GLS-018 - Ver 1.0 (Aug 23)
Confidential & Proprietary | 2023 CBRE, Inc.
Developing the RFP
BID
Page 1 of 3
Grounds, Landscaping & Snow
2. Key Components of a Landscaping / Snow Removal RFP
1. Sourcing Preferences and RFP Timing
- Strategic (FM) Preferred or Diverse Supplier partners should always be considered first with the exception of client preference
- Early engagement of Supplier partners and client is key to ensure proper understanding of the Scope of Works (SOW)
3. Go To Market Strategy
Sourcing Strategy & RFP Process
Pricing Strategy
- Review and agree supplier partner profiles with key contacts to ascertain if Tier 1, 2 or 3 - assess suitability prior to RFP
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Clearly define the scope of the services and evaluation process:
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Clear bidding instructions and submission dates
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Provision of clarification process for supplier (all assumptions and exclusions should be qualified by the supplier on their ability to complete all services)
- Well-defined questions to validate supplier capabilities (technical and other)
- Appropriate bid analysis and scoring matrix
- Structured feedback to all Supplier partners post bidding exercise
- Clear commercial and terms and principles
- Assess the financial capacity of the business
- Ensure in-country regulations can be met and suppliers have appropriate and up-to-date industry certifications and / or licensing and insurance relative to the services
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Evaluate with detailed pricing sheets with breakdown of all key cost drivers - consider open-book transparent pricing strategy - where margin and costs can be analysed
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Look at the project threshold and tolerances
- Try to aim for fixed term pricing (with no inflationary increases)
4. Complying with CBRE policies and standards of Conduct
CBRE Supplier Code of Conduct
CBRE Procurement Policy
CBRE Standards of Business Conduct
CBRE Conflict of Interest Declaration
Our Standards of Business Conduct when procuring goods and / or services on behalf of CBRE is an essential part of our Ethics & Compliance Program. This reflects our culture and values and the necessary principles ensure every transaction we conduct on behalf of the company is ethical and legal. These Standards of Business Conduct is based on CBRE RISE values. These values are the foundation on which CBRE is built, and how you must conduct your daily business activities.
When developing your RFP and eventually executing this into a finalised Contract please ensure that ALL CBRE Standards of Business Conduct are followed. For each and every transaction you involve with a Supplier partner it is essential for the Supplier partner to also comply with our requirements and this includes signing a Declaration of Conflict of Interest.
The following links provide you with the basis of which all CBRE employees agreed to on commencement with the company:
(Click on the links to gain access to the relevant documents)
Click Link shapes to access the documents
Organizational Overview
- Buyers should describe their organization and the scope of their operations
- Buyers should provide information regarding the size of their land or project area
- Buyers should provide a list of products or services provided
- Buyers should detail areas of high traffic.
Statement Of Need
- Buyers should establish working hours for the landscaping / snow removal of the public areas
- Buyers should suggest optimal schedule times and state the frequency with which services should be performed on their properties
- Buyers should provide information regarding the number of landscapes, paths or parking lots that require services
- Buyers should suggest requirements for service delivery during emergencies (extreme weather snow / storms etc)
Project Budget
- Depending on the complexity of requirements, a range of contract mechanisms could be selected if more holistic services are required (see Price Models for Snow and Bronze and Silver, Gold standard for landscaping assets)
- Buyers should stipulate CBRE payment terms
Selection Criteria
- Buyers should evaluate the experience and qualifications of the landscaping / snow removal vendor
- Buyers should look for suppliers capable of providing the range of services within their area of coverage
- Buyers should look for suppliers with a comprehensive list and description of all landscaping / snow equipment and machinery
- Buyers should evaluate any additional costs, such as emergency call-out fees
Project Schedule
- Buyers should outline the proposal due date
- Buyers should state the date of the start and duration of services
- Buyers should include any other benchmark dates, such as reviews
Proposal Format
- Vendors should provide past performance information, including client testimonials and references
- Vendors should provide all necessary permits and certificates of insurance required to perform landscaping / snow removal services in the requesting buyer's local area
- All vendors should disclose the scope of work capabilities
- All vendors should provide a list of landscaping / snow removal materials and equipment at their disposal
- All vendors should have a supplemental service plan in place in the event of mechanical breakdown or illness
Sources: Procurement IQ Procurement Research - 48646332 Landscape Maintenance Services, 48646329 Snow Removal Services
GLS-018 - Ver 1.0 (Aug 23)
Confidential & Proprietary | 2023 CBRE, Inc.
