Procurement Rules
The procurement rules of the Velocity Interoperability Network govern every purchase of goods, services or works made by a department or office of the Network. They were adopted by the Procurement Office of the Velocity Interoperability Network on 6 September 2026 and replace the interim procedures under which member organisations bought during the transition period from 10 August to 5 September 2026.
The rules rest on six principles, set four value thresholds and prescribe the procedure that applies at each. They bind the buying department as much as the Office: a department specifies what it needs and takes part in the evaluation of responses, and the Office ensures that the purchase is made under the correct procedure, that competition is open and fair, and that the outcome is recorded and published.
In force from 6 September 2026
Principles. Six principles govern the reading of every rule below. Where a rule is silent or its application is disputed, the Office decides the question by reference to them.
- Value for money
- A purchase is made on the best combination of cost and quality over the whole life of the contract, including delivery, maintenance, training and disposal. The lowest price is not by itself value for money, and a department may not treat it as the only criterion unless the requirement is defined so precisely that quality cannot vary.
- Open competition
- Every requirement estimated at 25,000 credits or more is advertised publicly and is open to any registered supplier. Requirements are not divided into smaller parts in order to avoid a threshold, and a specification may not be written so as to describe the products of one supplier.
- Equal treatment
- Every respondent to a tender receives the same information at the same time, is assessed against the same published criteria and is given the same time to respond. Questions of clarification are answered to all respondents without naming the questioner.
- Transparency
- Evaluation criteria and their weightings are published with the invitation to tender and are not altered after it is issued. Every award of 5,000 credits or more is entered on the contract register, and every unsuccessful respondent is told the outcome and the score of its own response.
- Proportionality
- The procedure is matched to the value and the risk of the requirement. Nothing is asked of a supplier that is not needed to judge its response, and the evidence required at registration is not asked for again at each tender.
- Integrity
- Everyone who specifies a requirement, evaluates a response or approves an award declares any interest in a supplier before taking part. Gifts and hospitality from suppliers and from businesses seeking to become suppliers may not be accepted.
Thresholds and procedures. The procedure to be used is settled by the estimated value of the requirement over the whole of its term. Values are in credits and exclude tax.
| Estimated value, in credits | Procedure | Notice period | Evaluation | Approval |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Below 5,000 | One written quotation, from a supplier of the department's choosing | None | One officer of the buying department | Head of the buying unit |
| 5,000 to 24,999 | Three written quotations from registered suppliers | Five working days to quote | Two officers of the buying department | Head of the buying department |
| 25,000 to 149,999 | Open tender, published by the Procurement Office | Twenty-one days | Panel of two, one of whom is an officer of the Office | Head of the buying department, countersigned by the Office |
| 150,000 and above | Open tender, published by the Procurement Office | Thirty-five days | Panel of three, one of whom is an officer of the Office and one independent of the requirement | Head of the buying department and the Head of the Office |
A department that is uncertain which threshold applies asks the Office before it begins. The seven tenders now open, and the procedure used for each, are listed on the Tenders page.
Evaluation weightings. Price and quality are weighted according to the type of requirement. The weightings below are the usual ones; a department that proposes a different weighting records its reasons and obtains the agreement of the Office before the invitation is issued.
| Type of requirement | Price, per cent | Quality, per cent | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goods, standard specification | 70 | 30 | Price is scored on the total cost of the schedule of items over the term. |
| Goods, technical or clinical | 50 | 50 | Quality covers technical compliance, warranty, support and delivery times. |
| Services, recurring | 50 | 50 | Quality covers method, staffing, cover arrangements and references. |
| Services, professional or specialist | 40 | 60 | Quality covers the experience of the named personnel and the proposed approach. |
| Works and fit-out | 60 | 40 | Quality covers programme, site management, safety and the treatment of variations. |
| Framework agreements | 60 | 40 | Price is scored on the rate card; quality covers capacity and the order procedure. |
The rules in detail. The rules are set out below in the order in which they arise in a purchase, from the calculation of the estimated value to the keeping of the records.
The Office advises departments on the application of the rules and hears challenges from suppliers. Requests for advice, and challenges made within a standstill period, are sent to contact@procurement.gov.vin.
For the tenders published under these rules, see Tenders; for the register of suppliers entitled to respond, see Supplier Registration; for the awards recorded under them, see the Contract Register; for answers to common questions, see the frequently asked questions.