Berlin’s Fortinet framework tests a crowded German field
Zuse-Institut Berlin’s €25m framework lands as networking’s share jumps to 11.21%. Country bid rates show where technical differentiation matters and where capacity wins.
Zuse-Institut Berlin has gone to market with a €25m framework for IT network and security systems, covering the continuing modernisation of its Fortinet estate. That is a material named opportunity in a German market averaging 5 bids per measured tender, where an incumbent-compatible proposition will not be enough on its own.
Where this market is going
Networking accounts for 11.21% of the classified corpus, a coverage-neutral rise of 6.21 points. The shape matters more than the endpoint. Share moved from 5% in October 2025 to 4.75% in November, 3.99% in December and 2.65% in January, then recovered through 2.69% in February, 2.95% in March and 3.33% in April. It fell back to 3.09% in May and 2.68% in June, rose to 3.08% in July, edged to 3.04% in August and settled at 2.82% in September. The present reading is therefore a lumpy surge, not a steady expansion.
The current mix gives sellers several routes in. Hardware supply leads with 265 notices and a 154% delta, but connectivity and telecom has 77 notices with a 287% delta. Support and maintenance is the sharpest mover at 61 notices and 398%, while system implementation has 49 notices and 109%. A bid team should treat this as a combined refresh, operations and integration market rather than a simple equipment cycle.
Networking: share of all classified public IT tenders
Share, not volume. Monthly, last 12 complete months.
Where the tenders were published
Notices by buyer country, 7 days to 2026-10-27.
How hard the competition is
The blended 2.9-bid average conceals the useful commercial split. Germany averages 5 bids and Czechia 4.7, so technical differentiation, architecture credibility and evidence of delivery quality should decide the pursuit strategy. Poland sits at 2.6. Ukraine averages 1.2 bids and Spain 1.5, where the constraint is more likely to be qualification, local delivery capacity and the ability to mobilise, rather than price alone.
How these contracts are awarded
Stated award criterion, for the tenders that declared one.
What is driving it
No regulation is cited directly in the current networking tenders. The wider momentum is still worth watching: NIS2 appears in 4 tenders in the latest 30 days, against 3 in the prior 30 days; BSI IT-Grundschutz appears in 3, against 1; KSeF appears in 3, against 2; and mObywatel appears in 2, against 1. eIDAS 2 appears in 8 tenders in both periods. These are compliance-led signals, but they can turn into product procurement where identity, segmentation, secure access and auditability need implementation.
Regulations named in live tenders
Tenders citing each framework, last 30 days.
The calendar ahead
| Date | Framework | Milestone | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2027-01-29 | Solvency II Review (Directive 2025/2) | transposition deadline | EU |
| 2027-01-30 | Solvency II Review (Directive 2025/2) | applies from | EU |
| 2027-03-26 | European Health Data Space (Regulation 2025/327) | applies from | EU |
| 2027-07-10 | Bank Account Registries + BARIS (AMLD6 2024/1640 art. 16) | applies from | EU |
| 2027-07-10 | Bank Account Registries + BARIS (AMLD6 2024/1640 art. 16) | transposition deadline | EU |
| 2027-07-10 | EU AML Package (AMLR 2024/1624 + AMLA 2024/1620) | applies from | EU |
What shifted this week
Demand by type of work, against its own 12-week average
Percentage difference from the same vertical’s recent baseline.
Whose technology is being named
Cisco is named in 14 notices, with a 68% delta; MikroTik has 11 notices and a 103% delta; TP-Link has 7 and a 236% delta; and Ubiquiti has 5 and a 122% delta. The repeat pattern behind MikroTik is visible at the Виконавчий комітет Шрамківської сільської ради, which has 8 tenders including MikroTik cAP ax equipment. That is an opening for adjacent suppliers that can meet a repeat buyer’s established specification without forcing a redesign.
