Solicitation is the phase where the Government solicits and negotiates awards or renegotiates existing contracts with contractors enabling them to efficiently obtain the best possible prices for goods and services. Prices could be established based on actual supply and demand at the time the solicitation is transacted.
In a typical scenario, once the procurement office receives the approved PR from the requestor, they make a decision on how to source the requirements. In a number of instances, the decision is to fold the requirements into a formal solicitation package to receive competitive proposals from interested suppliers. A contract specialist prepares the solicitation package and, based on the value of the procurement, submits a pre-solicitation notice to System for Award Management (SAM) announcing the procurement office's intent to release a solicitation. Upon posting of this notice, the contract specialist finalizes and releases the solicitation. In most cases, solicitations are public and any supplier, capable of fulfilling the requirements, is eligible to respond. However, there may also be instances, where the specialist may choose to direct the solicitation to a constrained number of competitors because of the specific nature of the supplies or services required. In some other instances, the procurement office may also choose to combine elements of both the above instances, direct the solicitation to an identified set of suppliers, and open the competition to other public suppliers.
The type of information found in a typical solicitation as well as the ultimate award document would include, among others, the following:
Supplies or services needed
Description of specifications
Statement of Work
Terms and Conditions, such as Packaging and marking specifications, shipping specifications, invoicing and other information
Inspection and Acceptance requirements
Delivery dates and related information for all contractual deliverables
Special requirements under the Award
You use the Negotiations tab to perform the activities related to solicitations.
The Solicitations tab displays a list of Published Negotiations, Draft Negotiations, and Incomplete Tasks. Click Full List to view the entire set of published solicitations.
The Quick Links section on the Solicitations tab enables you to access and perform the following activities:
Create - Use this quick list to create solicitations, copy solicitations, and events.
Manage - Use this quick list to manage drafts, events, deliverables, draft surrogate responses, and supplier research.
Templates - Use this quick list to create solicitation templates.
Reusable Lists - Use this quick list to create reusable invitation, attribute, requirement, and cost factor lists.
Using line attributes, attribute scoring, price factors, and price breaks
Use the instructions on this page to create Solicitations.
These are the main steps to creating a new solicitation:
Enter Your Terms and Conditions (If Oracle Procurement Contracts is bought and licensed)
If you have previously created a solicitation, you can save time by copying an existing solicitation. You can also create new solicitation quickly by applying a solicitation template. You can create a solicitation and save it as a draft before submitting it. This allows you to return to the creation process at a later time or have multiple people working on the same solicitation. You can also quickly collaborate on the solicitation by using the Online Discussion button.
When you create a new solicitation, your first step is to create your solicitation header. This header contains negotiation level information related to the entire negotiation.
To create your negotiation header: Some of the fields display default data, and you need to enter details in the relevant fields (*indicates a required field):
Document Number: The number that uniquely identifies the solicitation. You can edit the document number based on your business requirements. You can also change the Instrument Type, Allowed Range, and Serial Number. The combination of all these parameters and the fiscal year separated by delimiters is the final solicitation document number. If the solicitation has a new round, the new round number displays in parenthesis and is suffixed to the solicitation number.
See: Document Numbering for an overview of the concept.
See: Document Numbering for more details.
See: Document Numbering section in the Oracle Contract Lifecycle Management for Public Sector Implementation Guide for information on how to implement document numbering.
Buyer: The creator of the solicitation.
Select the Two-Stage Solicitation check box if you plan to evaluate offers submitted by suppliers in two phases - Technical and Commercial. If you select this option, the offer style is automatically set to Sealed.
*Title: The name by which this solicitation will be known. You must specify a title for your solicitation and once the solicitation is published, the title cannot be changed.
Negotiation Style
The negotiation style controls the structure of the negotiation document by identifying which sourcing document elements appear. Negotiation styles can streamline and standardize the creation of negotiation documents. For example, if input from a collaboration team is not required for many negotiations, the Sourcing Administrator can define a negotiation style in which fields related to collaboration teams do not appear. Also, if your negotiation is a large or very large negotiation, you must select a style that supports that type of negotiation.
Offer Style: Select the offer style applicable. You can choose from Blind and Sealed. Blind implies that only the buyer can see the response content. Sealed implies that neither the buyer nor the suppliers can see the response content until the solicitation closes. The buyer can see the responses once the solicitation is unlocked. Everyone can see the response content once the solicitation is unsealed.
Event: Select an event to associate with the solicitation if you defined one.
Security Level You can select a security level to restrict access to the sourcing document.
Sourcing Project
If the current negotiation is being conducted in connection with a project in Oracle Projects, you can link this negotiation to the project by project number.
Operating Unit: The operating unit, such as a division or department, to which this negotiation applies. An operating unit typically is an enterprise division. Operating units affect setups, documents, and transactions in CLM. These setups, documents, and transactions are then limited to the operating unit in which they are defined. The organization you select here determines the values for many later attributes (such as the negotiation currency and shipping addresses). If this solicitation document was originally created using Requisition Lines in Document Builder, then the backing requisition information is carried forward and this field cannot be updated. Note that if you have entered information on this page, for example in the Payment Terms field, and you change the Organization, the page refreshes and you will lose the information you entered. Once you proceed to the next step, this value cannot be changed.
Outcome: Designate your solicitation outcome. This cannot be changed once you proceed to the next step. The Outcome field enables you to specify the type of outcome document you prefer to have automatically created for you by the system when the solicitation is awarded to one or more suppliers. For example, you may wish to create an award as your outcome document when a solicitation for medical supplies is completed and awarded to two suppliers. Please note that you need to select IDV (IDV with Lines or IDV without Lines) as your outcome document always from the Outcome LOV if you are going to associate your outcome document(s) to an Umbrella Program.
The outcome field also contains values defined in the Purchase Document Styles. Similar to Negotiation Style, Purchasing Styles allow buyer organizations to implement various features in Purchasing. In Sourcing, user interface elements for the negotiation are hidden or displayed based on the Negotiation Style as well as the Outcome. Purchasing Document Styles are used when creating complex services solicitations.
See Oracle Purchasing User Guide for instructions on defining Purchasing Document Styles and details on complex work document styles.
Fair Opportunity Notice: This check box indicates that the solicitation is of type Fair Opportunity Notice. This box is checked when Fair Opportunity Notice creation is initiated either from the Demand Workbench or from the Sourcing Home page. Notice that the check box is selected by the system automatically and is read-only, that is, you cannot unselect the check box at any time.
Solicitation Type: Select the solicitation type to use. You can choose from RFQ (Request for Quotations), IFB (Invitation for Bids), and RFP (Request for Proposals).
Creation Date: Displays the date on which you created the solicitation.
Description: Enter a brief description of the solicitation.
Standard Form: Select a standard form from the list. The values you see in the standard form-specific regions (such as SF1442 or SF1449, or SF33, depend on what you select in this Standard Form LOV).
Select the Document Format from the list. The Document Format along with the Standard Form you select determine the format for the printing of the solicitation document. You can select from:
UCF - A UCF or Uniform Contract Format contract contains sections A-M, with each section containing specific information as follows:
Section A contains the standard form face.
Section B, Supplies and Services, contains the line item numbers, descriptions, and prices, as well as any clauses designated for Section B.
Section C contains the Statement of Work (clauses designated for Section C).
Section D contains Packaging and Marking information as described in 4.15.30 and any clauses designated for Section D.
Section E contains Inspection information as described in 4.15.31 and any clauses designated for Section E.
Section F contains Delivery or Performance information as described in 4.15.37 and any clauses designated for Section F.
Section G contains Contract Administrative Data, including the funding information any clauses designated for Section G.
Section H contains Special Contract Requirements, any clauses designated for Section H.
Section I contains the contract clauses. Many FAR/DFARS clauses will be placed in Section I.
Section J contains the attachments and exhibits (typically information such as the name, date, and number of pages, but not the attachments themselves).
Sections K-M are used for provisions and would not be present on Awards, just on Solicitations.
COM - A commercial format, typically used in conjunction with the SF1449, does not follow a prescribed section format, no sections are indicated.
CSI - A construction format that utilizes 5-digit numerical sections, each containing specific information as follows:
Section 00010 - includes information about Supplies and Services, Inspection and Acceptance Terms, Delivery Information, Packaging and Marking, and List of Documents, Exhibits, and other Attachments.
Section 00100 - includes information about Bidding Schedule/Instruction to Bidders.
Section 00600 - includes information about Representations and Certifications.
Section 00700 - includes information about Contract Clauses.
Section 00800 - includes information about Special Contracts Requirements.
Business Priority and Project Information: Use this region to enter details of the following:
DPAS Rating - Defense Priorities and Allocations System Rating. The DPAS rating is assigned to all military systems used in support of national defense, from the largest finished platform to the smallest component. It can be applied to all stages of acquisition research and development, initial design, production testing, delivery, and logistics support.
Customer Project Code - This identifies documents created for special programs, exercises, projects, operations, or other purposes. Sites can establish their own set of codes and use them to identify and group solicitations. Used in reporting especially across entire agencies to know how much was done for a given project.
Priority Code - A numerical rating, 1-15, that describes the priority and is used internally within the Department of Defense. It is from the UNIFORM MATERIAL MOVEMENT AND ISSUE PRIORITY SYSTEM. It is to help the buyer prioritize their workload and for management tracking in reports.
Customer Project Text - Text Description of the selected project code. Used in reporting especially across entire agencies to know how much was done for a given project.
Competitive Information: Use this region to enter information about the following:
Set Aside Status - Indication of whether this solicitation is set aside for a specific disadvantaged business. Ultimately, the federal agency would want the vendor on the award to meet the qualifications outlined in the solicitation; however, that decision is ultimately up to the contracting officer and is not system enforced.
Set Aside Type - The specific set aside type defined as one of the options. You can choose from 8(A), Emerging Small Business, HUBZone Small Business, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business, and Small Business.
Set Aside Percent - Percentage indicating the amount of the anticipated contract value that will be set-aside. If this percentage is less than 100, generally the solicitation will be awarded to multiple vendors (at least one disadvantaged). If the value of the Set Aside Status field is Set Aside, then the Set Aside Percentage field should be entered with an integer value greater than 0. If there is a referenced solicitation, the Set Aside Percentage is defaulted from the solicitation.
NAICS - The commodity group (defined by the NAICS) under which the size standard is applied.
Size Standard - You can select a size standard from the LOV.
SF1442 Information region: If you selected SF1442 in the Standard Form list, then you see the SF1442 Information region. The other standard forms associated with solicitation do not have additional information fields, and this region does not display if you select any of the other standard forms. The SF1442 is used for construction purchases, and you can enter the following details:
Bond Required: Designates whether one or more bonds is required throughout the life of the project. Prints in block 12a of SF1442.
Bond Days: Number of days that the contractor has to furnish bonds. Prints in block 12b of the SF1442.
Days to Start: Number of days the contractor has to start the construction project. Prints in block 11 of the SF1442.
Days to Complete: Number of days the contractor has to complete the overall construction project. Individual lines may have their own delivery dates and / or period of performance, but the overall total number of days anticipated is captured here. Prints in block 11 of the SF1442.
Period Status: Indicated whether the number of days to start/complete is mandatory or negotiable. Prints in block 11 of the SF1442. The available values are: Mandatory, Negotiable.
Period Reference: If the period above is negotiable, text in this field refers to the location in the solicitation / or IDV document that describes the flexibility. Prints in block 11 of the SF1442.
Work Description: Text area where the buyer can provide summary information about the work and reference attachments that more fully describe the work. Purely informational from the buyer to the contractor. Prints in block 10 of the SF1442.
Umbrella Program: When you create a Fair Opportunity Notice type of solicitation, you have the option to associate the Fair Opportunity Notice to an Umbrella Program. The Fair Opportunity check box in the solicitation header should be checked in order for the Umbrella Program region to be visible. The Umbrella Program search LOV enables you to look for an existing umbrella program that you can associate the Fair Opportunity Notice with.
