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DEFONEOS — UK Defence Procurement Guide

DSP · G-Cloud · DASA · NATO DIANA · Crown Commercial · Framework Routes

For Procurement Officers · DSOs · Mission Sponsors
Version: 1.0.0 · July 2026

5
Procurement Routes
4
Pricing Tiers
30
MCP Modules
0
Vendor Lock-in
£0
Open Source Base
MIT
Licence

🛒 Procurement Routes Overview

DEFONEOS can be procured through 5 distinct UK and international procurement routes. Each route suits different mission profiles, budget sizes, and urgency levels. All routes deliver the same sovereign, open-source DEFONEOS core — the difference is in support level, deployment assistance, and governance certification.

1. Defence Sourcing Portal (DSP)

Best for: Direct MOD contracts, urgent operational requirements

Timeline: 2-6 weeks (UOR) to 6 months (full competition)

Value: £50K - £10M+

P0 — Register NOW

2. G-Cloud 14

Best for: Cloud services, SaaS, consultancy

Timeline: 2-4 weeks (call-off)

Value: Up to £2M per call-off

Application: Sep 2026

3. DASA (Defence & Security Accelerator)

Best for: R&D, innovation, proof of concepts

Timeline: 3-6 months (competition cycle)

Value: £50K - £1M+ per phase

DRAFT READY

4. NATO DIANA

Best for: Dual-use technology, Allied adoption

Timeline: 6-9 months (challenge cycle)

Value: €100K - €500K + acceleration support

DRAFT READY

5. Direct Procurement / PO

Best for: Pilot projects, evaluation, urgent needs

Timeline: 1-2 weeks

Value: Up to £50K (below threshold)

Available NOW

📋 Step-by-Step: Defence Sourcing Portal (DSP) Route

The DSP is the UK MOD's primary procurement platform. DEFONEOS can be listed as a supplier once CSOAI Ltd (Companies House 16939677) completes registration.

1

Supplier Registration on DSP

Action: Register CSOAI Ltd on the Defence Sourcing Portal as an approved supplier.

Requirements: Companies House number (16939677), Cyber Essentials certificate (in progress), SC clearance (application started), financial statements.

Time: 2-4 weeks · Status: BLOCKED — Needs Nick's company details

URL: https://www.contracts.mod.uk/

2

Cyber Essentials Certification

Action: Complete Cyber Essentials Plus certification (mandatory for MOD suppliers).

Requirements: Firewall config, secure configuration, user access control, malware protection, patch management.

Cost: £320-600 · Time: 1-2 weeks · Status: BLOCKED — Needs company info

Assessor: IASME (approved scheme delivery partner)

3

SC Clearance Application

Action: Initiate Security Check (SC) clearance for key personnel handling classified work.

Requirements: BPSS baseline, UK residency (5+ years), sponsorship by MOD/contractor.

Time: 4-6 months · Status: BLOCKED — Needs Nick's personal details

Level: SC (Security Check) — sufficient for SECRET material

4

Response to MOD Tender / Competition

Action: Once registered, respond to relevant MOD competitions or direct approaches.

Typical DEFONEOS Use Cases:

  • ISR sensor fusion for regional command
  • HADR (Humanitarian Assistance / Disaster Relief) coordination
  • C-UAS (Counter-drone) defence for critical infrastructure
  • Coalition interoperability (AUKUS / Five Eyes data sharing)
  • Air-gapped field deployment for deployed operations

Documentation Package: DEFONEOS architecture whitepaper, security case, SIGIL audit trail sample, MCP module list, deployment runbook, case studies.

5

Evaluation & Pilot Deployment

Action: Deploy DEFONEOS in a controlled evaluation environment for MOD assessment.

Pilot Scope: 3-6 MCP modules, 14-day evaluation, SIGIL audit chain, BFT governance demo.

Deliverables: Operational report, performance benchmarks, security assessment, user feedback.

Time: 4-8 weeks · Cost: £0 (open-source evaluation) or £15K-50K (supported pilot)

6

Full Deployment & Support Contract

Action: Transition from pilot to operational deployment with ongoing support.

Contract Types: Fixed-price deployment + annual support (Pro tier), or managed service (Governance tier).

Timeline: 2-4 months from pilot to full deployment.

💰 Pricing Tiers

Open Source

£0
forever

  • ✅ Full DEFONEOS core (MIT licence)
  • ✅ All 30 MCP servers
  • ✅ SIGIL audit chain
  • ✅ BFT-33 governance
  • ✅ Community support (GitHub)
  • ❌ No SLA
  • ❌ No deployment assistance
  • ❌ No governance certification

Governance

£2,499/mo
per deployment

  • ✅ Everything in Pro
  • ✅ 4-hour support SLA
  • ✅ BFT-33 council managed service
  • ✅ DEFONEOS-SEAL (audited)
  • ✅ Quarterly security review
  • ✅ Coalition federation support
  • ✅ Custom MCP development (2/mo)
  • ❌ No dedicated engineer

Enterprise

£9,999+/mo
custom

  • ✅ Everything in Governance
  • ✅ 1-hour support SLA (24/7)
  • ✅ Dedicated on-site engineer
  • ✅ Air-gapped deployment
  • ✅ Custom MCP development (10/mo)
  • ✅ Coalition CERT integration
  • ✅ Red team exercise (annual)
  • ✅ Sovereign VPC / on-prem

