This week's Bid Training will cover two other websites where government solicitations are posted: Unison and FedConnect. Learn more about these two platforms with this blog post. Bid Training is available to businesses enrolled in the USFCR Academy.
Unison and FedConnect are third-party websites where the government posts solicitations. Unison owns FedConnect however, they are separate platforms. FedConnect is a site where contracting officers post Request for Proposal (RFP) documents for vendors to view and then submit proposals. Unison is a site for Request for Quotes (RFQs) to be posted and quotes to be submitted.
FACT
With both Unison and FedConnect, fees will be involved if you win the federal contract. However, there will not be an out-of-pocket expense to the seller. The Unison and FedConnect software will automatically calculate their fee for using their platform into the final bid amount before submitting.
If a bidder wins, Unison will send an invoice to the vendor to collect their fee from the government’s payment. This means the vendor is responsible for providing the fee to Unison. If the fee is not paid within 30 days of the invoice, a late fee of 18% will occur.
Did You Know?
Unison uses reverse auction software to have vendors compete for the lowest quote. How it works is a vendor will submit their quote for an item. The quote must be at least lower than a set amount by the government for intervals. Then you become the lowest bidder.
This continues until the quote period ends and the lowest bidder wins the government business.
Example:
The government wants to purchase 100 masks, and Vendor A bids at $3 per unit X 100 for a total of $300. Vendor B decides they want to bid. The interval is set at $25, so Vendor B must bid at $2.75, or lower, per unit X 100 for $275 total to qualify.
Back to Basics
To submit any bids using Unison or FedConnect, the vendor must register on the site as a seller using a Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code. A CAGE code is obtained after completing the System for Award Management (SAM) Registration. US Federal Contractor Registration (USFCR) can assist a vendor in getting registered in SAM with our dedicated case management team.
To speak with a contracting specialist about Unison and FedConnect, call: (866) 216-5343