For more information on creating Umbrella Programs, please refer to the chapter Multiple Awards and Umbrella Programs in the Oracle Contract Lifecycle Management for Public Sector Purchasing User Guide.
Small Business Coordination Record: This region has two fields: Control Number (number of the DD-2579 document) and Status (for example, Draft, Pending Approval, Signed, etc). When you create a Small Business Coordination Record, you need to associate it to a CLM document (award modification, IDV with Lines modification, IDV without Lines modification, solicitation). This CLM document shows the Small Business Coordination Record it is associated to. If no Small Business Coordination Record exists, this region will display with no values.
This region is shown in the header of the solicitation, solicitation amendment, solicitation rounds (of bidding), solicitation View page and solicitation Review page.
If the total value of the solicitation exceeds the Threshold Amount (specified in the Purchasing Options page > CLM Controls region), a warning message is displayed to the user while publishing the solicitation, or while submitting the solicitation for approval prior to publishing. If the status of the Small Business Coordination Record is not Signed while publishing the solicitation, or while submitting the solicitation for approval prior to publishing, a warning message is displayed.
The Small Business Coordination Record is associated with the base solicitation and not with specific amendments or rounds.
If you want to delete a draft solicitation with an associated DD-2579 (with a status Draft and Type of Coordination as Initial Contact), then the system displays a warning message. If you wish to proceed, the base solicitation and the DD-2579 are deleted.
If you want to delete a draft solicitation with an associated DD-2579 (with a status Signed and Type of Coordination as Withdrawal), you can go ahead with the deletion, no warning messages will be displayed.
Deleting a draft solicitation with an associated DD-2579 (with any other status and Type of Coordination value) is not allowed by the system.
Deleting a draft solicitation amendment/round where there is an associated DD-2579 (with any other status and Type of Coordination value) is allowed by the system. This is because the DD-2579 is attached to the base solicitation document, and it will stay attached to the base document no matter how many amendments / new rounds are created.
Collaboration Team: You can identify a group of users from within your company who will collaborate on this negotiation. For each member, you can choose to:
Make the member an approver of the sourcing document.
Give the member the ability to score supplier responses to negotiation Requirements (if scoring is allowed by the solicitation style sheet).
Give the member view-only access to the document. View-only members can view the document but cannot update any information.
Define a particular task for that member to perform, and a target date by which the task should be completed. The team member marks the task as complete once it is finished.
Notify the members.
Terms: Use this region to define the terms for the solicitation.
Bill-To Address: Address to which your solicitation bills should be sent. Click the flashlight icon to browse for other addresses. You can select any of the addresses defined in Oracle Purchasing.
Ship-To Address: Address to which the solicitation items will be shipped. Click the flashlight icon to browse for other addresses.
Payment Terms: The payment terms for your suppliers. The possible values are defined in Oracle Payables. The default is set in Oracle Purchasing.
Carrier: The freight carrier your supplier should use. The possible values for your operating unit are defined in Oracle Inventory. The default is set in Oracle Purchasing
Freight Terms: The freight terms for your supplier. The possible values and the default are defined in Oracle Purchasing.
Currency: Shows the default currency for the negotiation. This is the primary ledger currency of the outcome operating unit selected in the header. Click Manage Response Currencies to allow responses in more than one currency.
Price Precision: The number of decimal places allowed for per-unit prices entered in the RFx currency. The precision you set doesn't apply to per-unit prices entered in a currency other than the RFx currency, nor does it apply to currency amounts such as Bid Total or the bid value of Fixed-Amount price elements. While you can set the precision for unit-prices entered in a non-RFx currency when you define your currency list, the precision for amounts is automatically governed by the standards defined by the ISO (International Organization for Standardization). The ISO standards are used automatically by Sourcing.
Requirements:You can request information on suppliers at the negotiation level by defining solicitation Requirements. Requirements can be external, in which case responses are provided by the supplier. Examples of external requirement information might be a supplier's years in business, ownership, or personnel qualification. Requirements can also be used internally, in which case the response is provided by some kind of internal evaluator. Internal requirement responses might include level of customer service provided, or prior on-time history. Either way, responses to requirement requests can be evaluated and used by personnel when awarding the negotiation.
Responses to Requirements can be scored according to the desirability of the response. You can define the Requirement such that the system automatically scores the response (in which case you must specify the allowable values (or ranges of values) for that requirement and each one's score. Or evaluators can view the response and enter a score manually.
Additionally, if you have multiple Requirements for the negotiation, you can assign weights to them to reflect the each requirement's importance relative to the other requirements.
Abstracts and Forms
Abstracts and forms are used to publish information on upcoming sourcing events. This information is available publicly without the supplier needing to sign into the system. Each entry created in the forms region is a combination of the federal standard form, and the document format in which that form can be printed. An XML template is associated with each row for printing.
An abstract is a summary or synopsis of a negotiation. It usually contains information such as the goods or services being purchased, whom to contact for more information, and the open and close date. An abstract may even contain a PDF version of the solicitation for the supplier to download. Abstracts are presented to suppliers on the buying organization's external website. Suppliers can view the details about solicitations and determine if they are interested in participating without having to log in to the sourcing application.
A form captures information from the buyer in a similar fashion as an abstract but rather than publishing data to the buying organization's website, this information can be transferred to SAM. The forms that are created with Oracle Sourcing are modeled so that the data collected matches their requirements. The buyer can then generate the appropriately formatted file and send it for publishing to SAM.
These abstracts and forms are used for posting to SAM.
Use the Abstracts and Forms region to associate a notice to the solicitation document. In this region, add a new row by clicking the Add Another Row icon. Then select a Name from the list of values. The Status column shows No Data Entered. Click the Enter Data icon to open another page that enables you to enter detailed information for that notice type. The fields may vary depending on the Name (notice type) you selected. The Description field is a text area, and allows you to enter 64,000 characters. Field values such as Solicitation Number and Posting Date are defaulted for you.
The following rules apply if you are posting contract opportunities to SAM and the abstracts and forms are of version 10:
For Combined Synopsis/Solicitation and their modifications, the NAICS (North American Industry Classification System) code in the Federal Customer Designation region is mandatory. The application sends multiple NAICS codes while posting these notices, if solicitation lines have different NAICS codes.
For all the abstracts and forms, you can enter the following details:
Contact Details: In this region, the Contact Name and Email Address fields are mandatory.
Place of Performance: Enter details such as address lines, city name, zip code, state code, state name, country code, and country name.
Save the document by clicking Apply and post the notice to SAM by clicking Post. After you successfully post the solicitation details to SAM, the application updates the Date Sent field with the date of posting of the notice.
Note: You can post notices at all times irrespective of the status of the document, except document upload notices which cannot be posted in draft status.
In the Abstract and Forms region, click the View Data icon to see the notice details. Click the Posting Details icon to view the Contract Opportunities Posting Details page. The Form Type can be any notice for example, Presolicitation Notice, and Sources Sought Notice. The generated JSON information is also displayed in the fields, along with the hyperlinked JSON file in the View column. Posting Status, Posting Date and Message are also populated if the posting process is without errors. Otherwise the Posting Status displays an error.
The Solicitation Publication region enables you to provide an exception reason if you are not posting the solicitation to SAM. The Exception Reason LOV enables you to select a reason for not posting the solicitation to SAM.
For more information on Abstracts and Forms, see: Abstract and Forms.
Notes and Attachments
You can use notes and attachments to supply suppliers and internal users additional information on this negotiation. The Attachments region enables you to attach various types of files to the solicitation header, including the ability to annotate the solicitation with a note. Click Add Attachment to open the Add Attachment page and specify the type of attachment you would like to use: Desktop File/Text/URL or From Document Catalog.
You can add attachments at the header level or the line level. When you create a solicitation from one or more requisitions, the requisition attachments are copied to the solicitation. The requisition header attachments are attached to the solicitation header, and the requisition lines attachments are attached to the solicitation lines, respectively. The attachment description displays the attachment title along with the requisition number from which it is copied.
Select a Category from the list of values. The Category defines the purpose of an attachment to aid your department in identifying or grouping the attachments, and controls which users can access it. You can choose from:
Internal to Sourcing - these types of documents are internal and not accessible by suppliers.
Miscellaneous - these types of documents are internal and not accessible by suppliers.
To Approver - these types of documents are internal and not accessible by suppliers.
To Buyer - these types of documents are internal and not accessible by suppliers.
To Payables - these types of documents are internal and not accessible by suppliers.
To Receiver - these types of documents are internal and not accessible by suppliers.
To Supplier - these types of documents are accessible by suppliers.
Select the attachment Type. You can choose from:
File - specify a file name to upload. Enter the file location, or use the Browse button to locate the file.
URL - enter the URL for a Web page.
Text - Enter text that is less than 2000 characters. If the text you want to attach is more than 2000 characters, upload it in a file.
From the Document Catalog:
Use the Search regions to query existing documents.
Select the Document Name link to view a document before attaching it.
Select the documents to attach.
Click Apply.
Related Topics
Use the Offices and Contact Defaults page to specify the office location and the contact information that you want to default on the Address page. Access the Offices and Contact Defaults page using the following navigation:
Preferences > Sourcing CLM Defaults (link)
When you create a solicitation, the application automatically displays the default addresses that are specified for the following office types:
Issuing Office
COR Office
Property Administration Office
Payment Office
Requesting Office
You can accept the default information or update it. Each address row consists of the following information: Address Details, Address Type, Location Address Code and Contact.
Issuing Office: The Issuing Office is responsible for completing the award. The Issuing office is also often used as a reporting field to aggregate spending or contract actions, workload, etc. across organizations. Changing the Issuing Office from the original award changes the value for the conformed award. The address detail elements of the Issuing office are: Office Name, Address Line 1, Address Line 2, City, State, Postal Code, Country.
Contracting Officer's Name enables you to enter the Contact details for the Issuing Office - the name of the individual responsible for the contracting action. This field prints on each standard form in the Printed Name block next to the signature block depending on the form selected. The Contact details are: Name, Title, Phone Number, Email Address. This is the name of the contracting officer who is serving as signing authority for the award.
If you are entering the information through an interface or migration, you can enter the name of the Contracting Officer even if it is not associated with a user name.
COR Office: The COR is the Contracting Officer Representative - a stakeholder who has responsibility around the contract. Within the system, a COR's duties could include accepting deliverables under the contract, receiving notifications related to the contract.
During the creation of the solicitation or award, the buyer decides if a COR is necessary for the procurement and, if required, selects an appropriate COR and COR address. Subsequent tasks such as approval of invoices and acceptance of services or similar items may be given to the COR. The address detail elements of the COR Office are: Office Name, Address Line 1, Address Line 2, City, State, Postal Code, Country. You can enter a default COR office that will populate the award upon creation but can be changed later. The COR address details remain as is, when the award is finally approved.
COR Contact Name field enables you to enter the Contact details for the COR Office. The Contact details are: Name, Telephone Number, Email address.
The COR Office Address and COR Contact details may be changed anytime without a modification.
Requesting Office: The Requesting Office is the office where the purchase requisition originates. The buyer who is assigned the requisition uses the address to know whom to contact in the case the requisition needs to be revised or questions arise. It can also be used in reporting to know how much business is coming from the different offices. This office information is usually entered on the originating requisition and is passed on to the solicitation and then to the award. The address detail elements of the Requesting Office are: Office Name, Address Line 1, Address Line 2, City, State, Postal Code, and Country. The Requesting Office details are defaulted from the purchase requisition (or solicitation). The address details are retained as is, when the award or modification is finalized.
Note: When creating an award with a reference to a purchase requisition, if there are lines from different requisitions, then the Requesting Office address from the earliest created requisition is used.
Requesting Office Contact Name field enables you to enter the Contact details for the Requesting Office. The Contact details are: Name, Telephone Number, Email address.
Payment Office: The Payment Office is responsible for disbursing the payment to the vendor. The payment office details are optional and apply to all standard forms.
