e-PS5 Consulting Firm Simple Lump Sum Preparation Guideline

01When to Use e-PS5

Use e-PS5 after an Expression of Interest has produced a short-list, when you want a consulting firm to deliver clearly defined outputs, usually reports, for a fixed lump sum, and the estimated cost is up to Tk. 1 crore. The big advantage of a lump sum is simple administration: you only need to be satisfied with the output.

Nature: Service
Who can propose: Short-listed firms only
Value: Up to Tk. 1 crore
Contract: Simple lump sum, output based
Selection: As set in the PDS: QCBS, FBS, LCS etc.
Currency: Bangladesh Taka

How hiring a firm under e-PS5 differs from hiring an individual under e-PS3.
Topic	e-PS3 individual	e-PS5 firm
Who applies	Any eligible Bangladeshi	Only firms on your short-list
Price	Indicative, not scored	Sealed financial proposal, scored under QCBS
Evaluation	CV points + interview	Technical points (pass 70), then financial
Team, JV, sub-consultants	No	Yes, with limits
Securities	None	Optional 3–5% performance security; bank guarantee for any advance

e-PS5, suitably tailored, may also be used for Single Source Selection. If the scope cannot be pinned down, use the e-PS6 time-based guideline; above Tk. 1 crore, use the e-PS7 complex lump-sum guideline.

02How the Document Works

Part	What it contains	Your role
Letter of Invitation	Names of the short-listed firms; the invitation cannot be transferred.	Fill in
1. ITC	61 clauses on eligibility, conflict of interest, preparation, submission, evaluation and award.	Do not alter
2. PDS	Assignment-specific data, numbered like the ITC.	Fill in
3. GCC	73 General Conditions of Contract.	Do not alter
4. PCC	Contract-specific data, numbered like the GCC.	Fill in
5. Forms	Technical forms 5A1–5A8, financial forms 5B1–5B4, Contract Agreement, Appendices 1–7.	Firm fills
6. TOR	Objectives, scope, deliverables, inputs from you.	Write
Formats P–V	JV agreement, LOA, award and signing reports, commencement letter, amendment, accomplishment certificate.	Use when applicable

Once signed, the contract documents rank in this order:

Contract Agreement
Particular Conditions of Contract (PCC)
General Conditions of Contract (GCC)
Appendices: Description of Services, Reporting, Key Personnel, Client's facilities, Cost Estimates, advance payment and performance security guarantees
Any other document listed in the PCC

03Key Time Limits

Step	Time limit	Reference
Firms ask for clarification	Before two-thirds of the preparation time has passed	ITC 15.1
You answer through e-GP	Within 5 working days, to all firms	ITC 15.3
Pre-proposal meeting minutes	Within 7 days of the meeting	ITC 16.3
Proposal validity	Set in the PDS, normally 60–150 days	PDS 30.1
Ask for validity extension	At least 10 days before expiry	ITC 31.1
Financial opening	Usually at least 1 week after notifying passing firms	ITC 42.1
Notice of rejection	Within 7 days of the decision	ITC 52.1
Issue the LOA	Within 3 working days of approval	ITC 53.1
Publish contract award	Within 24 hours of the LOA; display 28 days	ITC 56.1
Publish contract signing	Within 3 days of signing; display 30 days	ITC 58.1
Start of services	Days set in the PCC, no later than 21 days from the Effective Date	PCC 18.1
Consultant notifies a variation	Within 7 days of becoming aware	GCC 21.3
Pay an invoice	Within 30 days of receipt	GCC 51.2
Final report deemed approved	60 days after receipt unless you notify deficiencies	GCC 54.1
Release performance security	Within 28 days of completion	GCC 56.4
Termination for default	At least 21 days' notice	GCC 62.1

04Fill In the Proposal Data Sheet

ITC	What to state	Guidance in e-PS5
1.1	Client, services, selection method	For example QCBS, FBS or LCS.
1.2	Phasing and completion period	Each phase must be satisfactory before the next starts. Describe any downstream work and how it affects evaluation.
3.1, 3.3	Source of funds; development partner	DP payments follow the financing agreement.
7.1	Countries whose materials and supplies are not allowed	Name them.
21.1(d)	Other documents required	List them.
23.5	Stamp value for the JV agreement	Tk. 300 non-judicial stamp.
23.12	Estimated professional staff-months	QCBS only. Do not disclose the budget.
23.13	Available budget, excluding taxes	FBS only. Do not give staff-months.
23.14	Minimum qualification and experience of key staff	State per position.
24.1(i), (j)	Whether training is a component; extra technical information	Delete what does not apply.
25.1	Reimbursable expenses allowed	Sample list: office, travel, communication, equipment, report printing, training, subcontracts, allowances, other. Delete what does not apply.
28.1(a)	Services and facilities you provide	Define clearly.
29.1	Currency	Taka. Another currency only for inputs from abroad, converted at the Bangladesh Bank selling rate on the opening date.
30.1	Validity days	Normally 60–150, by complexity.
41.2	Criteria, sub-criteria and points	See the next section.
41.4	Minimum technical points	Fixed at 70.
45.1	Weights T and F	T normally 0.8–0.9, F 0.1–0.2; check Rule 139(24)(b) and (e).
46.2	Negotiation address	Insert it.
54.1	Performance security %, or "Not Applicable"	3–5% where deliverables are time-critical or feed downstream work (Section 62(2) PPA, Rules 36(9), 147(2)).
60.1	Start date and location	Insert both.

