RFQ Templates

The Request for Quote (RFQ) process varies from company to company depending on your spend and the amount of staff designated to the procurement function. If you are lucky enough…

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Why complete a Supplier Audit

Sample Site Audit Forms

The benefits of a site supplier audit are many. Having assurances in respect to supply, environmental compliance, safety standards and quality measures are the primary reasons we complete them. And finding the right suppliers has never been more important than today. The global recession has added additional pressures on the very survival of many companies.

How do you know that your supplier is capable of meeting their obligations or commitments? You do so by completing a site audit of their production facilities. This is often part of a buyers due diligence with large dollar spend and should be an exercised practice in your buyer / supplier relationship. Note, not every vendor you do business with warrants a site audit. Site audits can be costly when you factor in travel to the manufacturer’s facility and can be time consuming so be strategic and target vendors which are integral to your supply chain.

A physical audit is the best way to gather reliable information about your supplier’s business practices, capabilities, competitiveness, cost drivers, safety standards and service culture. From these audits you can (more…)

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Letter of Intent

A letter of intent, commonly known as a LOI can be used by a Purchasing Manager to move a tender result forward. You are ready to take the next step with a vendor or supplier in respect to an offer which has been made and it is usually in response to a formal tender, request for quote or request for proposal your company previously issued.

A LOI, Letter of Understanding (LOU) or Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) can be used in many different circumstances. A business acquisition, employment offer, supplier services, a contract award only to note just a few. This post or letter of intent relates to procurement and how it can be used in the purchasing arena.

Why or when to issue a LOI? Sometimes these offers are complex by nature and involve large dollar spend so rather than stepping into a formal contract, a letter of intent will be issued to give both parties time to iron out all the little details. (more…)

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