User Guide. How to Set Up and Manage Your Bids. This User s Guide is applicable for all Apex Bid Programs

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "User Guide. How to Set Up and Manage Your Bids. This User s Guide is applicable for all Apex Bid Programs"

Miranda Lyons
5 years ago
Views:

1 User Guide How to Set Up and Manage Your Bids This User s Guide is applicable for all Apex Bid Programs

This guide is intended to facilitate setting up, displaying and managing your bids. Support Videos are available for most of the topics described herein.

2 This guide is intended to facilitate setting up, displaying and managing your bids. Support Videos are available for most of the topics described herein. GETTING STARTED A FEW BASICS Ø These are sealed bid programs. No one can modify or adjust anything submitted by a bidder except for bidder s themselves using their password protected ID. Ø Prior to the Bid Opening date and time, all information submitted by each bidder is confidential and cannot be viewed by anyone (including the Apex Bid Program s Office). Ø Bidders cannot modify, adjust or withdraw their bid or supporting documents after the Bid Opening date and time. When logged in, Users have three tabs available: Home Tab Contains a calendar associated with all solicitations for the User Group Solicitations Tab Contains full record of past and current solicitations for the User Group Vendors Tab Contains searchable vendor database

3 Solicitation Function Bar All major functions to set up and manage solicitations are displayed along the top Function Bar. The Function Bar is visible on every screen within a solicitation. Bidders View The bidders view of the solicitation is quite different than yours. Bidders can access information, ask and view questions / answers and submit their bids and support information. Modifying Your Solicitations You can modify all fields and information related to your solicitations at any time during the bidding process. Adding documents and addenda, changing the bid due date, adjusting the Bid Forms or sending communications to all bidders can be done with just a mouse click. Note The ability to communicate with all bidders remains intact beyond the Bid Due Date and Time. To make changes to any screen, click then. Copy & Paste Copy and paste functionality works throughout the Program, allowing the transfer of information and text from other documents. Exporting Almost all Functions contain an Export icon that will deliver the information to your desktop as an Excel file. Below is an example from the Bidders tab. Exports an Excel file directly to your desktop Multi-Prime Projects Apex Bid Programs excels at both single and multi-prime projects. Setting up a multi-prime is described near the end of the Adding A New Solicitation section. Periodic Solicitations and Re-Bidding The Clone feature described near the end of the Adding A New Solicitation section is a highly valued feature for periodic / seasonal solicitations and re-bidding.

When you first log in, PennBid Users have three tabs at the top of the screen. The Home tab contains a Calendar associated with your User Group s solicitation(s).

5 When you first log in, PennBid Users have three tabs at the top of the screen. The Home tab contains a Calendar associated with your User Group s solicitation(s). The calendar contains Bid Due Date, Question Cutoff Date, Pre-Bid Meeting(s) and any other items that were included as Events within your solicitation(s). Each item on your calendar contains a link to that specific solicitation or event.

6 VENDORS TAB - SEARCHABLE VENDOR DATABASE Search by company name or contact Search by NIGP Categories

7 SOLICITATIONS TAB The Solicitations tab is used to: Set up a new solicitation Manage Open solicitations Review all previous and future solicitations within your User Group By default, PennBid will display Open solicitations for your User Group. By clicking the dropdown arrow, you can access All, Open, Pending Award, Awarded, Cancelled, Closed and Future solicitations. Solicitations can also be located / listed by using the Keyword search or Closing Date Range functions.

8 Adding a New Solicitation LET S GET STARTED Log-in with your address and password. If you need an account, please send an to info@pennbid.net. From the Solicitations tab at the top of the screen, Click Add and populate the fields. At a minimum, populate fields containing * Note The Expected Contract Value field is optional but will help potential bidders understand the size and possible bonding requirements. We recommend that a range is used such as $85,000 - $120,000 as opposed to your exact estimate. Scroll Down and Click. The screen will change and from here forward the top bar will contain the Function Bar control buttons as shown below.

