Writing Equipment Supply Tenders

Equipment supply tenders are highly technical and often very prescriptive. Procurement panels usually consist of product experts, as well as representatives from finance and general management. It’s important when completing equipment supply tenders, you keep in mind that simple English and concise communication can be a key differentiators.

With margins often set as industry practice, and service levels being similar among competitors, the look and feel of your tender or proposal can make a substantial difference. Our bid and tender writers help equipment supply businesses:

• Write your equipment supply bid or tender
• Find equipment supply tender opportunities
• Project manage and submit your response

Our experience writing equipment supply bids

Since our inception in 2007 up until now (late 2025) we have been helping businesses and organisations from all industries write and win equipment supply tenders across Australia. Our team of writers have written bids that involve:

• Mining and Resources: These include the supply of mining related equipment such as heavy machinery, safety and PPE equipment as well as parts for mining trucks and drilling. We have written bids to nearly all the major mining companies and have also helped couriers involved in the equipment supply chain to win bids. This extends to a range of equipment supply bids such as heavy machinery procurement RFTs, Fleet acquisition and leasing contracts for mining equipment and other vehicles and the provision of industrial assets. For major specialist equipment supply in the mining and resources industry, we have helped major contractors and manufacturers based overseas identify opportunities in and bid for work in the Australian and New Zealand market.
• Construction and Infrastructure: In addition to bids and proposals for the supply of raw materials, we have also written bids for construction machinery such as excavators and a range of building tools and equipment. At the tender team, we have a track record of success helping equipment supply businesses complete plant and machinery tenders and bids as well as secure civil works materials contracts. We understand the demands of the building industry and the project management side of it and the importance of introducing key win themes around reliability and ability to handle volume in equipment supply tenders in the construction and infrastructure sector if you want to win.
• Healthcare: We have worked on the supply of specialist healthcare products for our clients across Australia and New Zealand. This includes assisting with tenders and bids for the supply of healthcare machinery (MRI, X-ray and other machines) as well as hospital supplies. For example, we assisted a key supplier to secure a contract with Victorian health for the supply of healthcare products for a three year period. We also worked on a number of bids and tenders for vaccine and healthcare safety equipment during the Covid pandemic. When the government and private sector are undertaking and releasing bids such as SOAs for medical device supply, specialty healthcare products or hospital consumable contracts, we have a track record of helping our clients write bids and win.
• Manufacturing: Our team has worked on manufacturing tenders both in Australia and internationally. This has included working with businesses to win contracts for the supply of industrial machinery, robotics and other automation equipment. We have also helped innovative companies from Australia apply for grants and funding both in Australia and internationally. Our experience extends to helping clients bid for industrial automation system RFTs as well as the supply of specialist tooling and robotics for the manufacturing industry.
• IT and Telecommunications: Our writers have helped ICT businesses write bids and tenders for the supply of IT equipment. This includes for Digital Marketplace and other government programs as well as the corporate sector. IT equipment tenders are generally highly competitive though the benefit is they are usually long term and provide a consistent flow of income. Whether or not you are bidding for the contract to supply IT hardware as part of an IT Hardware supply panel application, provide end-user computing equipment or even bidding for a defence material acquisition tender related to IT, you will need to put forward a comprehensive bid or proposal that covers reliability, quality, currency exchange, transition in and your key personnel and reporting capability.
• Transport and Logistics: We have helped clients write transport and logistics tenders including bulk haulage tenders. We have worked on supply chain tenders and supply chain management tenders also including for 3PL logistics providers.
• Machinery Tenders: Our team has worked with businesses in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane on bids for the supply of machinery. We understand the importance of compliance with these types of bids and how to communicate to the corporate sector on bids which are highly technical and complex.

