Supply of a Scanning Electrochemical Microscope

The European Commission Joint Research Centre (JRC) Karlsruhe has published an open tender (EC-JRC/KRU/2026/OP/3433) for the supply, delivery, installation, commissioning, training and warranty of a Scanning Electrochemical Microscope (SECM). The estimated contract value is €150,000 and tenders must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal eSubmission system by 06/10/2026 at 12:00 Europe/Berlin. The award will be on the basis of lowest price subject to mandatory technical compliance, with delivery DDP within eight months and a minimum 24-month warranty. Eligible economic operators must be registered in the Participant Register (PIC) and submit the required administrative, technical and financial documents as specified in the procurement documents on the portal.

What is funded

Scope

Purchase, delivery, installation, commissioning and training for a Scanning Electrochemical Microscope (SECM) for JRC Karlsruhe to study nuclear fuel corrosion at micrometric scale. Final installation will be inside a glove box; offer must include required cables, potentiostat and test samples.

Estimated contract value:€150,000 (estimated total value) ¹

1. 1Procedure: Open procedure (electronic submission via eSubmission).
2. 2Award method: lowest price compliant with technical specifications.
3. 3Contract maximum duration: 32 months (8 months delivery/setup + 24 months warranty).
4. 4Key dates: Deadline for tenders 06/10/2026 12:00 (Europe/Berlin); contracting authority may not answer questions submitted after 28/09/2026 23:59 (Europe/Berlin).

Who can apply

Any economic operator meeting the procurement exclusion and selection criteria, including suppliers of microscopes and electrochemical instrumentation. Participants must be registered in the Participant Register (obtain a PIC) and submit tenders via the EU eSubmission system using an EU Login account.

How to apply

Download all procurement documents (invitation to tender, administrative annex, Declaration on Honour, technical specifications, draft contract) and submit a single eSubmission tender before the deadline. Use the Funding & Tenders Portal to subscribe and receive updates Funding and Tenders Portal.

1. 1Prepare administrative, technical and financial offer (total price in euros, VAT rules apply).
2. 2Include Declaration on Honour and any requested evidence for exclusion/selection criteria.
3. 3Provide details on manufacturer, model and technical compliance with the Technical Specifications (Annex I Part 2).
4. 4Plan on on-site installation and training at JRC Karlsruhe; staff may require security/reliability checks and entry permits.

All procurement documents and Q&A are published on the Portal. Subscribe to the call to receive notifications of updates and answers to questions Funding and Tenders Portal. ¹

Footnotes

1. 1Tender notice and full documentation available on the Funding & Tenders Portal: Supply of a Scanning Electrochemical Microscope (EC-JRC/KRU/2026/OP/3433) Tender details.

Opportunity summary

The Joint Research Centre (JRC) Karlsruhe (European Commission) published an open procurement (tender) for the supply, delivery, installation, commissioning, training and warranty of a Scanning Electrochemical Microscope (SECM). The instrument will be used to determine nuclear fuel corrosion at micrometric scale under different conditions and is intended to be ultimately installed inside a glove box. The procurement reference is EC-JRC/KRU/2026/OP/3433, TED reference 170/2026 608207-2026. The estimated total value of the procedure is €150 000. Submissions must be electronic via the F&T Portal eSubmission system. The award method is lowest price. The award will result in a direct supplies contract with a maximum contract duration of 32 months (8 months delivery/installation and 24 months warranty).

Procurement documents and portal:All procurement documents (Invitation letter, Administrative Annex, Declaration on Honour, Technical Specifications, Draft Contract) are published on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal and must be consulted for full requirements. The portal is the official place to download documents and submit tenders Funding & Tenders Portal. ¹

Categorisation and structured details

Eligible Applicant Types

Eligible applicant types:legal entities and natural persons that can act as economic operators under an open procedure. Specifically: manufacturers and authorised distributors of scientific instrumentation, SMEs and large enterprises offering SECM systems, research institutes and universities may tender if they can sign a public procurement contract and meet the legal, economic and technical selection criteria. Joint tenders (groups of economic operators) are permitted. Subcontracting is allowed but identified subcontractors (e.g. >20% share or whose capacities are relied upon for selection criteria) must be declared and provide commitment letters. The tender documents set out the exact evidence required per involved entity.

