the

REP (Request for proposal): Is submitted in an early stage in

it is requirea
procurement process and is commonly used when where thne
or in some cases
eennical expertise, specialized capability, exist and must be
product or service requested do not already
developed. to provide a quote
RFQ(request for quotation): Suppliers are invited
for the provision of specific goods or services.
ITT (invitation to
RFT(request for information): Differs from an while
(pre-qualification) as these are pre-determined,
tender) and PQQ
RFT is requesting information necessary to
decide the procurement
phase.
process. Hence, RFI typically occurs during planning
a
to a
Restricted procedure: Usually limits the request oftenders
selected number of suppliers.
more
SLA (service level agreement): An agreement between two or
customer and the other party
is aa
parties. Where one party is the
supplier delivering a service.
Firms with less than
SMEs (small and medium sized enterprises):
than E50m.
250 employed people, with a turnover of less
local government. More about
SOPO: Society of procurement officers in
SOPO hereA delivering
for goods or
Supplier: person or organization responsible
within a specified time
services, that meets the clients requirements and
and period.

process of bidding for work

or contracts.
Tender /tendering: The
value for money from a selection of
Buyers seek the best price or
whole process is done by competitive
prospective suppliers. The
tendering
more flexible style than regular bids.
Variant bid: Characterized as a
selected for the awarding
Complies only with the basic requirements
in the competition, one with exact
contract. Two bids can be submitted
This opens the chances of
match of the criteria and one "variation".
winning and innovation.
Vendor: Same as supplier
A tender is a formal offer, or a bid, to ultimately secure a contract

One of your existing customers might ask you to tender for work and
find
therefore fill in a tender document, or, to grow your business, you might
you need to submit bids for public sector contracts

find someone to
endering is the most common way in which a buyer will
Supply g0ods or services

order to be fair and

The tendering process is a structured process, in of
transparent; including a stringent selection process,
expressions
tender and the
interest from bidders, through to the request for
evaluation process.

the bidding process where you

A tender document (or ITT) is the stage in
need to explain how you will deliver the contract,
including your technical
must provide high quality,
solutions and pricing proposals. Your company
suited to
to demonstrate why you are best
persuasive narrative responses
to stand out against your competitors
the contract. This is the opportunity
to deliver the contract. The
and shoWcase why you are the right company
most suitable bidders, before finally selecting
a
buyer will then shortlist the
winning tender.
will be evaluated on both price
As part of the procurement process, you decision at the
can make an informed
and quality so that the buyer There is no margin
selection process, on who is
best to deliver the contract.
note your bid
tender process right. Please
for error and you must get the
the lowest price, and you will also
documents are not evaluated solely
on
invitation to tender
narrative section of the
be evaluated on a quality,
document

WRITING THE TENDER

 set out in
the
r e s p o n s e s to
the questions
Before you act to the sure to:
document, make
invitation to tender (ITT)
carefully.
contract specification very
[Link] the tender
such aS the
areasthat need attention,
it again. Highlight any address in your
Then read will need to
a r e a s that you
or key
buyer's priorities
responses.
the deadline,
submit the tender response,
identify how to
You should also
attachments.
formatting guidelines, and
bid is
minute: it is important that your
until the last
Do not leave this
it could fail.
compliant, otherwise,
mind.
with your own
questions in
[Link] each question

asking this?
Why is the contracting authority
proposal?
in the tender bid
What information
are they looking for
contract to help focus on your
the tender
Deconstruct each question in

response
authority
exist for you to provide the contracting
Remember the questions
them to score you accordingly.
certain information, and for
as the
clarification questions in good time,
raise any deadline.
[Link] s u r e you before the submission
be significantly
clarification deadline may
from other bidders in
case
clarifications
also be helpful to read the
It may of note.
else has asked something
someone

