Join the discussion to share best practice and challenges in the tender process.
Help to outline technical specifications and circular solutions.
PARTICIPATING COMPANIES
Professional clothing functions to help keep people safe and comfortable at work; it can be challenging for procurement teams without specialised textile knowledge to keep up with textile innovation.
It is the view of PCIAW® that buyers motivated to operate responsibly due to ESG reporting will need to adapt their tenders to achieve a desirable and balanced outcome for sustainable alternatives that also meet their required technical specifications.
Are tender specifications requesting solutions relevant for the job roles?
Are tender evaluations giving enough weight to sustainable solutions?
Are tender budgets considering the total contract or costs or the unit prices?
Improving Tenders for Professional Clothing
The PCIAW® Round Table Series on ‘Improving Tenders for Professional Clothing’ will bring buyers together with suppliers to highlight common knowledge gaps in the tender process and evaluate if the scoring mechanisms are set-up to achieve the right outcomes.
Tenders for professional clothing guide suppliers to find solutions for the buyers’ needs. PCIAW® is seeking to help improve the process for all parties by educating on best practices and on how to optimise questions for realistic outcomes with an open mind for novel solutions.
Tenders for professional clothing guide suppliers to find solutions for the buyers’ needs. PCIAW® is seeking to help improve the process for all parties by educating on best practices and on how to optimise questions for realistic outcomes with an open mind for novel solutions.
Round Table # 1
What PCIAW® wants to know
- Procurement team – understand the level of textile knowledge within buying departments and if there is any practice of outsourcing specialist input.
- Specifying requirements – examine the process of how buyers evaluate the needs of end-users and how to request solutions from suppliers.
- Compliance factors – identify how end-user businesses are researching what standards are relevant to professional clothing and checking for updates or changes.
- Tender evaluation – look at how procurement teams are comparing tender responses and if the scoring system is aligned with the company’s desired outcomes.
- Budget setting – consider how value and price are measured, looking at how total contract costs can be impacted by product durability and sustainability.
Round Table # 2
What PCIAW® wants to know
- Tender requirements – evaluate how specific tender requirements are, and if the way in which the specification is asked is conducive to innovative responses.
- Timeframe setting – consider if procurement teams are giving suppliers enough time respond to tenders and deliver garments once the contract is awarded.
- Realistic budgets – identify if budgets increase in-line with inflation or for additional requests like sustainability and if decision is based on unit cost?
- Feedback quality – discuss effectiveness of procurement teams in providing feedback on tender responses to help maintain ongoing improvements.
- Sustainability demand – reflect on growing requests of sustainable solutions and if the innovation is being rewarded properly based on tender scoring.