Funding Type

This is a procurement contract for supplies resulting from a public tender. Financial mechanism: procurement / supplies contract (not a grant, loan, equity or voucher). The contracting authority will award a supplies contract under the Joint Research Centre (JRC) procurement rules and Financial Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509.

Consortium Requirement

The procedure accepts submissions by single economic operators or joint tenders (consortium). If a joint tender is submitted, all group members must sign an Agreement/Power of Attorney (model in Annex 3). The contract will be signed with the group leader and group members are jointly and severally liable. Therefore either single tenderer or consortium is permitted; consortium is optional.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility)

Participation is open to natural or legal persons within the scope of the EU Treaties, international organisations and to third country entities if allowed by applicable Union procurement rules and relevant international agreements (including the GPA). The contract implements the Euratom Research and Training Programme (2026–2027) and is open to third countries eligible under that programme or covered by Government Procurement Agreement. Tenderers must ensure they are not subject to EU restrictive measures. The contracting authority will verify country of establishment as part of the submission requirements.

Target Sector

Sectoral focus:scientific instrumentation for nuclear safety and materials characterisation. Primary thematic sectors: nuclear safety/security, materials science, analytical instrumentation, microscopy and electrochemistry. CPV primary classification: 38510000 Microscopes. Additional CPVs used include instruments for measuring quantities, chemistry analysers, impedance/measurement equipment and test apparatus.

Mentioned Countries

Explicit location:JRC Karlsruhe, Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany. Contracting authority: European Commission, DG JRC - Joint Research Centre (Germany). Geographic eligibility: EU and NATO/GPA countries and third countries as described above; specific country list is not enumerated in the notice.

Project Stage

Expected maturity:equipment procurement to support research and experimental analysis. Project stage classification: acquisition for development/validation/demonstration activities at laboratory scale (instrumentation for research use).

Funding Amount

Estimated total procedure value:€150 000 (estimated overall contract amount). This is the budget envelope for the call and the basis for economic evaluation (lowest price award).

Application Type and Submission Method

Application method:open call — standard public procurement tender. Submission method: electronic via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal eSubmission system only. EU Login account and PIC registration in the Participant Register are mandatory to submit. Attachments must meet the eSubmission technical requirements (supported browsers, file sizes under 50 MB per file, max 200 files per submission). Questions must be submitted in the Portal Q&A section before the contracting authority cut-off date.

Nature of Support

Nature of support:monetary payment by the contracting authority to a supplier under a supplies contract. The supplier receives direct payment for goods and services (delivery, installation, commissioning and warranty). Non-monetary services: training, documentation and technical support are required as part of the supply.

Application Stages

Number of stages:1 main procurement stage (single-stage open procedure). Tender submission, virtual public opening, administrative checks, exclusion and selection verification, technical compliance check against tender specifications, price evaluation (lowest price) and award. Selected tenderer will pass pre-award checks (declarations and supporting evidence) before signature.

Success Rates

No explicit historical success-rate figures are given in the procurement notice. As a public open tender with a single-lot lowest-price award, the success rate equals 1 divided by the number of compliant tenders received. Market intelligence suggests specialist scientific equipment tenders attract a small number of specialised bidders (often 3–6), but the actual success rate depends on the number of admissible bidders and compliance with strict technical requirements.

Co-funding Requirement

Co-funding:not applicable. This is a procurement for supplies paid by the contracting authority. Tenderers must price the supply as specified; no co-funding from the supplier is required. All costs for preparation and submission are borne by tenderers.

Key Dates and Deadlines

Deliverables, Technical Requirements and Contract Conditions

Minimum technical deliverables and contractual requirements (summary, consult Technical Specifications Annex for full detail):

