The UK's shipbuilding pipeline at a glance. This interactive timeline tracks every major vessel programme across government – from early market engagement through competition, design, build, and maintenance. Each programme shows its current status, key milestones, and projected delivery phases, providing a single unified view of the nation's shipbuilding and maritime commitments.
This pipeline will offer UK industry a better and live demand signal, presenting opportunities that industry stakeholders might want to prepare for and get involved with. Right now, the pipeline displays a consolidated demand signal for civil programmes, eventually growing to include naval and potentially commercial pipelines. Ultimately, our core aim is to strengthen the UK’s industrial resilience by offering a live demand signal that we will be fully updating every three months and as frequently as monthly where urgent.
Industry users should be aware of funding and maturity status. The colour legend for this appears below. Unfunded programmes can be subject to change depending on government need. We will try to be as clear and committal as possible and strive to increase the degree to which the Government is changing demand signal into demand certainty. However, please note that, where periods like competition, contract signature, design, and build are shown for unfunded programmes, this is intended to give a broad handrail, not a guarantee of timelines. As government policy on demand certainty changes, we will reflect this in the degree of certainty we can display here.
For more information on how to use this pipeline tool, scroll to the bottom of the page for the user guide. And for more information on the programmes and this pipeline itself, please contact the National Shipbuilding Office at: fmc-nso-implgp@mod.gov.uk
-
-
Guide on how to use the pipeline
Click and drag to scroll through the timeline, click ‘Details’ on any programme to bring up its summary of information, and click ‘Filter’ to choose your own bespoke selection of programmes. For easier viewing, click on ‘Expand’ to maximise the pipeline’s display, or click on ‘1x’ to adjust the zoom level to your preference. Links to the procurement or tender pages for programmes will be shown in their ‘Details’ pop-ups.
-
A brief explanation of the phases in a procurement
Pre-concept
Most pre-concept programmes/projects sit within broader portfolios from whence they draw limited resource funding. They are not funded for full delivery and timelines are normally at a rough order of magnitude. They may conduct some very general, high-level pre-market engagement activity and will have a longlist of options to deliver their capability requirements.
Strategic Outline Case Approval
This is where most public programmes/projects move from a pre-concept to concept phase. They normally receive discrete funding (mostly resource with a little capital) to deliver the concept phase and show a longlist to shortlist analysis of preferred options to deliver the requirements. They may also follow this with some more early market engagement. They may publish a pipeline notice (UK1 notice) either here or after the next approval stage.
Outline Business Case Approval
This is where most public programmes/projects move from the concept phase to the assessment phase. At the outline business case they show analysis from the shortlist to the preferred option to deliver the requirements, supported by more robust economic and market intelligence. The outline business case will give them the mandate to conduct formal, full market engagement and run a full competition/negotiation period up to the selection of a preferred supplier and draft a contract. Whilst timelines can still shift during this period, this approval level should provide substantially more confidence in delivery and investment.
Full Business Case Approval
This is the final business case following the running of a competition/negotiation. The programme/project team should present for approval the preferred supplier, supported by analysis from the competition/negotiation and request approval to sign contracts. The contract is normally signed within the quarter immediately following full business case approval.
Market Engagement Period
This is the rough period over which the programme/project expects to formally engage the market. Where programmes are earlier in their funding approval process, this period will be subject to change and refinement, but we have strived to keep it as broad as possible. The programme team may conduct very early or preliminary market engagement (a UK2 notice) before this period. Market engagement may include a contract notice or prior information notice (PIN), a request for information (RFI), and an invitation to industry engagement days.
Competition / Negotiation Period
This is the rough period over which the programme/project expects to run its formal competition or negotiation. For programmes earlier in their funding/approval cycle, this will be subject to change and refinement, but we have strived to keep it as broad as possible. Depending on the commercial strategy and plan, this may look like a direct award, a distributed negotiated build, a UK-only or regionally limited competition, an international competition, or a framework procurement. These terms are explained further below. The rationale behind using these four generalised terms is to ensure a consistent naming convention between the range of options available under English, Scottish, and Northern Irish procurement law. We believe that these terms are detailed at the right level to give industry the understanding of the Government’s intent without getting into the finer details on this pipeline tool at this stage of development.
