The contractor's review desk
What to check before you commit to a public bid
A practical checklist for U.S. construction, facilities and maintenance contractors. Know what you can confirm, what needs an answer, and where the evidence lives.
Start with a record your team can check
A useful first review makes the remaining work clear before estimating and proposal work begins. A short announcement can help you find an opportunity, but it may not contain the instructions needed to submit a responsive offer.
For every finding, record the requirement, its source and location, and the person responsible. Use four review states: confirmed, needs clarification, not found, or not yet reviewed.
A missing finding is an open check. “Not found” does not establish that a requirement does not exist. If a document has not been read, keep that gap visible.
The checklist
Eight areas to check
Start with dates and participation conditions, then work through the delivery and commercial details. Apply each check to the current package.
Deadlines & submission
Record the closing date, time zone, submission method, question deadline, job walk and amendment dates. Check the required forms, signatures and delivery instructions.
Next action Put confirmed dates in the calendar. Resolve missing instructions before assigning the final submission.
Eligibility & participation
Find stated registration, license, certification, experience and teaming conditions. Record who must satisfy each condition and when: bidder, subcontractor or the team as a whole.
Next action Compare applicable conditions with current company evidence. Keep missing information visible.
Scope & delivery
Capture work locations, quantities, drawings, access restrictions, milestones and acceptance requirements. Note occupied facilities, working hours and dependencies when the package states them.
Next action Identify site and specification questions before estimating. Record which attachments still need to be read.
Bonds & insurance
Record each stated amount or percentage, calculation basis, form, timing, duration and coverage. Keep bid guarantees, performance bonds, payment bonds and insurance requirements separate.
Next action Ask the responsible broker or surety to review the actual wording and required evidence.
Pricing & payment
Find the pricing schedule, stated ceiling or range, payment milestones and retention. Separate budget information from the pricing form your team must complete.
Next action Identify missing quantities, allowances or payment details that affect the estimate. Do not treat a stated ceiling as guaranteed revenue.
Payment terms: review billing, approval and retainage release →
Evaluation & award
Locate the evaluation factors, their stated relative importance, required evidence and presentation rules. A response can address the work yet miss a requested submission item.
Next action Build the response outline around the agency's instructions and assign an owner to each required item.
Labor, sourcing & compliance
Identify requirements expressly applicable to the work, including any stated wage, sourcing, reporting or workforce conditions and their supporting documents.
Next action Assign each applicable check to an owner. Flag unclear applicability for the designated procurement contact or appropriate professional review.
Contract terms & risk
Review changes, delays, liability, warranty, disputes and subcontracting terms. Keep exceptions and timing beside the headline obligation, with a reference to the full clause.
Next action Flag material terms for commercial or professional review before your team commits to pricing and delivery assumptions.
Two federal examples
Check the wording before labeling it mandatory
A scheduled job walk
FAR 52.236-27 urges and expects site inspection and provides for arranging or scheduling visits. That provision alone does not establish a mandatory-attendance condition. Find the actual solicitation instructions and amendments, then ask the designated procurement contact if attendance requirements remain unclear. Read FAR 52.236-27, Site Visit (Construction).
A bid guarantee
FAR 52.228-1 connects the guarantee's form, amount and delivery by bid opening to possible rejection. Its amount provision uses a percentage of the bid price or a stated dollar amount, whichever is less. Copy the actual values and their relationship from the solicitation; do not fill in a percentage from memory. Read FAR 52.228-1, Bid Guarantee.
These federal provisions illustrate how to read evidence. They are not a universal rulebook for state, local or agency-specific procurement. Check the provisions actually used in the current package.
For a requirement-record template and a closer look at bond types, forms and timing, read the bid bond review checklist.
Make unresolved questions actionable
Give each open question a source reference, an owner and an internal follow-up date. If two documents show different dates, preserve both findings until you establish which instruction controls. Record any attachment that cannot be opened as missing from the review.
Before committing, confirm that someone owns the remaining qualification checks, schedule, estimate, commercial review and final submission. Recheck the official posting for amendments.
A company comparison should identify the requirements checked against the information provided. It does not establish that every condition in an unread or amended document has been satisfied, or determine overall eligibility.
Bring your own bid document
Upload one supported file or paste a public official bid link that requires no login. Review the available findings and source citations, then check document coverage. If company comparison is available to your account, sign in and add company details to compare supported requirements.