Note: If payment details exist, then only the PDF output of the SF1449 Form includes the payment details in the 18a. PAYMENT WILL BE MADE BY block.
The elements of the payment office address are:
Location
Address
Contact
Oracle CLM passes the payment office details that you add to a solicitation to the following documents:
Solicitation amendment
Solicitation print
Solicitation outcome document as an award
Solicitation outcome document as an IDV
Requisitions do not require payment office address details. When a requisition is automatically created from a solicitation, the payment office address details are populated from the sourcing office preferences set on the Offices and Contact Defaults page, if the values exist. If the values do not exist, then you can either provide the details or leave the values.
Property Administration Office: The Property Administration Office is responsible for maintaining and tracking any government property that may be acquired or used as part of the resulting contract.
When the solicitation or award is created, the buyer checks if the line item uses government property or acquires government property, and if required, selects the appropriate property administration office and contact.
The address detail elements of the Property Administration Office are: Office Name, Address Line 1, Address Line 2, City, State, Postal Code, and Country.
A default Property Administration Office value populated the field, however this information can be changed anytime prior to the approval of the award.
After you have entered the solicitation header, click the Addresses link to access the Addresses page associated with the solicitation.
Click Show to view the details of the address. Alternatively, choose another location and address code to associate with the solicitation.
Search and associate a contact with the solicitation.
For information about how to implement addresses, see Addresses section in the Oracle Contract Lifecycle Management for Public Sector Implementation Guide.
When you create a new solicitation, or edit a draft negotiation, you must identify the goods or services you want to purchase or for which you want quotes. To do this, you can use Contract Lines and Sublines. Sub-lines or SLINs represent the sub-lines in a Contract. Contract sub-lines provide flexibility to further identify elements within a contract line item for tracking performance or simplifying administration.
Every solicitation line is automatically numbered, however you can change the numbering of a line. The Contract Line (CLIN) and Sub-line (SLIN) structure is used in all CLM solicitation documents, including modifications and amendments to solicitations. Contract Lines or CLIN capture information about the item or service to be acquired as separate contract line items. A Contract Line (CLIN) can be a priced line or an informational line. Similarly, Sub-Lines, which are used to capture additional information about the CLIN, can be priced sub-lines or informational sub-lines.
CLIN numbers are always 4 digit numeric values that fall in the range 0001-9999. Duplicate numbers are not supported by the system and an error message displays if a duplicate number is found. A segment with 4 digit numeric values from 0001 - 9999 is defined for each document. The numbers are sequentially generated.
SLINs are Sub-lines that use a 6-character numbering format - numeric or alphanumeric. The first 4 digits of the SLINs are populated with the parent CLIN number. The next 2 digits are automatically generated, based on whether the SLIN is a Priced sub-line or an Informational sub-line. You cannot update SLIN numbers. If the SLIN is Informational, the last 2 digits are always numeric values in the range 01-99. If the SLIN is Priced, the last 2 digits are always alphabetical values ranging from AA to ZZ (except the alphabets I and O which are not used in number generation at all).
Lines are usually Quantity Based (for items/supplies) or Amount Based (for services). Depending on the Line Type that is selected, the Item/Job field is enabled (for Quantity Based types) or disabled (for Amount Based types).
You can choose to create an option line on a solicitation document. Option lines can be created by associating them to a base line, or can be created without a base line.
To create an option line, first create a new line by selecting the Create a CLIN from the Actions LOV. Then select the Option check box to make the line an option line. You may opt to link the option line to a base line by selecting the correct baseline from the LOV. You can also click on the Option + icon next to the baseline to create an option line linked to the base line.
See: Contract Line / Sub-Line (CLIN / SLIN)
See: Exhibit Line / Contract Data Requirements List (ELIN/CDRL)
See: Options
To add lines online:
From the navigation bar in the top left corner, click Lines.
On the Create Solicitation Lines page, select how the line will be ranked and how the ranking will be displayed.
If you wish to score and weight your lines, select Multi-Attribute Scoring as the Ranking type. Also specify the ranking display method and whether to display the scoring criteria to suppliers based on the line level attributes.
Your Sourcing Administrator would have defined the default types of cost factors available to negotiations, however, you can override this value if you wish to use different types of cost factors.
Select the Suppliers see their offer price transformed check box to enable suppliers to view how a price change affects their bid.
If the document outcome for your negotiation is an award, and you wish to use price breaks, you can specify a default price break type for all negotiation lines by selecting a value from the Price Tiers menu (the initial default for this menu is defined by the Sourcing Administrator). You can override this value at the line level as necessary.
None - no price breaks will be used
Required - Suppliers must respond to your price breaks and cannot add or modify them.
Optional - Supplier do not have to respond to your price breaks. They can also modify the price breaks you specify, and/or add their own.
Add your negotiation lines by selecting the appropriate method from the Actions menu. You can Create a CLIN, Create a Line from a Catalog, Create a Line from Favorites, Import Lines, Global Update, Add Requisition Lines and Delete all Lines. Add Requisition Lines takes you to the Demand Workbench page, where you can add requisition lines to your solicitation. Select the appropriate entry from the Actions menu and click Go.
Click Organize Lines to move lines and sub-lines in different ways to recreate your CLIN/SLIN structure. The Organize Lines page consists of 2 regions: Current Structure (source) and Target Structure (destination). Select one or more lines by clicking on the Select check box in the Current Structure region. Then select the type of move you wish to perform using the Select Action LOV in the Target Structure region. Select from one of the 3 possible values: Move After Selected Line (moves the line after the line you selected in the Edit Lines page), Move Before Selected Line (moves the line above the line you selected in the Edit Lines page) and Move as sub-line(s) under selected line (moves a line as a SLIN under a CLIN).
The action Move as sub-line(s) under selected line is not applicable for :
Option SLINs without a base line
SLINs that are base lines for other option lines
CLINs containing cross-linked option lines
Click Done to save and apply your changes and return to the Lines page. The Lines page displays, showing you the new structure of the lines.
Click Delete to delete a line from the solicitation. Delete an Option line directly by clicking the Delete button. If you attempt to delete a Base Line that is associated with one or more Option Lines, a warning message is displayed, informing you that the base line with associated option lines will be deleted. You can choose to cancel the delete operation, delete the linked option lines or unlink the option lines. If an option CLIN with a base line or an option SLIN originating from a purchase requisition is deleted from a draft award or draft solicitation, the requestor of the purchase requisition is notified that the delete action has taken place.
Click Copy to duplicate the selected line and place it below the original line. You can then view the Update Line page and enter/edit additional line information.
The Copy Lines : Specify Copying Options page enables you to copy CLIN/SLIN structures, Exhibits, and option lines in the same CLM document. The copy alternatives are:
Copy CLINs with associated SLINs - use this check box to specify if only selected lines are to be copied, or associated SLINs of a selected CLIN are also to be copied.
Copy as Option Lines - use this check box to specify if you wish to copy one or more lines as option lines.
Maintain Base Line References - use this check box to specify if the base line reference needs to be maintained between the source line and the option line that will be created.
In addition, the Define Need By Date and Period of Performance Dates region enables you to enter a specific date or obtain a derived date. A derived date is calculated from the existing date values by the system after you enter a duration, for example, 1 month after the Need By Date of the source line.
The Define Option Dates region enables you to either enter a specific date or obtain a derived date. A derived date is calculated from the existing date values by the system after you enter a duration, for example, you can specify that the Option Start Date should be set to 3 months earlier than the Need-By Date derived for that line. after the Option From Date of the source line.
Click Apply to initiate the copy and when you return to the Lines page, you will see the copied lines with the appropriate dates and CLIN/SLIN structures and options, if any.
For more information on the rules governing the Copy action, see: Appendix - Copy Action.
The Related Exhibits region displays the exhibit details that the line is associated with. A line can be referenced in more than one exhibit. The Related Exhibits region displays if a line has an associated exhibit (you have associated the line to the exhibit using the Manage Exhibits page). This region displays only for Standalone CLINs, CLINs with informational SLINs and SLINs and not for exhibit lines. For example, if your line is A001 (exhibit line), the region will not be displayed. Similarly, this region does not appear for any informational line (CLINs or SLINs).
To add an independent CLIN:
On the Lines: Create Line page, provide the following information. *Indicates a required field :
Exhibit This field contains a list of values of Exhibits that you can search for and use. The values for the Exhibit list of values are pre-defined (seeded). The values are A through Z, followed by AA through AZ, BA through BZ and so on until ZZ. It should be noted that the alphabets I and O are not used at all for the Exhibit values. Additionally, an Exhibit icon is displayed before the line number in the Lines Summary page to indicate that the line is an exhibit line. The exhibit value is displayed in the Exhibit column in the Lines Summary page.
Line By default, this field displays a line number. You can edit this number only when the document is in Incomplete or Draft status. Once the document is submitted for approval or approved, you cannot edit the CLIN numbers.
Line Type The available line types are defined in Oracle Purchasing, broadly classified as Quantity Based or Amount Based. The line type determines whether this is a quantity-based line, such as 50 laser printers, or an amount-based item such as consulting services. The choice of line type determines the fields you can enter for the line.
To change the line type, select the line type you want and click Go. The page refreshes and the fields available for the line reflect the line type you select. If a solicitation was created AutoCreated from Document Builder, the line type value is carried from the backing requisition and is display only.
Select the Informational check box to indicate that the line is an information line.
Item, Rev The number and revision for this item. If this document was AutoCreated from Document Builder, these values are carried from the backing requisition line and are display only. If you are entering an item in Sourcing, you can enter item information directly or search for items from the Item Master.
*Description A text description of the item. If the solicitation was created from a backing requisition, the description is carried from the backing requisition and is display only. If the item was selected from the Master Items directly from Sourcing, the description from the Master Items will default.
*Category The group within the Item Master to which the item belongs. The default category value is based on line type. If the solicitation was created from a backing requisition, the category value is carried from the backing requisition line item and is display only. If you searched from Sourcing for an item from the Item Master, the category value defaults to the category for the item and cannot be updated.
Unit of Measure Unit of measure in which you plan to purchase your item. The system recognizes the UN standardized unit of measure codes. If you selected an amount based line type above, the default for this field is set by the Sourcing Super User. If the solicitation was AutoCreated from a backing requisition, the unit of measure value is carried from the backing requisition line item and is display only. If you selected the item from the Item Master directly in Sourcing, the UOM values available to you are only those appropriate to the item.
Contract Type Select the Contract Type applicable for the solicitation. IDC (Indefinite Delivery Contract) is not applicable for Requisitions and Purchase Orders. The Contract Type LOV contains all the Contract Types that can be used for that Line Type. If you select Quantity Based Line Types, the LOV for the Contract Type displays only those Contract Types that don't depend on any pricing attribute other than Quantity and Unit Price for the price calculation.
Cost Constraint Select the cost constraint to use. A Cost Constraint is an indicator at CLIN/SLIN level that controls the pricing or the document printing behavior for that CLIN/SLIN. You can choose from:
Catalog - Use this to identify that the price is based on the vendor's catalog pricing.
Estimated - Use this when the exact quantity of supplies or services is not known. For example, a Requirement Type contract or a Labor Hour/T&M services contract.
Fabrication Cost - Use this in major system/supply contracts to indicate the price for fabricating or assembling the system not including the incorporated Government Furnished Materials (GFM).
No Charge - Use this to identify an item that is normally priced, but for which the vendor is not charging. For example, shipping and handling charges on a catalog item purchase.
Not Separately Priced - Use this for line items in which the price of the information described on the line is included in the price for other lines. For example, a line describing a monitor that is included in the price of a PC that is priced separately on another line.
Not to Exceed - Use this when the exact quantity of supplies or services is not known and the government desires to set a ceiling on the maximum value, such as in a Labor Hour/T&M services contract.
To be Negotiated - Use this for line items that have not yet been priced and will be priced at a later time. You can use this for letter contracts, in contract modifications, or for option line items.
*Quantity Number of units of the item you want to purchase. This is applicable only for goods-based lines.
