The award ends the procurement procedure. For the winner contract negotiations begin; for everyone else, the question of whether to accept or appeal the decision.
What the award is
The authority awards the contract to the most advantageous bid, measured against the published award criteria and their weighting. For largely standardised services price alone can decide. How price and quality are combined is explained under price-quality evaluation.
Notification and reasons
The award is a decision that can be challenged. It is notified by publication, for example on simap, or individually, with summary reasons such as the evaluation of your own bid and the characteristics and advantages of the successful bid. Many authorities offer unsuccessful suppliers a meeting explaining the evaluation. This debriefing is one of the most valuable sources of learning for future bids.
Deadline and contract
An appeal against the award can be filed within 20 days of notification (procurement appeal). It has no automatic suspensive effect but this can be requested. The contract with the winner may generally only be concluded after the appeal period, or in case of appeal once no request for suspensive effect is pending or it has been rejected.
What suppliers learn
Published awards show who wins at which prices. Analysing them systematically calibrates the bid/no-bid decision and pricing strategy on data rather than assumptions.