Some questions decide the bid before strategy matters. Contracts are awarded to responsible prospective contractors only 1, and one of the general standards of responsibility is having adequate financial resources to perform the contract, or the ability to obtain them 2.
Exclusion is the other hard stop: agencies shall not solicit offers from, award contracts to, or consent to subcontracts with contractors that are debarred, suspended or proposed for debarment, unless the narrow exception applies 3. That includes your subcontractors.
Bids2Bank runs dealbreaker checks first: the response deadline, SAM registration, exclusion, the set-aside and size 4. Only then does it weigh fit, with NAICS fit and competition at 20 points each and set-aside, agency history, NAICS history and time at 15 each 5.
Worked example. Contractor B scores 81 on a notice but sees a failed size check. It writes "no-bid: over the size standard for this NAICS" and moves on, rather than arguing with a high score.
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Indented paragraphs are invented worked examples. Tool links open Bids2Bank and need a free account.
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