Ten strategies from the tender team to help you win more equipment supply contracts

Strategies that our clients can adopt in order to increase their win rates for equipment supply tenders include:

• Use graphics and infographics. Infographics and general graphics are excellent for creating quick and easy to understand images and diagrams of your equipment and its benefits. In addition to general product information, it’s a good idea include and detail some of the benefits to the client which your product will deliver.
• Detail and put a number on your uptime and reliability. Anybody can put forward any claim about how reliable their equipment is. Clients know that sometimes, equipment breakdown can lead to costs and damages that outweigh the cost of the equipment itself. You need to put a number on your reliability and commit to that number be it uptime or runtime.
• Provide a detailed breakdown of any whole-of-life-cost (WoLC) benefits: This is important as it helps to support your pricing proposition. Where there is a lower whole of life cost, for example due to a decrease in electricity consumption or less maintenance required for your product, you will need to clearly explain this and put a table together that details the whole of life cost benefits over five years or more.
• Illustrate the safety of your supply chain and how you have put in place a supply chain risk management plan that is practical and robust. You need to show that you have ‘crash tested’ your supply chain and provide an explanation of the key benefits and features of each of your suppliers and their profile (size, etc).
• Demonstrate that you are committed to the long term. This is generally associated with your commitment to quality and after-sales service. You need to detail and explain in your bid, your commitment to after-sales service and product support. If there are SLAs provided in the bid, try to go beyond them and exceed the requirements as well as explain what policies you have in place (for example on-hand inventory) in order to support your capability to achieve those SLAs.
• Focus on your local capabilities. It’s important to focus on the aspects of your manufacturing or operations that are Australian based – and talk about the employment and other benefits associated with operating in Australia. Focusing on your local presence, and even regional presence depending on what state you are in, is helpful from a scoring perspective and puts the reader in a positive frame of mind.
• Provide modern slavery and ethical sourcing policies and integrate them into your culture and operations. The reality is that all of your competitors will have ethical sourcing and modern slavery policies. The real differentiator is if you can integrate these into the your culture and throughout your bid and proposer operations. This gives you a better chance of scoring well and winning the tender as it shows you go beyond the standard compliance documentation and actually practice what you preach.
• Keep the language simple. Equipment supply bids and tenders are generally technical in nature especially for technical products. There is often a combination of technical and non-technical information required for any bid or tender. It’s very important to understand that procurement teams are generally made up of subject matter experts and non-technical personnel such as finance and general procurement. Make sure the responses to your non-technical questions are written in simple English and are easy to understand. This will make your bid easy to read and score well.

How our consultants can help you win

Our consultants will work closely with you to ensure the key differentiators of your product are clearly conveyed. We understand that equipment supply tenders often involve educating the client about your product or industry. Having completed numerous equipment supply tenders over the past seven years, we understand what clients are looking for and their concerns surrounding supply chain management and how to address them.

There is also the need to project manage the bid process, write with flair and produce a credible and professional tender – all skills that we nurture and refine here at The Tender Team.

Often for large organisations procuring the supply of equipment, after-sales service, payment terms and lead times are equally as important to price. Product quality needs to be detailed and explained, and prices can vary greatly given the potential for large volumes. We will advise on bid/no bed decisions, pricing strategy, and overall presentation to ensure you have the best prospects of success in equipment supply tenders. Our experience extends across all industries including Information Technology, Biomedical and Construction for national companies such as Cochlear and Fulton Hogan.

Our team will help you:

• Write your bid
• Project manage the response
• Undertake the bid/no bid process

Client testimonials

We were bidding for a product supply tender in the medical industry. The Tender Team were a great help because they had done it all before. They are experienced in these types of bids and know what they were doing. They provided us guidance on what we needed to write about and wrote our responses to ensure they were on-point. They tailor everything to the contract and provide evidence the whole way through. They even helped us with the pricing so we could understand what they were asking particularly around exchange rates. The Tender Team are excellent at helping businesses like us win equipment supply contracts with the government and we recommend them to any businesses looking to win more tenders.

Jeff P | Medical Product Manufacturer – Victoria

We had a must-win tender for a current client. We needed to respond to the RFP quickly and it needed to be an outstanding response. We knew two competitors would definitely be bidding for the contract – and they were both very capable suppliers. Jason and the rest of The Tender Team bid writing team were great. There is a reason they have such a high success rate. They are quick, professional and focused on winning. We had to put forward a major equipment and product supply bid and they did it with ease. I would recommend The Tender Team to any business looking for help responding to an RFP or RFT.

Lisa B | Equipment Supply | Regional NSW

FAQ

How can we win more equipment supply tenders in Australia?

