Participation in Simplified Procurement

To win Prozorro tenders, a supplier of goods, services, or works first needs to learn how to participate in them – start using the tool of victory.

 

What Is Simplified Procurement?

According to the Law of Ukraine "On Public Procurement", a simplified procurement is a procedure for the customer to acquire a procurement item worth from UAH 0.01 to UAH 200,000 – for goods or services, and from UAH 0.01 to UAH 1,500,000 – for works.

 

Any supplier capable of offering a subject of procurement with the necessary characteristics can participate in this type of tender.

 

Participation in a Simplified Purchase on the SmartTender.biz Platform

You can master the algorithm for participating in simplified tenders with the help of our simple instructions.

 

Step #1 – Login into Your Account

To participate in simplified bidding, please log in to your SmartTender.biz account.

 

Click the "Login" button in the upper right corner of the page. Enter the data in the form and click the "Login" button (Fig. 1) or select "Authorize with QES/AES" or "Authorize with EHealth".

 

Fig. 1

 

If you don't have an account, you can create one by following our simple Prozorro registration guide.

 

Step #2 – Search for a Suitable Tender

Go to the public procurement section of the SmartTender e-commerce platform. To do this, click on the corresponding item of the main menu on the main page of the site or in the drop-down menu (Fig. 2).

 

Fig. 2

 

Among the filters located on the left, select "Simplified procurement" from the "Trading type" list (Fig. 3).

 

Fig. 3

 

To find a suitable tender, you can enter the name of the desired procurement item (for example, sugar), the USREOU code of the organizer, or the procedure code directly in the search bar (Fig. 4).

 

For better results, use the other filters on the left. Then a smart search will return the most relevant results.

 

Fig. 4

 

Step #3 – Tender Documentation

If you have found a purchase that suits you, you can proceed immediately to apply for participation in the auction. However, before doing so, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with the detailed information about the purchase to know which documents are required by the auction organizer. This can be done by clicking on the name of the purchase (Fig. 5).

 

Fig. 5

 

A page with detailed information about the tender will open on the screen. In particular, tender documentation is located here – the most important procurement information that every Prozorro supplier needs. All the customer requirements are here.

 

You can download the tender documentation for detailed reading by clicking on the appropriate marks opposite the file names or the "Download all files" button (Fig. 6).

 

Fig. 6

 

Step #4 – Clarification

At the "Clarification" stage, suppliers can ask questions about the terms of the purchase (qualification requirements for the supplier or the subject of the purchase). The organizer responds to the suppliers and may make changes to the procurement conditions until the end of the clarification period.

 

If you want to ask the customer a question about the conditions of the tender documentation, click on the tab "Questions" – "Ask a question" (Fig. 7).

 

Fig. 7

 

You can also file a claim to remedy the violation if you find discriminatory requirements in the terms of purchase. To do this, go to the tab "Requirements/complaints about procurement conditions" and click "Submit a claim" (Fig. 8).

 

Fig. 8

 

If necessary, you can order a free legal consultation or full legal support from SmartTender specialists. To do this, click the "Legal assistance" button on the page of detailed information about the tender (Fig. 9).

 

Fig. 9

 

Step #5 – Submitting an Application for Participation

Please note that participation in public procurement is paid for by suppliers (Prozorro tariffs). Therefore, you first need to top up your balance by clicking the "Create Account" button (Fig. 10).

 

Fig. 10

 

Read more about how to pay for participation in the auction in our instructions for topping up the Prozorro balance.

 

After the end of the "Clarification" stage, the procurement procedure moves to the "Acceptance of offers" stage. To participate in the procurement, click the "Submit an offer" button and go to the offer submission page (Fig. 11). This can also be done right away on the bid search page (Fig. 12).

Fig. 11

 

Fig. 12

 

The offer submission page will open on the screen. First of all, download the necessary documents by clicking the "Choose files" button. Their content and design must meet the requirements specified by the procurement organizer in the tender documentation (Fig. 13).

 

Please note: The file size must not exceed 49 MB.

 

Fig. 13

 

You can add the following types of documents:

1. 1. Technical specifications – a detailed description of the qualitative, quantitative, and technical characteristics of the subject of purchase.
   2. Documents that confirm the qualification – compliance of the supplier with the qualification criteria established in the tender documentation.
   3. Price offer – the price provided by the supplier for the entire volume of the purchase.
   4. Cost estimate – calculation of the cost of production of goods, a provision of services, or performance of works, by the requirements of the tender.
   5. Documents that confirm the compliance – the documentation that shows that the customer has no reason to reject the offer.

 

Please note: The ability to upload/replace documents is available only at the "Acceptance of offers" stage.

After downloading the documents, you can sign them with the QES/AES. To do this, click "Signing QES/AES files" (Fig. 14), select the required files, and click "Sign selected".

 

Fig. 14

 

After that, a pop-up window of QES/AES overlay will appear on the screen (Fig. 15). Download the signature file, enter the key protection password, and click the “Sign” button.

 

Fig. 15

 

Next, enter your price offer for the purchased item in the appropriate field (Fig. 16).

 

Fig. 16

 

Please note: The price offer should not exceed the expected purchase price specified by the organizer in the tender announcement.

 

After completing all the steps, you can submit an offer. To do this, click the "Submit an offer" button at the bottom of the page (Fig. 17).

 

Fig. 17

 

Your proposal will be saved as a draft. To activate the offer, it is necessary to impose a QES/AES, because without imposing a QES/AES it will be invalid. Specify the key type, select the signature file, write the password to it and click the "Sign" button (Fig. 18).

 

Fig. 18

 

After the successful submission of the offer, the message "Offer submitted and signed by QES/AES" will appear on the screen, and the status of the offer will change to "Offer submitted. The proposal is signed by QES/AES" (Fig. 19).

Fig. 19

 

Please note! Non-resident suppliers can submit and amend the offer without the imposition of QES/AES. In this case, after submitting the offer, the message "Offer submitted" will appear.

 

Editing an Offer

If you want to make changes to the offer you have submitted, you can do so before the end of the "Accepting offers" stage.

 

Reactivate the offer after making changes by clicking the "Send offer" or "Send" button (Fig. 20).

 

Fig. 20

 

In the pop-up window, re-impose the QES/AES on your changed proposal. The offer status should become "Offer submitted. The proposal is signed by QES/AES".

 

The counter on the procedure page will show when the auction for your purchase will take place (Fig. 21).

 

Fig. 21

 

Find interesting tenders, apply for participation and win in public procurement with SmartTender!