1. Preparing RFP Questions
General information - Supplier Details
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Assurance and Regulatory
Quality
Technology and Innovation
Client References and Market Position
Grounds, Landscaping & Snow
RFP - Question Building
BID
Page 2 of 3
2. Generic RFP Questions
3. Grounds, Landscaping & Snow General RFP Questions
Sustainability
- Do you have experience in the following areas with examples to show successful implementation?
- Xeriscape landscape services
- Implementing meadows and native species to reduce water consumption
- Retrofitting irrigation to reduce water consumption
- Chemical free lawncare
- What type of mowing equipment does your team use? (Electric or petrol / gasoline)
Service Delivery
Pricing
- What types of pricing models does your company offer for grounds, landscaping and snow removal?
- Which pricing model would you recommend based on the location?
- What is your companies markup on materials such as mulch, salt, etc.?
- Does your company offer different service levels based upon the client site (ex: Headquarters vs. satellite office)?
- How do your service technicians track the service level at each site?
- What is your time and materials rate for adhoc services such as:
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- shrub planting, tree pruning, lawn seeding, lawn aeration, etc.
Service
- What actions are taken if rain causes a delay in service?
- How do you identify plants / shrubs needing replacement and is this cost built into your bid?
- How would your resources for snow removal be dedicated to our client during a storm vs. other clients?
- Does your company have an emergency service line for work orders needing a 4 hour response?
Before issuing an RFP questionnaire, ensure that the suppliers to be targeted sign a "non-disclosure agreement", and the timelines that are set out are sufficient in order to receive a quality response, assess the bid and reward the contract accordingly. The questions below can be added and tailored to suit your site-specific or customer-specific requirements. Be sure to ask questions that will allow for a full and detail pricing submission from the supplier partner.
- Supplier name, headquarters, address, regional office details, website, year founded and CEO details
- Revenue
- Product/ service portfolio
- Regional capabilities
- Number of employees engaged
- Please provide three active client references outside of our company for which your organization has provided services. Please provide the company name, length of relationship, address, contact name, contact details and email for each client reference
- What differentiates your organisation to your competitors?
- Who are your top clients? What percentage of your revenue do they comprise?
- Do you provide proactive advisory to CBRE on any new regulations which could impact the business?
- Are you engaged with CBRE for other services which could result in conflict of interest?
- If you are already engaged with CBRE for other services, please detail the type of work undertaken
- Are the personnel working on this project trained to the latest local regulations?
- Statutory compliance to be supported by documentary evidence
- Do you foresee any risks that might impact the engagement success and please state the steps to mitigate the risk?
- Does your company follow an auditable process to measure reporting quality and / or to track performance? (YES/NO)
- What continuous process improvements are implemented to enable efficiency? (YES/NO)
- Evidence typical updates and milestone reports that detail service delivery and quality
- Can you supply dedicated account management for the project(s)?
- Do you intend to subcontract or assign to third parties any aspects of the work (for example: any specific service line in the category)? If so, to whom
- Please specify the major technologies / innovations that you can bring to the service and explain how increase efficiency and reduce cost
- How are these innovations impacting and improving your carbon footprint, net zero journey etc?
Minimize Water Usage
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4. Grounds, Landscaping & Snow ESG RFP Questions
Which techniques are employed to minimize water use, in both external and internal use of vegetation? Crucially: What is the quantitative impact of reduction of water linked to the use of these techniques? We’d expect to see proposals around:
- Proactive maintenance of watering system leaks (If there is another maintenance company responsible for this, at a minimum a process to raise any leaks that are noticed)
- Drip watering systems
- Plant selection strategies (robust / native plants needing less watering) d. Use of techniques to minimize soil evaporation (examples: crawling plants, mulches, etc)
- If soil additives are proposed: what is the material composition of the additives? Crucially we need to understand the environmental impact of materials used in soil additives.
