Identifying and preparing quotation documents for potential suppliers

Tell procurement you are starting a request for quotation

Every time you start a new buying process, you must fill in a short form to tell the procurement team.

Start the form

You must complete this form every time you ask suppliers for quotes so the council can:

• show that public money is being spent wisely
• monitor and track spending to stay compliant with rules and regulations

Define the supplier list

You should try to identify at least 5 suppliers who could potentially meet your requirements before requesting quotes. We support local businesses, so you should include suppliers whose headquarters are located in Essex.

You will require at least 3 responses from suppliers before you can evaluate and award a contract.

Creating a supplier response pack

To tell potential suppliers what your requirements are for the goods or service you want to procure, you will need to distribute quotation documents. We call this set of documents a 'supplier response pack'. These documents need to include information on what you want to buy, so that suppliers can decide whether they wish to bid or not.

The specification should include what you need to buy, rather than focusing on what you want to buy. A need is something that is essential to meet the necessary requirements. A want is something that is desirable, but is not essential. You should not over specify your needs, as bidders are likely to increase the costs. 

For detailed guidance to support you when completing the documents, download the Request for Quotation (RFQ) guidance pack (DOCX, 162KB). 

You will need to download and open the pack on your desktop to view the embedded documents.

Within the supplier response pack (DOCX, 198KB) you will need to complete: 

• a specification of your buying needs 
• a high level timetable for the buying process 
• project milestones for quantifiable goods or services that need to be provided at the various steps of a project (deliverables), where required 
• supporting quality questions to make sure suppliers can meet your minimum standards
• a pricing spreadsheet to allow potential suppliers to enter their offer price 

Declaration of interest

You and any other team members involved with this Request for Quotation (RFQ) will need to complete a Declaration of Interest form (DOCX, 58KB). 

You should attach the completed forms to the requisition in My Oracle when you are onboarding your supplier.

Non-disclosure agreement

You may also need to complete a non-disclosure agreement (NDA), which is required when a consultant or provider selected to carry out a requirement may be given access to council information which is not in the public domain.

If you need advice on whether you may need to complete a NDA, contact procurement.team@essex.gov.uk.

Sending out the supplier response pack

Your supplier response pack should be sent by secure email to your potential suppliers.