Supply of a Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR) Spectrometer

The Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) is Britain's leading industrial health and safety facility. HSL supports HSE’s mission to protect people's health and safety by ensuring risks in the changing workplace are properly controlled.

Infra-red spectroscopy is used at HSL to carry out quantitative analysis of respirable crystalline silica (RCS), in particular quartz, as well as polymers, other solid organic materials and oils. The instrument is also used to carry out quality assurance testing of proficiency testing (PT) samples of respirable quartz prepared in the laboratory. These PT samples require replicate batches of up to 100 samples to be analysed with a co-efficient of variation of 3% or less.

A variety of techniques and accessories are used with the existing instrument, in particular diffuse reflectance and attenuated total reflectance (ATR). We would want to use similar, ideally bespoke, accessories with the new instrument and to have the flexibility to use other techniques or accessories in the future, e.g. microscopy or remote probes.

The existing instrument has an optimum spectral range of 370 – 7800 cm-1 and a maximum resolution of 0.2 cm-1. Ideally, we would like the new instrument to have a similar specification. The sample compartment on the existing instrument is 19 cm wide. In order to be able to use our existing accessories we would like the sample compartment on the new instrument to be of a similar size, although this may not be necessary if the new instrument is supplied with bespoke accessories.

The new instrument can be a bench top design or a more portable instrument but, ideally, should have a footprint of no more than 80 cm × 80 cm. The instrument will handle about 1500 samples per annum, mainly quartz on membrane filters, which relates to a running time of about 500 hours (max).

The instrument should be controlled, and the data captured, by PC. The equipment should be compatible with Windows operating systems, using a non-networked PC with a suitable connection to control the instrument. Ideally, the software should include a search library facility to aid identification of sample spectra and compilation of user spectral libraries. To ensure compatibility with our existing data and library search software, the instrument software must be capable of loading and saving data as JCAMP-DX (*.dx) files. Please provide a separate price at schedule D for the PC and peripherals.

For the purposes of this invitation to tender it is necessary for HSL to be open and fair to possible sources that believe they can meet these requirements and may submit a tender.

Additional information: Further information relating to tender T10 15/16 Fourier Transform Infra-Red Spectrometer (FTIR) Q&A Number 1

Our current instrument is a Perkin Elmer System 2000 FTIR.

The main accessory that we use on a regular basis is a Spectra Tech Diffuse Reflectance Unit (Part No. 0030-004).

We also have a Spectra Tech Micro Circle Liquid Analyser (Part No. 0005-104), which is occasionally used.

Please note: This notice is in connection with the Expression of Interest 'Supply of a Fourier Transform Infra-Red Spectrometer for the Health & Safety Laboratory' published on 08/10/15.

Contract start date is estimated subject to approval and award.

HSL has applied broad estimates in the lowest and highest value fields in the 'Summary Information' section.