Fertilizers
How does the supplier avoid / reduce the use of chemical fertilizers? Which are the alternative methods adopted? Ideally, what is the GHG emissions reduction impact (quantitative) of these alternative methods? (i.e. we’d expect to see a reduction in nitrous oxide release due to the avoidance/decrease of nitrogen in the fertilizers)
Sustainable Drainage
How does the supplier integrate Sustainable Drainage Systems into their designs. We’d expect to see proposals around:
- Green roofs if applicable
- Swales
- Ponds
- Wetlands
- Filter strips or other filtration solutions
Biodiversity
Which techniques are employed to promote biodiversity development on the site? We’d expect to see proposals around:
- Maximum opportunity for retention of native plants already on site (i.e. utilize existing shrubs, trees, and meadows instead of replacing with manicured grassland or exotic landscaping)
- Designing in wild meadow zones or equivalent
- Vegetation selection adapted to the local situation (i.e. minimum 75% native plants)
- Inclusion of native fauna development zones such as hedgehog mounds, beehives, bird & bat boxes, ponds, plants that attract / feed local fauna, etc.
- Scheduling of activities to avoid significant and adverse impacts (e.g. timing of activities to avoid disturbances during native species breeding season)
Emissions
Which techniques are employed to minimize GHG emissions caused by machinery such as lawnmowers, snowblowers, and crucially utility vehicles? Ideally: What is the quantitative impact of reduction of GHG emissions linked to the use of these techniques?
Pollution
What techniques are used to minimize environmental pollution during snow removal / prevention (i.e. impact of use of salt vs sand or other additives used to prevent ice / snow buildup)?
Zoning Education
How can the supplier propose / support the development of community / employee gardening zones and related stakeholder education (i.e. signs near wild meadows explaining impacts, etc.)?
GLS-018 - Ver 1.0 (Aug 23)
Confidential & Proprietary | 2023 CBRE, Inc.
1. Assessment Guideline
Company profile
Financials
Footprint / Capabilities
Service offering
Competitor differentiation
Sustainability / Safety
Business model
Company structure
Quality Processes
Innovation / Technology
Supplier Diversity program
Market Strength
Non-compete agreements
Legal action history
Maintenance offering
Industry Certifications
Customer satisfaction
Warranty coverage
Maintenance and support
Measures in place
Reporting processes
Environment / Recycling policy
EHS Policy
Company Policy in place
Performance / cost issue program
Service / product capability
E-business solutions
E-business capability
E-commerce interaction
Matched services- all regions
Industry training / certifications
Employee training
Service offerings globally
D&B registered
Margin maintenance
Credit standing / rating
Annual revenue
Utilization level / impact on market and CBRE clients
2. Typical RFP Weighed Assessment criteria
Criteria
Weighting
Description
Grounds, Landscaping & Snow
RFP Assessment Guideline
BID
Page 3 of 3
Supplier Capabilities
incl ESG
This section usually requires the bidder to demonstrate its operational capability to deliver the services by identifying: the company structure, experience (inc case studies), ESG, management systems in place, and inherent capacity of the company to deliver through directly employed staff
30%-40%
Delivery of Service
This section requires the bidder to demonstrate how it proposes tp deliver industry-leading services and compliance to CBRE systems and processes
20%-30%
Innovation / Quality
This section requires the bidder to detail any innovations and added value services that it could provide to improve the service delivery. Evidence must be displayed of quality control and enhancements offered
5%-10%
HSE
This section requires the bidder to demonstrate its knowledge of Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) legislation and provide details on its systems and procedures in place to manage HSE risks and activities in the delivery of services
5%-15%
Commercial ($$)
This section covers the commercial pricing offered - must be comprehensive and transparent in order to mitigate clarifications during the evaluation process
20%-30%
Note: Further or additional assessment criteria may be added to account for client specific requirements i.e. flow-downs from CBRE / Client Terms & Conditions or where there are specific criteria components that need to be considered due to local, regional or global requirements (as in the case with the CBRE example above).