Express Freight Service

Tender description

This is a PIN notice for a market engagement exercise for the re-procurement of the Express Freight Service with global reach and capability for heath care products. This service will replace the current Express Freight Solutions which are due to expire on the 31 October 2021. Lot 1: The Express Freight Service (EFS) forms part of the Department of Health and Social Care’s (DHSC’s) National Supply Disruption Response, which is part of the multi-layered approach to help mitigate the impact of disruption to supply of medicines and medical products. The EFS is set up to be used by DHSC's third party suppliers only in the event where the supplier's own contingency measures fail. Suppliers are billed directly by the service provider for use of this freight service. The EFS was originally designed to help mitigate disruption in the event of a no deal exit from the EU and has since been used as part of COVID 19 response arrangements. It is therefore DHSC’s intention to re procure a similar service to ensure continued contingency. The new logistics solution has been redesigned to incorporate all three separate services under the current solution (Parcels, Pallets and Specials) into one agile solution. The key elements of the new service will include: -- continuity of flow to and from the UK (mainly from Europe but with capability to extend its reach globally).- flexibility & responsiveness - value for money. The DHSC would like to engage with the market regarding this. The service has to be operational by the 24th October 2021.To note: The stated contract value is an estimated cost of mobilisation and the projected total management fee payable by the Authority for the duration of the contract. This cost does not include payments that will be made directly by suppliers for use of the express delivery network. Additional information: The purpose of this Prior Information Notice (PIN) is to inform the market operators of a market engagement event which the Authority intends to host related to the procurement of the service as described in II.2.4).The intention is to engage with suppliers to understand market capability and capacity to deliver the requirement and potential providers views on the initial information provided.