Grid Quotation (RFQ, RFP) Creation

Grid quotation (RFQ, RFP) creation

To collect pricing from the project team and/or from suppliers (RFQ’s) you can create a price grid. For the ease of use, the grids can also be created offline and then imported onto the platform via Import Structure function.

Grids (RFQ, RFP) can be created in following phases:

Internal:Definition of demand, Demand aggregation

External:Sourcing, RFP and Re-negotiation.

Grid creation

To create a grid, click,<the corresponding icon>and follow the instructions in Questionnaire creation. Please note that you will have the possibility to for interaction with the product database and further, synchronization with Contract Management.

Define number of sheets

After having given a name to your grid, click<the corresponding icon>in the column Actions to work in the grid editor: First, it is important to know if you would like to create a quotation grid with more than one sheet (like an Excel File that contains different sheets/tabs) or just one. In case you need more than one, please note the following information:

• Each sheet must have the same number of lines; one line across the sheets corresponds to the same article/product.
• When you create lines, the lines are created on all sheets.

• When you delete lines, the lines are deleted on all sheets.

• You can create formulas across the sheets (on line level).

In order to add more sheets click <the corresponding icon>. On the next page, you can create new sheets from scratch or copy existing ones:

• To edit the current sheet, click Edit yellow file icon
• To copy the current sheet, click Copy icon(it copies the whole structure of that sheet in case it has been already defined, that means columns and lines)
• To create additional sheets, click<the corresponding icon> and enter name
• Do not forget to save the name by clicking in the column Actions.

When finished, click<the corresponding icon>icon. You are then back on the grid editor and you can now see the two sheets:

Create your grid structure: columns

After you have decided whether to work with one or multiple sheets, you then need to setup the structure of your grid. Structuring the grids is to insert the columns and then the line items. To insert a new column, click <the corresponding icon> and insert the required number of columns in the popup window: After the columns have been inserted, you need to name and define their type. The definition of the column properties is important. You have the following choices: Column Total: you can select this option only for number, price and formula columns. A new line titled TotalItalic text will be added automatically at the end of the grid (the total will be displayed to the project team and supplier side).

Do not forget to click <the corresponding icon> in order to save your settings.

You can set the number of characters accepted by a field form your grid that has Text set as Layout / Type by clicking the preference button and then editing the “Max. number of characters” (you can set it between 1 and 4000; 250 being the default value).

Create formulas

Columns that have formulas inserted need further definition:

• In order to edit a formula, click the tool icon in Preferences.

Formulas can be computed from other tender elements in the same project. Formulas can be computed from other tabs in selected tender element.

• Select field/column element, all columns defined as number, price or formula can be selected. To insert e.g. Volume, select from the list and click<the corresponding icon>

Formulas can still be calculated even if supplier does not fill all elements of formula.

• Any calculations can be made using the operators and selecting the column element in step 2. i.e. <Volume <Supplier price>.
• Select another column, e.g. Unit Price, click . To finish, click on the bottom of the page.

In the grid editor, you will see the formula you just have defined. Do not forget to click:<the corresponding icon> In case you would like to modify the formula, click again on the tool icon . Inside the formula editor, use the icon to delete the current formula and start from scratch. You can create the following formulas:

1. between the sheets of a grid (on line level)
2. between questionnaire and grids

You cannot create formulas between grids.

Add images

In order to add images to a grid you must select the “Image” option from the drop-down menu under Type. The column will be recognized as a Document type as you will have to upload an image file. To upload / attach an image please follow the instructions below: After the upload of the images has been done, you will be able to priview the picture by clicking “Preview” icon . Images can be viewed and downloaded by the suppliers. Optional (if the module Article Database is used): If the lines have been added using the function “Insert line items from products”, if Images have been selected and the articles in the article database have images assigned, the images will be automatically filled with the ones assigned to the articles.