To increase your success rate with equipment supply tenders, we generally recommend you adopt tender writing best practice. That is, write clearly and concisely in simple English. Give detailed case studies and fill your tender or bid with as much evidence as possible. Ensure you comply with the mandatory criteria. And of course, think through the contract and any issues you may encounter and ensure you address these in the terminology. Finally write a compelling executive summary and cover off questions on modern slavery and supply chain risks in detail.

Contact our team of bid and tender writers here at The Tender Team for more help with your next equipment supply bid.

How do I find and write a winning equipment supply tender for my business?

For government tenders, use e-tenders or the relevant portal in your state and local government region. If you are looking to find private sector tenders, the first step is business development. Develop relationships with companies you would like to tender to in order to be invited to closed tenders. You can also subscribe to tender notification agencies in order to find out about new opportunities or ask our team about our tender notification service that is specific to equipment supply tenders (across all industries).

Are there equipment supply tender consultants Australia?

Yes. Here at The Tender Team, we have extensive experience writing equipment supply bids. From medical equipment to IT hardware, we have written equipment supply tenders and helped clients respond to proposals to the private and public (government) sector. Call our team of tender writers today to talk about your bid and how we can help you write (and hopefully win) it.

What is the best tender writing company for equipment supply and general supply tenders in Australia

The Tender Team is a leading bid and tender writing consultancy specialising in equipment supply tenders. We strive to be the best at what we do. We are of course biased, and therefore are not in a position to answer this question.

What do we need to do to win more IT hardware supply panel applications with the Australian Government? Why do we keep losing?

There are a number of different hardware supply panels that IT service providers can bid for at the commonwealth government level such as DTAs Hardware marketplace. A lot of the time price is not the reason for losing and it’s more compliance related.

If you want to be appointed to a supply panel you generally need to ensure you have:

• Complied with all the mandatory requirements and security standards such as ISM and PSPF.
• Read and ensure you comply with the panel specific Terms and Conditions. These are often different to the terms and conditions that are in the standard tender template.
• Demonstrate your capacity to be a reliable supplier. This is also key. You need to show that you have the internal admin, inventory management and surety of supply to deliver the goods and supply the product over the full term of the contract.

We are working on an RFT for the Victorian Government that asks us to demonstrate how we comply with ISO 13485. It’s for a medical device supply bid. How do we do this?

This is a common challenge for medical device supply businesses. You need to align your QMSD with the TGA regulations and also the specific requirements of the RFT and the clinical environment. This can sometimes be well presented in a table which shows the different requirements and how they align.

When you detail your response, you need to ensure you demonstrate your QMS system and how it directly links with TGA requirements, including in terms of risk management for patient safety, recall procedures and other initiatives and procedures.

How can we win bids against Tier-1 suppliers if we are a small or medium business (SME) especially for heavy machinery and other high priced items?

You need to focus on your strengths. One key strength is your agility and specialisation. You need to demonstrate that you can problem solve quicker, provide a more responsive service and provide a more tailored service due to your size. You can even talk about any local support you may be able to provide and your ability to quickly attend to any urgent repairs.

Another key point you can focus on is your specialisation. Larger, Tier-1 suppliers may have larger businesses and teams, however, they generally focus on a broader range of products. As a specialist supplier you may have a smaller team, however, more or the same amount of product and technical specialists. Focus on this and clearly demonstrate the differentiating factors of your product as well as your human resources and support capabilities.

We are working on an industrial automation bid. How can we show that we have mitigated and minimised any supply chain risk?

Whether it be for an industrial automation RFT or bid, or alternatively, another equipment supply tender, demonstrating how you have de-risked your supply chain is critical to success. It applies to the supply of product to local Council, state and federal government as well as the private sector. You need to showcase how you:

• Dual sourcing for critical components to show that you have a buffer when required.
• An inventory strategy that demonstrates you have adequate local inventory to deal with any peaks in demand.
• A well thought-out logistics plan that is tailored to the opportunity and demonstrates insight into the potential risks you will encounter.

We are pricing a specialist tooling supply contract for a major manufacturer in Australia. What mistakes should we be careful of making?

Key issues or errors we see our clients make include:

• Neglecting life-cycle usage costs. You need to detail these and incorporate them into your pricing strategy.
• Pricing all additional costs –

The main pitfall in a specialist tooling supply contract is neglecting life-cycle usage costs. Your pricing must transparently account for tooling calibration, maintenance-as-a-service options, and guaranteed tool longevity/replacement cycles, rather than just the initial unit price.

