Negometrix knows that transitioning to a new way of submitting bids can be a daunting task, but we are always here to help. This supplier guide will go through the basic steps of submitting an offer through Negometrix3.


Participate in a Solicitation

There are two ways you can get access to a solicitation:

  1. Published Solicitations:

    1. Navigate to the Published Solicitations page on the right-hand menu and find your desired solicitation.

    2. Use the search bar on the upper right part of your screen to enter the name of the buying organization, the solicitation registration number on our platform (if known) or the title of the published solicitation. 

    3. Click on the solicitation.

    4. If you would like to participate in the solicitation after reading the summary, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the blue Participate button.

    5. Now the solicitation is added to the list of solicitations you are participating in, which you can access under the Solicitations (Supplier) page in your right-hand menu.

  2. Private Solicitations:

    In some cases (e.g. a private procurement procedure) a solicitation is not publicly published or the Participate button is not shown. In this case, the buyer will have to personally invite you as a participant in the solicitation.

    1.  If the buyer has invited you, you should receive an email, asking you to accept the invitation by clicking the link.

      • The invitation link is personal, so if you try to open a link that was addressed to someone else (a colleague), an error message will pop up in your screen.

    2.  Once you have accepted the invitation, the solicitation will be added to the list of solicitations you are participating in. You can access this list by clicking on Solicitations (Supplier) in the right hand menu.

Submit an offer

  1. After logging in, navigate to the Solicitations (Supplier) page on the right-hand menu.
  2. Click on the solicitation you want to fill out.
    • On the solicitation page, you will see a unique solicitation number, the name of the solicitation, and the "phase" of the solicitation.
    • Directly below, you will see three tabs: (1) Information, (2) Fill out & submit, (3) Submitted. These will help guide you throughout the solicitation process.


We will breakdown the submission process into three steps:

  1. Start your offer.

  2. Fill out survey(s) and pricing sheet(s).

  3. Submit your offer.



Step 1: Start your offer

  1. Once you have clicked on the solicitation, you are automatically directed to the first tab, Information.
  2. Scroll down to view various parts of the solicitation: schedule, questions & answers, documents, pricing sheet, and questionnaire.
  3. If you want to add a colleague, click the add colleague/colleague overview button on the bottom left of the screen.
  4. If you want to proceed with this solicitation after reviewing the information, click the blue Start button on the right side of your screen.
    • You will be guided to the second tab, Fill out & submit.


Step 2: Fill out questionnaires and pricing sheet(s)

  1. In the Fill out & submit tab, click on the pricing sheet or the questionnaire (not every solicitation will look the same).
  2. If you click on the questionnaire, a pop-up window appears with question groups. If you click on a question group, you can start to fill out your answers. Filling out a questionnaire is how you show a buyer that you meet the listed requirements.
  3. Click Interim save after filling out one or more answers. The progress bar in the window will show how many questions are filled/not filled. 
  4. To fill out the pricing sheet, click on the name of the pricing sheet.
  5. Click fill out prices. Enter in the prices for each good/service.
  6. If you want to upload a document to supplement the pricing sheet, click the Upload from my PC button and select the file.


Every question is introduced using the letter Q: 

Depending on whether the buyer has enabled the options, the platform indicates weather the question is a Knock Out (KO) question (non-responsive), whether the question has a weight attached to it and, if it has to be evaluated, which evaluation method will be applied.

Each question is followed by the letter A: introducing the possibility for you to answer to the question.


Upload attachments to your answers:

To answer all questions it might be necessary to upload an attachment to your answer. You can link an attachment by clicking Select from Documents or Upload from my PC. If you choose Select from Documents you are able to select a document that is already uploaded to Negometrix under My Documents. If you want to upload a document from your own computer, choose the option Upload from my PC. Then select the  document from your computer and click Open. The document will be linked to the question. Do not forget to save your answers using the Interim save button. 


Step 3: Submit your offer

  1. Once all the information has been filled out, the progress bars should be completely green, showing 100% filled.
  2. To submit your offer, you can click the blue Submit button towards the right side of the page.
    • Once you submit your offer, it will be in the digital vault and you cannot edit it anymore.
  3. You will be asked to enter the account password, which serves as the electronic signature.
  4. In the third tab Submitted, you can check if your offer is successfully submitted. 
  5. Shortly, you will receive an email that notifies you of a successful submission.


The submitted offer will be visible for the buyer only after the expiry of the deadline of the selection or offer phase.


Important

The Submitted tab shows the time and date of your formal submission. If you want to adjust/edit one or more of your answers, it is possible to Unsubmit your offer if the submission deadline has not passed. After changing the answer(s) you have to submit your offer again before the deadline.


Lots:

If the solicitation includes (multiple) lots, you need to follow the steps explained above above explained in this document for each lot. Next to the main solicitation, you should complete the following steps per lot:

  1. Start your offer.

  2. Fill out questionnair(s) and pricing sheet(s).

  3. Submit your offer.

Note: adding colleagues, changing the primary supplier contact or submitting the lot, should also be done per lot.


Communication:

All communication concerning the solicitation must be done through the Messages button that can be found in the Information tab of the solicitation. To send a message, open Messages and click New message at the top left of the page. Then, select the recipient. Fill out the subject, write your message and press Send.


Question & Answer:

The buyer can allow you to submit questions and comments concerning the solicitation itself. It is the responsibility of the buyer to inform you about the rules for submitting questions. 


Option 1. Question & Answers module: the questions and comments should be delivered through an integrated module. You can approach this module in the following two ways:

  • Open the first tab Information and click on Question & Answer.

  • If you are working in the second tab Fill out & submit, at each question there is an option to click Pose a question to the buyer.

  • When you click this button, a new window will ask you to fill out the question details and will automatically be linked to the related item in the questionnaire.


The answers will be provided by the buyer when they choose to publish all of the questions and answers. It’s also possible to open a list of all questions and answers by clicking on the module Question & Answer.


Liability and support:

The vendor is responsible for the timely and complete submission of the solicitation. The risk of system and internet failure is for the vendor. Neither the client/buyer nor Negometrix will be liable for any mistakes made by the supplier in the information submitted through the Negometrix software platform.



Feel free to contact our service desk with any questions, free of charge:

Email: [email protected]

Phone: (724) 888-5294

Hours: Mon-Fri; 7am - 6pm EST