9 SOLICITATION SETUP SCREEN Adding a New Solicitation Major Control Functions within the top bar Very Important Do not Click Show until you are ready to display to potential bidders

10 SOLICITATION EVENTS SCREEN Adding a New Solicitation Events such as a pre-bid meeting can be added by clicking the Events > Add Events button. This information will be on the first screen that greets bidders. Note Checking the Mandatory box highlights this event on the first screen that greets potential bidders. Note If Event Registration box is checked, potential bidders will indicate who will be participating in the event. This is an especially helpful feature to enable if you need to know who and how many will be participating (ex. a meeting held in higher security areas)

11 SOLICITATION CATEGORY SCREEN Adding a New Solicitation Adding Category Codes related to the products or services that you are seeking enables automatic notification(s) to all or some of the potential bidders. This is an optional but very powerful function. Click Edit then + sign next to NIGP Scroll down the list and select the products (top of list) or services (lower half of list) related to your bid by putting a check in the box(es). When finished, click Save Selected.

Apex Bid Programs utilizes an open architecture in which you can change folder names, add new folders and add subfolders.

12 SOLICITATION DOCUMENTS SCREEN Adding a New Solicitation Adding Your Project Documents Click on the Apply Folder Template dropdown arrow, select the template and click Apply. Apex Bid Programs utilizes an open architecture in which you can change folder names, add new folders and add subfolders. It is recommended that you develop your folder structure before documents are uploaded. To Add a sub-folder, click on the folder then New Folder You can also rename folders by clicking on folder then Rename

Customized Document Folder Structure If desired, customized document folder template(s) can be developed and ready for you each time you use the Program.

Uploading (Adding) Your Documents There are two ways to add your documents: Using the Add Files button Drag and Drop Method 1 Using the Add Files Button Select the folder and click Upload

13 Customized Document Folder Structure If desired, customized document folder template(s) can be developed and ready for you each time you use the Program. If interested in customized document folders, please contact our office at Uploading (Adding) Your Documents There are two ways to add your documents: Using the Add Files button Drag and Drop Method 1 Using the Add Files Button Select the folder and click Upload Files. The Add Files button will appear as seen below. Use the Add Files button and select the documents to be uploaded. When finished, click the Upload button. Important Note If the Add Files button did not appear, check to see if there is a pop up asking to install Active X controls. If so, allow the program to be installed.

14 Method 2 Drag and Drop Select the folder and click Upload Files. Open the Documents window on your computer. Drag and drop files or folders into this window Select the desired documents and/or folders and drag and drop into the Program files window. NOTE If a folder is selected, all files within the folder will be copied. Once the desired files have been added, click Upload

15 Important Note Folder names are not displayed to potential bidders until the folder contains at least one document file. Viewing Uploaded Documents - To view a document, just click on it. Removing Documents To remove documents, put a check in the box next to the documents name and click Delete Selected Files.

16 SOLICITATION QUESTIONS SCREEN Adding a New Solicitation Enabling the questions tab will permit the potential bidders to submit questions electronically through the system. When a question is asked, two things happen: 1. The question is recorded and is kept as part of the overall solicitation Log. 2. The question is automatically sent via to the posting agency or contact. A document about Answering Questions is available on PennBid for your reference. To Enable Questions, click the Questions tab (top blue bar) > Edit, and populate fields as shown below. Once complete, click Update. Bidders are permitted to ask questions until the Question Cutoff Date and Time.

17 SOLICITATION BIDDERS SCREEN Adding a New Solicitation The Bidders tab has several optional and helpful features. Click Bidders then Edit. Select which features you would like turned on and click Update. Bidders List Options Displaying Bidders List displays the Bidders / Planholders list publically. Role Selection When enabled, the system will ask potential bidders what their role is for this bid Prime Contractor, Sub Contractor, Vendor or Other. Intent to Bid When enabled, the system will ask potential bidders if they intend to bid. If they choose to answer, they can select Will Bid, No Bid or Undecided.

18 Important Note Intent to Bid is NOT displayed publically. Only the posting agency or contact can see the responses. Important Note Potential Bidders Do Not have to answer the Role Selection or Intent to Bid Questions. Whether they answer or not does not affect their ability to bid. By Invitation Only If you do not want the bid to be public and desire only bidders you invite to see your solicitation / bid on your project, the Invitation Type can be changed to Private By Invitation Only.

19 SOLICITATION BIDS SCREEN Adding a New Solicitation The Bids tab is used to allow bidders to submit their proposals, bids prices and support documents securely online. Before reviewing the mechanics, let s go over a few basics. For most bids, there are three components: 1. The actual bid pricing or proposal document 2. Questions or statements (RFIs) bidders must acknowledge or respond to prior to submitting their bid 3. Support Documents to be submitted with Bid Bid bonds, non-collusion affidavits, ect. Types of Bids Document Only These are proposals, mostly used for professional contracts Lump Sum Just one price that provides the products or services outlined in the specifications Line Item By far the most common. Line item bids present individual items that must be bid on (called Schedule of Values). Bidders provide the unit cost and PennBid will automatically calculate the extended line item price and total base bid. Important Note From the Bidders perspective, everything associated with submitting their bid Supporting Documents, line items, and RFIs - is presented on one screen.