Can you help us with the detailed technical specifications section for a defence materiel acquisition tender?

Yes we can – although we will need to work with your subject matter experts in order to respond to the technical questions. It’s critical, in any defence material acquisition tenders, that the technical specifications are 100% compliant and also traceable. The best way to ensure all the requirements are met is through a specification compliance matrix and attaching the relevant test certifications and documents to them.

Are you able to help us develop a warranty and service level agreements as they have asked us to suggest these as part of our RFP response?

Yes. It’s becoming increasingly common for clients to ask you to suggest SLAs as part of your tender response or bid. This is an opportunity to demonstrate your commitment to excellence and show that you plan on providing a quality service. Ensure that that SLAs you put forward are client-centric, suited to the project and demonstrate insight into the requirements of the project. For example, SLAs around guaranteed delivery windows and stock holdings are often required.

We are working on a construction vehicle tender. How do we show our inventory management and stock holding capability?

Screenshots, videos if possible, and as much digital proof is as possible is needed to demonstrate your inventory management and stock holding capability in an RFP.

You also need do show where your warehouses are across Australia and detail how you manage capacity and inventory.

Are modern slavery statements that important and do we need one to win a tender or bid?

Generally speaking, yes. They are an integral part of your bid or tender and a requirement for winning an equipment supply tender. The government sector and corporate clients often have them as a default requirement in order to be appointed or selected.

We can help you develop a modern slavery statement and you usually require one for any equipment supply tender. If they do not ask for one, the tender or RFP and RFT documents normally have questions on your supply chain and risk management. It’s generally best practice to refer to your processes around modern slavery in this response if it hasn’t been asked elsewhere.

How do we highlight our regional support network?

Our team have helped with many bids and tenders where regional and remote delivers and support are required. Sometimes these are for supply tenders  in a particularly state and region, for example in Western Australia or South Australia, and other times, they are for national bids which cover regional and remote areas across the country.

You can highlight your capabilities to deliver to regional areas by:

• Detailing any local support you can provide through locally based field technicians and remote service locations.
• Put KPIs and a detailed explanation of your ability to meet any emergency response requirements into your bid.
• Detail in your response to questions on experience / case studies, your previous experience and success in delivering in remote areas.

We buy our product internationally and we are at risk with the exchange rate. How do we answer questions on this?

There are different questions that come up in equipment supply bids and tenders that are related to exchange rate risk.  Generally speaking, they all cover off the same thing. I.e. how much of the exchange rate risk will you take on? What have you done to hedge or minimise the / any exchange rate risk? And also, is there some kind of indexation model you propose.

In some RFPs and RFTs, they specify what they are looking for whilst in others, you need to put forward your proposed mitigation strategy. Either way, a detailed explanation of your mitigation strategies and proposed methodologies is required to be successful as you need to demonstrate that you have a comprehensive understanding of the relevant exchange rate risks of the contract and how they will impact your supply chain and ability to deliver in the long term.

We have to answer a question on training manuals. We only have a very simple training manual and we are confused as to what they are looking for. Could you provide some guidance?

Training manuals in product and equipment supply tenders are becoming more and common and important. It’s now not just a matter of attaching some basic instructions in your bid for an SOA. Instead, you should consider the tender and the contract and the type of issues that may arise from a training perspective. For example, you may want to consider translations into different languages or the addition of images into your training materials so they are easy to understand.

Tendering strategies for equipment supply in Australia

Some of the tender and bid writing strategies we use to help clients in equipment supply and other supply tenders in Australia include:

• Addressing supply chain issues and creating supporting documentation for modern slavery.
• Writing a detailed description of your supply chain including any exclusive distributorships.
• Providing information on inventory including having a buffer in place for surges in demand.
• Providing detailed case studies that demonstrate your ability to handle cases with similar volume.

Speak to our team of bid writers for more tips and strategies on how to win supply contracts.

Call us on 0410 448 770 for a detailed review of your current tenders, and complimentary initial consultation. We provide fixed fees and in turn, budget certainty. We also provide a flexible, responsive and round the clock service to help bring your tenders and bids up to industry best practice.