An invitation for bid (IFB) or invitation to bid (ITB) is an invitation to contractors or equipment suppliers, through a bidding process, to submit a proposal on a specific project to be realized or product or service to be furnished. IFB is generally the same thing as Request for Quotation (RFQ). The IFB or RFQ is focused on pricing, and not on ideas or concepts.
If not stated otherwise, the contractor or supplier with the lowest bid is awarded the contract, provided that they meet the minimum criteria for the bid. This is in contrast to a request for proposal (RFP), in which case other reasons (technology used, quality) might cause or allow choice of the second best offer. An RFP is a request for a price from a buyer but the buyer would also expect suggestions and ideas on how the project work should be done. RFPs are thus focused on more than just pricing/cost, they entail a bit of consulting from the contractor or vendor.
Famous quotes containing the words invitation and/or bid:
“Rivers must have been the guides which conducted the footsteps of the first travelers. They are the constant lure, when they flow by our doors, to distant enterprise and adventure; and, by a natural impulse, the dwellers on their banks will at length accompany their currents to the lowlands of the globe, or explore at their invitation the interior of continents.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“O tiger’s heart wrapped in a woman’s hide!
How couldst thou drain the lifeblood of the child,
To bid the father wipe his eyes withal,
And yet be seen to bear a woman’s face?
Women are soft, mild, pitiful, and flexible;
Thou stern, obdurate, flinty, rough, remorseless.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)