1. 1Supply of a Scanning Electrochemical Microscope (SECM) system designed for materials and localised electrochemical measurements with the ability to operate in a controlled glove-box environment (final installation location provided).
2. 2Complete SECM instrument including: XYZ motorised stage with minimum 10 cm travel per axis and at least 20 nm positional resolution; sample camera for positioning; set of electrodes (1 reference, 1 counter, minimum 2 working electrodes); potentiostat/galvanostat with open circuit potential (OCP) capability; at least 2 channels; impedance spectroscopy module for EIS / impedance measurements; accessories and test samples (2) for commissioning and verification.
3. 3Software and control PC: instrument control and data acquisition software delivered in English, installed and configured on a supplied or customer-provided computer as specified in the procurement documents.
4. 4Cables, feedthroughs and any modules necessary for operation inside and outside a glove box; compatibility with glove box LEMO connectors must be ensured.
5. 5Delivery DDP to JRC Karlsruhe, installation, commissioning, on-site performance tests and provisional technical acceptance. Final technical acceptance after at least one month of compliant operation within two months of provisional acceptance.
6. 6On-site training: at least one day of training for two JRC operators in English, performed on the commissioned instrument.
7. 7Documentation in English: operation manuals, maintenance manuals, electrical and mechanical schematics, software documentation.
8. 8Warranty: minimum 24 months warranty starting from final technical acceptance. Warranty to include corrective maintenance, replacement parts, software updates and provision for on-site corrective maintenance (on-site intervention timeline: contractor on-site within 10 working days after request if remote resolution not possible).
9. 9Contract conditions: CE marking, compliance with EU directives and applicable standards; compliance with JRC site regulations for security and access; evidence of insurance and legal capacity as required in the tender documentation.

Administrative and Selection Requirements

Administrative evidence and process requirements (high level):

1. 1Submit the Declaration on Honour (Annex 2) for exclusion and selection criteria. Evidence of non-exclusion and selection criteria may be requested from the presumed winner prior to award.
2. 2Participant Register PIC is mandatory to participate. Organisation must be registered and PIC used in eSubmission.
3. 3Selection criteria include legal and regulatory capacity, financial capacity (minimum average yearly turnover above €300 000 over last two financial years consolidated), and technical experience demonstrating at least two similar projects in the last five years (consolidated assessment permitted). Evidence may be requested during evaluation or pre-award.
4. 4If tender submitted as a group, Agreement/Power of Attorney per Annex 3 must be provided. Identified subcontractors (Annex 4) and commitment letters (Annex 5.1 / 5.2) required where applicable.
5. 5Tenders must be in one of the official EU languages; English is used for procurement documents and is the authoritative version for this procedure.

Award criteria and evaluation

Award method:lowest price. Tenders must pass administrative compliance, non-exclusion, selection and technical compliance checks (technical specifications are mandatory minimum requirements). Only tenders that meet the technical minimum requirements will be considered and then ranked by total price. Abnormally low tenders may be challenged and rejected in line with Financial Regulation rules.

Application templates, forms and submission guidance

Mandatory templates and forms are provided in the procurement documents published on the F&T Portal. Key templates include: Invitation Letter, Administrative Annex, Declaration on Honour (Annex 2), Agreement/Power of Attorney (Annex 3) for consortia, List of Identified Subcontractors (Annex 4), Commitment letters (Annex 5.1 and 5.2), Technical Specifications (Annex I Part 2) and Draft Contract. Tenders must be uploaded in the eSubmission application following the eSubmission Quick Guide (system requirements, allowed file types and naming conventions). Failure to include the required documents or to follow eSubmission instructions will lead to rejection.

1. 1Annex 1: List of documents to upload with the tender (Declaration on Honour, authorisation to sign, Agreement/Power of Attorney for joint tenders, list of subcontractors, technical and financial tender, commitment letters).
2. 2Annex 2: Declaration on Honour — mandatory for all involved entities listed in Annex 1; model must be used.
3. 3Annex 3: Agreement/Power of Attorney — model for group tenders; all group members must sign and appoint a group leader with full authority.
4. 4Annex 4: List of identified subcontractors — required if subcontractors exceed 20% of the contract or are relied upon for selection criteria.
5. 5Annex 5.1 and 5.2: Commitment letters — subcontractor commitment and entity-on-whose-capacities-the-tenderer-relies commitment (models provided).

