Sourcing and bids

An RFQ records the scope, response deadline and the weights for price, lead time and quality. RFQ lines break that scope into items, quantity, unit and need-by dates. The invitation list preserves who received an invitation and whether they responded. Each supplier response revision connects a vendor’s answer to the request, while response lines hold quoted detail and any alternate offered.

Buyer reviews the response set before recommending an award. The bid comparison stores the normalized components, total, rank, eligibility, source revisions and quality basis. Procurement Manager sees whether the recommendation was followed or overridden, with a reason and named reviewer. Published scorecards can supply prior quality evidence; a no-history basis remains visible when there is no comparable published observation.

• Scope and weights. Buyer writes the requested item or service, quantity, deadline and weighted criteria before invitations go out. Department and cost center stay with the RFQ.
• Response revisions. Supplier responses retain the date, lead time, validity, commercial terms and line prices. A new response supersedes an earlier one rather than silently replacing it.
• Award review. Procurement Manager reads the scored comparison and the underlying quotes, then records a reason when the award differs from the recommendation.

Set when an approved requisition needs competition and which categories need supplier qualification before invitation. Agree who chooses the scoring weights and how the team verifies they total the full decision. Decide whether an alternate offer can be compared with the original scope or needs separate review. Define what an award reviewer must read when a supplier has no published quality history. Keep a clear rule for a single-bid or sole-source decision and its written justification on the resulting order.

Use a request for an item with a near delivery date. Buyer sends the same line and deadline to two eligible vendors. One responds with a lower price and longer lead time; the other responds with a higher price and faster delivery. Review each response revision, the exact weights and the score components. Procurement Manager checks the recommended vendor and, if choosing the other, records the reason before the RFQ is awarded. Open the resulting order and confirm the awarded response, supplier and price remain traceable.

Then revise one supplier response before the decision. The comparison should identify which response revision it scored. A prior award should retain the version on which it was made.

• RF qs for Review — Open requests with response deadlines and current sourcing status.
• Published Vendor Scorecards — Prior supplier delivery and quality context for comparison.

Read sourcing and award, then agreement and order control.