You may see publications such as a UK3 planned procurement notice, and/or a procurement-specific questionnaire (PSQ), an invitation to tender (ITT), or an invitation to negotiate (ITN) under a UK4 notice.
Contract Target Range
This is the rough period over which the programme/project expects to award/sign its contract with the preferred supplier. For programmes earlier in their funding/approval cycle, this will be subject to change and refinement, but we have strived to keep it as broad as possible. When this has occurred, you will see a UK6 contract award notice published.
Design Period
This is the rough period over which the programme/project expects the final, detailed design-work under contract to take place (for ship- and boatbuilding programmes). For programmes earlier in their funding/approval cycle, this will be subject to change and refinement, but we have strived to keep it as broad as possible. There may be programmes where it is not possible to detail this until contracts are negotiated, but we will try to show the broadest time range necessary in order to highlight opportunities for the vessel design market.
Build Period
This is the rough period over which the programme/project expects the build of the vessels to take place (for ship- and boatbuilding programmes), from steel-cut/initial engineering all the way to final delivery. For programmes earlier in their funding/approval cycle, this will be subject to change and refinement, but we have strived to keep it as broad as possible.
First in Class in Service
This is the rough period over which the programme/project expects the first-in-class vessel under this contract to enter service (for ship- and boatbuilding contracts). For single-vessel contracts, this will cover the vessel in question, for multi-vessel builds, this is only for the first vessel delivery. For programmes earlier in their funding/approval cycle, this will be subject to change and refinement, but we have strived to keep it as broad as possible.
Last of Class in Service
This is the rough period over which the programme/project expects the last vessel on the contract to enter service (for ship- and boatbuilding programmes). This only applies to multi-vessel contracts, not to single-vessel or maintenance. For programmes earlier in their funding/approval cycle, this will be subject to change and refinement, but we have strived to keep it as broad as possible.
Direct award
This term will cover all variations where a contract is directly awarded by the contracting authority to the supplier outside of a formal open competition. Herein, “direct award” is used broadly and, where possible and available, suppliers should seek out more detail on the approach and rationale where they wish.
Distributed negotiated build
This term will cover all variations where the contracting authority is contracting an intentional distributed or disaggregated build. This will usually constitute a direct award to a prime supplier or consortium. This term herein has been separated out from “direct award” in order to highlight the broader opportunities for enterprise-level cooperation across British shipyards.
UK-only or regionally limited competition
This term will cover all variations where the contracting authority is running a competition between bidders either within the UK alone or regionally limited to a specific area (often within a distance of British waters). Herein this term is used broadly and, where possible and available, suppliers should seek out more detail on the approach and rationale where they wish.
International competition
This term will cover all variations where the contracting authority is running a competition between bidders with few-to-no regional barriers to entry. This often looks like an open competition where all parties internationally are welcome to bid. The presence of British work, economic, or social value may still be applied and the comparative costs and implications of contracting far abroad versus in the UK can still be considered.
Framework procurement
This term will cover all variations where a new commercial framework is being established, or an existing commercial framework being used, to procure vessels or maintenance work.
COTS & MOTS
Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) and military off-the-shelf (MOTS) imply that a product is already available and marketable to the procuring authority before the procurement has commenced. This can include either a COTS/MOTS design or a COTS/MOTS build. The former would imply a fully detailed, working “dry” design (i.e., the design is complete and ready to be built) and the latter a working “wet” design (i.e., other versions of this vessel have been built and used already and it is ready to roll off a production line). Programmes with fewer bespoke requirements or shorter timeframes might seek a COTS/MOTS build and/or design.
