Laboratory services

Tender description

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre (JCCC), Commemorative Casework Team are responsible for coordinating efforts to establish the identity of historic human remains recovered from battlefields and aircraft crash sites involving British Service personnel and arranging a fitting burial. DNA analysis may be required to assist with confirming the identities of the remains where other methods have proved inconclusive. Genealogy services may also be required to assist in the identification process. The Contract will be for the provision of DNA and Genealogy services. The Contractor will be required to: — be complaint with the Forensic Science Society, ISO/IEC 17025:2017, ISO9001:2000 or other equivalent industry standards, — obtain DNA profiles from remains (from teeth or bone samples), — undertake DNA profiling of Y chromosome, to access paternal lineage and mitochondrial DNA to determine maternal lineage of human remains such a as bone and/or tissue samples (within 1 month of receiving a sample for Y and 2 months for mitochondrial), — provide advice on best living source of DNA profile for comparison purposes and genealogy if required, — provide DNA sampling kits to individuals who volunteer to provide a sample for comparison purposes, — analyse test results and compare them with the profile obtained from the historic sample, — retest samples at the request of the Authority and make recommendations as to alternative scientific methods to obtain DNA profiles for comparison where said profiles cannot initially be obtained and produce various reports.