What is tender documentation?
The tender documentation ... Uff, that pile of papers (well, now PDFs and web portals, but the same) that basically decides who takes the fat contract. It is the heart and guts of the public bidding process. Without that, or dream of winning anything. It is the game manual, monopoly instructions but with fewer colors and more clauses.
Look, depending on the sector, the contract or the country, the thing can change a little, but there are always some basic ones: the bidding announcement (the formal invitation, roll "all come to fight for this contract"), the instructions not to put the leg when presenting the offer, the technical specifications (that is, what noses they want to buy or build), the evaluation criteria (how they will choose the winner), the draft So read it well ”), And the forms you have to fill out yes or yes, such as offers and guarantees.
The announcement is like a megaphone: "Attention, companies! There is money at stake." You release the general info and tell you if you can participate or nor bother. Then, the instructions are the GPS: they tell you how to prepare the offer, what paper goes first, what is in closed ... the typical. The technical specifications, there you cannot improvise. If they ask for stainless screws and you send the cheap, or try. It is the Checklist of what they expect.
The evaluation criteria are the secret sauce. There is the trick: if you know what weighs the most (price, quality, experience ...), you can adjust your offer and have real chance. The proposed contract is the "you marry these conditions", so you better understand it before signing. And the forms ... well, if you do not present them well, or pass your offer to the next round. Annoying but it is.
The trick not to make a fool of? Read everything. Twice. And ask if something doesn't fit you. Be sure to meet each requirement (those silly details often lie to more than one). Give importance to how structures your proposal, because sometimes the cheapest does not win but the one that best presents its case.
In summary: the tender documentation is your entrance ticket and the survival guide in public tenders. If you don't understand her, you better or mess. If you dominate her, you have a chance to take the prize.