In July 2023, Somerset Council procured its surface treatment contract under a new delivery model. This enabled our client to client bid directly to the Council for the first time
Building upon our client relationship, we provided a work winning team for bid management and writing support. With over 100 pages required for the tender, a larger bid than our client was familiar with, our team included two bid writers to work closely with our client.
The opportunity
In the new contracting model, Somerset Council placed high importance upon value for money and contractor transparency. Our client had indirectly delivered surface treatment to Somerset Council for 13 years and from day one of the bid life cycle focused on demonstrating how they could provide an innovative, efficient and transparent service.
EiB approach and involvement
We managed the deliverables of the tender, facilitating a kick-off and strategy workshop to help the client identify win themes and decide its added value. The kick-off meeting confirmed the bid timescales, identifying time required to draft responses, conduct in-depth reviews and produce high quality responses. Our bid writers worked with experts within our client’s organisation to incorporate technical input and with Somerset Council’s contract objectives in mind, our client enhanced its offering to focus on innovative approaches and community engagement. This demonstrated its commitment to delivering a service that will add value for all road users and residents across Somerset.
As this was a larger opportunity for our client, we provided a strategic review. We assessed how the responses would be scoring against Somerset Council’s tender requirements. Our bid writers worked collaboratively with our client to incorporate this feedback, constructively challenging the information provided to ensure it met the mark. This support enabled our client to strengthen its responses, meeting all compliance requirements while enhancing its offer with added value for Somerset Council.
Success and outcomes
Our client was successful in securing the surface dressing contract, with a minimum of four years of work from Somerset Council. The size of this tender supported a large shift in our client’s approach to procurement, as it fully engaged a team of experts in the storyboard process and workshopped solutions to innovation and added value for Somerset.
The win has highlighted our client as a leading experts in its field, with its quality of service complemented by the use of cutting-edge technology from Australia.