Viewing and Responding
to Solicitations
Published: December 2021
Audience: Bidders and/or
Suppliers who would like to
respond to a State of Ohio
solicitation.
V2.1
Table of Contents
2
1) In This Document
2) Viewing a Solicitation
3) Sending Inquiries
4) Submitting a Response
5) Amending and/or Withdrawing a Response
If you have questions or need additional assistance, please contact Ohio Shared Services Contact Center
via email ([email protected]) or phone (877-644-6771).
In This Document:
3
Overview: Viewing and responding to solicitations at the State of Ohio can be
broken down into four main tasks:
1. View a Solicitation: There are two ways for Bidders and Suppliers to view
solicitations:
1. Bidder/Supplier Invitation: When the State of Ohio sends out a solicitation to
specific Bidders and/or Suppliers for bidding, they will receive a notification via
email inviting them to respond within Ohio Buys.
2. Public Solicitations Page: Bidders and Suppliers can navigate to the Public
Solicitations Page to view all active public solicitations. In order to participate
and submit a response, Bidders and Suppliers must log in to Ohio Buys.
2. Send Inquiries: Ohio Buys allows Bidders and Suppliers to submit
inquires and correspondence to the State. Bidders and Suppliers should
submit all clarifications, Q&A, and negotiations using Ohio Buys.
3. Submit a Response: Once a Bidder or Supplier has reviewed a
solicitation and accepted the associated Terms & Conditions, they will have
the ability to provide responses to the questions within the Questionnaire
and Item tabs and submit their response. Upon submitting a response, the
user who submitted the response will see a confirmation message stating
that the bid has been submitted with the associated time stamp. The
Bidder or Supplier will also be able to view their response history at any
time.
4. Amend and/or Withdraw a Response: If the State issues an amendment
(i.e., a new round), Bidders and Suppliers will be required to acknowledge
receipt of the amendment and re-submit a response to remain under
solicitation consideration. In addition, Bidder or Suppliers also can
withdraw a response and remove it from being considered for award.
Key Terms
4
Solicitation Types in Ohio Buys:
• Simple Solicitation : Solicitations that allow State agencies to create and distribute
Requests for Information (RFI) and Requests for Quotes (RFQs).
• Single Envelope: Solicitations in which Bidders and/or Suppliers are instructed to submit
all aspects of a response in a single envelope.
• Double Envelope: Solicitations in which Bidders and/or Suppliers are instructed to submit
both technical and financial responses in two separate and sealed envelopes.
• Triple Envelope: Solicitations in which Bidders and/or Suppliers are instructed to submit
technical, financial, and mandatory responses in three separate and sealed envelopes.
• Quick Quote: A quick quote is a simplified short-term solicitation process.
• Public Notice: Notifies the public of a solicitation that will be evaluated and awarded
outside of Ohio Buys.
Key Terms:
1) Sourcing Project: Any kind of sourcing event in Ohio Buys. This includes all types of
solicitations, as well as Quick Quotes. Sourcing projects can have multiple lots and/or rounds.
2) Lots: A new lot is typically issued for Bidder and/or Supplier clarifications. Lots can be used to
clarify information or separate the different needs for a specific solicitation. For example, a
procurement user may wish to separate a solicitation for a conference into different lots. One lot
could be created for food, while another could be created for IT equipment.
3) Rounds: A new round is typically issued whenever there is amendment to the original
solicitation or when you want to issue a second round of bidding for a shortlisted group of
Bidders and/or Suppliers.
4) RFx: A solicitation in Ohio Buys that is composed of lots and rounds. An RFx is always
associated to a Sourcing Project; a Sourcing Project may have multiple RFx's associated to it.
VIEWING A SOLICITATION
Overview
• What’s Covered: Navigating to the Public Solicitations page to
review open solicitations.
• Roles: Bidders and/or Suppliers
• Used When: A Bidder or Supplier would like to review a
solicitation in Ohio Buys.
5
Step-by-Step Instructions for Viewing a Solicitation
1
Navigate to the Ohio Buys Public Solicitation page: https://ohiobuys.ohio.gov/
2
On this page, you can search by Keywords, Commodities, Solicitation Status, Contracting
Entity, Solicitation Dates, MBE Set Aside status, Solicitation Type, Solicitation ID, and Awarded
status. Enter your search terms in the appropriate field and click the Search button.
3
Search results are displayed below. Once you have found the solicitation you would like to
review, click the Pencil ( ) icon next to the solicitation name.
4
Review the details of the solicitation. Depending on the type of solicitation, solicitation details
may be shown across a variety of tabs:
1. Solicitation Overview: provides general information regarding the solicitation such as the
name, dates, type, status, and summary. All solicitation documents are also available on
this tab.