Unit Price Enter the unit price for an individual unit.
The application automatically calculates and displays the Extended Price based on the unit price and the quantity.
Extended Price This field displays the value of the quantity multiplied by the unit price. The Extended Price is a calculated field, it displays the formula that went into the price calculation as a caption below the Extended Price value.
You can open the Pricing Details popup window called for Amount Based Lines. This popup enables you to input the values for the pricing elements and calculates the line amount. The pricing elements that are derived from the calculation logic are view-only fields and you cannot update them. The popup has a Calculate button to calculate the final price (Total Amount) and any other calculated pricing elements.
See: Pricing.
Currency and Price Precision This is the functional currency for your operating unit and the price precision you selected when you created your negotiation header. You cannot change these values .
Total Start Price/Unit The total price at which responding for one unit of an item must begin. A start price is not required, but if the buyer specifies one, all responses must be equal to or below the Start Price. If the negotiation was created from backing requisitions, the start price defaults to the lowest requisition price of all requisitions for that item. However, if the line type is amount-based, the start price defaults to the requisition quantity.
Total Target Price/Unit Total price you hope to get paid for one unit of your item. Select the Display to Suppliers check box if you want the participants to see your target price.
Total Current Price/Unit Total price you are currently paying for the item. The current price is used to calculate negotiation performance used for savings calculations in the application.
Note: Suppliers are never able to view the current price.
Need-By From/Need-By To Select the dates necessary to specify when you need to receive the item. If you supply values for both fields, you specify a time window (inclusive of the end date). If you leave both fields blank, there is no time constraint on receiving the item. A value in Need-By From with no value in Need-By To indicates the date on or after which you need to receive the item. A value in Need-By To with no value in Need-By From indicates the date on or before which you need to receive the item. You can use the pop-up calendar to pick your dates. If the negotiation was created from a single backing requisition, the Need-By From and the Need-By To fields are set to the requisition need-by date. If the negotiation was created from multiple backing requisitions, the Need-By From field defaults to the earliest requisition line's need-by date. The Need-By To field defaults to the latest requisitions need-by date.
If you source for an item (as opposed to sourcing for a category), Need-By date(s) are required.
The Option check box in the Option region is used to specify that a line is an option line. You can also use this check box to convert a line into an option line or an option line into a regular line. The system displays a warning before allowing the change. Click Continue to proceed with the conversion or Cancel to retain the existing lines as is.
An option line that has been auto-created from a requisition cannot be converted to a regular line
If you wish to associate a base line to your option line, select a Base Line Number from the LOV. The option line may or may not be associated with a base line. If the line being edited is a CLIN, the base line LOV will display only CLINs. If the selected line is a SLIN, then the base line LOV shows only SLINs within the same CLIN-SLIN structure.
Option Num (Number) is a system generated number and is non-updateable.
Option Dates are mandatory fields. These are the dates when you plan to exercise the option line.
If the solicitation is a CLM document, and if the outcome document of the solicitation is CLM Award, the Delivery Event, Period and Period of Performance Duration fields are enabled in the Solicitation Line Details page.
The Delivery Event list of values are:
Blank
After Date of Contract
After First Article Test Approval
After Production Lot Test Approval
After Notice of Award
The Delivery Event list of values is a lookup and is extensible, which means you can configure the values you wish to see and use. You can add more values to this lookup, if required.
If you select one of the above values (other than Blank), the following fields become read-only, you cannot edit their values: Need-By Date, Period of Performance Start Date, Period of Performance End Date. You can enter values for Period and Period of Performance Duration.
If you do not select a value (i.e.Blank), then the Period and Period of Performance Duration fields remain read-only.
When you save the solicitation, these values get saved along with the rest of the solicitation information. When the outcome document (CLM Award) is created, these values are also part of the award and get saved with the rest of the fields and their values.
Additional Item Information Use this region to enter additional information about the item. The details you can enter include NSN, Drawing Number, Serial Number, Piece Number, Model Number, Specification Number, Manufacturer Name, Manufacturer Part Number, Product/Catalog Number, and Supplier Part Number.
Federal Customer Designation Use this region to enter federal customer designation details. The details you can enter are MDAPS/MAIS, NAICS, Customer Project Code, Program Code, FSC/PSC, and Customer Project Text.
Inspection Information Enter details of inspection information such as Inspection Responsibility, Inspection Location, Inspection Level, and Inspection Address.
Additional Shipping Information Use this region to enter details of shipping information such as FOB Code, Shipment Mode, Charge Shipping To, MILSTRIP Code, Additional Marking Text, Transportation Control Number, Transportation Priority, Precious Metal Code, and HAZMAT Code. The Ship-to Address displays.
Related Requisition Lines The Related Requisition Lines region displays the linked requisition lines for this solicitation line. If you wish to remove the link between the solicitation line and the requisition line, click the Remove (trashcan) icon. If you wish to link another requisition line(s) to the solicitation line, click the Link Requisition Lines button. The Requisition Lines Search page displays.
The fields MIPR Document Reference and MIPR Reference Number display MIPR related information. The MIPR Document Reference displays the MIPR type (MIPR-Others is displayed only) and the Obligation Type (Direct Citation or Reimbursement).
For more information on linking requisition lines to solicitation lines, please refer to the section Linking Requisition Lines.
Attributes Attributes are used to describe the good or service being purchased. They identify characteristics which will negotiated on in addition to item price. To add attributes, click Add Another Row or Add Attribute List. In a Multi-Attribute Weighted Scoring negotiation, you can assign weights and scores to attributes.
Note that depending on how your system is set up, if the outcome of this negotiation is a purchase agreement item descriptors assigned to an item in the Item Master or the Unified Catalog may be automatically added as Attributes for that item. These attributes are assigned to the default Attribute Group, but you can modify that if necessary. If the system is set up to not automatically add descriptors as Attributes, you can add them yourself by clicking Add Catalog Attributes. On the Search and Select: Add Catalog Descriptors, click Go to see all the descriptors defined for that item, or enter a search value to see only those descriptors whose name or description begin with those characters.
Price Breaks (award or IDVs only)
Enter price break information to negotiate a pricing structure with your supplier based on quantity, ship-to location, and effective-date values.
Cost Factors Cost factors allow you to capture additional item costs such as freight or special charges.
Note and Attachments Optional information you can provide to users of your document.
When you have finished entering your line information, click Apply. You return to the Create: Lines page and the line you just entered appears in the Lines table. To enter another item online, click Go. Follow the preceding instructions. Note that if your negotiation is a large or very large negotiation, you only see the line(s) you just created in the Lines table (if you used spreadsheet upload, or added lines from the Catalog or your Favorites, you could have created multiple lines). To display more lines, you must use the Search facility.
To bulk load lines from a spreadsheet:
Select Import Lines to add lines to a negotiation.
On the Lines: Import Spreadsheet page, click Export.
Save the .zip file to a convenient location on your machine.
Open the Instructions file (the .htm file) and follow the directions to complete the template.
When you have completed the template, return to the Lines: Import Spreadsheet page, navigate to the location of your completed spreadsheet file, and click Import.
If there are errors with the upload, error messages are displayed describing the errors. For each error, the message will indicate the spreadsheet line, the column, and a description of the error. Access the spreadsheet, correct the errors and try uploading again.
If the upload is successful, the lines that you have uploaded are listed on the Create: Lines page.
When the upload has completed, the lines that you have uploaded are listed on the Add Lines page.
You can edit or delete existing lines by selecting a line and clicking the appropriate button.
You can still enter additional lines online.
If you created the negotiation using a spreadsheet, any spreadsheet item category values take precedence over item category values defined for the negotiation template.
If you used a negotiation template, any item attributes defined to the template are added to any item attributes defined in the spreadsheet. If the same item attribute is defined in both places, the spreadsheet value takes precedence.
You can use a spreadsheet to upload item attributes and price factors.
Global Update enables you to add common field values for multiple lines or update common field values for multiple lines on draft CLM documents: Awards (lines, schedules and distributions included where applicable), IDVs, Modifications, Solicitations, and Solicitation Amendments. For example, you may want to update the Need-By Dates for all the selected solicitation lines to a date which is 3 months after the current date. Instead of updating the lines individually, which is a time-consuming exercise, you can update the Need-By Dates in a single global update operation.
Another example: if Shipment Mode is blank, you can use Global Update to add a value to the field. Or, if Inspection Location needs to be changed to another location, you can also use Global Update to change the existing field value to another one.
Navigate to the Lines tab of a solicitation. Select one, multiple or all lines (use the Select All link) and then click Global Update. The Global Update Lines page displays with the fields that you can update for multiple lines.
If you want to add a new value to the solicitation lines such as Customer Project Code or Customer Project Text, enter the value in the Global Update Lines page and click Apply. If you want to update / replace the original field value(s) with a new field value, such as FSC/PSC, select or enter the new field value and click Apply. A message confirming that the update was successful displays in the Solicitation Lines page. You can navigate to individual solicitation lines to verify that the update has taken place for the fields you specified.
Similarly, you can globally update field values for solicitation amendments, as required.
Note: You cannot blank out any existing values using Global Update. You can only add or update a value.
Exhibit lines can either be Not Separately Priced / No Charge (the value of the Cost Constraint field should be Not Separately Priced or No Charge) or Priced lines. Exhibit lines cannot be informational. Exhibit lines are also not associated with SLINs, therefore, in the Lines page, if there is an exhibit line, the Add SLIN icon is disabled for use. In a similar manner, exhibit lines cannot be option lines or base lines for other option lines.
There are 2 ways you can create an exhibit line:
First method: Create a line (CLIN) and then select a seeded value from the Exhibit list of values. The CLIN automatically gets converted to an exhibit line when you select the Exhibit value.
Second Method: Use the action Convert Lines To/From Exhibit Lines that is available in the Lines region. First select one or more lines that you want to convert to exhibit lines and then select Convert Lines To/From Exhibit Lines action and click Go. The Convert Lines to Exhibit Lines page displays. Select the radiobutton Specify an Exhibit for selected Lines to convert as Exhibit Lines, and then choose an Exhibit from the Exhibit list of values. Click Apply to save your changes and return to the Lines tab. You will see that line(s) you selected are converted to exhibit lines and a message confirming that the lines have been converted successfully also displays.
The action Convert Lines To/From Exhibit Lines also enables you to convert exhibit lines to CLINs. Select one or more exhibit lines and choose the action Convert Lines To/From Exhibit Lines and click Go. The Convert Exhibit Lines to Lines displays with 2 options: Remove exhibit references for selected exhibit lines and convert as regular lines or Specify an Exhibit for selected Lines to convert as Exhibit Lines. If you select the radiobutton for Remove exhibit references for selected exhibit lines and convert as regular lines, the exhibit lines you have selected get converted to CLINs or SLINs. If you select the radiobutton for Specify an Exhibit for selected Lines to convert as Exhibit Lines, you will also need to choose an exhibit from the Exhibit list of values. This will associate your exhibit line with a different Exhibit value (for example, from AA to AB). Click Apply to save your changes and return to the Lines tab. You will see that line(s) you selected are converted to exhibit lines and a message confirming that the lines have been converted successfully also displays.
Use the Manage Exhibits action in the document level Actions LOV to associate the Exhibit lines with CLINs or SLINs. You can reference a single Exhibit to a CLIN or a SLIN at a time. Priced CLINs can be linked to Not Separately Priced ELINs and Not Separately Priced CLINs can be linked to Priced ELINs. CDRLs can be linked to either priced or Not Separately Priced CLINs. Thus, even if one line is priced, the exhibit is considered to be priced.
The Manage Exhibits page consists of a search region, where you can search for and view all the exhibits associated with the current document. The search results region also tells you if the exhibit is a data deliverable, how many exhibit lines are associated with it, whether they are priced or not and their value along with the description. The Referenced Line column in the search results region enables you to link CLINs or SLINs with exhibits. Select a line from the search LOV and associate it to the exhibit.