Step 1: Enabling Online Bidding Follow these steps if you would like to enable an online solicitation response for your bidders (vendors). 1. After creating a solicitation, click on the Bids tab 2.

20 Step 1: Enabling Online Bidding Follow these steps if you would like to enable an online solicitation response for your bidders (vendors). 1. After creating a solicitation, click on the Bids tab 2. On the small Setup screen, click the Edit button 3. Select Yes from the Enable Online Vendor Response drop-down menu 4. Select desired RFI and/or Pricing response from the Response Options drop-down menu 5. Click the Update button NOTE: Depending upon your Response Option, corresponding tabs will appear

Step 2: Setup RFI Response Follow these steps if you have selected RFI or RFI + Pricing from the Response Options drop-down on the Setup tab. 1. Click on the RFI Form tab 2.

21 Step 2: Setup RFI Response Follow these steps if you have selected RFI or RFI + Pricing from the Response Options drop-down on the Setup tab. 1. Click on the RFI Form tab 2. Click the Edit button in the RFI Documents section to allow up to five document/proposal uploads NOTE: You can also type optional labels and designate whether the document upload is required in order for a vendor to submit a bid 3. In the RFI Form section, type the Question Number, Category (Optional) and Question 4. Click the Insert button and repeat until all question have been posted NOTE: You can also upload a RFI Form template to save time.

22 Step 3: Setup Pricing Response Follow these steps if you have selected either Pricing or RFI + Pricing from the Response Options drop-down on the Setup tab 1. Click on the Pricing Form tab 2. Click on the Edit button for the Pricing Response Option field 3. Select desired Pricing Response from the drop-down menu: a. None b. Lump Sum c. Line Items 4. Click the Update button 5. Click the Edit button in the Pricing Documents section to allow up to five document uploads. NOTE: You can also type optional labels and designate whether the document upload is required in order for a vendor to submit a bid.

23 PRICING RESPONSES Option 1: Document Leave the Pricing Response Options set to None and enable up to five documents. Option 2: Lump Sum Select Lump Sum from Pricing Response Options and enable up to five support documents.

24 Option 3: Line Item Select Line Items from Pricing Response Options and either insert one line at a time or upload your pricing form template.

25 Step 4: Sealing and Unlocking RFI and Pricing forms When you have sealed bidding enabled for your organization, you have the ability to manually unlock RFI and Pricing Information independently. The user ID, date, and time of the individual who sealed and unlocked each section is included in the message on the top of the page. To seal a solicitation, the steps remain the same. When ready, click the Seal This Bid button on the Setup tab. To unlock a solicitation once the Bids Due Date / Time has passed, two unlock buttons appear on the Setup tab: Unlock RFI and Unlock Pricing.

26 Step 5: Viewing Bids You can click on the Bids tab to view a list of bidders. If the bid is sealed, you will not see the View link to open individual bids, nor the RFI Responses or Pricing Responses sections until either RFI or Pricing is unlocked. Example Below: RFI and Line Item solicitation with documents

27 Here is a screenshot of the Pricing Tabulation.

28 Step 6: Award Option #1: Lump Sum Bids 1. Click on the Award tab 2. Click on the Edit Award button 3. Type an Award Date 4. Type an Award Total and/or Award Comment 5. Click the Save Awards button

Option #2: Line Item Bids For line item solicitations the award process has been streamlined by replacing the Analysis tab with the View Award Scenario link.

29 Option #2: Line Item Bids For line item solicitations the award process has been streamlined by replacing the Analysis tab with the View Award Scenario link. In addition, you can now type your award date when you select your award scenario. 1. Click on the Award tab 2. Click on the View Award Scenario link 3. Select desired Award Option a. Award to Single Vendor (Lowest total price for all items from a single vendor that bid all items) b. Split Award to Multiple Vendors (Award each item to vendor providing lowest non-zero price) c. Award All Items to Selected Vendor (Select Bidder) d. Manually Select Awards (Used primarily for projects that contain Add/Deduct items) 4. Click the Apply button 5. Type the Award Date at the bottom of resulting Award Scenario and click the Save Award button

30 BID FORMS FROM VENDORS POINT OF VIEW RFI + Line Item with Documents Bid Form

31 LUMP SUM WITH DOCUMENT BID FORM

32 Going Live!!! Adding a New Solicitation Now that your solicitation is ready, just click Show from any screen to display to potential Bidders.

