In accordance with current legislation, the main way to satisfy government needs in the field of supply of required goods, works, and services is government procurement. An order for government procurement is placed in two ways: competitive (through bidding) and non-competitive (without bidding).
The competitive form of ordering comes down to the selection of suppliers according to pre-selected criteria. The main principle of public procurement in this case is equal competitive participation. The government contract is concluded with the winner who meets the requirements of the customer’s documentation and offers the most favorable terms of the contract.
Types of bidding under 44 Federal Laws
Law No. identifies the following forms of bidding:
- contest
- auction
- request
- quotes
- request for proposals
- two-stage competition
Contest
Competition, as a method of public procurement, is used to determine the supplier for complex, expensive supplies. The winner of the competition is determined based on several criteria, including quality, price, and successful experience in similar deliveries.
Auction
An auction differs from a competition in that the main criterion for choosing a supplier is price. The government contract is concluded with the participant who put forward the lowest cost of supplies.
Both in the case of a competition and in the case of an auction, the customer places an application for a government order in the relevant trading systems describing the requirements for the supplied goods, works, and services, and within a specified period accepts applications from participants. Applications sent within the deadlines and drawn up taking into account the stated requirements are allowed to bid. After the agreed date, the acceptance of proposals ceases and consideration of the received proposals begins.
Electronic auction
These types of auctions can also be conducted electronically through specialized trading platforms. This method is gaining increasing popularity, as it significantly simplifies the government procurement procedure and is accessible to a wide range of participants and other interested parties. To participate in electronic trading, the supplier must be accredited on the relevant site and have an electronic digital signature.
Request for quotation
A peculiarity of this method of bidding, such as a request for quotations, is that the customer, through a unified information system and electronic communication channels, sends an application for concluding a government contract to an unlimited number of persons. The contract is concluded with the supplier who offers the lowest price.
Request for proposals
Request for proposals is a competitive method of public procurement, in which the customer informs potential suppliers about existing needs and invites them to submit appropriate applications.
It should be noted that the last two methods of bidding are carried out only in certain cases, subject to established restrictions on the contract amount, types of purchased goods, works, services, and taking into account other conditions.
Subtypes of trading procedures
In business practice, other methods of classifying trades are also accepted. Thus, depending on the methods of attracting participants, open, closed and limited participation tenders are distinguished. Open tenders are usually held electronically, and anyone can take part in them. An open procedure is necessary to attract the maximum number of participants.
In some cases, the customer may set certain requirements for the supplier’s qualifications - the presence of the necessary experience, licenses, approvals, membership in specialized self-regulatory organizations. This form of identifying a supplier is a tender with limited participation and is intended to exclude participants who do not meet the stated criteria.
Closed form of bidding is carried out mainly in relation to government procurement that constitutes a state secret. A limited number of companies that have received an invitation from the customer are allowed to participate in the procedure.
The notice must contain:
- Electronic platform website address
- Closing date for consideration of applications
- Date of auction (working day only)
- Application security amount
- Benefits for suppliers, such as small businesses
- Requirements for the supplier of goods, work, services
- Comprehensive list of documents
- Restrictions for foreign goods and legal entities
The documentation must contain:
- Name and description of the purchase
- Description of the terms of the contract, signing period
- Requirements for a participant's application
- Expiration dates for submission, consideration of applications and holding of a trading session
- Amount and terms of contract security
- Information about the responsible person of the customer, contact details
- The procedure for the customer to explain the provisions of the documentation
- Draft contract
The documentation cannot contain requirements for the design and form of the application.
Request for clarification on the electronic auction under 44-FZ
If you find errors, contradictions or inaccuracies in the documentation, then no later than 3 days before the deadline for submitting applications, you can submit a free-form request for clarification of the provisions of the auction documentation in the form of a file signed with an electronic signature on the trading platform.
Otherwise, the customer is obliged to make changes to the documentation, publish new editions and reset the deadline for submitting applications. This is common, so don't be afraid to ask questions, especially since it's anonymous.
If the response to a request for clarification is not complete or formal, submit your request again. You can send three requests for one auction under Federal Law-44. Clarifications should not change the essence of the documentation or contradict it.
