Types of Solicitations
The City of Warren uses various types of solicitations in the procurement of goods and services. The City requires that all bids/quotes/proposals from vendors be submitted electronically via the BidNet® (MITN) system. See Bid Process.
REQUEST FOR QUOTE
A Request for Quote (RFQ) is available to interested bidders for procurement of goods or services that can be readily defined and which bidders can be expected to easily identify and provide comparable pricing offers. A RFQ generally contains simple specifications that have been designed in a straightforward manner and requests a price quotation for the requested goods or services.
INVITATION TO BID
An Invitation to Bid (ITB) is available to interested bidders for procurement of goods or services that can be readily defined and which bidders can be expected to easily identify and provide comparable pricing offers. An ITB generally contains detailed specifications that have been designed in a straight-forward manner through a statement of requirements for the good or service and requests a price quotation for the requested goods or services.
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
The Request for Proposal (RFP) differs from a standard ITB in that it typically does not detail exactly the good or service required by the City, but instead identifies a particular problem or goal which the City wishes to solve or obtain. The problem or goal is contained within the RFP document.
The RFP process is generally more involved than the straight-forward procurement of goods and services using the standard ITB process.
Bidders responding to RFPs are expected to study the problem/goal stated in the RFP document and provide their one best solution for that problem/goal. The response which these bidders submit for this purpose is referred to as their Proposal. The bidder’s proposal must provide a description of the specific manner in which the bidder intends to solve the problem or attain the goal stated by the requesting agency in the RFP document. Bidders must support their proposal by describing their relevant experience and capabilities vis-à-vis the problem/goal. Their descriptions must include not only the capabilities and qualifications of their firm but also of the personnel that they intend to assign to the project if awarded a contract. These Proposals are typically evaluated by an ad hoc committee of City personnel chosen to serve on the RFP Committee. All RFP Committees will have a representative from City Council, City Attorney’s Office, Controller’s Office, Human Resources Office, Using Department, and the Purchasing Office. In addition, they may have a technical representative with expertise in the subject matter.