2. General Questionnaire: lists any general questions that are being to Bidders and/or
Suppliers as part of this solicitation.
3. Financial Questionnaire: lists any financial questions that are being to Bidders and/or
Suppliers as part of this solicitation.
4. Technical Questionnaire: lists any technical questions that are being to Bidders and/or
Suppliers as part of this solicitation.
5. Items: lists the goods and/or services that are being requested as part of this solicitation.
5
If you would like to respond to this solicitation and/or submit clarifying questions. Click the
Participate in RFx button at the top of the page and log in with your Ohio|ID and password. If
you are a new Bidder, you are also able to register by clicking this button. For additional details
regarding accessing Ohio Buys, please refer to the Bidder and Supplier Learning Guide.
How to View a Solicitation
6
SENDING INQUIRIES
Overview
• What’s Covered: Using Ohio Buys to send inquiries to the State
regarding a solicitation as well as how to review to the inquiry
history for a solicitation
• Roles: Bidders and/or Suppliers
• Used When: A Bidder or Supplier would like to submit a
clarifying question to the State regarding a solicitation
7
How to Send Inquiries
8
Step-by-Step Instructions for Sending Inquiries for a Solicitation
1
▲Some solicitations in Ohio Buys will allow for potential Bidders and/or Supplier to submit
inquiries regarding a solicitation. To determine if a solicitation allows for inquiries to be
submitted, search of the solicitation on the View Public Solicitations page and look at the
Inquiry Cutoff column in the search results. If there is a value in this column, inquiries can
be submitted for that solicitation until that date and time.
Log in to Ohio Buys. From the Main Menu Navigation Bar, click Sourcing and then select
View
Public Solicitations from the drop-down menu.
2
On this page, you can search by Keywords, Commodities, Solicitation Status, Contracting
Entity, Solicitation Dates, MBE Set Aside status, Solicitation Type, Solicitation ID, and Awarded
status. Enter your search terms in the appropriate field and click the Search button.
3
Search results are displayed below. Once you have found the solicitation you would like to
review, click the Pencil ( ) icon next to the solicitation name.
▲Please note, if you were invited to participate in solicitation, you can view the details of
that solicitation by clicking on the hyperlink listed in the email you received. In addition, the
Manage Proposals page will display any solicitations that you have been invited to
respond to.
4
If you haven’t previously viewed this solicitation, review the details across the various tabs and
then click Participate in RFx.
How to Send Inquiries
9
Step-by-Step Instructions for Sending Inquiries for a Solicitation
5
Review the Acknowledgement window and then click I Agree.
6
Navigate to the Inquiries tab.
7
The complete inquiry history for the solicitation is displayed. All questions and responses for a
solicitation are posted publicly and will not be reported individually. To compose a new inquiry,
click Compose.
▲To search for an existing inquiry, scroll through the message history or enter a keyword
into the Search field, then click Search. Click on the desired line item within the message
history to view its details.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Sending Inquiries for a Solicitation
8
Complete all of the required fields. The fields marked by a red asterisk (*) are required. In the
Send To field select “Sourcing Responsible”. Failing to do this may cause issues with sending
your inquiry. Once you are done, click Send to send the inquiry to the State.
▲ All responses will be posted publicly meaning all Bidders will see the question and answer.
It is up to the Supplier that posed the question to proactively review the solicitation details in
order to check for answers during the Q&A period. All answers will be visible on the
Solicitation Overview tab within the given solicitation.
Send Inquiries
10
SUBMITTING A RESPONSE
Overview
• What’s Covered: Responding to questionnaire(s) and item
grids in Ohio Buys, uploading supporting documents, and
formally submitting a response to a solicitation
• Roles: Bidders and/or Suppliers
• Used When: A Bidder or Supplier would like submit their
response to a solicitation
11
How to Submit a Response
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Step-by-Step Instructions for Submitting a Response to a Solicitation
If you are responding to a solicitation, or if you are attempting to perform contract
management activities (e.g., negotiating a contract), you need to be logged in to your
head office location.
To toggle between your company’s locations, click on your organization’s name in the top right
hand side of any page in Ohio Buys and select the location you would like to view. You can
confirm you are looking at your head office location, by hovering the location drop-down option
and reviewing the OAKS ID. If there is not a -1, -2, -3, etc., after the listed ID, you are viewing
the head office location. The locations associated with your organization are managed within
the Supplier Portal: https://supplier.ohio.gov.
Please note, contacts and orders are managed at the location level, not the Supplier level, so it
is recommended you routinely verify activity in all of the locations to which you have access.
For additional details on how to manage your contacts, please refer to the Bidder and Supplier
Learner Guide.