We often see failed

answers are comprehensive.
4 .Make sure your
responses to questions.
tenders with one sentence

are expected to
an indication
of how much depth you
Word limits provide one of your
tender
word limit of 500 words for
there is a
go into: if
on your
a n s w e r will not
suffice. Always expand
a one-line
responses,
much detail as possible.
answers and give as
[Link] to simple language within your responses.
benefits that
Remember that your intention is to communicate clearly the
words will not
your organisation can bring to the contract. Complicated and
submission harder to read
gain you extra points and will just make your
evaluate.
will make your bid
The use of tables, images, screenshots and graphs
narrative.
stand out and break up pages of written
numbers in your
[Link] sure you reference the question
clearly
that any evidence is labelled
correctly.
responses and make sure evaluation,
don't consider it during
Otherwise, you can't complain if they In a tender it is
tender could even be marked as non-compliant.
and your about the
and do not make any assumptions
to be overly-compliant
-

better
evaluator.
the claims in your responses
[Link] sure you provide evidence for
can help to convince the buyer of
statistics and even testimonials
Reports,
your organisation's strengths
who has
proofread and reviewed by
someone
submission
[Link] your do not forget
involved with the preparation of the tender contract.-
not been contract.
the whole tender
that a wrongly ticked box could cost you

should be professionally
presented
[Link] tender bid
submitted.
how the tender is to be
.Check in the specification

a bid via a portal there may be restrictions

However, if you are submiting
on this

bid
physical tender or
a mailbox
used to receive the
A tender box is interested parties to
tender box would be open for
documents. The tender.
duration of the bid or
. . .

submittheir proposals for the

Tendering Process & Types of Tenders
it is
bids for large projects,
Tendering is the process of inviting
institutions. The main
objective
usually practiced by government
and
Process is to eliminate favoritism
of the Tendering
works to companies.
Corruption in awarding

Characteristics of the Tenders:

characteristics of tenders are listed
Some of the most
important

below:
must submit
contractors and suppliers
All potential the client.
deadline decided on by
their bids within the the required
must include all
T h e bid (tender papers) to be used, the
details about the materials
and relevant
the project, etc.
expected cost oft all bids are
evaluated by
deadline has passed,
After the criteria such
based on a set of predetermined
the client
as price and
quality. of
with an invitation
T h e process tendering starts
of
for tender (RTF).
tender or a request
process and following
ends with the public evaluation wins
It submitted a tender
the firms that
one of
which
by
or contract.
the project the client, tenders
are
Before they are floated by and
in a different local of media
advertised
generally interested contractors
an
newspapers,
to allow all
opportunity to
bid for the project.

Benefits of Tendering:
 benefits and advantages of the tendering
Some of the
main
are as follows:
procedure

1. No Nepotism:
predetermined
based on certain
Tenders or bids are evaluated In other
and value for money,
quality, or service
criteria, such as price, best quality product
which offers the
Words, the agency
tender.
contract or
would win the
at the lowest price point

2. Value for Money:

amount of
value for the
tenders give the greatest
For the client, c a n choose
potential
is because the client
This
money spent.
o n e s that can
produce the highest
select the allows
C o n t r a c t o r s to
the lowest price point. This
service at
quality product or without having to
to save money
or company
the government
Compromise on quality.

3. Encourages Competition:

market.
to promote a competitive
The process of
tendering helps or suppliers
potential contractors, firms,
several
This is because And because
selection
to bid for every project.
get a chance and price, every bidder
tries to reduce
depends on quality costs as much as possible
to lower
and labor
operational cost This entire process
encourages

expenses and improve quality. laziness and

in the market and prevents
healthy Competition innovation and new ideas.
a to
boost
provides

for New Firm:

4. Easier Entry
for new
makes it possible and simpler
of tendering
The system
or even a particular
industry. This is
the market
firms to enter based on
contracts under these
systems are awarded
because firms t
criteria. This process helps new
predetermined, objective
 foothold in the market or industry, thus significantly
quickly get a
lowering the traditional barriers to entry.

Types of Tendeer
employer
of in construction that the
Which type tendering process the
the nature of the contract,
wants to choose depends on
and the
of the construction, the expertise needed,
Complexity of the tendering
other several There are several types
reasons.

process in
construction including:

1. Open Tender
2. Selective Tender
3. Negotiation Tender

1. Open Tender:
construction
process in
An open tender is the main tendering sector. The
the government and the private
employed by both offer in the local
client advertises the tender
government or information of the
detail and key
newspaper and
media giving to tender.
interested c o n t r a c t o r s
works and inviting
proposal
on the form of
possession for
to tendering in the
If the pre-requisite has been identified
registration
tender of the necessary that
the a d v e r t i s e m e n t
is directed to only
tender paper, then
the said
class of the agency or firm having
particular number of inquiries,
the earnest
reduce the
qualifications. To
& govt. project).
money is deposited (for a private
will be
is selected then it
bonafide tender
Until the receipt of
a
the decision on
the price is very important in
returned. Although taken into
accept, it is not the only factor
to
which tender or bid the lowest or any
The client does not bind to accept
account.

