RFQ, RFP & Tender Support for Refrigeration Projects
Refrigeration tenders fail more often on scope than on price. Missing capacity assumptions, unclear certifications and inconsistent commercial terms produce bids that can't be compared. ColdMatch structures the RFQ or RFP, invites the right international suppliers, and returns normalised proposals ready for board decision.
Equipment-only requests for chillers, cold rooms, freezers and reefer containers, with normalised landed cost.
Turnkey EPC or design-build proposals with scope of work, SLA and warranty terms harmonised across bidders.
Support for ministries, hospitals, municipalities and state buyers with compliant technical files.
Bid opening, clarification rounds and BAFO negotiation across up to a dozen international suppliers.
Technical brief that avoids re-tenders
We help procurement teams write briefs that lock down capacity, temperature class, ambient design, refrigerant strategy, controls, spare-parts scope and post-warranty service, so bids can be compared line-for-line.
Vetted international bidders
Our supplier database is pre-vetted for financials, past projects and certifications. That saves 4–8 weeks versus open-market advertising while still delivering competitive tension.
Bid normalisation
We return a side-by-side comparison — landed cost, incoterm, warranty, exclusions, delivery schedule and financing terms — so decision-makers can approve on one page.
RFQ preparation checklist for refrigeration procurement
Use this checklist before issuing an RFQ or RFP for cold storage, industrial refrigeration or cold-chain EPC scope. Complete briefs return comparable bids and cut the tender cycle by 3–6 weeks.
1. Project scope & technical brief
- Project type: new build, expansion, retrofit, replacement or emergency / rental
- Product stored (food, pharma, floral, chemical), pallet count and daily throughput
- Temperature classes: chill (0 to +5 °C), frozen (−18 to −25 °C), blast (−35 °C), pharma (2–8 °C)
- Internal / external ambient design temperatures and humidity
- Preferred refrigerant strategy (HFC, CO₂ transcritical, NH₃, propane, glycol secondary)
- Capacity in m³, m², pallet positions or kW cooling load
- Site drawings, electrical single-line diagram and available power (kVA)
- Controls / BMS / IoT monitoring requirements
- Redundancy level (N, N+1, 2N) and required uptime
2. Timeline & delivery milestones
- Target RFQ issue date and bid submission deadline (typically 3–4 weeks)
- Site visit window for shortlisted bidders
- Award decision date and PO issue date
- Manufacturing lead-time target (packaged units 4–12 weeks; engineered CO₂/NH₃ 14–22 weeks)
- On-site installation window and allowable shutdown periods
- Commissioning, testing and handover date
- First product in / in-service date (the deadline suppliers actually plan against)
3. Incoterms, logistics & payment
- Incoterm required for pricing (EXW, FCA, FOB, CIF, DAP or DDP — Incoterms 2020)
- Port of entry, inland delivery address and access constraints (crane, forklift, low-loader)
- Who arranges freight, insurance, customs clearance and duties
- Currency for quotation (USD, EUR, local) and FX handling
- Payment terms (e.g. 30/40/30 order / pre-shipment / commissioning)
- Bid bond, advance-payment guarantee and performance bond requirements
- Financing preference: cash, equipment leasing, trade finance, DFI project finance or ESCO
4. Certifications & compliance
- ISO 9001 (quality) and ISO 14001 (environmental) from the manufacturer
- Refrigerant-handling certification (F-gas in EU / EPA 608 in US / local equivalent)
- Sector-specific: GDP / GMP for pharma, BRC or IFS for food, HACCP for food processing
- CEIV Pharma / CEIV Fresh for airport and air-cargo cold-chain scope
- Pressure-equipment certification (PED, ASME) for engineered refrigeration plant
- Electrical certification for the destination country (CE, UL, SASO, GCC, INMETRO, etc.)
- Kigali / F-gas compliance and target GWP for the selected refrigerant
- ESG evidence: EPDs, kWh/m³/year, embodied carbon, Scope 1 and 2 reporting
5. Warranty, spares & post-sale service
- Warranty period on equipment and installation (typically 12–24 months)
- 2-year critical spare-parts kit priced separately in the bid
- Priced post-warranty service option (annual maintenance contract)
- Local service partner or authorised distributor in the destination country
- Response-time SLA for critical faults (hours to on-site)
- Training scope for operators and maintenance team
- As-built documentation, O&M manuals and language of documentation
Frequently asked questions
Do you support public / government tenders?
Yes — see our government cold-storage projects page. We help with compliant technical files, evaluation matrices and RFP structure.
How many bidders do you typically invite?
5–10 for RFQs, 3–6 for RFPs — enough to keep pricing competitive without drowning the buyer in unqualified bids.
Can you help evaluate bids we already received?
Yes — bid normalisation and clarification support are offered even when the RFP was launched elsewhere.
How long does a full RFQ / RFP cycle take?
RFQ: ~3–5 weeks (brief, invite, quote, clarification, award). RFP for turnkey EPC: ~6–10 weeks including site visits, technical clarification and BAFO negotiation.
Can suppliers bond their bids and provide performance guarantees?
Yes — we require bid bonds, advance-payment guarantees and performance bonds where the buyer specifies, standard for public tenders and larger private RFPs.
Are financing proposals part of the tender response?
Optional but recommended. Suppliers can quote with equipment leasing or vendor finance built in, and ColdMatch adds parallel bank / DFI proposals for comparison.
How are landed costs and duties handled across international bidders?
We convert every bid to a single incoterm (typically DAP or DDP) and add local duties, VAT and inland logistics so the buyer compares one landed number per supplier.
What certifications do you require from bidders?
Baseline: ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and refrigerant-handling certification. Sector-specific: GDP for pharma, BRC / IFS for food, HACCP, and CEIV Pharma / CEIV Fresh for airport projects.
Can we run a two-envelope (technical + commercial) evaluation?
Yes — standard for public procurement. We support sealed technical scoring first, then commercial opening only for compliant bidders.
Ready to move?
Tell us your scope. We return vetted international suppliers with landed cost and financing options — usually within 48 hours.