Setup Multilanguage Grids

You are able to setup grids for different languages. In order to do this you must use the “Set multi-language” option. After the option has been ticked and confirmed, you can edit the translation by changing the view to the translation list by clicking “Change to translation view”. You can select and edit each of the cases of the grid for the languages you wish to translate it in. Remember to click save after you have edited the element. After you have finished translating your grid you can go back to the edit mode.

Add/Remove grid properties

You can add or remove grid properties by clicking the “Add or Remove Properties” icon. A list of all the properties that can be added to the grid will be displayed in the pop-up window. You can select or deselect as many properties you want. Once you have chosen the properties you want, click ‘Apply’.

Create/insert lines (online)

Once you finished the setup of the grid structure, you can add the lines to the grid. Two options are available: create lines manually in the project or import the lines from excel. Click <the corresponding icon>, to define the number of new lines. Click <the corresponding>, input the number of lines to add and click <the corresponding icon>: Complete the lines manually and do not forget to click <the corresponding icon>:

Create/insert lines (offline)

Step 1: Click <the corresponding icon> to export the structure to Excel. A new pop-up window opens. Click <the corresponding icon>: Step 2: Open the Excel file and complete the Display columns or paste them from another file, save the document. Step 3: Go to the relevant grid of your project and click <the corresponding icon >; Click <the corresponding icon>. Step 4: Select the relevant Excel File via Browse and click <the corresponding icon>:

Ensure that the excel file you want to import is closed.

Step 5: The system recognizes automatically the columns of the Excel file and maps them with the columns of the grid on the platform. In case you want to modify or manually assign the Excel file columns to the grid columns on the platform use the drop-down lists. You can also decide not to import a column.

Please note only the first lines of the Excel file are shown.

Step 6: On the next screen, if the import is ok and the column mapping correct, you will see the following message. Continue the import by clicking <the corresponding icon>. In case of errors, you will see a different screen. You have to correct the listed errors first before starting a new import. All lines of the Excel file are now uploaded on the platform.

Setting a grid (RFQ, RFP) online

Do not forget to preview the quotation grid before you set it online:

What do the suppliers see? Check if columns containing historical prices are hidden for the supplier view.

What can they complete? Click the phase RFP. Here you have an overview of your grids. To preview the grid, click the last icon in the column Actions. The preview option is also available inside the grid and line editor when you click the preview icon . Select the mode Supplier and check if the structure is correct: Mode Starting bids: This option allows the project leader to pre-populate some fields with any value. To publish the grid, please follow the instructions explained in the chapter Setting an RFI online.

Copy grids

In order to copy a tender element (i.e. grid or questionnaire) you must first select the element you wish to copy and from the drop-down menu select the copy function and then the “Execute selected action” icon ( ). This will create a copy of the element you wish to duplicate. You can also copy tender elements that are still in “online” phase and have been answered by suppliers. In this case you can choose to keep their answers or discard them. If you keep the supplier answers, their price grids will already be populated by their former answers, however the supplier will have to validate and publish his responses again so that the buyer project team can see them.

Rounds

Rounds can be used to get a second quotation on the same grid from suppliers. If the template for the project has the option “Use rounds”, a new column will appear on phases: Sourcing, RFQ, Renegotiation. When a new grid is created, it will be automatically set as “Round 1” (“1” is indicated in the column “Round”). Rounds will not be used for questionnaires. A new round can be created when a grid is copied and then pasted. New rounds will only be created for grids that have the status Closed You will be asked if you want to created a new round. If you click “Cancel” the grid will be copied with the default round number 1. If you click on “OK” the grid will be copied and will be assigned as round 2 (or more if you copy a different round). You will then be asked if you wish to also copy the supplier’s answers to the new grid. A new grid will be created, being an exact copy of the grid you want to copy. Unlike a normal copy-paste action, the name of the copied grid will not have the prefix “Copy of”. The newly copied grid can be edited before publishing. The copied supplier answers will only be visible after having been published again by the supplier.

Supplier Multiple Offers

The suppliers now have the option to publish multiple offers for the same grid. You will be able to view all the published offers. This is useful if the supplier has several variants as proposal. Below you have an example of the answers of two different offers from two suppliers.