🏛️ UK Procurement Frameworks

FrameworkGatewayMax ValueDEFONEOS FitStatus
Defence Sourcing Portal (DSP)contracts.mod.uk£50K-£10M+Full MOD deployment contractsRegistration pending
G-Cloud 14Crown Commercial Service£2M/call-offCloud SaaS + consultancyApply Sep 2026
DASA Open Callgov.uk/dasa£50K-£1M+/phaseR&D, proof of concept, innovationDRAFT READY
NATO DIANAdiana.nato.int€100K-€500KDual-use AI, Allied adoptionDRAFT READY
Innovate UKiuk.ktn-uk.org£100K-£2MAI innovation grantFuture cycle
Crown Commercial Service — Technologyccs.gov.ukVariousGovernment-wide tech procurementFuture
FCDO Servicesfcdoservices.gov.ukVariousOverseas deployment, diplomatic securityFuture

📝 Required Documentation for Tender Responses

Company

  • ✅ Companies House registration (16939677)
  • ✅ Company financial statements (available on request)
  • 🔴 Cyber Essentials certificate (in progress)
  • 🔴 SC Clearance for key personnel (application started)
  • 🟡 ISO 9001 (quality management) — planned
  • 🟡 ISO 27001 (information security) — planned
  • 🟡 ISO 42001 (AI management system) — planned

Technical

  • ✅ DEFONEOS Architecture Whitepaper (this site)
  • ✅ Security Architecture & Threat Model
  • ✅ SIGIL Audit Chain specification
  • ✅ BFT-33 Governance specification
  • ✅ MCP Module Catalog (30 servers)
  • ✅ Deployment Runbook
  • ✅ Case Studies (8 scenarios)
  • ✅ Benchmark Results
  • ✅ Testing Framework (5-layer)

⏱️ Procurement Timeline

Phase 0 — Pre-qualification (NOW)

Register on DSP · Complete Cyber Essentials · Start SC clearance · Build compliance documentation

Estimated: Jul-Sep 2026

Phase 1 — DASA Application

Submit DASA open call application for DEFONEOS HADR pilot (£350K Phase 1)

Estimated: Jul 2026 submission · Oct 2026 decision

Phase 2 — NATO DIANA Application

Submit DIANA dual-use AI challenge for coalition ISR federation

Estimated: Aug 2026 submission · Q4 2026 decision

Phase 3 — Pilot Deployment

First MOD pilot: 3-6 MCP modules, 14-day evaluation, Yorkshire HADR scenario

Estimated: Q4 2026 - Q1 2027

Phase 4 — Full Contract

Transition from pilot to operational contract: Pro or Governance tier support

Estimated: Q1-Q2 2027

Phase 5 — Coalition Scale

Expand to AUKUS / Five Eyes coalition deployments with federation support

Estimated: 2027-2028

🔗 Key Contacts & Resources

ResourceURLPurpose
Defence Sourcing Portalcontracts.mod.ukMOD tender registration & bidding
DASAgov.uk/dasaInnovation funding & accelerator
NATO DIANAdiana.nato.intAllied dual-use technology accelerator
UK Defence & Security Exports (UKDSE)gov.uk/government/organisations/uk-defence-and-security-exportsExport support & facilitation
UK Defence Innovation (UKDI)gov.uk/government/organisations/uk-defence-innovationRegional engagement teams
IASME Cyber Essentialsiasme.co.ukCyber Essentials certification body
Crown Commercial Servicecrowncommercial.gov.ukG-Cloud and government frameworks
JSP 936gov.uk/government/publicationsMOD AI Safety Assurance

📄 Sample Procurement Specification

Pilot Evaluation Statement of Work (SoW) Template

SOW: DEFONEOS HADR EVALUATION PILOT
Ref: DFO-PILOT-2026-001
Classification: OFFICIAL-SENSITIVE

1. SCOPE
   Deploy DEFONEOS v1.0 in evaluation configuration with:
   - 6 MCP servers (ISR, C2, SIGIL, Weather, Comms, Medical)
   - BFT-33 governance council
   - SIGIL audit chain (PostgreSQL)
   - Cesium 3D COP with Yorkshire HADR scenario data
   - Air-gapped deployment option

2. DURATION: 14 days (evaluation) + 7 days (report)

3. DELIVERABLES
   - Operational DEFONEOS instance (on-prem or air-gapped)
   - SIGIL audit chain export (14-day period)
   - Performance benchmark report
   - Security assessment (OWASP LLM Top 10)
   - User evaluation report (operator feedback)
   - Recommendations for full deployment

4. ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA
   - All 6 MCP modules operational
   - SIGIL chain integrity 100%
   - ISR detection rate >85% (YOLOv8 baseline)
   - C2 CoT latency <500ms
   - BFT-33 quorum achieved on all votes
   - Zero red line violations
   - Air-gapped deployment verified

5. PRICING
   - Evaluation pilot: £0 (open-source, self-deployed)
   - Supported pilot: £25,000 (CSOAI engineer on-site)
   - Managed pilot: £50,000 (CSOAI engineer + cloud infrastructure)