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You may be wondering if you can just buy cleaning contracts, and you are not alone. However, the answer to your question is short and simple – no.
The cleaning business has always been a highly competitive marketplace. This is true now more than ever. The rise of COVID-19 has led to a steep increase in both the public and private sectors putting cleaning contracts. Unfortunately, you can’t just go out and buy cleaning contracts. So, here’s how to go about it instead.
Let’s start off with a simple question – what is tendering? Cleaning contracts are primarily procured through tendering. This is when a business requires a good or a service that they can’t do themselves. Or, if the business contract exceeds the public sector threshold, they will then be put out to tender. Then, any potential suppliers can respond to this call with their tender response.
A number of businesses may want to procure cleaning services, and the cleaning sector itself is vast. It covers areas such as:
However, don’t despair. This blog will tell you how to secure a cleaning tender instead since you can’t buy cleaning contracts.
Making sure you are tendering for the right opportunities for your businesses is vital. This ensures consistent growth and development which could lead to expansion. In order to do this, you need to know where to find the right opportunities for your business.
This can be done via tendering portals. We host live cleaning contract opportunities on our Facilities Tenders portal. You can filter the live results via keyword, budget, location and more on one site. This saves you countless hours that would otherwise be spent trawling hundreds of websites daily.
ATD Specialist Cleaning 2021
Medicines & Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency- Eastern- Budget: £60,000
31-01-2021
Cleaning – Dynamic Purchasing System
Advantage South West- South West- Budget: Undisclosed
22-01-2021
Hall Green School – Cleaning Tender
Hall Green School- West Midlands- Budget: £435,000
26-01-2021
Mobile Cleaning Operative
Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council- West Midlands- Budget: £5,000
20-01-2021
Provision of Cleaning Services
Leicester City Council- East Midlands- Budget: Undisclosed
18-01-2021
We track opportunities for the following sub-sectors:
Book a free live demo today to learn how we can grow your business!
Once you have sourced what you think is the right opportunity for your business, you should ask yourself:
If you can answer yes to all of the above, then you should proceed onto the PQQ or SQ stage.
A pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ) or a selection questionnaire (SQ) are used to establish the minimum eligibility criteria of a business. You may be asked to submit evidence of past contracts your business has carried out, or your businesses financial standing.
An ITT stands for an invitation to tender. This is the next step of the tendering process if your company is shortlisted from the PQQ or SQ stage. An ITT is a formal document that’s issued by the buyer outlining the scope of the project. This invites a business to submit a formal tender for work.
An ITT is different from a PQQ or SQ because it outlines how you will commit to the project delivery. It often includes quality questions. They’ll ask how you carry out certain processes, what equipment you use, or what policies you have in place.
An ITT is often evaluated using the MEAT.
The most economically advantageous tender (MEAT) method means that the buyer is looking at more than just the price. They are putting a certain percentage on price but are also looking at the quality of your response, too. A combined score from these two weightings will establish a final score. The organisation with the best overall score is then awarded the contract.
You want to ensure when applying for opportunities in the public sector that you have thought about social value. There is now a mandatory 10% weighting on social value within a quality response. In some cases, it can hold a weight of up to 30%. You should take into consideration the social, economic and environmental aspects of the contract.
The buyer wants to know the commitments you’re making and ones you can keep. This new social value model came into use within the UK in January 2021. Perhaps you use eco-friendly products and are passionate about waste reduction.
Within your response, you could note:
Up to three case studies may be required when submitting a tender response. It’s standard across public sector tendering for the buyer to ask for at least three past contracts of work. The case studies typically need to have been completed within the last five years.
It’s best to match your case studies to work of a similar scope that you have carried out. Testimonials from happy clients are always a plus. This demonstrates to the buyer that you are able to carry out the contract.
You need to make sure your cases studies are:
For example, imagine there is a contract that is looking to procure cleaning services of a primary school in Cheshire. You could include case studies of cleaning services you’ve carried out in a primary school of a similar location. Or, you could showcase the work you have carried out in other educational institutions.
It is vital that you showcase your understanding of the specification in your response. Your response should demonstrate that you can provide the service that the buyer is looking for. The tender documentation for cleaning contracts will often include a specification of the exact requirements for the cleaning task needed. It’s imperative that you reference this in your method statement. This proves that you are aware of the buyer’s requirements and you are capable of delivering them.
For example, a buyer requires a certain room cleaning within an office using a specific piece of equipment. Make sure you replicate this scenario in your response. If you ignore it, you imply that you haven’t read the documentation properly. This will be greatly off-putting to buyers.
If you’re new to tendering, a framework agreement may be a good place to start. They can help you build up experience if you don’t already have it.
Frameworks are multi-supplier agreements, meaning there are often more places available. They typically run over longer terms ranging from 2 – 10 years. If you secure a place on a public sector framework, it can be a very lucrative opportunity for your business. This is because it is a guaranteed form of income, which can bring you peace of mind.
As you cannot buy cleaning contracts, applying for a framework agreement is a great opportunity that’s not to be missed. Buyers release a framework opportunity and then places are awarded to the best suppliers. Goods and services on frameworks are often divided into ‘Lots’. This means your business doesn’t have to fulfil the whole contract – only the chosen section.
You may find it useful to contact your local council to request to be considered for framework agreements. You should ask if they have any open as a subcontractor. This will allow you to build your company’s experience and is a great place to start if you’re an SME.
DPS’ are similar to framework agreements in that there are multiple suppliers on one system. They can run for years at a time and your business is able to join at any point while it’s open.
If you still need help with writing a cleaning contract response – we can help. Here at Hudson, we are experts in Bid Writing. Our sister company, Hudson Succeed, have an 87% success rate and over 40-years bidding experience across multiple industries.
We offer four Bid Writing services to help you secure your next contract:
So, instead of wondering if you can buy cleaning contracts, you now know how to apply through the tendering process.
Get in touch today to find out how we can help your cleaning business grow.