Tender submission

A tender is a submission made by a prospective supplier in response either to an invitation to tender (ITT) or in response to an open tender, i.e open to everyone, e.g OJEU tenders. Either way, tenderers will make offers to supply goods or services for the realisation of a particular project.

In submitting a tender, tenderers will include their price for supplying the goods or services along with proposals for how the client's requirements will be satisfied – if these have been requested.

[edit] Conditions of tender submissions

There may be numerous conditions which clients impose on tenderers. These can include:

• To avoid restricting competition (and price fixing), tenderers may have to warrant that the prices in the tender have been arrived at independently without consultation with other tenderers;
• The tenderer has not directly or indirectly disclosed the prices to other tenderers or competitors and will continue to keep the prices confidential;
• The tenderer will not in any way try to influence other parties (individuals or firms) to either submit or not submit a tender in order to restrict competition to their advantage.

The precise content of tenders will vary considerably depending on the procurement route, however, they might include:

• A tender return slip, with details of the contract, including information such as return address and tender checklist;
• A completed tender pricing document (or contract sum analysis on design and build projects);
• Schedules of rates;
• An initial construction phase plan;
• Any design proposals or method statements that have been requested;
• Programme;
• Procedures to be adopted, such as procurement procedures and cost management procedures;
• Demonstration of capability, for example design capability, systems used etc;
• A BIM execution plan – if building information modelling is being used;
• Key project personnel, which may require submission of CVs;
• Management organisation;
• Plant and labour resources and availability;
• Prior experience, and
• References.

[edit] Getting it right

Tender submission is a process governed by a strict set of rules and requirements, some of which may seem basic but are nevertheless crucial. Failure to abide by these requirements may result in a failed tender. Some basic points to watch include:

• Ensuring the submission is not late;
• Ensuring information asked for is not missing;
• Ensuring everything is in the required format;
• Avoiding spelling and grammatical mistakes;
• Fully understanding the client’s requirements and specification, and
• Understanding obligations.

For more information see: Common mistakes in construction tenders.

[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki

• Common mistakes in bill of quantities.
• Common mistakes on building drawings.
• Form of tender.
• How to prepare tender documents.
• Invitation to tender.
• Selective tendering.
• Tender.
• Tender documentation.
• Tender evaluation.
• Tender processes.
• Things to avoid when tendering.
• Variant bid.