33 CLONING BIDS Cloning is a time saving feature for multi-prime projects and recurring or seasonal solicitations. Option #1: Multi-Prime Solicitations There are several ways to set up a multi-prime project. Below is the method most frequently used. Step 1 Set up a single solicitation Step 2 Click on the Solicitations tab at the top of the screen Step 3 Cloning - Click the Clone button next to the solicitation name Adding a New Solicitation Step 4 Select Clone features and click Clone Solicitation

34 A New solicitation is produced, including the documents and bid options selected. Step 5 Adjust solicitation titles (Click Edit from Setup tab) and upload the bid forms for each prime (Bids tab) Step 6 Check Solicitations screen to review both solicitations Option #2: Recurring/Periodic Solicitation and Re-Bids Use the steps described above (starting with step 2) to Clone previous solicitations. Make any minor adjustments (due date, question cut off, documents, ect.) and you are ready to display to potential bidders.

35 ANSWERING BIDDERS QUESTIONS When Bidders ask questions, two things happen: 1. The Program records the question within your solicitation 2. The question is ed to the posting Agency or User When you click the Questions tab from the Feature Bar, scrolling down will reveal all questions. From the posting Users perspective, you can also see who asked the question(s). Note From the Bidders perspective, the name of the company who asked the question is NOT displayed publically. To respond to a question, click Edit. Answer the question within the box provided and make selections for All View and Answer (see note below) All View Will publically display the Question and Answer for all Bidders. We recommend this box is always checked for public solicitations. Answer The Program will the question and answer to the company who asked the question (recommended) or to your entire Bidders List (not recommended). Click Update on left side of screen.

Bidders who have enough interest in your solicitation to have either downloaded documents or asked questions are automatically added to the list.

36 BIDDER S TAB The Bidders tab is used to manage your bidders list and for communicating with your potential bidders. The Bidders List is auto-populating, meaning that there is no interaction required between the posting User and the potential bidders to have them included on the list. Bidders who have enough interest in your solicitation to have either downloaded documents or asked questions are automatically added to the list. To review the list, click Bidders from the top blue bar and scroll down. On the right side of the Bidders List you will see several letters, each corresponding to actions taken by this particular bidder. D They have downloaded your documents Q They have asked a question B They have submitted a bid Note: Clicking on a company s name will provide details about that company

COMMUNICATING WITH BIDDERS Communicating with potential bidders is very easy and fast. This feature is especially valuable when Issuing Addenda. From the Bidders tab (top bar), scroll down.

37 COMMUNICATING WITH BIDDERS Communicating with potential bidders is very easy and fast. This feature is especially valuable when Issuing Addenda. From the Bidders tab (top bar), scroll down. You will see several radio buttons for your desired action. Notify Selected Place a check in the box next to each bidder you would like to send a message to and click Notify Selected. Notify All By far the most common. When issuing Addenda or a General Message, just click Notify All. Notify By Category Used as an Invitation to Bid and will send your message to all potential bidders for selected Categories. Example of Issuing Addenda - Click Notify All. The box below will appear. Your message will be sent to all Bidders and you will receive a copy of your sent message via .

38 MANAGING YOUR SOLICITATION UNLOCKING BIDS Once the solicitation due date/time closes, you have the ability to view the documents, acknowledgements and pricing that bidders submitted. To view this information, View your project (no longer in Open status) then click the Bids tab on the function bar. After unlocking the RFIs and Pricing you have several options for viewing, exporting and displaying submitted bids. Click Unlock RFI to view Bidders acknowledgements, Proposal Documents and RFI Support Documents. Click Unlock Pricing to view Lump Sum bids, Line Item Bids (Base, Alternate, Deduct) and Pricing Support Documents. Note: The date, time and User who unlocked the RFIs and Pricing is recorded and displayed above the Setup tab.

MANAGING YOUR SOLICITATION VIEWING RFI RESPONSES AND PRICING RESPONSES To view RFI Responses and Pricing Responses, click the small Bids tab.