How to Submit a Response
13
Step-by-Step Instructions for Submitting a Response to a Solicitation
1
Log in to Ohio Buys. From the Main Menu Navigation Bar, click Sourcing and then select
View
Public Solicitations from the drop-down menu.
2
On this page, you can search by Keywords, Commodities, Solicitation Status, Contracting
Entity, Solicitation Dates, MBE Set Aside status, Solicitation Type, Solicitation ID, and Awarded
status. Enter your search terms in the appropriate field and click the Search button.
3
Search results are displayed below. Once you have found the solicitation you would like to
review, click the Pencil ( ) icon next to the solicitation name.
▲If you were invited to participate in solicitation, you can view the details of that solicitation
by clicking on the hyperlink listed in the email you received. In addition, the Manage
Proposals page will display any solicitations that you have been invited to respond to.
4
If you haven’t previously viewed this solicitation, review the details across the various tabs and
then click Participate in RFx.
From the resulting page, review the Acknowledgement window and then click I Agree.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Submitting a Response to a Solicitation
5
Indicate that your organization WILL BID and then click Submit.
6
To submit a response, you must complete all of the required fields indicated by a red asterisk
(*) on the Your Response Information tab as provide responses on the Item, and
General/Technical/Financial Questionnaire tabs as applicable. As you enter information for
your response, be sure to click the Save button at the top of the page to save your work.
▲For Public Notice Solicitations you will not submit your response in Ohio Buys. Review the
solicitation details and follow the listed instructions on how to submit your response offline.
7
Manage my Team: If you would like to collaborate with other members of your organization to
respond to a solicitation, you can add them as team members on the Manage My Team tab.
1. To add an existing contact, select the contact from the Select Contact drop-down
menu and click Save.
2. To add a new contact, click Create a new contact, populate the required fields, and
click Save & Close. To invite the new contact to log in to Ohio Buys and create an
Ohio|ID, click the Key ( ) icon next to their name.
How to Submit a Response
14
Step-by-Step Instructions for Submitting a Response to a Solicitation
8
Your Response Information tab:
a) Enter the Response Name. If desired, select the applicable Response Type (e.g.,
Main Response or Alternate Response) and enter a corresponding Description for
your response.
b) As you complete your response, upload supporting documents in the Technical
Envelope - Supplier Technical Documents and Financial Envelope - Supplier
Financial Documents sections of this tab. If your response contains confidential
information and/or you would like to upload a redacted version of your response, upload
your redacted response here, in addition to your un-redacted version.
c) Once you are done with populating this tab or you would like to proceed with
completing another tab, click Save.
▲Depending on how the solicitation was set up, the Response Information tab may look
similar to the Financial/Technical Questionnaire tabs and contain a list of requirements
and questions that need to be responded to. Please refer to the corresponding section of
this guide for details on how to respond to requirements and questionnaires.
How to Submit a Response
15
Step-by-Step Instructions for Submitting a Response to a Solicitation
9
Item tab: The items associated with the solicitation are displayed in a grid. To submit a
response:
a)
Enter responses for each of the listed fields. The fields displayed will vary depending on
the solicitation.
1. Add Comments and Attachments for each line item as necessary. The
Comments field is where you should indicate the State contract number your
quote is referencing (as applicable).
2. Note that depending on your screen resolution you may need to scroll to the right
to see these fields. Review Manufacturer and SKU Number fields where available.
b) If desired, you can also download the displayed item grid into an Excel spreadsheet, fill
in your responses in Excel, save the file, and upload the completed grid to Ohio Buys.
To do this:
1. Click Download in Excel 2007-2010 format (xlsx).
2. Open the corresponding Excel spreadsheet that was downloaded to your
computer and follow the instructions contained in the spreadsheet.
3. After you have completed the spreadsheet, save the file and then upload it into
Ohio Buys by clicking on the Click or Drag to add a file button on the
corresponding tab you are trying to populate.
c) Once you are done with populating this tab or you would like to proceed with
completing another tab, click Save.
How to Submit a Response
16
A
B
Step-by-Step Instructions for Submitting a Response to a Solicitation
10
Depending on the solicitation, you are able to submit a response for an alternate (yet
comparable) good/service or to add a line item for shipping/freight costs if needed. Please
review the solicitation documents to see if the State will accept alternate items and if so, click
the Plus icon in the answer grid.
Complete the following fields:
1. Code: this automatically populates with a unique identifier for the item being added.
Update this field to inform the State you are adding an alternate item or freight costs.
2. Label: Enter a detailed description of the item being added.
3. Click Save & Close.
Once you have added an alternate item or a line item for shipping/freight costs enter the
required information.
▲ Note that depending on your screen resolution you may need to scroll to the right to see
these fields.