The Actions column enables you to view the Exhibit details in PDF format. The PDF document displays the Exhibit name on the first page (for example, Exhibit AA) and then displays all the exhibit details, including the associated lines. The Copy action in the Actions column displays the Copy Exhibits: Set Need-By Date page, where you need to specify the Need-By Date or Period of Performance Dates. Click Apply to copy the entire exhibit structure as a new exhibit. The Copy Exhibits page is used to copy exhibits that are ELINs only. If the exhibit is a CDRL, it will automatically be copied and a new exhibit name is automatically assigned as the next available name in the A, B… series. When a CDRL exhibit is copied, all the CDRL details are copied to a new CDRL. If required, you would need to update the generation period etc. manually. The Delete icon in the Actions column deletes an exhibit from the document. Click Save to return to the Lines page. If you have not referenced a CLIN or SLIN to an exhibit, the system warns you to do so when you click Submit to submit the document for approval.
From your solicitation document, select the Contract Terms link to open the Contract Terms page. The Contract Terms page displays, with two tabs - Clauses and Deliverables. Click the Deliverables tab to create a CDRL. A CDRL is essentially a data deliverable. The Deliverables page displays, and you can use this page to create deliverables and manage exhibits.
Click Create Deliverable to open the Create Deliverable page. Enter a Deliverable Name appropriate to the CDRL you are creating. Enter Data Deliverable as the value for Deliverable Category. This is mandatory if you wish to create a deliverable of type CDRL. A Deliverable will be categorized as a CDRL if the Deliverable Category is selected as Data Deliverable. If you have saved the template with the value Data Deliverable, you can change the deliverable to a non-CDRL only if the CLM document has a status of Draft. When the CLM document is approved, you cannot change the Deliverable Category or Deliverable Type via a modification. Enter Contractual as the value for Deliverable Type. Verify if the fields such as Supplier and Internal Contact have the appropriate values defaulted. The Responsible Party should default to (or should be selected as) Supplier Organization, if the Deliverable Category is Data Deliverable and the Deliverable Type is Contractual.
If you have selected the Deliverable Category as Data Deliverable, the Data Item Details and Distribution Address regions are enabled and displayed.
The regions in the CDRL page and some of their fields are described below:
The Exhibit Details region is used to display the fields Exhibit and Data Item Number for deliverables with Data Deliverable as the Deliverable Category value. This region is displayed only if the document is a Solicitation or Award document.
The Pricing Details region is used to display the fields Price Group and Estimated Price for deliverables with Data Deliverable as the Deliverable Category value. This region is displayed only if the document is a Solicitation or Award document.
The Data Item Details region is used to capture Data Deliverable details required for printing. This region is displayed for deliverables with Data Deliverable as the Deliverable Category value. This region is displayed only for template definitions and Solicitation/Award documents.
The Distribution Address region is also used to capture details required for printing. This region is displayed for deliverables with Data Deliverable as the Deliverable Category value. This region is displayed only for template definitions and Solicitation/Award documents.
The Schedule Information region is used to capture the Schedule Type information. This region is displayed for all deliverable categories, including data deliverable. If the Schedule Type is System, the Due Date and Notifications regions are displayed, if the value of Schedule Type is Non-Schedulable, then the Due Date and Notifications regions are not displayed.
The Due Date and Notifications regions enable you to specify the date when the task on the CDRL will be completed. Select either Fixed Date or Relative Date. If you selected Fixed Date, select the date using the Calendar icon.
If you selected Relative Date, select Event, Before/After, and Period values.
Select a value from the Event list of values: Purchase Order Cancel, Purchase Order Close and Purchase Order Signing.
For a repeating deliverable, the start date is the date that you chose either as a fixed date or a date relative to the event that you specified in the previous step.
For a repeating deliverable, select the frequency information as follows:
Select the Frequency as a number of days or weeks or months. For example, every 6 weeks or every 3 months. In the Repeating field, select either the day of the week to repeat on (for a weekly frequency) or the day of the month to repeat on (for a monthly frequency) or number of days (for a day based frequency).
For a repeating deliverable, select the end date information as follows:
In the Repeat Until fields, select either the Fixed Date or Relative Date radio button. If you selected Fixed Date, select the date using the Calendar icon.
If you selected Relative Date, select Event, Before/After, and Period values.
Select one or more of the check boxes that match the notification scenarios:
Prior to Due Date: If you enable this check box, you must specify the (positive) number of days, weeks or months before the due date that the notification should be sent.
The recipient of this notification is the contact of the responsible party on the deliverable. The recipients of this notification are the Buyer Contact, the Supplier Contact, and the Requester.
Status Change: A notification is sent for any status change of the deliverable. Statuses could be any of the following: Completed, Submitted, Rejected, Cancelled, or Failed to Perform.
Deliverable is Overdue: A notification is sent when the due date of the deliverable is passed. The recipients of this notification are the Buyer Contact, the Supplier Contact, and the Requester.
Escalate after Due Date: The recipients of this notification are the Escalation Contact and the Requester. If you enable this notification, you must specify the Escalation Contact, and the number of days, weeks, or months until the escalation should occur.
Note: Except for Status Change notifications, the notifications are only sent daily as a result of running the concurrent programs Overdue Deliverable Notifier, Deliverable Due Date Notifier, and Deliverable Escalation Notifier.
Click Add Attachments, and define your attachment as one of following types:
File: you can attach a file from your local desktop.
URL: you can specify a URL where the document is available.
Text: you can enter information in the Text field.
Click Apply to save your work and return to the main Deliverables tab. Using this tab, you can define data deliverables, specify exhibits details for data deliverables, view the Exhibits used in the document and copy the exhibits along with the data deliverables that are mapped to the exhibit.
The Deliverables tab now displays the CDRL you just created. Click the Deliverable Name link to open the CDRL. The exhibit details are displayed as well. If you wish to change the exhibit information, select the CDRL and then use the Specify Exhibit button to open the Search Exhibits page. You can search for an exhibit and then link it to the CDRL. Select the Exhibit and click Apply. The newly associated exhibit now appears in the Deliverables tab for the CDRL.
The Manage Exhibits page consists of a search region, where you can search for and view all the exhibits associated with the current document. The search results region also tells you if the exhibit is a data deliverable, how many exhibit lines are associated with it, whether they are priced or not and their value along with the description. The Referenced Line column in the search results region enables you to link CLINs or SLINs with exhibits. Select a line from the search LOV and associate it to the exhibit.
The Actions column enables you to view the Exhibit details in PDF format. The PDF document displays the Exhibit name on the first page (for example, Exhibit AA) and then displays all the exhibit details, including the associated lines. The Copy action in the Actions column displays the Copy Exhibits: Set Need-By Date page, where you need to specify the Need-By Date or Period of Performance Dates. Click Apply to copy the entire exhibit structure as a new exhibit. The Copy Exhibits page is used to copy exhibits that are ELINs only. If the exhibit is a CDRL, it will automatically be copied and a new exhibit name is automatically assigned as the next available name in the A, B… series. When a CDRL exhibit is copied, all the CDRL details are copied to a new CDRL. If required, you would need to update the generation period etc. manually. The Delete icon in the Actions column deletes an exhibit from the document. Click Save to return to the Lines page. If you have not referenced a CLIN or SLIN to an exhibit, the system warns you to do so when you click Submit to submit the document for approval.
In the Manage Exhibits page, click an exhibit link to open the Exhibit Line Details page. If the Exhibit is a supplies / services line, then the line details will be displayed. However, if the Exhibit is a CDRL, then the page displays the details of the data deliverables. Click the Return link at the bottom of the page to go back to the Manage Exhibits page.
If you have multiple CDRLs listed in the Deliverables tab, then you can order them in a sequence by clicking the Reorder button.
A solicitation line can be associated to one or more purchase requisition lines using the Lines page. For this purpose, the requisition lines should have some available un-liquidated funds and the destination type for these lines cannot be Inventory. The association between a solicitation line and a purchase requisition line (that has funds) enables the outcome award of the solicitation to get and use the funds from the purchase requisition lines. Thus a solicitation line can link to a purchase requisition line with funds and that can be used to fund the downstream outcome award.
Please note that solicitation lines that have been autocreated from requisition lines in Demand Workbench (using Document Builder) cannot be linked again to other purchase requisition lines. This is the case even if the Destination Type in such scenarios is not Inventory. They already are associated to the purchase requisition line from which they have been created.
In addition, option lines and Informational lines may not be associated to a purchase requisition line.
This ability to link solicitation lines to requisition lines is available to users only if the Operating Unit is enabled for Encumbrance Accounting. The procedure to associate a purchase requisition line to one or more solicitation lines is as follows: Select one or more saved solicitation lines using the Select check box in the Lines region. Click the Link Requisition Lines button to open the Requisition Lines Search page.
A CLIN/SLIN structure in a purchase requisition can be linked to solicitation lines. Additionally, one line from the CLIN/SLIN structure can also be linked to one or more solicitation lines. In such a situation, when a single line from a CLIN/SLIN structure is linked to solicitation line(s), the entire CLIN/SLIN structure is removed from the Demand Workbench and is not available for linking.
The Search region in the Requisition Lines Search page consists of the following default search criteria: Buyer, Requisition, Line Number, Item. In addition, you can add other search criteria fields using the Add Another LOV and selecting a value. Click Add to add another search criteria after selecting a search field from the Add Another LOV.
The Search region displays only those requisitions that are created for non-Inventory (i.e. Expense) items. Additionally, requisition lines that have no distributions are not displayed in the search region either. Only those requisition lines that still have funds (unliquidated funds) are utilized for creating awards. Further, if any requisition lines are currently linked to one or more draft award lines, or linked to a line in another inprocess Solicitation, such requisition lines are not shown in the search results. However, when such an award is approved, if there are any funds remaining with the requisition lines, then the same may be searched for using the Search page, and linked to other Solicitation lines, if required.
Enter values for the default search criteria as well as for the newly added search fields and then click Go. The search results display the requisition lines that match the search criteria.
Select one or more requisition lines from the search results region and click Apply. The Create Solicitation: Lines page displays again, and you can see the linked requisition line number in the solicitation line row at the Requisition column. The Requisition column displays all linked requisition lines, whether they have been auto-created or brought in through the Link Requisition Lines action. Information from the linked requisition lines that come in through the Link Requisition Lines action does not become part of the solicitation line information. Please note that such requisition line numbers are references for the future task of outcome award creation. When an outcome document of Award type is created as a result of awarding the solicitation to the best bidder, these linked requisition line references are used to enable the fund and Charge Account information to be associated with the outcome award document.
This linking of requisition lines is typically used when the requisition lines are created for a high level demand with fewer specifications and some funds; however, when the solicitation is created, the demand has more detailed specifications in the solicitation lines that clearly depict what is being purchased. Please note that this linking process will ONLY utilize the funds on the backing requisition lines while the outcome awards are created. The quantity, price, attachments and various other attributes of the requisition lines are not defaulted to the solicitation lines from the requisition, when such a link is established.
If more than one requisition line has been linked to the solicitation line, the hyperlinked word Multiple displays in the Requisition column. Click the Multiple Hyperlink to view the linked requisition lines in the Requisitions Summary page. Click a line number link to open the Requisition Line Details page. The line information such as Awards, Shipments, Receipts, Invoices, Payments, etc are displayed in this page. Click Return to go back to the Requisitions Summary page.
Save your solicitation and proceed with the publishing process. When the solicitation has associated requisition lines, the requisition line details are saved along with the solicitation details. However the requisition line information is not available to be linked to an award until such time as the awarding and outcome document creation processes are performed. When a purchase requisition line is thus associated to the solicitation, the requisition line is removed from the Demand Workbench and is not available from the demand pool. Similarly, such requisition lines cannot be linked to a line in another solicitation or draft award.
When you delete a solicitation line with linked requisition lines, the associated purchase requisition line reference is also removed. If the requisition line has no other links to any other solicitation lines, the requisition line is put back in the demand pool and is available for use in Demand Workbench. If you delete a CLIN or a CLIN/SLIN structure, all the linked purchase requisition line references are removed.