Application for an electronic auction under 44-FZ
To participate in the auction under 44-FZ, you need to submit an application and attach documents in your personal account on the electronic platform.
The electronic auction under 44-FZ is structured in such a way that the participant first contributes security for the application, then the contract (in case of victory).
If you do not conduct a thorough analysis and miscalculation of the purchase, you can lose money and end up on the register of unscrupulous suppliers. Therefore, study the documentation well.
Securing the application of an electronic auction participant under 44-FZ
The customer is obliged to establish security for the application under 44-FZ. In an electronic auction it can only be monetary.
How does the electronic auction work under 44-FZ?
On the first working day after the expiration of 2 days from the date of consideration of 1 part of the applications, the trading platform conducts an electronic auction under 44-FZ (trading session). The procedure is given in Article 68 of Federal Law-44.
The electronic auction begins on a business day according to the local time (time zone) of the customer. According to the supplier's time, this could be early in the morning or late at night and cover the weekend.
On average, an electronic auction under 44-FZ lasts from 1-2 hours. Sometimes trading lasts for 10 hours or more.
The auction under Federal Law 44 is held by reducing the starting price. The acceptable range of price reduction is called the auction step. The minimum step is 0.5%, and the maximum is 5%.
The time for submitting the next price proposal is 10 minutes, so if you have experience and steely nerves, you will have time to be distracted by a cup of coffee, and your competitors will be nervous.
Sometimes it happens that participants in the electronic auction 44-FZ want to get a contract at any cost. If the price drops to 0.5% of the maximum, then bidding begins to increase the price for the right to enter into contact with the customer. That is, the winner will also pay the customer himself (and this is legal and is not considered bribery).
The limit of such generosity is limited to 100 million rubles.
A similar calculation is used by bidders for design and development of technical specifications, when the winner plans to win at the second stage and earn much more than they invested.
After 10 minutes have passed from the last offer, the trading session... continues! Other participants can improve their offers and bring them closer to or equal to the winning price.
Additional submission in the electronic auction under 44-FZ lasts for another 10 minutes after the last offer is received.
The electronic trading platform publishes the protocol of the auction within half an hour from the moment of its completion. Then, within an hour, the operator of the electronic platform sends the second parts of the applications to the customer for consideration.
Before the expiration of the 7-day period, the customer must review them and publish a summary protocol.
Conclusion of a contract based on the results of an electronic auction under 44-FZ
The contract can be concluded no earlier than 10 days from the date of publication of the summary protocol.
Within 5 days from the date of publication of the protocol, the customer sends the winner a draft contract via an electronic platform for signing. The winner has 5 days to sign and post security.
If disagreements arise regarding the project, a protocol of disagreements is sent to the customer. The customer has 3 working days to review the protocol of disagreements and send a revised or original draft contract describing the reasons for the refusal (without his signature).
The participant signs a government contract within 3 working days. The customer then places his signed and concluded contract within 3 business days. Therefore, disputes may take 9 business days to resolve.
Providing an electronic auction contract under 44-FZ
The contract is secured in cash or by providing a bank guarantee. The bank must be from the register of the Ministry of Finance, and the guarantee itself must be published on the official website in the register of bank guarantees. The validity period of the bank guarantee must be 1 month longer than the contract term.
Recognition of an electronic participant under 44-FZ as having evaded signing a contract
The auction winner is recognized as having evaded and loses the contract, security, and bank guarantee if:
- Did not submit the signed contract within the established time frame
- Sent a protocol of disagreements after 13 days from the date of the final protocol
The customer has the right to recover losses through the court that are not covered by the security amount.
Many companies that almost reach the finish line quit the race for several reasons:
- They sober up and realize that they got carried away with the price of victory and will not honor the government contract
- They cannot purchase goods at the estimated price or carry out the purchase due to the supplier’s refusal
- They cannot find money to secure the contract and obtain a bank guarantee
- Gray bank guarantees are rejected by the customer after checking the register
In 2016, more than 4,800 procurement participants under 44-FZ were included in the register of unscrupulous suppliers, and other companies took their places on the pedestal.
