PS22407 - The Procurement of the Office for Product Safety and Standards Research Collaboration Network

This OPSS Research Collaboration Network is being commissioned to support the delivery of the Office for Product Safety & Standards (OPSS) Strategic Research Programme (SRP). OPSS was established by BEIS in January 2018 in order to enhance protections for consumers and drive forward increased productivity, growth and business confidence. The OPSS SRP provides high quality, strategic, science-based research to strengthen the evidence base for OPSS policy development, delivery and enforcement activities. As an evidence-led organisation, OPSS places great importance on research which gathers insights on a number of evidence bases and challenges the product safety system faces. We intend that by setting up a Research Collaboration Network OPSS will bring together suppliers and create a community of researchers dedicated to the OPSS objectives of keeping people safe and driving forward increased productivity, growth and business confidence. We propose that a joined-up approach for research commissioning will attract more suppliers and will create lists of subject matter experts we can call upon for peer review and technical advice. The aim of the OPSS Research Framework is to identify and utilise contractors with skill and expertise in the following areas to support the aims of our Strategic Research Programme (SRP): • Lot 1: Risk (communications, management, measurement, prioritisation and tolerance); • Lot 2: Chemicals and Materials (Identification, measurement, characterisation techniques and exposure studies and toxicological limits); • Lot 3: Economic (Impact analysis, market analysis and consumer/business behaviours and attitudes); • Lot 4: Technology hardware and software. (Literature reviews, SWOT analysis and research testing, focusing on batteries, mechanical and software engineering challenges). The purpose of the Research Collaboration Network is to make it easier and faster for both contractors and OPSS to apply for and commission research, with contractors only required to make one large bid at the beginning of the framework start which will onboard them into a ‘lot’ relevant to their expertise. Research requests from OPSS will be ad hoc and throughout the year but will relate to these four lots. The research requests will then be distributed to suppliers through much shorter ‘mini competitions’ which require less paperwork (usual turn-around time is approx. one week). Further information can be found on the Contracts Finder notice here - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/bb4a087f-563f-4e9e-aa16-18a018a27636