How to win: Mission Feasibility Studies – Spacecraft Life Extension Service Demonstration

A services contract from Department for Science, Innovation & Technology, worth £2,100,000. Below: what it involves and how to write a winning bid for it.

Buyer

Department for Science, Innovation & Technology

Value

£2,100,000

Closing date

27 November 2026

About this contract

This is one of two concurrent procurements being progressed, the other being for In-Orbit Manufacturing (IOM) Maturation Research & Development Projects. Please see the respective notice on Find a Tender: • Title: In-Orbit Manufacturing (IOM) Maturation Research & Development Projects The UK Space Agency is launching a Contracts for Innovation competition to fund approximately three Phase 0/A mission feasibility studies examining credible options for a potential future in-orbit demonstration of a Rendezvous, Proximity Operations and Docking (RPOD)-enabled spacecraft Life Extension service. The studies will develop and assess mission concepts capable of performing safe, reliable and repeatable RPOD with a cooperative or prepared client spacecraft. The intended demonstration may enable or de-risk a future Life Extension service such as refuelling, Attitude and Orbit Control System (AOCS) takeover, relocation, component replacement, repair, upgrade or refurbishment. The demonstration would not necessarily be required to perform the complete future service. The Life Extension feasibility studies will: • Develop and compare credible mission concepts for an RPOD-enabled Life Extension

How to win contracts like this

✓Answer against the marking scheme, not the question text — Department for Science, Innovation & Technology scores each response, so map your evidence to the published criteria and weightings.
✓At £2,100,000, expect quality and social value to carry a large share of the score — price alone rarely wins services work.
✓Show recent, comparable delivery: name similar services contracts you've delivered for public bodies, with measurable outcomes.
✓Start early: it closes 27 November 2026 and a strong bid takes iteration.

Draft a winning bid for this — with AI

BidWriter drafts your responses from your company profile, scores them against the marking scheme, and tracks your whole pipeline. Free to start — no card needed.

Start free →

Related resources

G-Cloud & digital bids →AI bid writing software →How to win government contracts →How to write a winning bid →