- Home
- Tenders
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- Corrigendum-260027 Supply, delivery, commission, installation, consumables, & maintenance of a Femtosecond Laser Workstation for applications in metals
Corrigendum-260027 Supply, delivery, commission, installation, consumables, & maintenance of a Femtosecond Laser Workstation for applications in metals
AI Summary
Queen’s University Belfast, through its Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation Consortium (AMIC), is seeking to establish a state‑of‑the‑art ultrafast laser processing capability that will be used for both research and industrial development. The core objective of the acquisition is to enable high‑precision micromachining and laser welding of a broad range of metals and engineering materials, supporting activities that include micro‑drilling, micro‑cutting, surface texturing, structural forming, thin‑film patterning, precision joining, and next‑generation manufacturing processes. The new technology is intended to serve a diverse portfolio of projects that span from fundamental studies to advanced product development.
The workstation must deliver femtosecond laser performance across a wide spectrum of substrates, including stainless steel, aluminium, copper, titanium, nickel alloys, precious metals, polymers, ceramics, and multi‑material assemblies. Flexibility in material handling and processing parameters is essential so that the system can adapt to varying thermal properties, reflectivity, and mechanical characteristics while maintaining micron‑scale accuracy and repeatability. The configuration is therefore expected to incorporate advanced beam delivery, pulse control, and real‑time diagnostics to support continuous process optimisation.
The procurement will encompass the supply, delivery, commissioning, installation, consumables, and maintenance of the laser workstation, with a contractual period anticipated to begin on 1 April 2027 and extend to 1 April 2033 if renewed. This pre‑market engagement aims to identify capable suppliers, gauge lead times, and map the commercial landscape prior to any formal tender. The final specification requires the system to provide ultrafast laser processing for metals and engineering materials with micron‑scale precision.
Description
The system will be used for both research and industrial development activities and should provide flexibility across a broad range of materials including stainless steel, aluminium, copper, titanium, nickel alloys, precious metals, polymers, ceramics and multi-material assemblies.
Estimated date of publication of contract notice: 2027-01-04T23:59:59+00:00
Amendments:
Other additional information: The link to find a tender has been updated.
Engagement process description
AMIC is expanding its core capabilities in Digital Factory, Smart Design, Sustainable Polymers and Composites, Nanotechnology and Photonics. As part of this project, Queen's University Belfast is seeking expressions of interest from suppliers as we wish to procure a Femtosecond Laser Workstation.
Queen's staff wish to engage with suppliers prior to procuring this equipment to:
1 - gain a better understanding of what the market can offer and if the market can respond to a tender meeting our requirements.
2 - identify potential suppliers able to provide the requirement.
3 - understand potential lead times.
4 - gain an understanding of the commercial profile for the requirement.
A pre-market engagement questionnaire has been published here: https://in-tendhost.co.uk/queensuniversitybelfast/aspx/Home. Interested parties are asked to complete and return this questionnaire via the InTend platform within 30 days of this notice. Queen's may then contact suppliers for further discussion of the information received in the questionnaire.
Queen's do not guarantee that they will speak to every supplier who submits a return.
Participation in the pre-market engagement exercise is not a pre-requisite to participation in any future tender exercise, however, the information provided may be used to inform decisions around the tender exercise. Queen's welcome all participation in this Pre Market Engagement exercise.
This Pre Market Engagement exercise is not a call for competition and does not commit Queen's to proceed with a formal procurement. Queen's is not obligated to adopt supplier feedback into the process.
Lot: 1
This contract is subject to renewal: Yes
Languages in which tenders or requests to participate may be submitted: En