Currency
Currency in step 2 of the wizard is the tender's currency. By default, suppliers bid in this currency.
In a sealed bid, you can open other currencies to suppliers with the other accepted currencies field; the supplier chooses from this list when bidding. A bid in another currency is converted for comparison at the exchange rate on the bid date and shown on the bid card on the "at the rate on bid date" line. The rate is fixed when the bid is submitted; later rate movements do not change the ranking.
An open auction has no extra currencies: for the live ranking to be meaningful, everyone bids in the same currency.
Ceiling price
The ceiling price is the highest total amount you can accept. It is optional; enter it in the wizard or in the Ceiling Price card in the right column of the tender screen.
| Visible ceiling | Hidden ceiling | |
|---|---|---|
| Does the supplier see it | Yes, it is written in the tender details | No, it is not shown anywhere |
| A bid above the ceiling | Cannot be sent | Accepted, flagged on the bid card as "Above ceiling" |
| In an open auction | Always visible | Not available |
The upside of a visible ceiling is that suppliers do not prepare bids for nothing; the downside is that everyone can bid close to the ceiling. A bid above a hidden ceiling is not rejected, because if it were, a supplier could find the ceiling by trying different amounts.
If you do not enter a ceiling in a sealed bid, the pre-publish check reminds you as a low-importance finding. It does not block publishing.
The ceiling after publishing
- A hidden ceiling can be changed or removed until the envelopes open. Since nothing was announced to suppliers, the change is to no one's disadvantage.
- A visible ceiling cannot be changed, hidden or removed after publishing: it is an announced rule.
- After publishing, a hidden ceiling cannot be turned into a visible one. If you want to announce a price limit to suppliers, you can write it in an addendum; the limit stays a hidden ceiling in the system, and a bid above it is not rejected but flagged.
- After the envelopes open, the ceiling never changes. Moving the ceiling after seeing the prices would mean adjusting the evaluation to the result.
Every change to the ceiling is written to the activity log. The amount of a hidden ceiling is not written there either; it only says "Hidden ceiling" or "Visible ceiling".
Tell us what you see on screen and we will look at it together.