--- title: "E-Tendering Portal" ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-055e18" canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-055e18" markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-055e18.md" json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-055e18.json" source: "Find A Tender Service" current_stage: "Planning" buyer: "MANCHESTER CITY COUNCIL" published: "2025-07-14" --- # E-Tendering Portal Buyer: MANCHESTER CITY COUNCIL Current stage: Planning OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-055e18 [View canonical contract page](https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-055e18) [Download OCDS JSON](https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-055e18.json) ## Summary Manchester City Council is currently in the planning stage for an e-Tendering Portal project aimed at assessing the capabilities of the e-Tendering solutions marketplace. The Council is seeking a digital platform to manage the entire tender lifecycle, with the intention of understanding market offerings and informing future procurement specifications. As a sub-central government public authority, Manchester City Council has released a preliminary market engagement notice that invites suppliers to complete a questionnaire by 31st March 2026. This is not yet a call for competition and serves as an information-gathering exercise. The procurement category is focused on services, specifically software package and information systems, and software programming and consultancy services, applicable to the Manchester region (UKD33) in the United Kingdom. This tender represents a valuable opportunity for businesses specialising in digital procurement solutions, particularly those offering comprehensive e-Tendering capabilities that can integrate with existing systems and provide user-friendly interfaces. Companies with experience in regulatory compliance, automation, supplier portals, and innovative digital tendering practices are well-suited to participate in this engagement exercise. Businesses able to meet the requirements of the Procurement Act 2023 and demonstrate capabilities in transparency, auditability, and accessibility will find this an attractive prospect for growth, allowing them to showcase their expertise and potentially shape the Council's future procurement strategy. ## Notice Manchester City Council is conducting a Preliminary Market Engagement exercise to assess the capabilities of the e-Tendering solutions marketplace. The Council is seeking a digital platform to manage the full tender and quotes lifecycle, from planning and publishing notices to bid evaluation and contract award. This exercise will help the Council gather insights in advance of a potential future procurement. Please note that this is not a call for competition, and the Council reserves the right not to proceed to procurement. Please note start and end dates of any future contract are only illustrative at this present time. The solution must: * Be compliant with UK procurement regulations. * Support transparency, auditability, and accessibility. * Integrate with internal systems and external systems (e.g., Find a Tender, Contracts Finder). * Offer user-friendly interfaces for both buyers and suppliers. * Support the full range of public procurement options available to contracting authorities, including functionality for: - Quotes exercises for low-value procurements - Open procedure procurements - Competitive flexible procedure procurements, with flexibility for the stages involved - Frameworks, open frameworks, dynamic markets - Direct Awards - Provider Selection Regime procurements (Direct Award A, Direct Award B, Direct Award C, Most Suitable Provider, Competitive processes) - Legacy arrangements under Public Contracts Regulations (e.g. call-offs under a framework agreement let under Public Contracts Regulations 2015 The purpose of this engagement is to: * Understand the current capabilities of e-Tendering solutions. * Assess how suppliers meet the requirements of the Procurement Act 2023 and Provider Selection Regime and related regulations. * Explore innovations and best practices in digital tendering. * Inform the development of a potential specification and procurement strategy. Key Features of Interest Suppliers are encouraged to describe or demonstrate their capabilities in the following areas. These features reflect the Council's priorities for a modern, compliant, and user-friendly e-Tendering solution: 1. Tender Lifecycle Management * Ability to manage the full procurement process from project planning, market engagement, and tender publication through to evaluation, award, and contract initiation. * Support for multiple procurement routes (open, restricted, competitive dialogue, etc.). * Workflow automation and task tracking for procurement teams. 2. Supplier Portal * Secure, self-service portal for suppliers to register, view opportunities, download documents, submit clarifications, and upload responses. * Support for supplier onboarding, profile management, and alerts for new opportunities. * Multi-language support and mobile-friendly access. 3. Notice Publication * Automated generation and publication of notices to Find a Tender, Contracts Finder, and other relevant platforms. * Templates and validation tools to ensure notices meet regulatory requirements. * Scheduling and version control for notice updates. 4. Evaluation Tools * Configurable scoring matrices, weighted criteria, and moderation workflows. * Role-based access for evaluators and audit trails of all scoring activity. * Support for qualitative and quantitative evaluation, including consensus scoring. 5. Accessibility & Compliance * Full compliance with WCAG 2.2 AA accessibility standards. * GDPR-compliant data handling and user consent management. * Alignment with the Procurement Act 2023, including transparency and auditability features. 6. Integration * APIs or connectors for integration with internal systems such as: - Finance and ERP systems (e.g., Oracle, SAP, Civica). - Contract management platforms. - Document management systems (e.g., SharePoint). - Single sign-on (SSO) and user provisioning via Active Directory or similar. 7. Reporting & Dashboards * Real-time dashboards for procurement activity, supplier engagement, and compliance tracking. * Customisable reports for internal and external stakeholders. * Exportable data for audit, FOI, and performance monitoring purposes. ### Planning Information Interested suppliers are invited to participate by completing a short questionnaire. This will be used for information-gathering purposes only and will help the Council understand current market offerings and innovations. How to Participate • Please complete the Preliminary Market Engagement Questionnaire using the following Microsoft Forms link: https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=Xn3OsM2B-0eU9ydsYmt7CcZ7kRSyjvhOnZQe3JibPo1UOU9KMUdSTkEyTEZWQlZSOU5JWVVaS1hPRC4u • If you have any questions or would like to provide additional information, please contact: procurement@manchester.gov.uk Suppliers may also indicate their interest in providing a demonstration of their solution. If the Council decides to proceed with demonstrations, interested suppliers will be contacted with further details. ## Key Details | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication source | Find A Tender Service | | Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/039452-2025 | | Notice type | UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice | | Procurement type | Framework | | Procurement category | Services | | Procurement method | Not Specified | | Procurement method details | Not specified | | Tender suitability | Not specified | | Awardee scale | Not specified | | All stages | Planning | ## Dates | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Publication date | 14 Jul 2025 | | Submission deadline | Not specified | | Future notice date | 31 Mar 2026 | | Award date | Not specified | | Contract period | 28 Feb 2027 - 28 Feb 2030 | | Recurrence | Not specified | ## Values | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender value | Not specified | | Lots value | Not specified | | Awards value | Not specified | | Contracts value | Not specified | ## Status | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Tender status | Planning | | Lots status | Planning | | Awards status | Not specified | | Contracts status | Not specified | ## Buyer | Field | Value | | --- | --- | | Main buyer | MANCHESTER CITY COUNCIL | | Locality | MANCHESTER | | Post town | Manchester | | Postcode | M60 2LA | | Country | England | | ITL 1 | TLD North West (England) | | ITL 2 | TLD3 Greater Manchester | | ITL 3 | TLD33 Manchester | | Local authority | Manchester | | Electoral ward | Piccadilly | | Westminster constituency | Manchester Central | | Delivery location | TLD33 Manchester | ## CPV Codes ### Divisions - 48 - Software package and information systems - 72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support ### Codes - 48000000 - Software package and information systems - 72200000 - Software programming and consultancy services ## Release History - 14 Jul 2025 at 07:06 - Planning - UK2 - Preliminary Market Engagement Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/039452-2025 ## Documents - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/039452-2025 14th July 2025 - Preliminary market engagement notice on Find a Tender ## Notice URLs - https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=Xn3OsM2B-0eU9ydsYmt7CcZ7kRSyjvhOnZQe3JibPo1UOU9KMUdSTkEyTEZWQlZSOU5JWVVaS1hPRC4u - https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents ## Provenance This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-055e18. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-055e18.json.