Cord Blood Collection Systems

NHS Blood and Transplant is issuing this invitation to tender in connection with the competitive procurement of Cord Blood Collection Systems. This document contains important information about the Procurement Process and the Contract that the Authority intends to award. The NHS Cord Blood Bank collects cord blood at six NHS hospitals; and is the fourth largest internationally accredited cord blood bank in the world, with the second highest percentage of rare tissue types. Cord blood is collected Ex Utero from the umbilical cord following delivery of a baby and taken to a regulated area, where the cord blood is collected into a purpose designed bag (i.e. a Cord Blood Collection System). Once a successful collection is completed the cord blood unit is stored in a temperature controlled environment until it is transported to the Authority's evaluation facility in Colindale and then the Authority's processing facility at Filton. Cord blood is rich in stem cells and once processed can be used to treat patients who are suffering from life threatening diseases, including malignancies, bone marrow failure, haemoglobinopathies, immunodeficiencies and metabolic disorders.