How to Submit a Response
17
Step-by-Step Instructions for Submitting a Response to a Solicitation
11
Financial/Technical Questionnaire tabs:
a) Enter responses for each of the questions listed on these tabs. The answers you enter
on this tab will be saved as they are entered.
▲ You are able to click the Access Questionnaire button to have Ohio Buys navigate
you to the first unanswered question.
b) If desired, you can also download the displayed questionnaire into an Excel
spreadsheet, fill in your responses in Excel, save the file, and upload the completed
grid to Ohio Buys. To do this:
1. Click Download in Excel 2007-2010 format (xlsx)
2. Open the corresponding Excel spreadsheet that was downloaded to your
computer and follow the instructions contained in the spreadsheet.
3. After you have completed the spreadsheet, save the file and then upload it into
Ohio Buys by clicking on the Click or Drag to add a file button on the
corresponding tab you are trying to populate.
c) Once you are done with populating this tab or you would like to proceed with
completing another tab, click Save.
How to Submit a Response
18
A
B
Step-by-Step Instructions for Submitting a Response to a Solicitation
12
Once you have entered all of the necessary information, click Validate & Submit Proposal.
13
Click Submit my Proposal.
▲After your response has been submitted, you will receive email notifications regarding any
updates for the solicitation.
▲If the State issues an amendment (i.e., a new round), you will be required to acknowledge
receipt of the amendment and re-submit a response to remain under solicitation
consideration. Please refer to the Amending and/or Withdrawing a Response section of
this learner guide for details on how to copy a previous response and submit a revised
response as part of an amendment.
How to Submit a Response
19
AMENDING AND/OR
WITHDRAWING A
RESPONSE
Overview
• What’s Covered: Amending and/or withdrawing previously
submitted response
• Roles: Bidders and/or Suppliers
• Used When: A Bidder or Supplier would like to amend a
previously submitted response as part of a solicitation
amendment or withdraw a response from consideration
20
How to Amend and/or Withdraw a Response
21
Step-by-Step Instructions for Amending and/or Withdrawing a Response
1
Log in to Ohio Buys. From the Main Menu Navigation Bar, click Sourcing and then select
Manage Proposals from the drop-down menu.
2
The Manage Proposals page is displayed. On this page, you can enter a variety of search
terms to search for solicitations. Enter search terms in the Keywords search field and then
click Search.
3
Search results are displayed below. Once you have found the solicitation you would like to
review, click the Pencil ( ) icon next to the solicitation name.
4
Navigate to the History tab.
How to Amend and/or Withdraw a Response
22
Step-by-Step Instructions for Amending and/or Withdrawing a Response
5
A summary of your previously submitted responses for the solicitation are displayed. To view
the full details of a response click the associated Proposal hyperlink.
6
Copying a Response: If the State issues an amendment (i.e., a new round), you will be
required to acknowledge receipt of the amendment and re-submit a response to remain
under solicitation consideration. To begin the process of submitting a response for an
amendment, we recommend using the copy functionality if you have already submitted
a response to an earlier round of the solicitation.
a. Select Copy an Existing Proposal from the Other Actions drop-down menu.
b. Click the Copy an existing proposal ( ) icon next to the proposal you want to copy.
c. Click OK. The selected response has been copied into a new draft response. Make the
desired updates and submit the revised response.
7
Withdrawing a Response:
a. From the History tab of a solicitation, select Withdraw from the Proposal Actions drop-
down menu for the response you would like to withdraw.
b. Click Save.
c. The submitted response has been withdrawn from consideration. If you have submitted
multiple responses for a solicitation, you will need to individually withdraw each response
if you want all of the responses to be withdrawn. Lastly, all response withdrawals need to
occur prior to the Bid Due Date for a solicitation.
Version Control
23
Version
Publish
Date
Summary of Updates Pages Updated
1.0 10/16/20 Initial draft All
1.1 10/19/20 Updated page 4 3
1.2 11/05/20 Added additional inquiry details 8, 10
1.3 12/23/20
Added details regarding UTC
time
6, 12
1.4 2/29/21
Update Public Solicitation
screenshots
6, 8, 12
1.5 3/31/21
Updated UTC to ETC, Bolded
Copying a Response text
6, 8, 12, 21
1.6 5/12/21
Removed limitations on projects
inquiries can eb submitted for
3
1.7 7/1/21
Added proper OBM email
address
2
1.8 9/10/21
Added a callout page that
emphasizes that all solicitation
responses should be submitted
from a Supplier’s head office
12
1.9 9/20/21 Updated Supplier URL 6
2.0 10/8/21 Updated Ohio Buys logo Entire Document
2.1 12/22/21
Removed text around
acknowledging an RFP, added
details on indicating a business
will response. Clarified inquiry
process
9, 10, 13, 14
