Tendering

The City of Edmonton uses a variety of competitive bidding processes to acquire a wide range of goods, services and construction needed to support the effective operation of the municipality. The City’s procurement processes follow best practices for public sector procurement - and are in accordance with the Agreement on Internal Trade, Annex 502. 4 (AIT), and the New West Partnership Trade Agreement (NWPTA).

Tendering Opportunities

• The Alberta Purchasing Connection (APC) is the official online source of City of Edmonton procurement opportunities for all suppliers and contractors: Alberta Purchasing Connection
• Construction opportunities, are posted on the Edmonton Construction Association's COOLNet: The Edmonton Construction Association

Tendering/procurement Process

Please read the Tender or Request for Proposal, and comply with all requirements. If you are unsure about anything, contact the person noted on the document to seek clarification.

Successful bidders will be notified by telephone, fax, purchase order, Letter of Intent, or a combination of these if appropriate. No commitment will exist until a vendor receives official notification from the City of Edmonton.

Following the award, the City will provide feedback to any bidder upon request in order to assist in understanding areas of strength or weakness in their bid or proposal.

Common procurement processes and timelines

Prequalification

In a pre-qualification process (also known as a Request for Qualifications) the City publicly requests submissions from businesses. Those businesses which meet the pre-qualifications are invited to participate in a subsequent tender or request for proposals process.

Pre-qualification reduces the effort and expense incurred by businesses in preparing bids or proposals. It also allows for an efficient evaluation process, while maintaining competition to ensure quality, performance and value in the City’s procurement process. Pre-qualification is often used when the City is seeking engineering, architectural and other consultants, general contractors for large scale or complex construction projects and for the procurement of specialized equipment and technology solutions.

Typical pre-qualification process timelines

Process Stage	Duration	Comments
Open period (from public release / notification to closing date)	2-4 weeks	Duration of the period depends on complexity of requirements and level of effort needed for suppliers to prepare submissions
Evaluation Review of submissions and notification of results	2-6 weeks	Length of evaluation process depends on complexity of requirements to be evaluated, # of submissions received, reference checks, etc.

Tender

In the Tender process (also known as a Request for Tender) business are publicly invited to bid on the opportunity to provide specific goods, services. Bids must meet certain mandatory requirements and then are evaluated either completely or substantially based on price (i.e. the lowest price bid is awarded the contract). In addition to price, other evaluation criteria such as past performance or references may be used if the tender is not preceded by a prequalification process.

Typical Tender process timelines

Process Stage	Duration (up to)	Comments
Open period (from public release to closing date)	2-4 weeks	Duration of the period depends on complexity of requirements and level of effort needed for suppliers to prepare submissions
Evaluation of submissions and notification of award/results	1-3 weeks	Length of evaluation process depends on complexity of requirements to be evaluated, # of submissions received, reference checks, etc.
Prepare and forward letter of intent or Purchase Order to successful bidder	1 week

Request for Proposals

In the Request for Proposals (RFP) process business are publicly invited to submit a proposal for a product, service or business solution they feel will best meet the City’s needs as outlined in the request for proposal.

This process is used when it is not possible for the City to have exact specifications or where a variety of products, approaches or technical solutions could achieve the desired results. Generally, RFPs focus on performance requirements or outcomes, and allow bidders (known as Proponents) more freedom to propose alternative approaches or solutions for consideration. RFP evaluations tend to be more complex since they consider multiple criteria. In addition to price this may include factors such as corporate suitability, technical capability, approach to the work, qualifications and experience of key resources or other criteria depending on the nature of the procurement.

Typical Request for Proposals (RFP) process timelines

Process Stage	Duration	Comments
Open period (from public release to closing date)	2-4 weeks	Duration of the period depends on complexity of requirements and level of effort needed for suppliers to prepare submissions
Evaluation of submissions and notification of award/results	3-6 weeks	Length of evaluation process depends on complexity of requirements to be evaluated, # of submissions received, reference checks, etc.
Contract prepared and signed by all parties	1-5 weeks	Length of this period depends on level of effort in finalizing agreement and having it signed by successful bidder and the City

For More Information

Corporate Procurement and Supply Services

4th Floor Century Place 
9803 102A Avenue 
Edmonton, AB T5J 2C3

Telephone	780-496-5333
Fax	780-496-5015