39 MANAGING YOUR SOLICITATION VIEWING RFI RESPONSES AND PRICING RESPONSES To view RFI Responses and Pricing Responses, click the small Bids tab. The list of Bidders and the bid status will also be displayed at the bottom. RFI Documents RFI Support Documents uploaded with the bid (Most often Proposals) RFI Tabulation Bidders answers to the required acknowledgements pertaining to the bid Pricing Documents Pricing Support Documents uploaded with the bid (Bid Bond, Non-Collusion Affidavit, etc.) Pricing Tabulation Bid Tabulation, including Company Name, Base bids, Alternates, Extended Line Item Pricing Clicking View will show the entire submitted bid for that company, including who submitted the bid (date/time), the company name, bid status, RFI Documents/Responses, and Pricing Documents/Responses Clicking the Company name beside View will provide details about that vendor (Address, phone number, contacts, etc.)

40 PRICING RESPONSES Pricing Documents The Pricing Documents shows the uploaded attachment(s) for each company. You can view the attachment(s) submitted by each bidder.

41 Pricing Tabulation Clicking Pricing Tabulation will provide the Base Bid Totals by Vendor and Bid Items. Base Bid submitted by each company Data can be sorted by any underlined field Bid Items shows the line items and price(s) submitted by each company The lowest submitted line item price is highlighted in green

42 All Line Items Click All Line Items (Bids à Pricing Tabulation à All Line Items). Clicking All Line Items will provide the Extended Line Item Prices. Every line item, company, submitted price and extended price are included. Submitted bid price Extended line item price

DISPLAYING BID RESULTS There must be a sequence of specific actions to display the bid results publicly. Unlocking the bids and viewing the pricing information DOES NOT publicaly display the results.

43 DISPLAYING BID RESULTS There must be a sequence of specific actions to display the bid results publicly. Unlocking the bids and viewing the pricing information DOES NOT publicaly display the results. To display the Bid Results, click the Display Results tab à click Edit under Options à choose a Display Setting à Update Bid & Award Data: Includes the companies that bid and their base bid totals. By far the most popular setting utilized. Award Data Only: Includes the Award information ONLY (if no Award is displayed, the bid results will not show up) Bid & Award Company Name Only: Includes the companies that bid, but NOT their submitted base bid prices. Award Company Name Only: Includes the Company Name for Award information ONLY (if no Award is displayed, the bid results will not show up) You have the ability to add a Bid & Award Comment if desired. You can also upload a Bid/Award Document. This often includes extended line item prices, add/deduct alternates with the base bid totals in a spreadsheet or award documents. Display Setting Options Optional Comments Field Bid/Award Documents Upload

44 AWARDING SOLICITATIONS When a project has been awarded, the solicitation can be updated in PennBid. The status of your solicitation will change from Pending Award to Awarded. Follow the steps to award a project: 1. Click Bids (Top Blue Bar) 2. Click the small Award tab 3. Click View Award Scenario

45 4. Select applicable Award Option and click Apply. a. Award to Single Vendor Awarding the bidder with the lowest submitted contract value (base bid only) b. Split Award to Multiple Vendors Splitting the award between multiple bidders c. Award All Items to Selected Vendors Awarding to a bidder that did not submit the lowest contract value (Click drop-down and select awarded bidder) d. Manually Select Award Awarding a project with add/deduct line items

46 5. Add Award Date and click Save Award

47 6. Awarded values and quantities can be modified by clicking Edit Awards Your solicitation has been awarded and contains the company awarded, the award total and award date.

48 CANCELLING SOLICITATIONS / REJECTING BIDS When a project will not be awarded (bids rejected, pricing exceeded budget, etc.) you can update the status from Pending Award to Cancelled. Follow the steps to cancel a project: 1. Click Setup (Top Blue Bar) and Edit 2. Use the Status Override drop down menu to select Cancelled and then click Update

49 Note: Once the project status changed to Cancelled you have the ability to notify the bidders and/or add a comment regarding the award status for the bidders to view. To notify the bidders, simply click Bidders on the top blue bar, scroll down and either manually select the bidders who submitted a bid on your project or Notify All. To add an award comment, click Bids on the top blue bar, Display Results on the small toolbar and Edit. Add your comment and Update.

ebid exchange Quickstart Guide for Users

ebid exchange Quickstart Guide for Users Quickstart Guide for Users ebid Systems 911 Hildebrand Lane NE, Suite 201 Bainbridge Island, WA 98110 888-291-8430 support@ebidsystems.com www.ebidsystems.com TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 OVERVIEW... 3 2.0 LOGIN/PASSWORD...