First, be thorough and avoid mistakes. “Aside from price, thoroughness is to my mind the most essential aspect of a bid because it pro- vides a representation of the quality of work that the customer can expect if your bid is chosen,” Joseph Liguori, vice president, Access Control Technologies Inc., Clifton, N.J., says. “We try to reflect the impression that our com-
pany is extremely interested in working with the end users and our bid is hopefully reflective of that intent. To that end we try to demonstrate that we have reviewed the bid document, understood its intent and represent our approach toward insuring that, if chosen, our approach will lead to a mean- ingful and successful conclusion.” Thoroughness leads to accuracy. Edward Newman, vice president, Universal Security Systems Inc., Hauppauge, N.Y., sums up bidding success in three parts: start early, bid accurately and ask questions. “The three best methods for achieving an accurate and hence successful bid are: First, get started early. It takes a lot of time to read and understand the spec- ifications. Second, bid accurate. Research and price every deliverable item as accurately as you can. Don’t guess, don’t estimate. The more accurate you are in your cost estimate, the sharper your number can be. And third, ask questions. Request for clari- fication (RFC) and request for information (RFI) anything and everything you see in the specification that is vague or may make a difference in cost.” Why? Newman explains that specifications can be prepared by a low bid consultant or engineer that may be unqualified, inexperienced or under- priced, creating inaccuracies, technical problems and other issues. “Make the issues their problem and not yours by addressing them in the pre-bid process and not after you win the job,” Newman advises. Tracy Larson, president, WeSuite LLC, White Plains, N.Y., advises to read and thoroughly under- stand the bid specifications and requirements, and then customize the bid to the customer. “You need to read and understand the specifi- cations. Understand the job and then prepare a detailed and a thorough technical response. No cookie cutter responses here. Every customer wants to know that you know their project — that you are responding to their job. Engineer the job. You have to know the job. Draw it out on a piece of paper. Understanding what is connected to what and who is providing each aspect of the job enables you to deliver your job accurately,” Larson says.
Seeing Dollar Signs
While agreeing that price isn’t everything, most admitted that it plays an unavoidable role in project bidding. So, does the lowest bid always win? Is this a myth or is it true? Here’s what our sources had to say:
“Unfortunately, more times than not, it is true. The exception is related to two things: 1) a purchasing authority that has been burned and now has limited the bidder to a few instead of the masses and 2) a contractor who has been able to add value to the deal so that they are working in a negotiated deal instead of a bidding war.” — Tony Nasca, Dove Net Technologies LLC
“Sadly, in many cases the contract is still awarded to the lowest bid-
der, regardless of qualifications, capabilities or accuracy. During the past year, we have seen a trend that this is changing. I believe this is being driven by the high rate at which contractors are failing to complete contracts. We are now starting to see a vigorous process of vetting the low bidder. In more cases than not, this has been leading to the low bid- der rescinding their bid, presumably due to the discovery of significant inaccuracies in their bid.” — Edward Newman, vice president, Universal Security Systems Inc.
“It is clear that the current economic conditions have put most busi- nesses under financial stress. This pressure is driving prospective buy- ers to scrutinize their spending more than ever. This drives prices and profits down. Security dealers know this and need to make sure their bids are very competitive in this environment.” — Rich Reihl, creator of BidMagic Proposal Software
“Low price is not the only criteria. Integrators’ delivery capabilities are becoming a key factor in selecting bid winners.” — Nadim Sawaya, instructor for Security Industry Association’s (SIA) Certified Security Project Manager course
“This is the 64 million dollar question. I have heard varying interpreta- tions that state that price is the last consideration. Price is today an even more essential component; however, many bids are leveled or compared to insure that each bidder is providing the appropriate solutions without shortcuts that would compromise the long-term integrity of the solu- tion. Ideally, price is a consideration that allows you the opportunity to meet with the respective client for the purpose of verbally reviewing the bid response. This is the interpersonal opportunity to demonstrate that your company has a thorough grasp of the bid requirements and has developed an effective and comprehensive approach to satisfying the expectations of the specification.” — Joseph Liguori, vice president, Access Control Technologies Inc, Clifton, N.J.
“No! I say this emphatically and with experience. There are indeed contracts that have to be awarded to the lowest bidder but, this is not the rule, not typically the majority of what is out there and usually there are other qualifications bidders must meet that are in play in addition to that low price. The greater number of qualifications that an integrator can cover, the better chance they have of being a finalist and eventually winning the bid.” — Tracy Larson, president, WeSuite
October 2010 67
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