Electronic auction
- Andrew Colella
Analytics
Sourcing
This article only applies to Sourcing
An electronic auction can be created as its own request or can be started as a new round based on an advanced RFx that has already been conducted. Both options are presented in the instructions:
A) Electronic auction as its own request
B) Electronic auction based on an already completed request as a new round ( NOTE! Only on the basis of advanced RFx )
A) Electronic auction at its own request
The stages of an electronic auction
Create an auction, fill in the auction items and define the auction settings
Publish the auction to the Bid Service
The auction starts at the specified time
Follow the progress of the auction (you can view the auction report in comparison or in an Excel view)
After the end of the auction, a comparison is made leading to a selection of suppliers (as well as a possible sourcing decision and contract)
Create an auction
Creating an auction starts by clicking the "Make a new announcement" button. Select "Auction" and the language and currency of the auction. Click the "Create announcement" button to begin the auction. Auctions are listed in the auction folder.
IMAGE: Creating an auction is started by creating a new auction
When you have created an auction, the full auction form with all details opens.
Enter the information on the tabs "Responsible persons and rights", "Basic company information" and "Procurement object" as you would in a normal request.
Definition of evaluation criteria
Purchase object divided into parts *
Select whether the sourcing object is divided into parts
If you select yes, sub-areas are formed in the criteria of the sourcing object, where it is possible to choose a supplier for each sub-area
If the sourcing is divided into parts, partial bids may be allowed
If you select no, the purchase will be treated as a total purchase. Groups can be created in the sourcing items criteria section, but supplier selection is conducted jointly for the entire procurement.
If the procurement has not been divided into parts, partial bids cannot be allowed
Sub-offers allowed by sub-region *
If the auction includes many different parts (the parts are defined on the sourcing items and criteria tab), selecting "Yes" allows the bidder to bid only on the parts he wants.
If you have selected "No" in the section, the bidder must bid for all parts. The default setting is always "No".
Defining selection criteria in the system
If you don't want to show the selection criteria to bidders, click "Hide comparison criteria in the request displayed to bidders"
Select the basis on which the winner will be selected:
The cheapest price
in the comparison table, the answer with the lowest price is marked as the winner
points cannot be assigned to sourcing items
no criteria can be set for sourcing items
The chepeast price, scoring (Cheapest price)
on the comparison table, the bidder with the best quality points is marked as the winner
price and numerical criteria of quality can be scored
The highest price
on the comparison table, the answer with the highest price is marked as the winner
points cannot be assigned to sourcingitems
no criteria can be set for sourcing items
The highest price, scoring (Highest price)
on the comparison table, the answer with the highest price is marked as the winner
price and numerical criteria of quality can be scored
Priority
a supplier is selected based on your own specific priorities
FIGURE: Defining the evaluation criteria in the system
Information shown to the bidder during the auction
Choose what information the bidder can seeon the auction form during the auction
IMAGE: Select what information is displayed on the bidder's auction form
Qualification criteria for the object of acquisition
The sourcing items are created in a section, as in advanced RFX, with a few exceptions. You can find more detailed instructions on the functions of the qualification criteria section here .
The format of the price request cannot be changed in the auction, but the choice is always "A price is requested for the items and it affects the reference price".
Enter the objects to be bidded for, the number of objects and the unit
Set a minimum price change for each item
How much the price must be changed at least in order for the bidto be saved
Set an auction base value for each item
The value at which to start the auction
If necessary, add qualitative numerical criteria for the object. NOTE! criteria cannot be added to the base if “the cheapest price” is selected as the evaluation criteria
Add points to the criterion
PICTURE: The picture shows the description of the auction for 50 computers. The maximum points for the price are 80. For the laptop, a change in the minimum bid price has been defined for the auction, which is €0.1, and the base value of the auction is €500
Electronic auction
The electronic auction section defines the validity period of the auction and the details of the auction invitation to be sent to bidders. The auction invitation is sent by e-mail to the bidders' e-mail addresses specified in the publication of the auction.
