Should you add an environmental policy to your RFP?

by All TemplatesTerms and Conditions

Adding an Environmental Policy to your RFP:

Many large corporations add their environmental policy statement to all outgoing RFQ or RFP’s when it pertains to contractors or suppliers providing a service both on or off their job-site which in any way may impact the environment. This is a good practice and it puts the contractor or supplier on notice that they are expected to meet or exceed your own company standards when it relates to protecting the environment.

There are many reasons why companies include an environmental policy with their RFP’s.

  • they are honestly committed to the environment. Not all large corporations only think dollars or profit. Many are now realizing to be sustainable in business over the long term means protecting the environment and ensuring sound environmental practices are embodied within all regions of their operations.
  • they wish to ensure suppliers and contractors are held accountable for their actions and to do so purchasing representatives must include the policy upfront in their RFP if it will imply the conditions of work.
  • they have deep pockets and by making such a statement they may mitigate liability by sharing the liability with other parties.

There are many facets to an environmental policy, the above points may be biased towards the legal reasoning as to why you include a policy statement, however some companies do reduce costs by incorporating recycling programs and recycling should be a part of your environmental policy.

RFQPro.com believes all organizations, regardless of size, should include an environmental policy with your RFP, especially when the scope of work means a supplier or contractor will be performing duties on your site or performing duties on your behalf which may get you “invited to the party” (court of law) should someone be charged.

How do you write an environmental policy? RFQPro suggests you look at our options to help you develop a policy which will work for your organization.

RFQ44 – Environmental Policy – Vendor example template for your RFP is sold in both the Mega Pack and our Premium Pack bundles. Click image to preview policy:

Sample Environmental Policy

As always, we recommend you review all documentation with corporate counsel prior to issue.

Purchase order Terms and Conditions

by Free TemplatesTerms and Conditions

If you are looking for a BASIC Terms and Conditions (TC’s) template to use with your everyday purchase order, the following set will get you moving on the right path. If you typically do not include a set of TC’s with each purchase order you email or transmit to your Suppliers, at the very least you should have each Vendor sign off on your TC’s and have them agree that all future purchase orders they fulfill will be bound by such TC’s.

These days, digital storage is a cheap commodity, so you can have the Vendor sign off on your TC’s and store the documents by way of pdf for future reference. This will give you some  peace of mind, necessary back-up, and also allows you to avoid having to transmit them with each purchase order you issue.

Download a free sample set of our basic purchase order terms and conditions in PDF format here  >>>RFQ42 – Basic PO Terms

If you are looking for a more comprehensive set of conditions, you may want to check out this post: https://www.rfqpro.com/rfq-request-for-quotation/terms-and-conditions.

Consider subscribing, as a future post will include a set of Contractor Insurance Terms, which you may find beneficial in mitigating liabilities with high risk purchase orders or contracts.

By purchasing our Premium pack, you will receive both sets of our PO terms and conditions, along with the Contractor Insurance TC’s, all in edit-friendly Word format.

 

FOB Point

by All TemplatesFree TemplatesTerms and Conditions

Lets talk about shipping terms and where the responsibility lies for a shipment.  The correct definition for FOB Point is Free-on-Board aka freight on board and the term FOB is often misunderstood, even by the professionals.

The FOB point is important as it ascertains:

  • when legal title of the goods being shipped transfers to the buyer. Say you were purchasing a bulk liquid like a fuel or a chemical, the FOB point could be origin, destination, buyers tank or even the intake nozzle at point of delivery.  As you can see, depending on the commodity, having the proper FOB point is crucial.
  • who is responsible for handling damaged goods or freight claims with the carrier in the event they are lost or damaged during shipment. An example: FOB Destination, Freight collect means: Buyer — Pays and is responsible for freight charges, Seller — Owns goods in transit, Seller — Files any damage claims (if any). Another potential headache area so choose wisely.
  • who pays the carrier.

Many will suggest or argue that FOB destination is the most beneficial because the vendor pays the transportation charges, however upon further inspection you will realize the charges are to be borne by the buyer, since freight costs will be included in the delivered price charged by the vendor. In essence, you are licensing the vendor to spend your money.

Again, commodity dependent, a vendor may use a carrier which may not meet your safety standards or spill response guidelines, so do your due diligence and if it warrants perform a site audit on the carrier being used regardless of the FOB Point. By the way, included in the RFQPro Premium template pack is a comprehensive sample site audit form.

There are many variations in FOB terms – FOB origin, freight collect or FOB Destination, freight collect and allowed and so on. As a purchasing professional you need to know your FOB lingo. The following template explains all possible options and will help you select the correct terminology for your PO’s, supply agreements, RFQ’s, RFP’s and more.

Subscribe and this FOB template (RFQ33) will be included in your FREE Welcome Pack. Download, print and post it in your work area.