During the amendment process, the linked purchase requisition references are stored along with the amendment information. Thus, the requisition reference information is maintained along with the solicitation information during the amendment rounds. However, if a solicitation is cancelled as part of an amendment, the requisition reference is deleted.
Solicitation lines that are auto-created may or may not have unsolicited lines linked to them. This section outlines the different possible scenarios:
Solicitation Lines can be auto-created using Demand Workbench and they may not have unsolicited lines linked to them. Line Splits cannot be performed for these lines.
Solicitation Lines can be auto-created using Demand Workbench that have one or more unsolicited lines linked to them. In this scenario, the following points need to be considered:
You can use the Link Requisition Lines action to link requisitions line to the unsolicited lines, provided the destination type of the requisition lines is Expense (and not Inventory).If you do not opt to link requisition lines to the unsolicited lines, the unsolicited lines will not have associated requisition lines and the distributions in the outcome award will be created without the associated requisition lines.
If the requisitions have a destination type Inventory (and not Expense), the solicitation lines that have been auto-created from the requisition lines now have the requisition line numbers associated with them and the distributions for the outcome award are created using the requisition lines.
If the requisitions have a destination type Expense (and not Inventory), the solicitation lines and the unsolicited lines will be associated to the requisition line and the funds will be distributed across the solicitation lines and unsolicited lines using the pro-ration formula. For example, the Funds to Use value is $3000, and there are two requisition distribution amounts for $2000 and $4000. The newly created distribution amounts on the outcome award will have the following values : $1000 and $2000. This is because the proposed distribution amounts are pro-rated using the Funds to Use and the requisition distribution amounts.
When you create a new solicitation, you set response controls to determine the negotiation duration, participants, responding frequency, open and closing times and many other variables.
After you have entered the solicitation header, and added lines, click the Controls link to access the Create Controls page for that negotiation. Complete the following fields as appropriate for the solicitation type. You must have created your solicitation header before you can create controls. Note that for fields where you enter a date and time, the default time value the system uses is the time when you entered a value in the field. You can edit the value to change the time if needed.
Preview Date Use the pop-up calendar to specify a date/time after which the negotiation information can be accessed by potential suppliers. They can view the negotiation's details but cannot place responses.
*Open Date Use the pop-up calendar to select the date/time after which all eligible suppliers are allowed to participate in the negotiation or choose to open the negotiation immediately.
*Close Date Use the pop-up calendar to select the date/time when the negotiation will be closed. Once closed, no further responses may be accepted. If you allow the control manual close/close early, the negotiation can be closed prior to the defined close date. If you allow the control manual extend, the time limit for the negotiation can be extended past the original close date. When you extend a negotiation you specify the new close date. The Close Date cannot be later than the Need-By Date.
Note: You can use the Manage Schedule page to modify the open date or close date of a solicitation that opens at a future date and is in a Submitted or Preview status. See Managing Schedules of a Solicitation.
Award Date Use the pop-up calendar to select the date/ time when you anticipate announcing the winner of the negotiation. This is displayed to the respondents.
Restrict to invited suppliers You can allow all suppliers to respond to the negotiation or you can specify that participation is by invitation only. Please note that if a Fair Opportunity Notice is created, this check box is selected by the system automatically and you cannot uncheck it. The reason is that Fair Opportunity Notices are created for specific suppliers only, either by invitation and / or by including the suppliers from the Umbrella Program that the Fair Opportunity Notice is associated with.
Note:If you specify that participation is by invitation only, you must invite at least one supplier to participate.
Allow supplier to select lines on which to respond You can allow participants to respond to individual lines(s) in the negotiation, or specify that they must respond to all lines in the negotiation .
Display best price to Suppliers You can allow participants to view the best price for the solicitation.
Require full quantity You can specify that participants must submit responses for the full quantity specified in the line. Alternatively, participants can submit responses for partial quantities. If you have weighted and scored the quantity attribute, you must set this to No .
Allow multiple responses You can specify that suppliers must submit a single, best response in the negotiation, or may submit multiple responses during the negotiation open period.
If you allow suppliers to submit multiple responses, the check box Suppliers are allowed to Submit Multiple Active Offers displays. You can choose to allow suppliers to maintain more than one active offer for the solicitation.
Allow Offer Withdrawal You can allow suppliers to withdraw their offers/responses after they have submitted them. Allow Offer Withdrawal does not disqualify an offer, that is a different case: The supplier voluntarily withdraws his offer, either because he no longer wishes to compete for an offer, or because he finds the submitted offer is no longer relevant. Offers can be withdrawn only as long as the solicitation is open for negotiation. Withdrawn offers can be revised to match the solicitation requirements. The revised offer contains all the elements (price, quantity, etc) of the original withdrawn offer because these data elements are defaulted from the system. withdrawn offer will not be visible to buyers during the offer evaluation / awarding process.
Require award approval You can choose to require the award decision to be approved before a purchase order can be generated. The approval chain can use both the Employee/Supervisor or the Position Hierarchy structure defined in Oracle Approvals Management.
Allow manual close before the Close Date You can choose to allow the negotiation to be closed before the close date. Otherwise, the negotiation cannot be closed until the close date and time specified above .
If you select the check box, then Suppliers are allowed to add Unsolicited lines on Offer, your suppliers will be able to create unsolicited lines during offer creation.
Enter the number of copies to submit in the Submission Rules region.
As a buyer, after you submit a solicitation that opens at a future date, use the Manage Schedules page to update the publishing dates (open date, close date, and preview date) in the document, if necessary. When you update the dates, and if suppliers are already notified, the notification message reflects the changed dates.
To manage the schedule of a sourcing document:
On the Solicitation summary page, select Manage Schedule from the Actions menu and click Go.
Note: This action is available only if the status of the document is Submitted or Preview.
The Manage Schedule page displays all the dates that are associated with the solicitation.
Select an option for the preview date.
Immediately: To open the negotiation for preview immediately.
Specific Time: To open the negotiation for preview at a specific time. Use the pop-up calendar to specify a date.
Note: Suppliers can view the negotiation's details but cannot place responses. New preview date cannot be after the original open date.
Select an option for new open date.
Immediately: To open the negotiation for responses immediately.
Specific Time: To open the negotiation for responses at a specific time. Use the pop-up calendar to specify a date. New open date cannot be after the original close date.
Enter a new close date.
Click Apply.
If Oracle Procurement Contracts is installed and licensed, then as a Contract Expert, you can create contract terms and apply them to your negotiation . You can use contract terms to specify legal and other requirements for your negotiation. Using contract terms is an easy way to create and maintain standardized contract text which can be customized as needed. You need the Contracts Terms Library Administrator responsibility to create and maintain clauses and contract templates in the Contract Terms Library. You need the Manage Contract Terms function to create and maintain contract terms on negotiation documents.
To apply contract terms to your sourcing document:
On the Create Solicitation page, click Contract Terms in the navigation bar at the top left side of the page.
On the Create Solicitation: Define Contract Terms page, search for and select a contract template from the list of values. See the Oracle Procurement Contracts online help for information on using contract templates.
Click Apply Template.
You can edit the clauses applied by the template as needed. You can add, delete or modify text. See the Oracle Procurement Contracts online help for instructions on modifying clauses.
Note: If you require any amendment clauses, then indicate the clause as specific for Modifications or Amendments at the time of creating the clause to incorporate these into the Solicitation Amendment. Amendment clauses are clauses that apply to the amendment but are not a part of the conformed copy of the solicitation.
Select Validate from the Actions menu to verify the validity of the contract terms you are defining. If you receive any error messages, you must correct them and validate again.
When you have completed your contract terms, continue by either clicking Suppliers to define a supplier invitation list, or clicking Review to inspect the negotiation prior to publishing it.
For more information on using contracts, please refer to the chapter Contract Terms in this guide.
After entering your solicitations header, lines, and any response controls, you can create a participants list on the Create Solicitation: Suppliers page:
Select how you wish to search for suppliers:
Click the Add Supplier to search for and add suppliers to your solicitation. You can add approved suppliers and/or prospective suppliers (suppliers whose registration requests have not yet been approved). You can also search based on advanced criteria such as Approved Suppliers List, Business Classifications, and Site Details criteria. Additionally, search for a supplier using D-U-N-S Number or CAGE Code.
See: Supplier Site section in the Oracle Contract Lifecycle Management for Public Sector Purchasing User Guide for more information about business classifications and site details.
Click Add Invitation List to apply a predefined list of suppliers. Search for and select the Invitation List you want to apply. You can use the same list for different negotiations.
If your Fair Opportunity Notice is associated with an Umbrella Program, the Add Suppliers from Umbrella Program IDVs button is visible and enabled. Click Add Suppliers from Umbrella Program IDVs to open the Add Suppliers from Umbrella Program IDVs page. Select the suppliers you wish to add and click Apply to return to the Suppliers page.
From the search results, select the suppliers you wish to invite and click Add to Invited Suppliers. You can continue to search and add additional suppliers.
You can click the Register New Suppliers button to create a registration request on behalf of a new supplier (if you have the authorizations, you can both register and approve the supplier). The prospective supplier is added to the invited suppliers list.
Once you have added all your suppliers, click Apply. You return to the Create Solicitation: Suppliers page.
If there are multiple supplier sites (Supplier Site is another term for Address Name), select the specific site you wish to invite to the solicitation. You could use the D-U-N-S Number or CAGE Code to find a specific supplier site. Users at different sites for the same supplier can each submit a response.
If there are multiple contacts for each site, select which contact you wish to notify about this solicitation from the contact list. Additionally, if you know the e-mail addresses of any other contacts at the company (including possibly a distribution list), you can enter it in the Additional Contact Email field (approved suppliers only). Select the Primary Contact check box to identify a specific contact as the primary contact. You can add multiple contacts for a particular supplier or supplier site. If there is only one contact, then the application automatically identifies this contact as the primary.
If the contact is specified in the Additional Contact Email unregistered, a notification is sent to invite the contact to register and participate in the negotiation. The supplier user receives an email notification with the negotiation invitation and a link to access the user registration page. Once the registration request has been approved, the user can participate in negotiations.
Note that if you added a line from the Catalog or one of your Favorites Lists, there may be a supplier associated with that item. If so, that supplier has been added to your solicitation and you must select a contact.
The system sends notifications to the invited suppliers providing them details of the solicitation.
Registering Suppliers
If you know the necessary information about a supplier, you can register that supplier directly through Sourcing. The supplier then shows up as a prospective supplier, and can be added to an invitation list or directly to a solicitation using the directions above. A registration request is generated for the invited supplier user. Once the registration is approved, that supplier user can respond to the negotiation. If you have the necessary authorizations, you can both register and approve the supplier. The supplier user shows up with the address added as an RFQ-only site for the supplier.
Note:You can also invite and register additional suppliers while the negotiation is in progress. Your invitees will receive email notifications inviting them to participate once the negotiation is successfully submitted.
If any members of the collaboration team are designated approvers, you must obtain their approval on your solicitation document before you can publish it. All approvers must approve the document. Once you submit your document for approval, the approvers are sent notifications requiring their interaction. An approver can approve the negotiation document or reject it, in which case you receive a notification of the rejection. The rejection notification may include a request for more information or additional information explaining the reason for the rejection.
To submit a solicitation for approval:
Create your negotiation. On the Create Solicitation: Header page ensure that all necessary approvers are included on the Collaboration Team and marked as Approvers.
Enter the other details to create your negotiation.
From the Actions menu, select the appropriate action. You can choose from Printable View, Online Discussions, and Save as Draft.
On the Create Solicitaion: Review page, click Submit for Approval.
Optionally enter a note to the approvers. Otherwise click Submit.
During the approval process, you can view a table displaying the events that have occurred concerning your approval submission. These include your initial submission and any approvals or rejections your document has received.
To view the approval status of a solicitation document:
Access the document (the document will be in Draft status)
On the Manage Draft Negotiations and Amendmentspage, select the negotiation and click Review and Submit.