Start and end of the auction
Define when the auction starts and ends. Select the dates from the calendar or write it in the corresponding field.
if you want the auction to continue with an extension after the last answer, select "After the last answer, new answers are expected", . If no selection is made, the auction ends as soon as its deadline expires.
Setting extension time
Select "Expected after last reply"
Set X hours and/or x minutes
The extension is valid
Select "Daily continuously", if the extension continues continuously
Select "At specified times" if you want to set limits for the extension period. These limits determine when overtime is active,
Set those specific days of the week
Set the time
PICTURE: In the example in the picture, the auction has an extension period of 5 min , which means that the auction is held on weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. This means that during the auction period 31.12.2021 - 7.1.2022, the auction will be held on weekdays from 9 am to 3 pm. On weekdays after 3 p.m., a possible new bid is expected for an additional time (5 min). The auction ends when no one improves their bid during the extension period.
Auction process
Define the auction flow, if necessary
Add the sender of the auction invitation
Add the e-mail address of the sender of the auction invitation
Change the title of the auction invitation, if necessary
PHOTO: Auction invitation
The "Attachments and links" and "Signatories" tabs are filled in similar to the advanced RFx.
Preview and publish
The preview and publish tab allows you to view the created auction and publish the auction. On the tab, it is also possible to print or save the auction document in PDF format or send the document by e-mail for preview.
When all required information has been entered, a green checkmark will appear on each auction tab and an "OK, Publish" button will appear.
Before the auction is published, publication channels are selected
If you want to publish the auction publicly on the http://Tarjouspalvelu.fi portal, put a check mark in the "Tarjouspalvelu" box
If you want to publish the auction by e-mail to specific selected bidders, check the box "Send by e-mail (enter addresses)".
In this case, bidders will be invited to an electronic auction
The e-mail addresses of the recipients are entered in the field that opens
Each email address must be entered on its own line
When all the desired publication-related selections have been completed, click the "OK, publish" button
Auction
The published auction moves to the "Current" folder within the Auction folder. On the information page of the current auction you can find basic information about the auction and bidders participating. In the comparison of answers section, you can view the comparison table.
Auction invitation
Before the auction starts, it is possible to modify the auction invitation in the "Auction invitation section".
Edit the auction invitation information and click "Save".
The system sends a new auction invitation to bidders participating in the auction.
IMAGE: The auction invitation tab allows you to edit the auction invitation before the auction starts.
Auction report
The auction starts according to the time specified in the auction invitation. The progress of the auction can be monitored in the auction report view.
Red = Bidder has not been logged into the Bid service in the last minute
Yellow = Bidder has been logged into the Bidding service in the last minute, but has not been in auction mode
Green = Bidder has been in auction mode in the last minute
IMAGE: You can access the auction report from "Edit comparison"
When the auction has ended, it moves to the closed folder. Instructions for managing an expired request can be found here .
B) Electronic auction as a new round on the basis of a request that has already been made
You can start an electronic auction based on the advanced RFx that has already been conducted. Select the completed request from the folder, on the basis of which you want to start the auction. Open the "Rounds" tab of the request and choose whether to notify the bidders or proceed without a notification to the preparation of the auction:
Select the service method to prepare the auction. Select “Auction” as the next round type
Choose the base of the next round
You can use this base or make the auction completely empty
Select “Start a new round”
The system will open the auction form with all details to be entered
The auction is completed as in section A of these instructions above
On the “Send by email”section, the emails of suppliers from the previouss round are listed. They will receive the auction invitation by email
Auction report
The auction starts according to the time specified in the auction invitation. The progress of the auction can be monitored in the auction report view.
Red = Bidder has not been logged into the Bid service in the last minute
Yellow = Bidder has been logged into the Bidding service in the last minute, but has not been in auction mode
Green = Bidder has been in auction mode in the last minute
IMAGE: You can access the auction report from "Edit comparison"
When the auction has ended, it moves to the closed folder. Instructions for managing an expired request can be found here .