, and be free from digital artifacts like spots or dark patches. o File Format Master Files: Use preservation-grade, lossless formats like TIFF or JPEG2000 for master archive copies.

Should use formats like PDF/A (ISO19005 standard) for distribution, accessibility, and general use, as they support long-term preservation and text searching. o The scanner needs to produce high-quality images to ISO19264, ISO19005 standards (full capture area, full resolution, in colour).

There should be image previews while scanning. o Metadata: A comprehensive metadata framework is essential for searchability and context.

Metadata should include information such as title, author, date, keywords, unique identifiers, and retention periods. iii.

Technical Requirements o Building Access: The scanner stage and equipment should be able to be brought into the Archive facility through standard door apertures to be assembled within the space required in the Scanning Room facility. o Dimensions: The area for installation of the new system should fit within the areas allowed  2.5M deep  3.5M wide  3.0M high o Power: The system should be operable using normal UK mains power voltage (230V) and frequency (50Hz). o Training: We require orientation and training for all the staff of the Archives (up to 10 people) on the operation and use of the scanning systems supplied. o Warrantee and Maintenance: The procured system should be covered by a minimum three-year warrantee for all defects and should not require maintenance until operational year 4.

Key requirements

What the supplier must deliver

01

Software (with licence) to support the high-quality

software (with licence) to support the high-quality, digital capture of a wide range of archival and.

02

Among other features, it must be capable

Among other features, it must be capable of manual access, integrated quality control, resolution.

03

Up to 600PPI optical (however higher levels

up to 600PPI optical (however higher levels can be offered) and integrated software with OCR ability.

04

It should have the flexibility to allow

It should have the flexibility to allow for scanning of historic books that are unable to be fully opened due to their spine integrity and delicate condition.

05

Should be capable of scanning thick books

should be capable of scanning thick books and folded materials.

Derived from the notice text — always confirm against the original documents.

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Source & provenance
OCID
ocds-h6vhtk-06afd7
Stage
planning · Planning
Source
Find a Tender
Buyer ref
053823-2026
View the original notice on Find a Tender

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source data © Crown copyright.

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