offer
Advantages:
Therefore
tender.
interested contractor to the
T t allows any
c o n t r a c t o r to
compete for
unknown
it allowS an
work. without bias. Thee
tender list to be made
Allowing the
client will obtain
the bargain possible.
contractors.
No favoritism in selecting accept any
competition bot obliged to
Ensuring good
familiar to all
offers. of tendering and
t r a d i t i o n a l method industry.
It is a
and
construction

of the engineering
sectors

Disadvantages:
contractors
a s too many
The tender list
can be long
tendering for
the job.
use of the source the lowest
questioned if
Uneconomic

accountability may be
Public
offer is not accepted.

2. Selective Tender:

construction is the o n e
process in
The selective tendering the limitations of the open
developed to address contractors is
alternatives shortlist of
procedure. In this method, a
tendering submit tenders.
are invited to
drawn up and they
construction is
of the tendering process in
selective
The purpose to e n s u r e that
the quality of the bids received,
to improve are
with the necessary experience and competence
Contractors work
the necessary bids, due to the urgency
allowed to submit
involved.

more manageable
in construction
To make the tendering process
partiesinvolved.
and less a burden on the
Advantages:
use of
Economic
tendering
Tt reduced the COst of
resources.
Reduce tender documentation.

Shorter tender periods.

t e n d e r process.
management
of the invited to tender,
Better contractors
were
competent
Only the be accepted.
can
then the lowest
Disadvantages:
contractors

for other

Reduces the availability of work

would have
especially new contractors.
than
invariably higher
Tender Price may
tendering.
been in open
collusion.
G r e a t e r chance
of
shortlisting.
occur in the involved two
Favoritisms may because it
The tendering
period longer
distinct stages.

3. Negotiation Tender:
used
c o n s t r u c t i o n is mostly
in
tendering process commencing
from
The negotiation c o n s t r u c t i o n industry
and
in the engineering under the pre-contract
resolutions, i.e.
till dispute with a singlee
tendering
post-contract
negotiations. Usually
negotiations & three c o n t r a c t o r s .
The negotiationn
be up to
C o n t r a c t o r but may
involves are a s follows
process
suitable contractor
Identification by the employer of a

to negotiate with.
from the
c o n t r a c t o r canbe selected either
.The advice of the
preferences or on the
employer's list of
professional team.
 The contractor being apprised of the work scope
of
Negotiations can be applied to the following type
Contract construction the
Thistype of tendering process in with
business relationship
employer has a long term
the contractor.
Where the contractor is involved in the financing of the
project.
there is a pressing need
to have a very early
Where
to complete the works on
the site and
start of work on
a fast track basis.

Advantages:
construction
reduces
process in
this,type of tendering
the risk of failure. are
alternatives for the
employer to adopt
The best emergencies, security
Circumstances such as
special
reasonS, etc.
It decreases the
Commencement of work on site.
Early contractor for anyy
involved in appointing the
period
tendering work. the
contribute his expertise during
Contractor can
The
design stage.
Disadvantages:
tender.
than competitive
. T h e cost work is likely higher
Reduces the availability
of work for other contractors.

selectivetendering method If
Single-stage selected by the owner.
contractors will be
number of
Initially, a limited and approved list of
he will also have a short
the employer builds regularly, names of the
use ad hoc lists where the
contractors unless he
can
and competency.
their abilities
contractors are
mentioned who have proved
Advantages of Single-stage selective tendering
consumption for the tendering process
Time is low.
Can select a reliable, experienced contractor.
Disadvantages of Single-stage selective tendering
Less competition
Can be biased

method
Two-stage selective tendering In this procedure,
the employer
'negotiated tendering'. him the
This is also called as, advice instead of giving
contractor's service as
consists of two
takes the selective tendering
responsibility for
the design. Two-stage
a suitable
of selecting
stages. This step
includes the process information.
collected
The first stage: levels using the
and establishing
the price decisions.
contractor
to make such
should be strong enough drawings.
Those details contractors start the production
The selected d o c u m e n t a t i o n of
the contract
The second stage: complete the
result of this stage, they
As a in it.
bills to include
after making selective tendering
of Two-stage is low.
Advantages
for the tendering process reasonable
Time consumption c o n t r a c t o r for a
experienced
select a reliable,
Can
price selective tendering
of Two-stage
the negotiation stage)
Disadvantages
can be risky (at

