You have the right to query the tender results
By Werner van Rooyen, Director of HowToTender (Pty) Ltd which specializes in tender consulting and tender training.
I cannot stress the fact to query Tender Results too much! You have the right to query the Tender Results of tenders that you have responded to and which you were not successful in winning.
The first stage where your bid can be non-response is at the Technical Criteria stage where you must score a minimum of 75 or 80 points out of a possible 100 points to move to the next stage of evaluation. If your bid was non-responsive you should ask the Organ of State or the Private Sector Entity if you can have the results of the Technical Criteria Evaluation.
Ensure that when you receive the results, the correct number of points has been allocated to your business per Technical Criteria Item. Experience has shown us that wrong points can be allocated to a specific Technical Criteria Item due to lack of knowledge by the Evaluation Committee. This can cause your business to score less points and your tender response will be non-responsive. Be careful how you answer questions because it can be misunderstood by the Evaluation Committee causing you to lose points.
When you respond to a Tender ensure that you calculate your Technical Criteria Points yourself. By doing this, you will know if your business will make it through the first stage or not. This will also ensure that you provide enough information in your response to be evaluated correctly.
Please take note of the correctness of the points allocated per Technical Criteria Item. We have seen Tender Documents where the points that you could earn per Technical Criteria Item were indicated as 5, 3 and 0. What it should have shown was 5, 2.50 and 0. This meant that when you calculated your score and you had items where you earned 3 points, you actually only scored 2.50. This does not sound like much but if you end up on 74.50 points, that 0.50 makes a significant difference.
The point that must be reiterated is that you must take double care when responding to a Tender. Ensure that you earn all the points that you eligible for by answering all questions clearly and preciously. If you have done this, you more than likely go through to the next round of scoring. But that is for another day.
To learn more about this and many other tender conditions attend our “Become a Tender Expert” 2-Day workshops presented in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Port Elizabeth, and Cape Town. Book and pay online at https://howtotender.co.za/tender-expert-form/
Contact us at wernervr@howtotender.co.za should you require more information.
You can also purchase a Tender Manual (Handbook) on our website https://howtotender.co.za/ which is a step by step guide how to respond to a South African Tender. It includes examples of completed SBD forms.
