Industry
Public sector organisations
An unsuccessful tender or a single bid does not mean firms are missing; it means the buyer and the available market do not know each other well enough.
- Upstream sourcing beyond already-known firms
- Better prepared, more legible tenders
- A clearer picture of the local contractor base
Procurement rules do not prevent market knowledge
Preliminary market engagement is provided for in public procurement; it remains little practised for lack of time and method.
A tender that attracts one or two bids is expensive: it results in an uncompetitive price, or in a re-issue that pushes the project back by months. The cause is rarely the absence of capable firms; more often those firms never heard about the tender, or judged it unsuited to their organisation.
On the contractor side, public procurement carries a reputation for administrative complexity that deters mid-sized firms — precisely those whose presence would make competition effective.
Our work is to document the contractor base genuinely available and to prepare upstream dialogue, respecting the principles of equal treatment and transparency.
Organisations concerned
Local authorities
Capital projects, maintenance of built estates, development schemes.
Social landlords
High volumes of maintenance and refurbishment works, often across wide areas.
Public establishments
Health, education, culture: specific programmes requiring particular technical skills.
Inter-municipal bodies
Pooled works procurement across municipalities with heterogeneous needs.
Difficulties addressed
Unsuccessful tenders
We identify upstream which firms could bid and what would deter them.
A narrow sourcing perimeter
The department's list of known firms reflects history more than the current market.
Unsuitable lotting
A package that is too large or too small mechanically excludes part of the capable market.
The perception of complexity
Upstream explanation reduces self-exclusion by mid-sized firms.
Our operating framework
We work exclusively upstream of the procedure, on market knowledge. We take no part in drafting contract documents or in evaluating bids, and we have no role in selection.
The work produces a documented view of the contractor base: who works in the territory, on which typologies, with what capacity and what reservations towards public procurement.
Respect for procurement principles
Equal treatment, transparency and traceability of upstream exchanges.
A documented census
Firms active in the territory, by works typology and capacity.
A usable summary
A written note informing lotting and scheduling before launch.
Steps
- 01
Requirement framing
Nature of the works, site constraints, envisaged schedule.
- 02
Market census
Identifying firms active in the typology and territory.
- 03
Upstream interviews
Documented exchanges on capacity, interest and possible barriers.
- 04
Market summary
A written note informing lotting and scheduling.
- 05
Informing the market
Equal distribution of information about the forthcoming tender.
- 06
Review
Analysis of the response rate obtained and reasons for non-participation.
We take no part at any stage in the formal procedure, nor in the evaluation or ranking of bids.
What improves
Effective competition
More firms informed and able to bid.
Better calibrated lotting
The split reflects the reality of local capacity.
Fewer re-issued procedures
The risk of an unsuccessful tender falls.
Knowledge retained
The market summary remains usable for subsequent tenders.
Ethical framework
- No involvement in drafting tender documents
- No participation in evaluating or ranking bids
- Written traceability of every upstream exchange with firms
- Information distributed identically to all firms identified
This framework is formalised before the engagement begins and can be shared with your legal department.
Services involved first
Frequently asked questions
Prepare a tender that attracts bidders
An initial conversation reviews a forthcoming tender and assesses how many firms are realistically available in your territory.
Explore further
Related stakeholders
- Construction companies
The firms your tenders aim to reach.
- Property managers
A close logic for estate maintenance.