Portal RFQs
An RFQ asks several suppliers to quote for the same requirement and lets you compare what comes back. Suppliers answer in the portal — or through a share link if they have no login — and the quotes arrive side by side, with the award turning into a purchase order. The tab appears on both the Portal page and Purchases, and only when RFQ is switched on.
Turning it on
RFQs are controlled by the rfq_enabled company preference. With it off, the tab is hidden in both places and nothing else changes. With it on, it appears for users who can work with purchase orders.
How a request runs
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1. Raise the RFQ | Entered like a purchase order — the same line entry, so there is nothing new to learn. |
| 2. Invite suppliers | Suppliers with a portal login see it there. Others get a share link. |
| 3. Quotes come back | Each supplier's prices and lead times against your lines. |
| 4. Compare | The quotes are read side by side against the requirement. |
| 5. Award | The winning quote becomes a purchase order. |
Supplier share links
A share link lets a supplier quote without a portal login. It is the practical answer for a one-off supplier, or for the first approach to a firm you have not bought from before — asking someone to be set up with a login before they can quote you is a good way of not getting a quote.
Re-awarding
If the purchase order raised from an award is voided, the RFQ can be awarded again. The earlier award is not lost — the trail shows what was awarded, what happened to it and what was awarded instead, which is what an audit of a purchasing decision needs.
Viewing an RFQ
The RFQ's view reads like an invoice: the lines, the suppliers approached, what each quoted and what was awarded, on one page. That is also what prints, so the comparison can be circulated to whoever signs off the spend.
What the supplier sees
A supplier with a portal login sees your open RFQs, quotes against the lines, and can see what happened afterwards. See What suppliers see in the portal.
RFQs on the Portal page and on the Purchases page are the same screen. Which one you use is a matter of where you happen to be working, not of what the screen does.