| Welcome to "BidsOnline Help" (BidsOnline) Files specifically tailored to answer the commonly asked questions of vendors. We have made every effort to list the most commonly asked questions right here, but if you still have a question that is un-answered please contact us at BidsOnline Support. Thank you! |
| - What is BidsOnline
and how does it work? |
| - What is BidsOnline and how does it work? The City of Bakersfield BidsOnline is a completely web enabled
procurement and electronic bidding system which the City of Bakersfield has decided to use in order to
provide better service and convenience to its current and new vendors. In
order for BidsOnline to work effectively, you must register online following the
instruction below and let the system get to work for you. As a registered and
approved vendor on the BidsOnline system, you will be notified automatically of Bid
Alerts, changes, addenda, and any time you will be able to visit the contracting section
of the City of Bakersfield's website to find the latest contracting opportunities available, request and
download documents, and bid electronically (if enabled) on all open requests. Best of all,
this service is offered to all of our vendors for free!
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| - How do I become a
registered vendor?
If you would like to become a registered vendor with the City of Bakersfield, please select "vendor registration" from the top navigation and follow these steps: Step 1: Select a Username and Password and enter it in the boxes. (Tip: write it down to remember them). Step 2 - Step 11: Enter your company information, your email and contact name so that you can be notified of the projects and for invitations out to bid, your payment terms, your DBE status (if any), and most importantly, the primary category(s) your company is classified under.
Step 12: Now Select a Sub-Category for your company. (You may select more than one (Ctrl + click) by pressing the Control button on your keyboard and simultaneously clicking on the subcategories).
Step 13: If you would like, provide additional information about your company. When you are done completing the vendor registration form, click "Submit" in
order to submit your registration to the City of Bakersfield. |
| - What happens after I register as a vendor online? Once you have completed the vendor registration form online, you should receive an automatic email confirmation of your registration.
This email confirmation will include your unique selected username and password with which you
can login immediately to the system. |
| - Can I maintain my own profile on the website? Yes, once you are approved as a vendor, you will be able to make any changes to your company profile at any time through our website. Simply select "Edit Vendor Profile" from the top navigation and follow these instructions:
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| - What if I forget my username and password? If you ever forget your password, you can have BidsOnline email it to you directly by
following the link on the vendor login page. In order for BidsOnline to track your
password, you need to enter your username and email. If BidsOnline is unable to track your
information, please send an email to
CityofBakersfield@planetbids.com.
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| - How will I know when there is a new bid request that matches the services we provide? Registered and approved vendors of the City of Bakersfield are notified automatically via email when a
new request is entered by the City of Bakersfield. If new request is entered by the City of Bakersfield that is matched with
the services you have registered for, then you are automatically notified via email with
subject "New Bid Alert." Furthermore, you are always free to visit the
contracting section of the City of Bakersfield's website to search for open and past listings.
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| - How do I search for current or past bid listings? There are two ways to search for current and past listings on the City of Bakersfield website: 1. Enter Keyword(s) for Quick Search: To search by title of an RFP, RFQ, Bid, etc.,
and click on Go!. OR - The County in which the project is going to take place in. - Bid Date, is the date the bids or quotes are due. - Bid Status: Bidding means that it is still open, and you can bid.Closed means that it is no longer bidding. Awarded is when the project has been awarded.
When you click on title, you will be directed to the bid detail page where you can view
bid detail as well as project items list, addenda. Bid results and awards are available
at time of bid closing and awards are issued.
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| - How do I request bid documents? At the bottom of each OPEN bid detail page there is an Order Plans button.
Click on the Order Plans button and your request will be added to your cart. You may
request for several bidding documents at one time. Once you are finished with requesting
bidding documents, click on Check Out and enter your billing address and shipping
address (if different). Once you enter the information, your receipt will be seen on the
next page. Please be sure to pint this page for your records. An Order ID number will be
given to you for your records. If bidding documents are available to you in electronic
format, you will be able to download it immediately by clicking on the title of bid
request. Downloading instructions are made available to you on this page.
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| - How can I download electronic documents and addenda? If you have already registered as a vendor with the City of Bakersfield through BidsOnline, then you can request and download electronic documents (if they are available) by clicking on the Order Now button found at the bottom of each open bid request. You will be asked to login using your registered username and password and then you are able to request and download as many documents as you would like. Open Ordering documents, a confirmation page/receipt will appear. When the project title name is hyperlinked, clicking on it will initiate the downloading process. Futher downloading instructions are made avaialble on this page.addenda are also available to
download on the bid detail page. Click on the "addenda" hyperlink to see a
list of current addenda issued and click on filename under each download column to
initiate the downloading of addendum. If there is no electronic version of addendum
available, then "N/A" will appear instead. At that point, you need to
contact the City of Bakersfield directly to obtain a paper copy of addendum if you haven't received one in
the mail.
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- Are addenda available on the website? Yes, a list of issued addenda are available on each bid detail page. Clicking on addenda will further list the addendum number, the date it was issued, the title, and electronic version of the addendum (if available). 
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| - Are bid results posted to the website, if so, how do we obtain them? Yes, bid results are posted to the website automatically if request is bidding electronically and the bid date has already closed. Otherwise, they will be available at the time when the City of Bakersfield Purchasing section reviews all bid results and enters them into the system. To check for bid results, simply search and navigate to the bid detail page of request you are interested, and click on the "Bid Results" hyperlink at bottom of page. Bid results are listed in order from lowest to highest bidder.
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| - How
do I know if a request is bidding electronically or by paper?
If
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| - How does electronic bidding work? In order to be able to bid electronically, you must be a registered and approved vendor with the City of Bakersfield through the BidsOnline system. If so, search and navigate to the bid detail page of your choice and click on Bid Online Now! Once you login with your username and password, then you will be forwarded to the City of Bakersfield's online bidding system where you will be asked to enter the Responder's name and title, applicable discount terms to the request. Once you "Continue," the following page will ask you to enter the unit prices for each item you are bidding for. When you are done entering individual unit prices, click on Calculate and your total bid amount will be calculated on the next page. To change any of the unit prices, click on recalculate and to re-enter any of the unit prices. When you are ready, click on Submit Bid button and your bid will be submitted to the City of Bakersfield. You will be given an eBid confirmation number as a reference.
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| - Can I overwrite my electronic bid? Yes, you can overwrite your electronic bid at any time as long as the bid request has not closed. Simply follow the same procedure you would as if you were submitting your electronic bid the first time, except your previous results will be appearing in the entries, which can be overwritten with your new entries. When you re-submit your electronic bid, your previous confirmation number will remain the same.
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| - What about privacy and security of information obtained? Please refer to PlanetBids, Inc. privacy and security policies for use of all its solutions and services.
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next to each listing indicates whether the
bid submittal is accepted in a paper or electronic format. If a request is