Pre-Tender Planning

As a rule, the most suitable tenders to be submitted in public procurement are not prepared on the day of the tender. The most suitable tender is prepared through a proper and effective preparation process. In other words, the tender process requires systematic work that begins once the notice is seen, accelerates when the tender documents are obtained and must be completed before the tender is submitted.

Pre-tender planning enables a company to determine in advance which tender it will participate in and under what conditions, which documents it will use, how it will manage the contract if it wins the work and which risks it will assume.

Kılıç Kurumsal Danışmanlık A.Ş. (Kılıç Kurumsal) addresses the pre-tender preparation process of companies that participate in tenders and sign contracts, covering documentation, costs, timeframes, qualification, contracts and implementation.

A. What Is Pre-Tender Planning?

1. The Critical Decision Before Submitting a Tender

Pre-tender planning is a company’s measured and documented effort to answer the question: “Should we participate in this tender?” Not every tender may be a suitable opportunity for the company. Likewise, work that appears highly profitable may become a heavy burden because of its timeframe, security, delivery, personnel or payment conditions.

For this reason, the decision to tender should not be based solely on the tender price. The company’s work experience, financial capacity, ongoing work, personnel situation, supply network and contract management capacity should be assessed together.

2. Reading the Contract Notice and Documents Together

The contract notice, administrative specifications, technical specifications, draft contract, price schedule, projects, provisions of the general specifications and standard forms should not be read separately from one another. Likewise, a matter that appears clear in one document may take on a different meaning in another.

Participation conditions, qualification documents, the method of tender submission, delivery period, penalty provisions, price adjustment, and inspection and acceptance conditions should be assessed consistently before tender submission. A tender submitted without this work may lead to consequences that are difficult to rectify later.

3. Assessing the Company’s Own Position

Planning does not consist solely of reviewing the tender documents. The company’s own records should also be checked. EKAP information, e-signature authorisations, the company’s shareholding structure, representation documents, work experience, balance sheet, turnover, quality certificates, and tax and social security status should be reviewed in advance.

Corrections made on the day of the tender are often too late. In time-limited procedures, a minor deficiency may cause the tender to be excluded from evaluation, the bid security to be forfeited or a risk of debarment to arise.

4. Calculating the Contractual Burden

The tender cost does not consist solely of materials, labour or service charges. Security, insurance, tax, transport, storage, warranty, testing/analysis, technical documentation, financing and additional personnel costs should also be taken into account.

The progress payment or payment schedule and the company’s payments to suppliers, subcontractors, personnel and tax authorities should be considered within the same timetable. Expenditure to be incurred during the first months of the work before any payment is received directly affects the decision to tender.

5. Different Preparations for Works, Supply and Service Procurements

For works, the project, quantity take-off, location list, site conditions, site handover, provisional acceptance and final acceptance process should be examined carefully. For supply procurements, product compliance, samples, catalogues, warranties, servicing and spare parts conditions are important. For service procurements, personnel, vehicles, frequency of work, reporting and the acceptance method come to the fore.

It is not appropriate to prepare for every tender using the same method. Documentation, costs, personnel, technical capacity and contractual burden should be considered separately according to the type of tender. Another important matter is whether the procurement will be carried out for the first time. The first procurement conducted by a contracting authority generally carries a high risk of error.

B. Why Should Pre-Tender Planning Be Carried Out by Specialists?

1. Legislation, Documentation and Practice Must Be Understood Together

The public procurement process is conducted in accordance with the relevant laws, implementing regulations, general specifications, standard specifications, standard contracts, inspection and acceptance arrangements, electronic tender rules and application periods.

A single word in the tender documents may alter the structure of the tender or the decision to tender. An acceptance condition in the technical specifications may affect the cost calculation. A penalty provision in the draft contract may turn apparently profitable work into a risk.

2. The Electronic Tender System Leaves No Room for Error

For electronic tenders, EKAP records, authorised users, e-signatures, electronic notifications and document fields must be ready in advance. If the Tender Participation Document and other electronic records do not match correctly, it becomes impossible to complete the tender.

