What are the rules?
Most public tenders follow a similar pattern. Check your own tender for the address and the dates.
- You must ask in writing, or raise it at a pre-bid meeting if the tender holds one.
- For a pre-bid meeting, your written questions should arrive a week before it.
- The buyer sends its answer to everyone who obtained the document. It describes the question but does not name you.
- The buyer sends the meeting minutes to all those bidders too.
- If an answer changes an essential part of the tender, the buyer issues an addendum.
An addendum becomes part of the tender. See what to do when an addendum arrives.
What should you ask about?
Ask when the documents conflict, or when you cannot price or comply without an answer. These are common reasons.
- The BOQ and the drawings disagree.
- A drawing or a form is missing from the pack.
- A quantity or an item description looks wrong.
- A qualification rule is unclear for your kind of firm.
- Two dates in the tender do not match.
What should you keep to yourself?
Other bidders will read a description of your question. So do not reveal your method, your prices or your partners. Ask about the document, and not about your own plan.
How do you write it?
Keep it short, and make it easy to answer. Use one numbered question for each issue.
- 1Give the tender's name and reference number.
- 2Name the clause, drawing or BOQ item.
- 3Say what the document states, and quote it.
- 4Say what conflicts with it, or what is missing.
- 5Ask one clear question.
- 6Send it to the stated address, and keep proof of the date.
What if you get no reply?
Price and comply with the tender as written, and do not add your own conditions. A material reservation can get your bid rejected. See what non-responsive means.
How can Bidligence help?
When Bidligence reads a tender, it records the clarification deadline and the site visit. It also suggests clarification questions, which sit beside the bid's clarifications log. You decide which ones to send, and you send them yourself.
Questions
- Can I phone the buyer instead?
- Follow the tender. The World Bank document asks for questions in writing or at the pre-bid meeting. A phone answer gives you nothing to rely on.
- Does the buyer have to answer a late question?
- In this document, the employer must answer a request that arrives at least 14 days before the deadline. A later one may get no answer.
- Must I attend the site visit?
- Your tender decides. The World Bank document advises you to visit, at your own cost and on your own responsibility.
Sources
Rules and portals change. Check the tender’s own documents and the official source before you rely on any of this.