Electronic auction timing calculator under 44-FZ
The auction timing calculator under 44-FZ in the form of a table allows you to calculate the timing of each stage.
Auction stage Term Countdown stage Application deadline Posting a notice Securing the application Simultaneously Submitting an application on the site Decision to amend the auction notice 2 days before Application deadline Posting changes to the notice 1 day after Making a decision to change the notice Extension of filing deadline when changes are made 15 days (7 days - up to 3 million) after Making changes to the notice Request clarification of documentation 3 days before Application deadline Posting a clarification 2 days after Receipt of a request for clarification 7 days after Application deadline Conducting an auction 2 days after Review of the first parts of applications Auction protocol 30 minutes after End of auction Consideration of the second parts of applications 3 working days after Auction protocol Debriefing protocol 1 business day after Signing the protocol of consideration of the second parts Posting a draft contract 5 days after Debriefing protocol Signing of the draft contract by the winner 5 days after Placing a contract Posting of the protocol of disagreements by the winner 13 days after Debriefing protocol Review of the protocol of disagreements by the customer, finalized draft contract 3 working days after Posting a protocol of disagreements 3 working days after Posting a revised draft contract Placing the signed contract by the customer 3 working days after Signing of the finalized draft contract by the winner Contract security Simultaneously Signing of the draft contract Conclusion of a contract 10 days after Debriefing protocol Assistance in electronic auction under 44-FZ
In this article, we touched upon only some of the procedural and practical aspects of conducting auctions in electronic form. We are ready to provide any
After confirmation of accreditation, you must open a special bank account. Funds are transferred to it to secure the auction application.
The amount of security for each auction is set by the customer in the range from 0.5% to 5% of the initial contract price. In case of winning and cancellation of the contract, these funds are retained and transferred to the customer. Until the electronic auction takes place, this money will be blocked.
If you do not win, the security will be returned within 5 business days. If you win, the application security will also be returned, but after the contract security has been deposited and it has been signed.
Step 5. Submitting an application for the auction
An application for an auction can be submitted if funds to secure it have been credited to your personal account.
- An electronic auction on the site is searched by registration number
- Application forms are filled out in your personal account, documents are uploaded
- Each file and final application form is signed with an electronic signature
After submission, each application is assigned a serial number. On some sites it corresponds to the number of applications submitted, and you can use it to determine how many participants there are. If there are any doubts about the correctness of the documents, the application can be withdrawn and resubmitted. It will be assigned a new serial number.
Step 6. Review of the first parts of applications
The customer's auction commission reviews the first parts of applications within 7 days and makes a decision: to admit to electronic trading or to reject. The name of the company in the first part is kept secret until the second parts are reviewed.
Based on the results of consideration, a protocol with application numbers and a decision on admission is published on the site. The names of the companies remain hidden.
Step 7. Participation in the electronic auction
If you are admitted to the bidding procedure, it is important not to miss the time of the electronic auction. Usually this is the third working day after the publication of the admission protocol.
There may be confusion with time zones. The auction can take place early in the morning or at night and last for hours. You need reliable Internet and a backup channel, an uninterruptible power supply or laptop (and charger!), checking the functionality of the digital signature.
There are many more overlaps than you can imagine.
How the auction is conducted. When a trading session opens on the site, participants can submit price offers. The auction step is from 0.5 to 5% of the initial contract price. Time to submit a proposal – 10 minutes. After each new bet, 10 minutes are counted anew.
You always have 10 minutes to decide on a new bet.
You can have time to drink a cup of coffee, make and agree on a decision. After ten minutes have passed since the last bid, the main auction ends. The first place is taken by the offer with the minimum price. But that is not all.
The second part of the trading session begins, where any participant can place a price outside the auction step and take second place.
You have 10 minutes for this. If the bid of the auction winner for the second parts is rejected, the contract will be signed with the next participant in line. Additional submission in an electronic auction is an important step that increases the likelihood of winning.