Monitoring notifications and the time limits for requesting clarification, submitting a complaint to the contracting authority and lodging an appeal with the KİK are also part of the planning process. Once an application deadline has been missed, even well-prepared grounds will not produce the expected outcome.

3. Qualification and Participation Barriers Must Be Identified Early

Work experience, economic and financial standing, professional documents, quality certificates, permits, licences and shareholding information should be checked before tender submission. Even a high-value work experience certificate may not be considered sufficient for every tender.

Persons prohibited from participating in the tender, debarment circumstances, tax and social security debts, security conditions and authority of representation should also be examined. Even the smallest error concerning these matters is not limited to the tender being rejected. It may additionally result in sanctions involving debarment from tenders and forfeiture of the security.

4. Abnormally Low Tenders and Non-Price Factors Must Be Considered in Advance

In case the tender falls below the threshold value, quotations, analyses, labour calculations and other supporting evidence to be used in the explanation should be prepared in advance. Likewise, an explanation of an abnormally low tender is an area of preparation that should be considered before tender submission.

In tenders using non-price factors, the “lowest price” does not always produce the best outcome. The scoring method, technical advantages, quality criteria and cost balance should all be reflected in the decision to tender.

5. Subcontractor, Supplier and Personnel Risks Must Be Calculated at the Outset

The subcontractor, supplier and personnel arrangements of the company that will win the work should be considered before the tender. The delivery, quality, warranty, occupational safety and confidentiality conditions in the main contract should also be incorporated into subcontracts.

The contractor cannot eliminate its liability to the contracting authority merely by relying on the supplier or subcontractor. The supply chain, work programme and personnel preparations should therefore be established realistically before the contract begins.

6. Application and Dispute Risk Planning Must Be Carried Out in Advance

If the tender documents contain ambiguity, a condition that restricts competition, an impracticable timeframe or an inconsistency affecting the tender cost, this situation should be planned for in advance. Likewise, time cannot be managed if requests for clarification from the contracting authority and available application procedures are not assessed promptly.

In conclusion, Kılıç Kurumsal operates in the fields of business consultancy and organisational preparation. Conducting litigation, acting under power of attorney and legal representation are handled within a separate professional organisation. This ensures that consultancy, legal information and representation are not confused with one another.

C. What Do Our Corporate Identity and Expertise Provide to Companies?

1. The Position of Kılıç Kurumsal

Kılıç Kurumsal Danışmanlık A.Ş. (Kılıç Kurumsal) is a corporate consultancy company operating in the fields of public procurement and contract management. Our company aims to help companies make better-informed decisions before tenders, conduct their tender preparations systematically and enter the contract period prepared.

Our work is carried out from our Ankara headquarters. Meetings may be held in person or online, depending on the requirements. Before work begins, the scope of the work, documents to be delivered, timeframe and communication arrangements are explained.

2. Working Arrangements Aligned with the Service Pages

Pre-tender planning is connected with the work described on the “Tender and Contract Management”, “Compliance and Risk Review”, “Tender and Contract Training”, “Expert Opinion and Reporting”,”NATO and Defence Industry Tender Preparation “subpages under the “SERVICES” main menu on our website.

The services will not be repeated on this page. The subject explained here is which preparations a company participating in a tender should make and at which stage.

3. Tangible Outputs That May Be Provided to the Company

The work does not conclude with an oral assessment alone. Depending on the status of the tender, a “Tender Submission Briefing Note”, “Tender Conditions Comparison Table”, “Document Preparation List”, “EKAP and Authorisation Check Note”, “Cost and Cash Flow Schedule”, “Pre-Contract Warning List”, “Application Deadline Note” and “Tender Task Schedule” may be prepared.

These documents provide the company’s management and tender team with the same overall picture. It can be established from the outset who will prepare which document, which deadlines will be monitored and which risks will be brought to management’s attention.