On the Create Negotiation: Review page, select View Approval History from the Actions menu and click Go.
Once all approvers have approved the document, the Publish button becomes available on the Create Solicitation: Review page. Click Publish to open the negotiation for preview or responding.
Oracle Approvals Management Engine (AME) is used to manage and define approvals for Sourcing RFQs. The seeded Transaction Type called Negotiation Approval is used to enable AME Approvals for RFQs. AME uses the Document Total or Item Category to set the approval hierarchy.
Buyers can send the solicitation document to various approvers, and reviewers may or may not receive the document. AME provides a list of approvers, in addition, buyers can add ad-hoc approvers too.
Reviews can be performed in serial mode, or parallel mode. Voting options are: First Responder Wins, Consensus, Serial. Approvers can approve, approve and forward, reject, reassign, or add their comments in the notifications page.
If the solicitation is rejected, the document is routed to the buyer. The buyer can either correct and re-submit the document, or cancel the document. Note that the approval list that AME generated, is deleted by the workflow process.
If the RFQ is approved, AME sends out a notification to all the approvers, informing them of the approval. The approval notification has two options: Transfer Notification (not applicable or enabled for AME notifications), and Delegate (applicable for AME notifications). If you have opted for the AME approvals option in the Negotiation Styles page (Administration tab), in the Negotiation Header page, the Approver check box does not appear in the Collaboration Team region. Thus you can use either the Collaboration Team approvals, or the AME approvals.
Solicitation Review page
Click Approval Options on the Negotiation Review page, to open the Approval Options page. This page displays a list of approvers (generated by AME) in ascending order for the negotiation document. You can also add an ad-hoc approver, by using the options in the Add Adhoc Approver subregion. The Approver Type typically should be a person in the HR database. Select an approver name from the list of values, and a category. The insertion point indicates where in this hierarchy you would like to place the ad-hoc approver name.
If AME has a list of approvers, the Solicitation Review page displays the following buttons: Approval Options, and Submit for Approval. If AME does not have a list of approvers, the Review page displays the Approval Options and Publish buttons.
Buyers can send the negotiation document to various approvers, and reviewers may or may not receive the document. A single document, multiple documents, or all documents may be sent for review. Reviewers receive notifications that enable them to view the document and also provide their comments in the notification.
Reviews can be performed in serial mode, or parallel mode. Voting options are: First Responder Wins, Consensus, Serial. AME sends notifications to the approvers, to approve the document. Reminder notifications are also sent periodically. When a document is approved, AME sends another notification informing approvers that the document has been approved. The approval notification has two options: Transfer Notification (not applicable or enabled for AME notifications), and Delegate (applicable for AME notifications).
Withdrawing RFQs
When a negotiation document needs to be withdrawn, use the Withdraw RFQ action in the Actions LOV to proceed with the withdrawal. The Withdrawal Reason page displays, where you need to enter a withdrawal reason in the text box. Click Apply when you are done, to complete the withdrawal. An FYI notification is sent to all the approvers and reviewers from the buyer, informing them that the solicitation has been withdrawn. The notification is sent to all approvers before the document is submitted for approval. Note that the status of the solicitation should be In Progress in order to be successfully withdrawn. After withdrawal, the status of the solicitation is Draft. If the solicitation is approved, it cannot be withdrawn; it can be edited, as long as it is not published. If the solicitation is published, an amendment needs to be created, and it has to go through the approval cycle once again.
During solicitation, buyers, collaboration team members, and suppliers sometimes need to contact each other for additional information or clarification. While a solicitation is in draft status, buyers and collaboration team can communicate with each other through internal messages. Once a solicitation has been published, buyers, collaboration team members, and suppliers can communicate with each other in an ongoing online discussion.
The solicitation creator and any collaborators who have full access to the solicitation can create and respond to messages from each other as well as from the supplier. Collaboration team members with view-only or scoring-only access can create and reply only to messages from other collaboration team members.
Once a solicitation is published, you can start or join an online discussion from the Online Discussions page. To access the page, use either of these methods:
Click Online Discussions on the Create Solicitations Header page.
Select Online Discussions from the Actions menu on the Solicitations page and click Go.
Click the Unread Messages alert icon, which appears on any page when you open the solicitation. The icon appears in the top right hand corner of a page to notify you that you have a message you have not read.
The Online Discussions page displays all discussions associated with a specific solicitation. There can be multiple ongoing discussions for a single solicitation. The Subject identifies each discussion. For each discussion, there is an entry for the first message in the discussion thread and an entry for each reply. Discussion threads are sorted and displayed based on the date, and time of the most recent message received. The message also displays the name of the sender.
When you read or reply to a message, the status of the message changes to either Read or Replied. If another collaboration team member also replied to a supplier message, then the Status Icon appears in the Status column, regardless of whether your status is Unread, Read, or Replied.
To create a new discussion:
Navigate to the Online Discussions page.
Click New Message.
Select recipients. You can send the message to:
All Suppliers or Selected Suppliers: For supplier recipients, if the offer style is blind, you can send the message to one or more collaboration team members, one or more supplier contacts, or all participants. If the offer style is sealed, you must send the message to all collaboration team members and all supplier contacts, or to the buyer's organization.
All Internal Members or Selected Internal Members: For internal recipients, you can send the message to collaboration team members and scoring teams if they are defined. Messaging capabilities are the same regardless of negotiation style.
Specify the subject heading.
Enter the full text of the message.
Optionally, add an attachment for additional information:
Click Add Attachment.
From the Add list, select either Desktop File/ Text/ URL or From Document Catalog.
If you select Desktop File/ Text/ URL, then:
Enter the Attachment Summary Information (Title and Description). The Category defaults based on recipients you choose.
Select an attachment type (File, URL, Short Text, orLong Text).
Enter the file, URL, or text as appropriate.
Optionally, click Add Another to add another attachment.
After adding attachments, click Apply.
If you select From Document Catalog, then:
Search for the document catalog by title, or click More Search Options.
Select the document catalog from the search results table.
Click Apply to add the selected catalog.
Click Send.
To view a message, click the message link in the Message column. The Message page displays the message text, and other message details, including attachments (if any).
View attachments from one of the following pages:
The Online Discussion page, click the View Attachments icon in the Attachments column.
The Message page, click the link in the Title column.
Click Reply to respond to the message you are viewing.
Select recipients of your reply and enter the text of your response.
Click Send.
To reply directly to a message without viewing the message:
Click Reply from the Messages table.
Select recipients of your reply and enter the text of your response.
Click Send.
A buyer can:
Reply to all participants or select a particular sender from a list of values.
Reply to a message and change recipients of the message.
A supplier can reply to a message from a buyer and include all participants. For messages from other suppliers, suppliers cannot view the name of the other supplier, or reply to the message. A supplier can select the Private check box to send the message to the buyer only.
To print just the message you are viewing, click Print. Fill out the network print box and click Print.
To document all discussions associated with this solicitation click Printable Page, and then Print.
The table below details the rules governing the messaging capabilities of the solicitation creator, Collaboration Team members, and suppliers. Note that the rules vary depending on the offer style and the access level of the Collaboration Team members.
| Offer Style | Solicitation Creator/Collaboration Team Member (Full Access) Can: | Collaboration Team Members (View-Only or Score Access) Can: | Solicitation Respondents Can |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blind Negotiation |
|
Create/Respond to one or more collaboration team members/scoring teams. | Create/Respond to buying organization. |
| Sealed Negotiation |
|
Create/Respond to one or more collaboration team members/scoring teams. | Create/Respond to all participants. |
You can opt to create a new round for the solicitation when you wish to refine the requirements with multiple rounds of bidding. Also, suppliers can be eliminated in subsequent rounds during multiple rounds of bidding. The multiple-round process allows suppliers an opportunity to improve weak sections of the proposal, and enables you (the agency) to refine requirements based on proposals.
Close the solicitation before you can create a new round. Open the solicitation page, and select Close Solicitation from the Actions LOV. Then after the solicitation is closed, select Create New Round from the Actions LOV to create a new round of bidding. You get a message that the new round has been created and that the previous responses (offers) by suppliers are no longer valid for awarding.
The solicitation number is now suffixed with the new round number with parenthesis. For example : CLM-12-A-0044(2).
Multiple amendments may be created within each solicitation round. Each amendment has its own document number, e.g.,CLM-12-A-0044-C0002 (3), however, the conformed document will again bear the original document number.
The round number that is suffixed to the solicitation does not display in the PDF output or in the printing information of the solicitation.
As a Contracting Specialist/Contracting Officer, you may want to view and print the PDF of a Solicitation. You can create solicitation documents in the system and specify the applicable standard form to capture the necessary data. The standard forms for the solicitation are SF18, SF33, SF1449, SF1447, and SF1442. The SF18 is used to request quotes for simplified purchases, the SF1449 is used for commercial items purchases (simple or complex), the SF1442 is used for construction purchases, the SF33 is used for other purchases. The document formats for solicitation are UCF (Uniform Contract Format) and COM (Commercial). The format in which the document prints depends on the standard form and document format you chose when creating the solicitation header.
To print a draft PDF:
Search for and select a draft solicitation.
Click Review.
Select View PDF from the Actions list.
Click Go. The PDF document displays. This document contains the specific standard form and document format you specified when creating the solicitation. The printable PDF of the solicitation is marked as Draft. Print the PDF.
To print a published PDF:
Search for and select a published solicitation.
Select View PDF from the Actions list.
Click Go. The PDF document displays. This document contains the specific standard form and document format you specified when creating the solicitation. Print the PDF.
Printing Solicitation Amendments
You can print individual solicitation amendments on a standard form SF30 including the system generated change statements that reflect the additions, changes and deletions made in the amendment (from the previously-conformed solicitation).
You must print a draft solicitation amendment to enable the contracting officer to view the official document (so that they can update it as required prior to approval).
See: Creating a Solicitation Amendment
Printing Conformed Solicitations
You can print the conformed solicitation on the applicable standard form including both the latest summary level and all of the associated line item information. The conformed copy is point in time view of the solicitation with all the amendment changes applied.
See: Conforming a Solicitation Amendment
An umbrella program is an entity that is created to track the acquisition of specific goods and services together under a common program name by federal agencies. The umbrella program encompasses all the IDVs and the orders off these IDVs created for the acquisition. Generally, in such situations, a solicitation is created for all the requirements of the umbrella program and the contracts (IDVs) are awarded to the supplier(s) who can meet the specified requirements (Multiple Awards). When the actual requirements come in, these individual needs are competed amongst the contract awardees to award the delivery/task orders to the winning supplier.
A notice of Fair Opportunity is a special type of informal solicitation that is used in the case of Multiple Award Contracts. Several suppliers are each awarded an IDV (the IDVs may or may not be part of an Umbrella Program) and then compete for requirements / purchase requisitions. A notice of Fair Opportunity does not need a full solicitation because clauses, and sometimes prices are already established in the IDV.
Suppliers respond to the Fair Opportunity Notice by providing relevant information. After offer evaluation, the delivery/task order is awarded to the selected supplier.
For more information on creating Umbrella Programs, please refer to the Oracle Contract Lifecycle Management for Public Sector Purchasing User Guide.
There are three ways in which you can create a Fair Opportunity Notice type solicitation:
By clicking the Fair Opportunity Notice link in the Negotiations home page using the Quick Links > Create section.
By using AutoCreate to create a new solicitation from purchase requisition lines and selecting the Fair Opportunity check box in the Document Builder window.
By applying an active and valid solicitation template to a Fair Opportunity Notice. The elements of the template are applied to the Fair Opportunity Notice with the exception of the following information:
Suppliers, if defined in the template, are not copied to the Fair Opportunity Notice.
The solicitation control Restrict to Invited Suppliers check box in the Controls page remains selected by default for Fair Opportunity Notices, regardless of the value of this check box in the template.
Enter the same information for a Fair Opportunity Notice as you would for a regular solicitation in the Header, Lines, Controls, Contract Terms and Suppliers pages.
