Creating Subcontractor Packages from a Tender

When you price a tender, you send its trades out to subcontractors as trade packages. Start from the tender in the Tender Tracker and Deep Space links every package you create to that tender, so it shows in the tender's own package list and on the tender's Trades tab.

The one rule behind everything below: a package belongs to a tender only when its Link to Tender field is set to that tender. Being on the same project is not enough.

1Open Subcontractor Tendering from a tender

Deep SpaceOpen the tender

Preconstruction → Tender Tracker, then click the tender's card. Its details open in a panel on the right.
Deep SpaceGo to the Trades tab

Click Trades. The Trade Packages list shows the packages already linked to this tender, or "No linked trade packages" for a new tender.
Deep SpaceOpen Subcontractor Tendering

Click Open in Subcontractor Tendering. Subcontractor Tendering opens in the same tab, filtered to this tender.

Tender Tracker with a tender open on the Trades tab — **Tender Tracker, Trades tab.** A tender with no linked trade packages yet, and the Open in Subcontractor Tendering button at the top right of the Trade Packages list.

While the list is filtered, a blue banner reads Showing packages for <tender name>, and the package count and summary cards only count that tender's packages. Click Show all packages in the banner to see every package in the workspace again.

2Create a trade package for the tender

Deep SpaceStart a new package

From the filtered list, click Create New Tender. The Create New Tender Package form opens on step 1, Package Details.
AutomaticProject and tender are filled in

Project is set to the tender's project and Link to Tender to the tender you came from. Leave both as they are.
Deep SpaceFill in the package

Choose Multi-trade or Single-trade, tick the Trades, and add a name, dates and an internal estimate if you want them. A blank name defaults to the lead trade.
Deep SpaceCreate it

Next through Invite Subcontractors and Review & Publish, then click the create button (for example Create 1 package). No invitations are sent at this point; you send them when you publish the package.

Create New Tender Package form, step 1 Package Details — **Create New Tender Package, Package Details.** Opened from a tender's filtered list: Tender Mode, Package Name and Issue Date, with Project already set to the tender's project.

Project and Link to Tender fields filled in on the Package Details step — **Project and Link to Tender filled in.** Link to Tender (Optional) already shows the tender you started from, so the new package is linked to it.

3Where the new package shows up

As soon as it is created, the package appears in two places:

The filtered Subcontractor Tendering list, where the banner now counts it as a linked package.
The tender's Trades tab in the Tender Tracker, listed by its trade with the number invited, the number received, the value and the status.

Subcontractor Tendering list filtered to one tender showing the new package — **Subcontractor Tendering, filtered to the tender.** The banner reads "1 linked package" and the Tender Packages list shows the new draft package with its trade, project and Not published status.

Tender Trades tab listing the linked package by trade — **Tender Tracker, Trades tab after creating the package.** The Trade Packages table lists the package by its trade, Scaffolding, with Invited 0, Received 0 and status Draft.

4Changing the project or creating a standalone package

If you change Project on the Package Details step, Link to Tender goes back to None (standalone package), because the tender belongs to the project you left. The Link to Tender list then shows the tenders of the new project, and you can pick one of those.

Package Details step after changing the project, Link to Tender reset to None — **Project changed on Package Details.** After switching Project, Link to Tender is reset to None (standalone package) and lists the new project's tenders.

Standalone packages

A package saved with Link to Tender set to None is a standalone package. It does not appear in any tender's filtered list or Trades tab. Find it with Show all packages.

5Why isn't my package showing under the tender?

A package only shows under a tender when its Link to Tender is that tender. If a package is missing from the tender's list or Trades tab, it was saved without that link. Common reasons:

The package was created from the full Subcontractor Tendering list instead of from the tender, and Link to Tender was left as None.
The project was changed while creating it, which reset Link to Tender (section 4).
The tender isn't linked to a project. Link to Tender only lists the tenders of the selected project, so Deep Space can't fill it in and you can't pick it.

Finding it

Click Show all packages in the banner, or open Preconstruction → Subcontractor Tendering → Bid Package Management from the menu, and search for the package. The package's Edit form has no Link to Tender field, so to have a package under the tender, create it from the tender as in section 2.