Tendering is the process used by Ambition North Wales to invite suppliers to supply goods or services to us.

Ambition North Wales tenders for any goods, services or works which total over £50,000. The aim is to create an effective, fair and transparent competition between companies to ensure value for money for Cyngor Gwynedd (our host local authority) and the taxpayer.

The most popular tendering procedures we use, are as follows:

  • The open procedure is when any supplier can tender for work without going through a pre-qualifying procedure. It is usually used where there are limited suppliers within the market or where the level of risk is low.
  • The restricted procedure requires suppliers to complete a Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ) before they are allowed to tender for high risk.

Purchasing

Purchasing decisions are complex and are not always based solely on price. For example, when purchasing goods and services, we would consider:

  • ‘fit for purpose’ (quality and suitably for the task)
  • delivery and availability against price
  • cost of ownership
  • whole life cycle costs, including spare parts, maintenance and projected down time
  • on-costs, such as transport and storage
  • the cost of procurement itself
  • sustainability, environmental and corporate social responsibility

Rules

As goods and services are paid for with public funds, there are rules in place to ensure a high level of transparency at all stages of the procurement process. Broadly speaking the rules fall into five groups:

  1. European procurement directives
  2. Contract and procurement rules of the council
  3. UK legislation
  4. Policy decisions of the counci
  5. Financial regulations of the council