4. Network of Expertise and Approach to Confidentiality

Pre-tender planning requires administrative, technical, financial, legal and contractual knowledge. Depending on the subject of the file, our working team comprising experienced individuals is engaged. The documents reviewed, prices, commercial information and company records are protected in accordance with our approach to confidentiality.

Each request is first assessed in terms of its subject, parties and scope. Confidential or extensive documents are not requested before the scope of the work has been clarified. This approach protects both the company’s security and the orderly conduct of the work.

5. Appropriate Guidance Through the Information Ecosystem

Those seeking concise explanations may be directed to video content (Video Source: https://ihale.tv/iletisim ) , those seeking detailed learning may be directed to book publications (Book Source: https://www.kilicakademi.com.tr/ ) , and those seeking legal information and reviews of decisions may be directed to separate information resources (Legal Information Source: https://www.kilichukuk.org/iletisim). Kılıç Kurumsal does not replace these resources; it serves as a corporate centre that directs the company to the appropriate resource for its needs.

In this way, rather than searching for fragmented information on the same subject, client companies first define their own needs. They can then more easily identify which of the consultancy, training, report, video, publication or legal assessment options is appropriate.

Ç. What Should a Company Wishing to Benefit from Our Expertise Do?

1. Prepare the Initial Information

When applying, the company should briefly state the name of the tender, the tender registration number, the tender date, the type of work, whether a tender has been submitted and the current stage. The notice, specifications, draft contract, price schedule, technical annexes and any correspondence with the contracting authority may subsequently be shared once the scope has been determined.

The company’s existing documents, work experience, the shareholding structure to be used, subcontractor or supplier plan, estimated cost and the main question it wants answered should also be set out briefly.

2. State Which Stage You Have Reached

If a tender has not yet been submitted, the work focuses on the pre-tender decision and preparation. If a tender has been submitted, missing documents, explanations, abnormally low tenders, non-price factors, notifications or application deadlines are assessed separately. If the contract has been signed, the matter is addressed in terms of contract implementation and the risk of loss of rights.

Timing is more important in situations such as forfeiture of the security, possible debarment, invitation to sign the contract, tax or social security debt, a qualification document issue and a dispute with the contracting authority. Matters of this kind should be reported without delay.

3. Preliminary Assessment and Scope Definition

Following the initial meeting, the aspects of the file to be reviewed are determined. Whether the work will consist solely of a document check, whether the draft contract will be assessed or whether a separate assessment of the application deadline will be required is stated clearly in writing.

Once the scope has been clarified, the company is informed of the documents to be delivered, the timeframe for the work, the persons to be assigned and the communication method. In this way, the work is conducted not as an uncertain consultation process but as an organised preparation process with an identifiable outcome.

4. Starting on Time Is the Safest Approach

The principal value of pre-tender planning is that it identifies errors before the tender is submitted. Options may become limited once the deadline has passed, the tender has been submitted or the contract has been signed.

For this reason, on the first day that the company sees the tender documents, it should consider not only pricing preparations but also documentation, costs, timeframes, contracts and application risks. The greater the scale of the work, the more important the preliminary review becomes.

The initial contact with Kılıç Kurumsal is intended to establish the stage the company has reached. Once the correct stage has been identified, the appropriate type of work is selected and the company continues the tender process with better preparation.

5. Contact

You may submit your application by completing the form on the “Corporate Service Request” subpage under the “CONTACT” main menu of our website.

Kılıç Kurumsal Danışmanlık A.Ş. carries out its work from its Ankara headquarters. Meetings may be held in person or online, depending on the nature of the work.

Contact Details: https://www.kilickurumsal.com.tr/iletisim

Address: Eskişehir Yolu (Dumlupınar Bulvarı), Mustafa Kemal Mahallesi, 2079. Cadde, Via Green İş Merkezi, B Blok, Floor: 3/11, Çankaya / Ankara. Telephone: +90 312 285 96 00.