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Open tendering is a process everyone in construction knows about — but few actually want to run. It promises fairness, transparency, and market-based pricing, yet brings heavy admin, plenty of noise, and the occasional wildcard bidder.
If you work on public-sector projects in the UK, Ireland, Australia, or New Zealand, open tendering often isn’t optional. It’s typically required by law when public money is involved — 12.9% of GDP in 2021 across the OECD — such as under the UK’s Procurement Act 2023, Ireland’s EU-aligned legislation, and Australia’s or New Zealand’s government procurement rules.
Below, we’ll break down what open tendering is, how it unfolds in real projects, and what you should consider before you start, but also see construction tendering 101 for a broader overview.
Open tendering is a one-stage process in which any contractor or supplier can respond to a publicly advertised notice. There’s no shortlist or invite-only list. If you see the notice in time, you can bid.
This is standard for public procurement under the UK’s Procurement Act 2023 and is widely used in Australian and New Zealand public works. In Ireland, it aligns with EU procurement directives.
You publish a tender notice — for instance, on Contracts Finder (UK), AusTender, GETS (NZ), or eTenders (Ireland). That notice includes everything needed to price the job: drawings, specifications, conditions, and the evaluation criteria. Bids are then evaluated against pre-set metrics, usually a mix of cost and quality, with no negotiations or second rounds — though securing better deals is more common on private builds.
Transparency drives open tendering, especially in publicly funded projects. Publishing the opportunity, criteria, and outcome gives everyone visibility into how the contract was awarded. That builds trust and holds awarding bodies to account.
If a contractor loses a school project bid in Leeds, they can request feedback on why. This level of honesty keeps the process above board and helps public agencies prove they’re following the rules.
Openly advertising the package often yields more bids. You might uncover new suppliers or keener prices, which can be helpful in areas with limited known contractors — tender coverage & bulk tendering can streamline the influx of proposals. In Wagga Wagga, for instance, a council project might only have a handful of usual suspects, but open tendering can draw bidders from neighbouring regions.
However, more bids means more administration. You’ll find duds in the mix, which leads to extra clarifications, scope checks, and wasted time.
Open tendering can lower costs by boosting competition. More bidders often translates to keener prices, at least on paper.
Imagine a mechanical package for a civic centre in Auckland. Instead of inviting the usual tenderers, you open it up. Nine bids arrive, and one new supplier comes in 12% cheaper than the average. Same scope, fewer exclusions.
But you’ll have to read all nine quotes, chase missing line items, compare different assumptions, and check compliance — before you even get approval. That’s the hidden cost.
Saving money with open tendering depends on handling the extra volume. Poorly structured processes drown in admin.
• Higher bidder volume: More quotes to review and compare.
• Inconsistent submissions: Everyone prices differently, slowing your review.
• Greater coordination effort: Extra clarifications for less experienced or confused bidders.
The savings are real if you have the bandwidth, systems, and workflows to cope. Without them, you’ll end up buried in spreadsheets, trying to make sense of countless quotes — construction procurement best practices can offer a structured approach.
Open tendering offers a clear record of how decisions are made. Every step — from tender release to contract award — is documented. That’s crucial for public money, where regulations demand transparency.
In the UK, the Procurement Act 2023 requires publication of contract notices and awards. New Zealand’s Government Procurement Rules and Australia’s Commonwealth Procurement Rules set similar obligations. Private clients also benefit from a verifiable audit trail, which helps if a job goes off the rails.
Oversight bodies want proof that your procurement holds up under scrutiny.
• Regulators check compliance: Entities like the Australian National Audit Office or Ireland’s Office of Government Procurement can inspect tender files.
• Executives track approvals: Commercial directors can see which packages are out, which are awarded, and if sign-offs happened on time.
• Legal teams assess exposure: If bidders challenge an outcome, legal can confirm whether you followed the published process.
This doesn’t eliminate risk, but it shows you followed the rules and helps you remedy mistakes if they arise.
Open tendering can feel easy — ‘Just advertise, and wait for bids.’ Then the flood comes in.
A civil contractor in Auckland put out a concrete package and received 14 quotes, all in different formats, with varying exclusions and random scope assumptions. One bid left out preliminaries entirely.
Procurement teams aren’t set up for this. Reviewing bids is not just reading them; it’s clarifying, comparing, chasing, and explaining. With 10 or 20 quotes, you can sink a whole week before you even start approvals, tenders and price breakdowns can reduce the burden.
'We used to get 10 to 15 quotes for some packages, and we’d be stuck comparing spreadsheets for days. Everyone formats their pricing differently, so you’re constantly double-checking formulae, exclusions, and scope notes, it’s a nightmare.' — Construction Manager, Tier 2 Contractor, NSW
When bid numbers jump but your team size stays the same, delays and errors creep in.
• Good bids get buried: Quality submissions might be lost in the noise.
• Approvals stall: Directors wait while you wrestle with comparisons.
• Mistakes slip through: Scope gaps or missing exclusions might go unnoticed.
You can’t simply throw more time at it. You need better ways to organise quotes, compare them, and maintain speed and accuracy.
Open tendering invites everyone, whether they can handle the scope or not. You still have to review every submission if it meets the deadline, even if they lack scale, understanding, or experience, making strong vendor management crucial.
A $1.2 million landscaping package in Parramatta attracted a bidder that had never done more than $100,000 in work. Initially, they looked good on paper, but clarifications revealed a gap. The team lost a day on a non-starter.
Unqualified bids can slow progress and introduce big risks.
• Missing compliance: No insurance, no licences, or incomplete financials.
• Inexperience: Contractors bidding way above their previous project size.
• Misunderstood scope: Omissions of preliminaries or half-baked proposals.
Every one of these issues requires follow-up. Let the wrong bidder through, and you could face variations, disputes, or a total meltdown.
Open tendering is open to all, while selective tendering is invitation-only. In selective tendering, you shortlist suppliers based on past performance, safety records, or specific experience, which sets it apart from other types of construction tenders. You invite only those on the list.
This approach suits jobs with higher complexity, tight timelines, or critical risks. It’s common on major rail shutdowns or high-spec fitouts where the contractor pool is small and well-known.
Selective tendering changes your process.
• Prequalified list: You vet suppliers before sending the tender.
• Fewer bids: Typically three to five, not 15.
• Faster comparisons: Standard formats and clearer assumptions from known operators.
The benefit is control and speed. The drawback is a narrower field. You might miss a new supplier offering lower prices or better quality simply because you didn’t invite them.
For public projects, yes. You’ll see open tenders advertised on Contracts Finder (UK), AusTender, GETS (NZ), or eTenders (Ireland), depending on the location.
Private clients can also run open tenders. They’re not required to advertise, but some do for market testing or to expand their supplier database.
Open tendering welcomes any bidder — no shortlist or filtering upfront. Selective tendering invites only chosen suppliers, cutting initial admin while limiting new market entrants.
Yes. More bidders mean more quotes, more clarifications, and longer comparisons. The complexity is not necessarily higher, but the volume of bids certainly is.
Open tendering can work well when you have the right structure. Without it, you’re left with a tidal wave of quotes, endless admin, and potential confusion.
If you’re running multiple tenders a month and still comparing PDFs by hand, there’s a better way. Standardised scopes, organised workflows, and clear approvals can transform your process.
If your team is ready to manage open tenders with fewer headaches, you can book a demo to see how ProcurePro fits your setup.
There’s no pressure, just a straightforward look at how others are tackling big volumes with less pain.
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