Joint ventures
This method is mainly
methods,
the
handle. This is
tendering
to other types of as hard to
With respect which
determined
consultants
projects liability among
used for complex of distributing
the problem
solution for
best
nd Contractors. It does not require to establish a special comparny for this
Qurpose, but it will be possible to do so. The parties those who are
participating must pay attention to the agreement before entering it.

TENDERING PROCESS

It is an invitation from the owner to the contractor to execute

Some work at a specified cost at a specified time. It is published
etc.
in the form of tender notice in newspapers, notice boards,
according to the cost of works.
can compare different
With the help of the tender, the clientfor work. It is always the low
contractors
prices quoted by various tender. The tendering
contractor wins the
price and experienced the cheapest
an important role in the selection of
process plays
and quality bidder
for work

includes the following stages:

The tendering process

1. Pre-tender Stage
A d v e r t i s e m e n t Stage
2. Tender
Tender
3. Closing of
Process
4. Tender Opening
Process
5. Tender Evaluation
6. Tender Award

1. Pre-tender Stage:
client
have an idea, the
when the clients
stage, The
At the pre-tender further the project.
consultant to discuss
will appoint a managing the tender and
their job, advising,
consultant will do drawingg.
the idea into the
and also transfer
Contract,
consultants will be brainstorming
the client and
At this stage, and budget.
time to complete,
about the scope,
 ifie

will
The pre-tender stage is the most crucial matter because it
is
initiate the next step of a project. If the pre-tender stage or step for
failed, the project will not complete. it is the first stage
the tendering process in construction.

2. Tender Advertisement Stage:

The
called tender notice.
The tender advertisement is also
advertise in the local newspaper
Conventional tender notice will
basic requirement that should be
In the tender notice, the
appearing are:

Title of the project.

subhead needed.
Class of contractor, head, and
time to obtain
the tender
Location, date, and
document.
Fees for tender documents of tender doc.
submission
and time for
Location, date,
Tender:
3. Closing of
of the tender closing
will mention the time and date
Tender notice

procesS.

bids within a specific time

to submit their
fail tender.
If the c o n t r a c t o r s c o n t r a c t o r s refuse to
bid for the
considers the
and date, it period is started.
also the tender validity
At that time
papers
back their tender
contractors can withdraw Consultants
At this stage, the tender.
interested to fight for of each of
if they a r e no m o r e evaluations
assessments and
make
use this period to
the offers.

Process:
Evaluation
4. Tender Opening and
ouantity surveyors usually will handle the tender opening
process. To ensure the integrity of the competitive process, the
evaluation of proposals must be undertaken objectively,
consistently & without bias towards particular suppliers.

or
Tenders are evaluated against a pre-determined set
generally
thee
criteria. The evaluation of the tenders shall be prepared
SOonest as possible after the tender opening.

the findings of the said

A report is prepared which describes the
tables and graphs. In
evaluation and it will be supported by is
the evaluation the the most suitable tenderer
end, of
Considered to undertake the project.

5. Tender Award:
and make
will examine each tender received
An evaluation team tender represents the best
value
r e c o m m e n d a t i o n s as to
which
work has
been finalized and
Once the contract has
for money. unsuccessful tenderers
the successful and
both
been awarded,
will be notified.
award to the
been made on the tender
decision has
Once the final a d m i n i s t r a t o r creates
the tender
the tender
particular contractor, sent to all
letter form and then
notification which is in
results
participating contractors.

a tender, it
is binding on
or government
accepts
Once the client or company
that won
m e a n s that the agency
both parties. This or services
in the m a n n e r
provide the goods
the tender has to and the
client/government

at the price offered,

agreed to and time. The tendering
at the agreed
must pay the agreed
price tender awarding.
construction complete with
process in