Utility launches tender for motor control and automation framework
New framework seeks suppliers to deliver motor control, instrumentation and automation services that will underpin more resilient water infrastructure.
New framework seeks suppliers to deliver motor control, instrumentation and automation services that will underpin more resilient water infrastructure.
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Scottish Water has launched a multi-supplier framework for motor control centres, instrumentation, control and automation, and systems integration across its water and wastewater assets. Split into three lots, the agreement will cover integrated solutions, specialist services and maintenance support. It shows how the utility plans to buy critical control and automation capability, and sits alongside a wider shift by water and infrastructure operators towards structured frameworks for SCADA, ICA and mechanical and electrical support.
Published on 8th October 2026, the contract notice for a new framework covering motor control centres and instrumentation, control and automation (ICA) services sets out Scottish Water's intention to establish a multi-supplier agreement focused on Motor Control Centres, Instrumentation, Control and Automation, and Systems Integration services. The framework is intended to support the organisation's water and wastewater assets, drawing together work that spans motor control centres, instrumentation and the integration of complex systems.
The notice highlights three distinct types of opportunity, captured in three lots: integrated solutions, specialist services and maintenance support. While the detailed scope of each lot is contained in the full documentation, the structure makes clear that Scottish Water expects to appoint suppliers that can deliver complete control solutions and provide maintenance support for installed systems.
As a multi-supplier arrangement, the framework will not rely on a single provider for all control and automation work. Instead, Scottish Water plans to create a panel of suppliers it can call on for different projects and service needs across its asset base. That approach reflects a broader pattern in infrastructure procurement, where frameworks are used to secure capacity and expertise while maintaining access to a competitive field of contractors.
The notice summary focuses on technical scope rather than commercial detail, describing the disciplines covered but not summarising aspects such as duration or estimated value. Even so, the emphasis on control and automation for water and wastewater assets underscores the operational importance of the systems in scope.
Scottish Water's move sits alongside a series of automation- and SCADA-focused procurements by other water organisations during 2026. Recent notices range from targeted support agreements to wide-ranging MEICA frameworks, indicating that many asset owners are formalising long-term arrangements for control and automation services.
Taken together, these procurements show water bodies using frameworks and service contracts to secure specialist support for control, automation and related mechanical works. Scottish Water's planned framework appears more tightly defined than some MEICA arrangements, concentrating on motor control centres, instrumentation, control and automation, and systems integration rather than the wider mechanical scope seen elsewhere.
Another common theme across 2026 has been the use of frameworks to organise recurring technical work, with buyers making different choices about whether to appoint a single supplier or a panel of contractors, and how far to divide work into lots. Scottish Water's multi-supplier, three-lot structure places it among those organisations looking to share work between several providers while distinguishing between integrated solutions, specialist input and maintenance.
In May 2026, Arc Property Services Partnership Limited signalled a contrasting approach in its prior information notice, Mechanical Engineering Framework. There, the buyer proposes a single-supplier framework for mechanical engineering works across Nottinghamshire, covering services such as plumbing, heating systems, energy infrastructure and building management systems, with a focus on collaboration, social value and compliance.
In June 2026, Stockton on Tees Borough Council issued a contract notice, Minor Works Framework Opportunity, for a new multi-supplier framework covering minor works across a range of services including mechanical, electrical, roofing and building, with specific lots designated for each type of work. In October 2026, Dublin City Council launched a multi-party agreement, Multi-Party Framework for Civil Works, splitting minor civil repair and maintenance for its waste management operations into three lots covering structural, plumbing and carpentry services.
In the transport sector, similar patterns are visible. In June 2026, Transport Infrastructure Ireland advertised an agreement through Intelligent Transport Systems Framework, establishing nine framework lots for intelligent transport systems equipment and allowing local authorities to install Periodic School Limit signage under mini-competitions run within the framework. In July 2026, ESCOTA SOCIETE DES AUTOROUTES ESTEREL, COTE D'AZUR, PROVENCE, ALPES set up a framework via Framework Agreement for Controller Services for the removal, rewiring, integration, commissioning and maintenance of Rockwell brand controllers in its tunnel network, drawing on suppliers with proven experience and able to operate under significant constraints.
Scottish Water's framework therefore combines two broader trends: the move towards structured frameworks for control and automation work, and the preference among many asset-intensive organisations for multi-supplier, multi-lot agreements that can accommodate integrated projects as well as ongoing maintenance and specialist interventions.
Although the Scottish Water notice is focused on control equipment and automation services, it also aligns with a growing interest in digital management of infrastructure assets. Several 2026 procurements couple technical systems with long-term support and metering services, suggesting that organisations want closer oversight of how their assets are monitored and maintained.
In July 2026, the Government Commercial Agency published a contract notice, Energy Supply and Management Services, for a framework that brings together the supply of electricity and gas with management services. Alongside strategic partnerships and energy bureau services, the agreement includes metering support, indicating a desire to link energy supply more directly with ongoing management information.
In June 2026, Scottish Canals advertised Scottish Canals Contractor Framework, a multi-lot agreement to support the maintenance and improvement of assets. The lots range from civils, landscaping and surveys through to MEICA, fabrication, dredging, regional construction and professional engineering services, with the framework expected to contribute to inclusive regeneration and socio-economic sustainability.
Together with SCADA-focused agreements such as those from Kretslopp och vatten and S.C. APA-CANAL ILFOV S.A., and the instrumentation and automation frameworks issued by organisations including Waterschap Rivierenland and Waterschap Brabantse Delta, Scottish Water's competition illustrates how control, automation and associated digital platforms are being treated as core, long-term infrastructure rather than isolated one-off projects.
For suppliers, the immediate focus will be on how Scottish Water defines the three lots in detail: which activities fall under integrated solutions, how specialist services are framed, and how maintenance support is structured. The balance between framework-wide capabilities and lot-specific expertise is likely to shape which types of organisations can compete.
The pipeline of related opportunities should also be on suppliers' radar. Prior information notices from Yorkshire Water Services Limited on its proposed MEICA Services Framework Engagement and from NI Water on ICA Equipment and Support both point towards further competitions centred on control and automation. NORTHERN IRELAND WATER LIMITED's September 2026 notice, Integrated Partnerships Framework, adds another layer, signalling substantial future investment in water and wastewater projects across multiple lots.
Against that backdrop, Scottish Water's multi-supplier framework for motor control centres, instrumentation, control and automation, and systems integration will be watched closely by potential bidders and by other asset owners refining their own approaches to automation and maintenance. How the framework is let, and how it performs once in place, is likely to be of interest as a reference point for similar agreements in the water and infrastructure sectors.
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