14 April 2022 4 min read

How to Speed up & Automate your Tendering Process

 

Do you feel like you waste too much time, effort and energy to conduct a tendering process? Find out how you can automate the whole process with the help of construction management solutions! Choose the right person for the job in no time, have all details in one repository and make your work easier!

Materials and labour costs have risen to their highest levels from the last 40 years and with construction being one of the most competitive and complex industries, the need to analyse offers from your supply chain increases. How can digital platforms support the industry? They can do so by tendering and analysing offers - something relatable for customers.

There are a variety of ERP Project Management systems on the market offering various different solutions. So how can one choose what best suits their needs? By taking a good look in the mirror. Do you need a centralised platform that will allow you to speed up and automate your tendering process? Do you wish that all supplier and subcontractor details were readily available in one place? If so, you came to the right place: Archdesk provides you with multiple solutions that can be tailored to your business needs.


Methods of Tendering in The Construction Industry

The tendering process allows organisations to effectively control and monitor the process of getting prices from the supply chain: let’s say that an organisation/individual needs a product/service and wants to find a 3rd party to provide it. They start a tendering process. The problem is - how to choose the best one to do the job?

The 2 most common methods of tendering in construction are:

  • single-stage selective tendering

  • multi-stage selective tendering

Both methods involve the invitation of tenders from firms on a pre-approved or ad hoc list, chosen because they meet specific standards in general criteria such as financial standing, experience, capability and compliance or supply-specific products/services.


The Tendering Process in ARCHDESK

When using Archdesk, companies looking for the right supplier can utilise the tendering module. Once estimating is complete, Archdesk can manage the process of tendering and accessing the supply chain for pricing.

Our customers can issue an Invitation to Tender. This can help find both subcontractors and suppliers. But does having a next-generation ERP help? That depends whether you are looking to save time and money. If the answer is yes, here is how Archdesk can help you along the way.

1. Project Management and Tendering

Let’s say you’ve got the budget for your project and you have just completed the estimation process for the project that you wish to start. Once the Estimation is created, Archdesk will help you automate the tendering process. All you need to do is select the items you want to create a Tender for and move on with the process.

Next comes the set up of the evaluation criteria for the tendering process. In order to help you select the best supplier for your tender, Archdesk defines the award criteria for each tender. This is what each participant will be scored on when they submit their offers back:

  • Warranty: how long the contracted items are under warranty

  • Price: the lower the better

You can create new criteria or import them from a predefined list, whilst also being able to define the scoring matrix on each criteria.

This allows the system to compare all incoming offers and analyse them based on the amount of points they receive. Once we have the criteria set up, it’s time to get tendering started!

You do not have to introduce the same data to the software twice as a tender can be built directly from the quotes. Also, all tenders with all crucial data are visible in the project details. Thanks to that, you gain a clear overview of the status and progress of your project delivery.

2. Tendering Process:

Archdesk allows you to add participants just by selecting them from your existing database. Once the tender is set up and the participants have been selected, the system will send you the invitations.

  • Invitation to Tender

    Archdesk allows you to create a personalised template invitation to tender, which all selected participants will receive at the same time. The invitations will include a tendering package: contract forms, pricing documents, design drawings, a personalised invitation letter, etc.

    Thanks to the proprietary templates used by Archdesk, all received tender offer packages will let the system compare them automatically, and evaluate them based on the evaluation criteria, leaving a selected few for you to choose from.

  • Submission

    As a response to the tender invitation, the suppliers will submit their tender documents in bulk (package).

    This is when you receive the offers and add them to the system (by selecting ‘’Add Offer’’ option). Archdesk allows you to create an offer manually, import an offer from a file or create a custom offer (an alternative version).

    The system will automatically calculate the winner with the most points, however the final choice of the award is yours. If further information is required, a request for tender revision to all or just the selected suppliers for any additional information can be sent through the system.

  • Tender Negotiations

    Once the tender has been awarded you can hold a tender settlement meeting. You can then clarify any outstanding aspects of the contract, and should any changes prove necessary (and some probably will), you will be able to submit them in the adjustment of the tender document.

  • Contract Execution

    As soon as the contract is agreed upon and signed by all parties, the tendering process has come to an end. Thanks to Archdesk’s easy financial document creation capabilities, you will be able to start creating your Purchase Orders based on the awarded tender.

    Archdesk helps you create financial documents based on the contact database, quotes, tenders, PO’s and invoices. It can also help you send them straight to the suppliers and customers, which minimises the amount of manual labour and the chances of human errors.

Tendering Module allows you to establish different evaluation criteria, based on which the software will automatically evaluate submitted tenders. You can also go directly from tender to purchase order, which gives you the possibility to better control contract execution.

Benefits of Construction Tendering Process with Archdesk

Thanks to the understanding of the tendering process and the proprietary solutions within Archdesk, you can:

  • automate the lengthy tendering process

  • minimise bias

  • keep all of your data connected and in one place

  • assure a transparent view of the company’s financial situation

By defining the rules, details and attaching all the information needed, the system will help you choose the best suppliers for the job. Once the winners reap the spoils, the system will help you smoothly transition straight into the procurement process.

As you can see, our construction management software can significantly support you in the tendering process. Why waste time on doing all the parts of tendering manually when you can automate the process without worrying about each phase? Just another part of project management made easy by Archdesk.

If you are interested in learning more about how our construction management platform can improve your processes, contact us! Our Specialist will be happy to show you how some specific solutions can significantly enhance your project delivery and support the maintenance of financial stability in your company!


I want to discover the best solutions!


Originally published on: 13/08/2020
Article updated on: 14/04/2022


 
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2024-03-28 19:11:32