Procurement FAQ
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Procurement Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
• Where can I obtain an Authorized Buyers list?
• Can I be added as an Authorized Buyer?
• Where can I find the e-SCRIBE report template?
• How can I obtain an account on Biddingo.com?
• How many individuals should there be on the RFP evaluation committee?
• When can a Purchase Order (PO) be used as an Agreement?
• How will approvals be directed if my Manager or Director is away?
• Given the current Covid-19 situation, what are the procedures for conducting a pre-bid site meeting?
• What is the process for receiving hard copy bids during Covid-19?
• What is the process for receiving bid securities during Covid-19?
• Why do bids received electronically require the PDF to be password protected?
• What is the process for public tender openings during Covid-19?
• What is the process for receiving CCDC Agreements from successful bidders during Covid-19?
• What is the procedure for signing agreements and change orders (revision documents)?
Q: Where can I obtain an Authorized Buyers list?
A: Authorized Buyers lists can be obtained from your division’s Director or the Finance business unit (Procurement Services).
Q: Can I be added as an Authorized Buyer?
A: Authorized Buyers must be approved by your division’s Director. Requests to be added to the Authorized Buyers list is done in consultation with your Director and TRCA’s Finance business unit.
Q: Where can I find the e-SCRIBE report template?
A: e-SCRIBE report templates are available within e-SCRIBE, and in-camera PowerPoint presentation templates are available on the Clerk’s Office hub space.
Q: Sometimes the templates in the Procurement and Agreement Management Database are not applicable. Can changes be made to templates?
A: Certain template sections can be adjusted to suit particular procurement requirements, but standard terms and conditions should not be changed without review and approval from legal services.
Q: When issuing an addendum, can I change the wording of the question or do I have to reference it word for word?
A: Questions received from proponents can be revised for clarification and grammatical purposes ensuring that the changes do not cause misinterpretation.
Q: For purchases over $100,000, am I required to post the procurement opportunity publicly via Biddingo.com? Can I invite selected vendors to bid?
A: Purchases over $100,000 require bids to be obtained through an open competitive procurement process, publicly advertised via Biddingo.com. Bidders can also be invited to participate by following the instructions on Biddingo.com during the bid creation process.
Q: How can I obtain an account on Biddingo.com?
A: Please contact Procurement Services (Lisa Moore) to request a Biddingo account.
Q: How many individuals should there be on the RFP evaluation committee?
A: An evaluation committee must be comprised of a minimum of three members and may include internal or external members/subject matter experts.
Q: A proponent has requested an adjustment to the insurance amount requested in the solicitation documents. Who is responsible for determining the insurance amount applicable to the project?
A: Procurement templates include standard insurance types and limits that can only be revised on a case by case basis with approval by Risk Management.
Q: When can a Purchase Order (PO) be used as an Agreement?
A: Generally, a PO can be used as an Agreement for low-dollar and/or low-risk purchases. A procurement process must be initiated in order to use the PO as the Agreement. The terms and conditions tab of the PO must be completed with any additional information required and duly signed to bind TRCA and the vendor.
Any time a PO is used as the agreement, approval is required from Procurement and Legal Services to confirm whether it can be used for the specific goods and/or services.
Q: I will be setting up several multi-facility/multi-year contracts over the next month. What is the best way to proceed for multi-year contracts that require individual site billing and POs?
A: A regular PO must be created first and once approved an option to create a child PO will become available. A regular PO automatically becomes a parent PO after creating a child PO.
Q: How will approvals be directed if my Manager or Director is away?
A: Manager approvals will be directed upwards in the hierarchy to the Director.
In some cases, a request to redirect approval from one Manger to another Manager within the same division may be facilitated by submitting a request to procurement services.
If a Director is away, approval will have to wait for their return. If the approval from an absent Director is urgent, the approval will be directed to the CEO or CFOO.
Delegation downwards to another employee is not permitted.
Q: Given the current Covid-19 situation what are the procedures for conducting a pre-bid site meeting?
A: An alternative to conducting in-person pre-bid site meetings can be to provide site photos with the solicitation documents.
If a pre-bid site meeting is necessary, the following should be considered:
- A maximum of one person for each vendor should be in attendance and all attendees must uphold social distancing measures (i.e. a minimum of two metres from one another).
- No handshakes or business cards should be exchanged.
- Attendance should be taken verbally and recorded by the TRCA procurement lead.
Please refer to the memo circulated to TRCA staff on May 1, 2020 for Safe Work Procedures for Site Visits. You can also reach out to TRCA’s Health & Safety Specialists Don.Duong@trca.ca or Zarah.Hafid@trca.ca for further information.
Q: What is the process for receiving hard copy bids during Covid-19?
A: All bids should be received electronically via Biddingo.com or e-mail.
Bids over $100,000 are open competitive procurements and must be posted and received via Biddingo.com.
For procurements under $100,000, bids may be posted and received via email, but only if a bid bond is not required.
All procurement solicitation documents have been updated accordingly and are available in the Procurement and Agreement Management Database.
Q: What is the process for receiving bid securities during Covid-19?
A: During Covid-19, the bid security must be in form of a digital bid bond. Scanned copies of certified cheques will not be accepted.
Alternatively, a digital letter of credit is an acceptable form of bid security if all details and signatures are clear. The original hard copy must be mailed to the attention of the Procurement lead to TRCA’s head office, and will only be opened after 14 days. The letter of credit must be from a bank and not a legal firm.
Q: Why do bids received electronically required the PDF to be password protected?
A: Password protected PDFs safeguard the vendor by ensuring TRCA does not have access to alter the bid. Should a non-password protected PDF bid be received then that risk is borne by the vendor and TRCA can still accept the submission.
Q: What is the process for public tender openings during Covid-19?
A: In lieu of public tender bid openings, vendors who submitted bids should be sent unofficial bid results via email.
An updated tender opening template can be found in the Procurement and Agreement Management database.
In order to keep the procurement team informed, please copy procurement@trca.ca on bid result e-mails.
Q: What is the process for receiving CCDC Agreements from successful bidders during Covid-19?
A: Hard copy CCDC agreements should be sent via courier or regular mail to TRCA’s Head Office.
Electronic signing should be conducted as follows:
- Finalize the CCDC agreement and send it to the ASO for signature through the database.
- After the ASO has signed the agreement send it electronically via e-mail to the vendor.
- The vendor should print the agreement, sign it, and place the required CCDC sticker on the hard copy document.
- The vendor should send the hard copy agreement (with signature and CCDC sticker) to TRCA’s head office via courier or regular mail. TRCA’s head office currently has protocols in place for receiving mail during COVID-19.
- The vendor may also choose to scan the hard copy agreement before mailing and email it to the procurement lead in order to have a copy on file while waiting for the hard copy to arrive.
Q: What is the procedure for signing agreements and change orders (revision documents)?
A: All agreements and revisions that require TRCA signature must be submitted through the procurement and agreement database and not via email.
Please see the Signing Officers Policy for delegation of signing authority.