Tender Advice Centres (TACs) provide (counselling) support to small businesses such as assisting with accessing tender opportunities and completing tender documents. The tender-related services they supply include:

• explaining invitations to tender
• assisting in completing tender documents (including advice on how to enter contracts and how to work out pricing)
• counselling (pre- and post-tender)
• providing information on procurement and tendering policies
• holding tender awareness workshops, seminars and forums.

Other business help they provide includes:

• information on business opportunities
• advice on regulations and legal requirements (e.g. VAT registration)
• access to databases of small businesses and suppliers
• referrals to specialist training programmes
• project management assistance
• training needs assessment
• co-ordination of training programmes
• evaluation of the capacity of small businesses to deliver on contracts
• subsidised skills-development programmes.

Some Tender Advice Centres in the Western Cape:

Tel: 021 674 5891
Fax: 086 684 8254
Email: advisor@taranis.co.za
Contact: Gerrit Davids

CLOTEX
15 Lower Hope Street, CSIR Building, Rosebank, Cape Town
Tel: 021 686 0522
Fax: 021 686 0529
Contact: Averil Appollis

South Cape Business Centre
Shop 7A, Market Street, George
Tel: 044 873 3431
Fax: 044 873 3433
Contact: Lloyd Mgenga

West Coast Business Centre
Tonyn Street, Saldanha
Tel: 022 714 1731
Fax: 022 714 2015
Contact: Karen van Rensburg or Trudy Marais

Tender training workshops offered by these centres cover the following topics:

• An overview of the procurement system
• What is tendering
• The tender process and tender advertisements
• Who issues tenders and where to obtain tenders
• "Non-responsive" tenders
• Costing and estimation
• Completing tender documents
• Issues to consider
• Formalising your business and new opportunities

Workshops run for approximately 6 hours with a maximum of 30 participants.

For more information contact:
John Prinsloo
Cell: 082 958 7865
email: tenderspecialist@gmail.com
Fax: 086 614 6750