However, keep in mind the following points that are specific to Fair Opportunity Notices:
When you associate an Umbrella Program with a Fair Opportunity Notice, a small group of vendors are now eligible for supplying goods and services for that particular umbrella program. You award one or more suppliers of the umbrella program when you determine which vendor is the best to meet your specific procurement needs. Thus in a Fair Opportunity Notice type solicitation, the suppliers who were awarded IDVs in the umbrella program now re-compete for the specific outcome award.
Specify an Umbrella Program that you wish to associate the Fair Opportunity Notice with. The Umbrella Program region in the Header page of the Fair Opportunity Notice enables you to select an umbrella program.
You can create a Fair Opportunity Notice with Lines or a Fair Opportunity Notice without Lines. Please note that a Fair Opportunity Notice without Lines can be created, saved and submitted for approval, and then published as any other solicitation. Suppliers can enter offers or buyers can enter surrogate offers on behalf of the suppliers for a Fair Opportunity Notice without Lines. A Fair Opportunity Notice without Lines cannot have an outcome document, because there are no lines in the Fair Opportunity Notice.
The Suppliers page enables you to add vendors that you wish to invite to participate in the solicitation. If your Fair Opportunity Notice is associated with an Umbrella Program, the Add Suppliers from Umbrella Program IDVs button is visible and enabled. Click Add Suppliers from Umbrella Program IDVs to open the Add Suppliers from Umbrella Program IDVs page. Select the suppliers you wish to add and click Apply to return to the Suppliers page.
When suppliers enter offers for a Fair Opportunity Notice or buyers enter surrogate offers on behalf of the suppliers, they need to select a value for the Internal IDV LOV because it is a mandatory field. The Internal IDV LOV displays only those IDVs that are linked to the umbrella program that was selected by the buyer in the Fair Opportunity Notice header page.
If the buyer or suppliers are entering offers for a Fair Opportunity Notice that is not associated with an umbrella program, they must select a value either for Internal IDV LOV or enter a value for an External IDV or both. Either field must be entered, and cannot be left blank.
A sourcing event is group of related solicitations. You may want to create a sourcing event if you need to monitor several related solicitations as a group rather than individually. You may also want to create an event if you want to encourage respondents to participate in multiple, similar solicitation.
To use events, you first create an event. Once the event is created, you can associate negotiations with the event while creating the negotiation on the Create Header page. You can continue to associate negotiations with the event until the event's inactive date is reached.
To create a sourcing event:
Click Event under the Create area of Quick Links on the Negotiations Home page.
On the Create Event page, enter a title, description, and an inactive date. Your event is opened as soon as it is created. You can then start associating solicitations with it. You can continue associating solicitations with the event until its inactive date is reached .
Click OK. This takes you to the Manage Events page.
To manage a sourcing event:
Click OK on the Create Event page, or Events from the Manage area of Quick Links on the Negotiations Home page to navigate to the Manage Events page.
To see event details, click the event number link.
To see the negotiations associated with the event, select the event and click View Negotiations. Note that any draft negotiations associated with this event are not shown.
To cancel an event, click Cancel. You have the choice of canceling only the event or canceling the event and all negotiations associated with it as well.
To modify an event's information click Update Event. On the Update Event page, you can modify the description and inactive date. Note that you can move the inactive date forward in time to extend an event. You can also move an inactive date backward although not prior to the current date/time.
Deliverables are additional requirements which must be provided by a supplier as part of the solicitation process. For example, a buyer may ask a supplier to provide copies of personnel certification, a detailed project plan, or delivery schedule before the buyer will consider finalizing a contract with that supplier. If Oracle Procurement Contracts is installed and licensed, you can create and manage deliverables for your solicitations .
At any point in time, you may have many solicitations in progress, some of which will require deliverables. You can easily view the status of all your deliverables. This allows you to quickly pinpoint any solicitations that are at risk because a deliverable has not been provided.
To view and update your deliverables:
Click "Deliverables" under Manage in the Quick Links section of the Negotiations Home page.
On the Manage Deliverables page, enter enough search values to restrict the results to the deliverable(s) in which you are interested.
When results are displayed, scroll if necessary to find your deliverable.
To see information on the deliverable, click the entry in the Deliverable Name column.
To see information on the negotiation to which the deliverable is assigned, click the entry in the Document Number column.
See the Alert column for important information on the deliverable's status.
To update the information on a deliverable, click the Update icon. On the Update Deliverable page, you can perform the following modifications (note that changes to the deliverable status are tracked and can be displayed):
Change the deliverable status.
Modify or delete an existing attachment, or add a new attachment.
When you are finished updating the deliverable information, click Apply .
You can use Oracle Sourcing's advanced supplier search facilities to search for suppliers based on a single or a complex combination of search values. Using Sourcing's Supplier Research capabilities, you can search supplier information contained in supplier profiles, the Approved Supplier List, or the history of recent sourcing transactions.
Using Supplier Research
You can use the Supplier Research feature to identify suppliers to add to a solicitation or a reusable invitation list you are creating. You can search for a particular supplier by name or use other search criteria to identify a single supplier or a group of suppliers. As you identify appropriate suppliers, you can add them to an invitation list and then apply the list to the solicitation you are creating. You can also save the list to apply to future solicitations.
You can also conduct in-depth research on recent sourcing transactions that you have conducted with a particular supplier. You can search the supplier's profile, see the supplier's recent transaction history, and view Approved Supplier List or contact information for that supplier.
Identifying Suppliers
There are several methods you can use when searching for a supplier or group or suppliers. You can use a single search value or a combination of multiple search criteria to tailor your search as broadly or narrowly as needed. You can also combine the multiple search types discussed below:
You can search for a specific supplier by supplier name (including the use of wild cards).
You can search supplier profiles, the Approved Supplier List, and/or recent solicitations history by an item category or a commodity value (A commodity is a group of item categories).
If you search supplier profiles, you see all suppliers whose Products and Services section of their supplier profile indicates that they can provide the item category or commodity.
If you search the Approved Supplier List, you see all supplier who are approved to supply the item or item category.
If you search the Solicitation History, you see all supplier from whom you have recently sourced for the item category or commodity.
When using category or commodity searches in the Approved Supplier List, you get a match on any supplier associated with an item defined to that category, or an item defined to a category that is defined to that commodity.
Note: The time period for which transaction information is kept can be defined by the System Administrator.
You can perform complex, detailed searches on Approved Supplier List or Business Classification information.
Approved Supplier List searches are performed within a particular inventory organization. You can search by item name or description. You can search for suppliers with a particular ASL status. You can also search for suppliers who are distributors of a particular manufacturer.
You can search Business Classifications to find suppliers with a particular legal or ownership status.
To search by supplier name:
On the Supplier Research page, enter the name (or initial part of the name) for the supplier in the Supplier Name field and click Search.
To add a supplier to a solicitation's invitation list, select the supplier(s) from the search results display and click Add to Invitation List.
To view supplier information, click the supplier name link.
To search a supplier's profile, the Approved Supplier List, or transaction history using a category or commodity:
Select either Commodity or Category.
Enter a commodity or category value, or use the flashlight icon to search for and select a value.
Select any combination of Supplier Profile, Approved Supplier List, and/or Solicitation History.
Click Search.
To search the Approved Supplier List or Business Classifications information:
If the ASL and Business Classifications search fields are not already displayed, click "Show ASL and Business Classifications Criteria."
To search the Approved Supplier List:
Select an inventory organization from the drop down menu.
Enter a search value for one of the ASL search fields, or use the flashlight icon to search for and select a value.
Note: Searching by Item Description displays approved suppliers of any items whose item description includes the text you enter. searching by Manufacturer displays any suppliers who are defined as distributors for that item. Use ASL Status to search for suppliers with a particular status, for example, Approved.
Click Search.
To search by Business Classification
From the drop down menus, select all appropriate search values.
Click Search.
Viewing Supplier Information
Once you have identified a supplier in which you are interested, you can view in-depth information on that supplier by clicking its name link.
Transactions History - The Transactions History entries display summary information on recent sourcing and purchasing transactions you have completed with this supplier. The length of time transactions a retained is set by the Sourcing System Administrator.
Approved Supplier List - The Approved Supplier List table shows all items or item categories this supplier is approved to provide. It also shows whether the supplier is a direct supplier or distributor of the item.
Invitation List - Displays all invitation lists that include this supplier.
Registered Users - Displays the users at that supplier who are registered with Oracle Sourcing.
If the majority of the solicitations you create contain the same features - attributes, terms and conditions, participation controls, etc. - you may want to create an solicitation template that you can use each time you create a new solicitation. Using a template saves time by streamlining the creation process. Your solicitation template contains the features that are similar among the solicitations you commonly create. When you create a new solicitation using a template, you simply apply the template to the solicitation, add to and edit details of the negotiation (as necessary), and publish your solicitation.
You can create as many templates as necessary. Since RFIs, and RFQs, are different documents, each type has its own template(s). You can create both "private" templates (templates that only you can view, edit, and use) and "public" templates (templates that all registered users in your company can view and use).
Creating a new solicitation template:
Click the appropriate create link under the Templates area of Quick Links on the Negotiations Home page.
On the Templates page, click "Create New Template."
On the Step 1: Describe Your Template page, complete the following fields (required fields are marked with an *asterisk):
*Template Name
*Access. A template can be designated as either "public" (all Buyers in your company can view and use the template) or "private" (only you can view, edit, and use the template).
Note: In order to create "public" offer templates, you must be assigned the appropriate authorization by your system administrator.
Two-Stage RFQ check box - select this if you evaluate suppliers' offers submitted in two phases: Technical and Commercial. If you select this check box, the application automatically sets the offer style Sealed.
Offer Style - determines the offer style to use for the solicitaiton.
Security Level - determines the security level for the solicitation.
Description
Your template status will default to Active. Active templates can be used immediately to create new negotiations. If you want to change your template's status to Inactive, you must complete and submit your template, then edit your template and select a new status from the drop-down menu at the Status field. Inactive templates will be stored in the system, but cannot be used to create a new offer until you change the status to Active.
Operating Unit - determines the operating unit that can use the template
Outcome - select the outcome of the template.
Contract Template - select the contract template to use.
Solicitation Type - select the solicitation type to use.
Creation Date - displays the date on which you create the template.
Enter the relevant details in the Business Priority and Project Information.
Enter the relevant Competitive Information.
Enter details of the Collaboration Team.
Enter the Terms and Currency details.
Enter Requirements details.
Enter Notes and add Attachments if required.
Enter the appropriate information in the Lines page.
Enter the appropriate information in the Controls page. If you have selected the Allow Offer Withdrawal check box, your suppliers will be allowed to withdraw their offers/responses to the solicitation.
Enter the most frequently used list of suppliers that you wish to invite to the solicitation using the Suppliers page.
Click Review.
Related Topics
FAR subpart 22.10 mandates the contracting officer to provide on contracts for services, the minimum wages that have to be paid to the persons executing the contract. These minimum wages are called Wage Determinations (WD), that are maintained by the Department of Labor (DoL).
Wages determined by Wage Determinations may vary based on the nature of the work and the place where the service is performed.
The Department of Labor(DOL) maintains an official website www.wdol.gov that is used by contracting officers to obtain Wage Determination statements.
Select the Wage Determination action from the Actions list of values in your solicitation document and click Go. The Wage Determination page displays with a region called Wage Determination. Click Launch WDOL to open the WDOL.gov website. Select the wage information you wish to capture along with your solicitation. When the page with the wage information you require opens up, select the URL of the page and copy it. Return to the Wage Determination page.
Note: The Wage Determination action is not displayed if the solicitation cannot be edited or updated.
In the WD Statement URL field, paste the URL that you copied from the Wage Determination OnLine website. Then click Attach WD Statement to convert the copied wage information into a URL and attach it to your solicitation.
The Wage Determination History region displays the history of your actions that accessed the Wage Determination Online website and gathered wage information from the site.