How to prepare a compliant bid — practical checklist

1. 1Register organisation in the Participant Register and obtain PIC; ensure legal and SME status fields are up to date.
2. 2Download and read all procurement documents (ITT, Admin Annex, Technical Specifications, Draft Contract, DoH).
3. 3Confirm technical compliance: ensure proposed SECM meets all mandatory technical specifications including travel and resolution, potentiostat/impedance modules, glove-box compatibility and provided accessories. Prepare a technical datasheet mapping each requirement to offered features.
4. 4Prepare the financial tender: single total price in euros, free of VAT and DDP to JRC Karlsruhe; ensure price in eSubmission field matches uploaded financial tender.
5. 5Prepare administrative documents: Declaration on Honour (signed), evidence enabling legal and financial capacity (to be provided on request or pre-award), Agreement/Power of Attorney for consortia, commitment letters for identified subcontractors or relied-on entities.
6. 6Plan logistics and site access: provide names of installation/training staff at least 15 days before arrival; be ready to support reliability/security checks if personnel will work in controlled areas.
7. 7Allow time to test and upload documents via eSubmission well before the deadline; name attachments following system rules and keep file sizes below 50 MB each.

Concluding summary

What is this opportunity about and how to explain it:The European Commission's JRC Karlsruhe seeks to procure a Scanning Electrochemical Microscope (SECM) to deliver laboratory-scale, micrometric electrochemical mapping and corrosion characterisation capabilities for nuclear fuel research. This is a standard open procurement for supplies (estimated €150 000), awarded on lowest price subject to mandatory technical compliance. Eligible bidders include manufacturers, authorised suppliers and integrators of SECM systems, and consortia are permitted. Submissions must be electronic via the Funding & Tenders Portal eSubmission; bidders must follow the provided templates (Declaration on Honour, technical and financial tender, consortia documents and any commitment letters). The instrument will be delivered DDP to JRC Karlsruhe, installed and commissioned, and must include training, documentation and at least 24 months of warranty. Bidders must ensure compliance with the technical specifications, EU procurement rules and the JRC's site access and security requirements. For full contractual terms, technical specs and all templates, download and work from the procurement documentation on the Funding & Tenders Portal Funding & Tenders Portal. ¹

Footnotes

1. 1Official procurement documentation and the eSubmission electronic tendering interface are available on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal at: ec.europa.eu. See the Invitation letter (ITT), Administrative Annex, Technical Specifications and Draft Contract published on 03/09/2026 for full details.

This is an EU procurement tender from the European Commission, DG JRC Joint Research Centre for JRC Karlsruhe, under procedure EC-JRC/KRU/2026/OP/3433. The notice was published on 03/09/2026, the estimated total value is €150,000, and the tender deadline is 06/10/2026 at 12:00 Europe/Berlin.[1]

What the contract is about

The contract concerns the supply of a Scanning Electrochemical Microscope SECM for JRC Karlsruhe to determine nuclear fuel corrosion at micrometric scale under different conditions. The contract is for supplies and the main CPV classification is 38510000 Microscopes.[1][2]

Who can apply

The procedure is open, so it is available to economic operators that can meet the procurement documents and submit a compliant tender. For joint tenders, each member must register in the Participant Register, and submission is required electronically through the eSubmission system.[2]

Tenders may be submitted in one of the official languages of the European Union, while the published procurement documents are in English.[2]

Key submission rule:Paper, email, or any other non electronic submission route is not accepted, and tenders must be sent exclusively through the designated electronic process.[2]

Applicant considerations

1. 1Review the technical specifications carefully, because the requirement is for a specialist microscopy instrument intended for nuclear fuel corrosion analysis at micrometric scale.[1][2]
2. 2Prepare the full tender package in line with the invitation letter, administrative annex, declaration on honour, technical specifications, and draft contract listed in the notice.[1]
3. 3Submit before 06/10/2026 at 12:00 Europe/Berlin, and note that the contracting authority is not bound to reply to questions submitted after 28/09/2026 at 23:59 Europe/Berlin.[1]
4. 4If attendance at the opening session matters, the public opening is scheduled for 06/10/2026 at 15:00 Europe/Berlin.[1][2]

Commercial and contract terms

The procurement documents available for this tender are the invitation letter, administrative annex, declaration on honour, technical specifications, and draft contract.[1]

Practical assessment

This is a targeted procurement opportunity for suppliers of analytical microscopy and specialist laboratory equipment rather than a funding grant. The strongest bids are likely to be those that combine technical compliance, relevant experience, and the ability to deliver, install, commission, and support the microscope within the required schedule.[1][2]