How to Prepare Tender Bid

Preparing the tender bid correctly is vital since in most cases an incomplete / incorrect tender bid will get rejected during the Technical Evaluation by (Technical Evaluation Committee) TEC, without giving the bidder an opportunity to rectify their bid. The bids should be prepared by furnishing information and documents, as per the checklist prepared after studying the tender / Request for Proposal (RFP) document. Also the bidder should be generally familiar with the rules governing that procurement methodology.

The Request for Proposal (RFP) / Tender document is an exhaustive document which lists the terms & conditions of the buyer of Goods / Services. Also the eligibility criteria of prospective bidders is given in the document. The technical specifications of the product are also specified. The bidder should take actions for these as under:-

• Terms & Conditions The bidder should carefully study the terms & conditions listed in the tender document. While there are certain 'Standard' conditions in any tender, there are also conditions specific for the tender requirement. The specific conditions could be w.r.t place of delivery, warranty clause, payment methodology, AMC, taxations, installation / commissioning of the goods, relaxations for tender fee / Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) / Performance Bank Guarantee (PBG), buy back clause, Liquidated damages etc. The bidder is generally required a 'Tender Conditions Acceptance Certificate' along with his bid. Once this certificate has been furnished the bidder is legally bound to comply with the tender conditions, in case he successfully wins the contract. In some cases the while the bidder furnishes a 'Tender Conditions Acceptance Certificate' however in his covering note / letter he mentions clauses which contradict the terms of the contract. This is generally checked by the 'Technical Evaluation Committee' (TEC) of the buyer, who may reject the bid offer on technical grounds. Therefore the bidder has to be very careful while furnishing compliance for the terms / conditions of the contract.

Eligibility Criteria The buyer would generally lay down some 'Pre Requisite Criteria' (PQC) for eligibility of the bidders. These eligibility conditions may be in terms of location (Indigenous / Foreign Supplier), annual turnover, experience, past sale volume, registration type (NSIC / MSME / OFB etc). The bidders should carefully examine their eligibility for these PQCs prior to furnishing their tender bids since non compliance ay render their bids as technically non compliant.

Technical Specifications The technical specifications are relevant for supply of Goods. The buyer generally provided minimum essential parameters for the desired goods. The supplier has to conform to these specifications, although he remains compliant to the tender requirements in case his parameters exceed the minimum requirements. The point to note here is that in case a range has been mandated by the buyer, example 'Weight - 20.5 Kg to 38 Kg) then the product of the bidder cannot be heavier than 38 Kg and lighter than 20.5 Kg. However say in case parameter for engine power stipulates 'Minimum 4 Horse power' then in case the product of the supplier has engine power more than 4 Horse Power his product remains technically compliant. However the bidder may not get any extra credit for this enhanced power. In most cases the technical specifications of the goods are either evaluated through trials or are accepted based on certification from an Accredited Laboratory, for no triable parameters. Therefore the compliance to these parameters has to be thoroughly checked by the bidders, prior to submitting their bids.