1. What is an electronic auction, concept
The wording on electronic trading can be read in article number 44, in part 59. An auction that takes place in electronic format is one of the types of auctions in which data on upcoming auctions is announced to a wide audience by posting information about its implementation in the Unified Information System. Notification about the implementation of this type of purchase imposes uniform conditions on all members of the auction. This auction is carried out by the ETP operator.
In other words, we can say that:
An auction held on a web resource is a certain type of bidding conducted by an ETP operator on a site on the Internet. The winner of this auction is the bidder who offered the minimum total contract value during the auction. This is regulated by 44-FZ in its articles 59-71.
2. Requirements for participants in an electronic auction under 44-FZ from July 1, 2018
Based on the requirements of paragraph 4 of Article 3 in 44-FZ, any legal entity, regardless of the form of ownership, place of actual residence or origin of monetary capital (with the exception of persons who were registered in an offshore zone) or an individual, can take part in the auction. person, as well as individual entrepreneur.
The requirements are regulated by parts 1.1, 2 and 2.1 in Article 1, as well as Article 31 in 44-FZ.
If we talk exclusively about the expected changes, it can be noted that preferential conditions for participation in auctions for medium and small enterprises will no longer be a given, but holding any forms of auctions, except for a number of exceptions, will be possible only in electronic form and only on ETP, which will be approved by Government, the list of sites remains the same. You can read more about the changes in our article
Having trouble participating in auctions?
Conclude profitable contracts as the only supplier, directly without participating in tenders!
3. Algorithm of actions when conducting an electronic auction for the customer
Step 1- The process of preparing for the auction in electronic form
The customer organizes and plans the future purchase, collects a commission for the auction, and draws up a commission regulation.
Step 2- The process of preparing documentation for the auction in electronic form.
The customer develops documents about the auction (NMCC, terms of reference, instructions, general regulations, etc.)
Here the customer must place an advertisement in the Unified Information System, on the web resource www.zakupki.gov.ru, notices and related documentation.
Review of the first parts of applications and drawing up a review protocol.
Review of the second parts of applications reveals the winner. Draws up a protocol of results.
Below we will take a closer look at the actions of each of the procurement parties.
Subscribe and work with advance payment from the customer, do not freeze your funds!
4. Actions of the competitor during the electronic auction
Step 1- Obtaining digital signature
In order to participate in the auction, which is held in electronic format, as well as to undergo accreditation at the selected ETP, the performer must have. If you need to issue such a signature, you can obtain it.
Step 2- Accreditation for ETP
Step 3- Search for information about an auction held electronically
The contractor searches for a suitable notice on the official EIS website, and then saves the information to his PC. Information can also be obtained on the electronic platform itself.
Step 4- Study of auction documents
Studying information about the auction and making a decision: to participate or not. If the decision is positive, proceed to the next step.
Step 5- Sending capital to the trading platform
At this stage, it is necessary to deposit an n-amount into the electronic account of the site. This is done to ensure participation in the selected auction. When the money arrives in the account, the contractor pays for the application.
Please note that for NMCC up to 3 million rubles, the amount of security is 1% of the NMCC.
For NMCC over 3 million rubles, the amount of security varies from 0.5% - 5% of the NMCC.
SMP, systems of criminal executive power, disabled organizations and non-profit socially oriented organizations contribute security in the amount of no more than 2% of the NMCC.
Step 6- Application
This is one of the main stages; the contractor prepares his application, which should consist of two parts, attaches additional documents to it, carries out certification with an electronic seal and sends all the collected data to the ETP operator. As soon as the application is submitted, the capital required to secure the application is blocked by the system. You can get help with paperwork.
Step 7- Participation in auctions.
After the application reaches the customer, it is selected and checked to ensure that all requirements are met. If the application is drawn up correctly and correctly, then it participates in the auction. The Contractor must set the day on which the price proposal will be submitted. We will talk about this in more detail below.
For a guaranteed result in tender procurement, you can seek advice from the experts of the Entrepreneurship Support Center. If your organization is a small business, you can get a number of advantages: advance payments for government contracts, short payment terms, conclusion of direct contracts and subcontracts without a tender. and work only under profitable contracts with minimal competition!