Vendors named in this window’s tenders
Notices naming each vendor, with movement against the same vertical’s 12-week average.
Who is buying repeatedly
| Tenders | Buyer | Country | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | ВИКОНАВЧИЙ КОМІТЕТ ШРАМКІВСЬКОЇ СІЛЬСЬКОЇ РАДИ | UA | MikroTik cAP ax (CAPGI-5HAXD2HAXD) |
| 4 | Харківський національний університет імені В.Н. Каразіна | UA | Мережеве обладнання |
| 4 | Ministerstvo vnitra | CZ | Czechia – Network equipment – Obměna serverové VT |
| 3 | ФІЛІЯ "СТОЛИЧНИЙ ЛІСОВИЙ ОФІС" ДЕРЖАВНОГО СПЕЦІАЛІЗОВАНОГО ГОСПОДАРСЬКОГО ПІДПРИЄМСТВА "ЛІСИ УКРАЇНИ" | UA | Послуги з надання доступу до мережі Інтернет в Баранівському надлісництві |
| 3 | Lotnicze Pogotowie Ratunkowe | PL | Poland – Data transmission services – Świadczenie usługi transmisji danych przez prywatny APN na potrzeby Syst |
| 3 | ГОЛОВНЕ УПРАВЛІННЯ ПЕНСІЙНОГО ФОНДУ УКРАЇНИ В ЧЕРНІВЕЦЬКІЙ ОБЛАСТІ | UA | Комутатори |
| 3 | Військова частина А0476 | UA | Код ДК 021:2015: 32420000-3 Мережеве обладнання (Бездротовий маршрутизатор (роутер) Teltonika RUT X 12) |
| 3 | Administrador de Infraestructuras Ferroviarias | ES | Spain – Installation of telecommunications equipment – Ejecución de obras y realización de mantenimiento del s |
An organisation running several tenders in one window is usually working through a programme rather than buying once.
The biggest tenders
The largest published values point to very different work packages. The Republic of Austria, Bundesbeschaffung GmbH and other eligible contracting authorities have a €120m framework for SSN 2026-3, although the buyer description does not identify a specific network build. Zuse-Institut Berlin’s €25m framework is for Fortinet network and security systems. RAI has a €13,636,490 NOC contract for managing voice and data networks and maintaining equipment used to carry audio and video over IP. Administrador de Infraestructuras Ferroviarias has a €9,305,591.18 GSMR communications installation and maintenance requirement around Madrid, while Catalunya’s Centre de Telecomunicacions i Tecnologies de la Informació has an €8,164,688.24 quantum-key-distribution equipment deployment. The €264,186,844.52 value total covers only the 229 notices that published a value in EUR, not the whole market.
Values as published by the buyer, for the 229 of 442 tenders in this window that stated one in EUR.
Deadlines worth watching
Who won
Suppliers with the most awards this window
Awards published in the window, by named winner.
Sources consulted
Pages the writer read for context while drafting this column. The figures above come from the notices, not from these.
Watch whether the current share spike turns into frameworks and managed operations work, particularly in Germany and Czechia, or remains a short hardware-led burst. The next bids should be qualified by country competition before any pricing decision is made.
Method
Built from 442 public procurement notices published between 2026-10-20 and 2026-10-27, classified into the Networking vertical. Every figure on this page is computed from those notices; the commentary is written around them. Sources: bzp, doe, ted, eop_bg, iub_lv, cvpis_lt, prozorro, sicap_ro. Tenders featured in earlier editions of this column are excluded from the named lists above.
Frequently Asked Questions
How large is the current networking notice set?
442 notices from 377 buyers across 29 countries, with 265 notices still open to deadline.
What do published values show?
€264,186,844.52 across 229 notices that published a value in EUR, with a median of €616,180.
Where is bid pressure highest and lowest?
Germany averages 5 bids and Czechia 4.7; Ukraine averages 1.2 bids and Spain 1.5.