05Set the Technical Criteria

Allocate 100 points across four criteria. Sub-criteria are optional.

Criterion	Usual points	Sub-criteria
(i) Firm's specific experience	5–10	Relevant past assignments.
(ii) Work plan and methodology	20–40	Methodology, work plan, organization and staffing.
(iii) Key professional staff	40–60	Points per position (Team Leader first), each split: general qualifications 15–25%, adequacy for the assignment 50–60%, time with the firm 10–15%, region and language 10–15%.
(iv) Transfer of knowledge	0–20	Relevance 20–30%, approach 30–50%, qualifications of trainers 20–35%.
Total	100	Pass mark 70.

Example: scoring a Team Leader worth 20 points With weights 20% / 55% / 15% / 10%, the sub-maximums are 4, 11, 3 and 2 points. A Team Leader rated 100% on qualifications, 80% on adequacy, 100% on time with the firm and 50% on region and language scores 4 + 8.8 + 3 + 1 = 16.8 of 20.

06Write the Terms of Reference

The TOR is the key document of the RFP. A clear TOR reduces ambiguity in proposals, negotiation and delivery. It normally contains:

Background of the project.
Objectives of the assignment.
Scope of services: activities, tasks and expected results.
Transfer of knowledge (training), when appropriate.
List of reports, delivery schedule and period of performance.
Data, facilities and local services you will provide.
Institutional arrangements.

Hand all firms any information that gave one of them a head start, for example from earlier related work (ITC 12). Provide project data and reports with the RFP, and help firms get data from other departments (ITC 28.1).

07Fill In the PCC

GCC	What to state	Guidance in e-PS5
1.1, 3.1, 12.1	Parties, notice addresses, authorized representatives	A JV's contact comes from the Lead Partner.
2.1	Phases, or "None"
6.1(e), 8.1, 11.1	Extra contract documents, non-eligible countries, Lead Partner	State "none" where not used.
17.1	Effectiveness conditions	For example advance payment and its guarantee, or "none".
18.1, 19.1, 20.1	Days to commence, contract period, expiry	Commencement no later than 21 days from the Effective Date.
32.4(a)	Months after completion for notifying claims	Suggested 3–6 months.
32.4(b)	Liability ceiling	Not less than total estimated payments, or the insurance proceeds, whichever is higher.
35.1(c)	Other actions needing your approval	For works supervision, add acting as "Engineer" under the works contract.
37.3	Restrictions on future use of documents and software	Choose one of the three sample options, or "none".
39.1(d)	Other assistance you give
45.1	Consultant's bank account	Substantiated by the bank, authenticated by you.
47.1	Contract price
50.1, 50.2	Advance %, days, guarantee validity, amortization	Usually 10%, the recommended maximum, against a bank guarantee (Appendix 6).
51.1	Output-based payment schedule	Draft per contract; sample below.
51.3	Interest on late payment	Usually the prevailing commercial lending rate, or delete.
73.2(b)	Place of arbitration

Sample PCC 51.1 schedule, with what it means on a Tk. 80 lakh contract.
Output accepted	Share	On Tk. 80 lakh
Inception Report	10%	Tk. 8 lakh
Interim Report	25%	Tk. 20 lakh
Draft Final Report	35%	Tk. 28 lakh
Final Report	20%	Tk. 16 lakh
User manual and training, if applicable	10%	Tk. 8 lakh

Example: advance payment A 10% advance on Tk. 80 lakh is Tk. 8 lakh, against a bank guarantee. The PCC sample releases the guarantee once total payments reach 60% of the contract price, here Tk. 48 lakh, so describe in PCC 50.2 how the advance is recovered before that point.

08Clarifications and Pre-Proposal Meeting

Clarifications: answer requests made before two-thirds of the preparation time has passed, through e-GP within 5 working days, and send the answer to all short-listed firms without naming the source.
Pre-proposal meeting: optional, held online through e-GP on the date in the notice. Send minutes, with questions and answers, within 7 days.
Addendum: the only way to change the RFP, before the deadline, through e-GP. Extend the deadline if firms need time to respond.

09Technical Evaluation

Technical proposals open automatically on e-GP after the deadline. Financial proposals stay encrypted.
Check eligibility and look for any new conflict of interest since short-listing. Ask the firm to remove a conflict, or treat the proposal as non-responsive. Hiding a conflict means non-responsive.
Reject a JV or sub-consultancy between two short-listed firms, and one with a non-short-listed applicant unless you approved it before the deadline.
Each PEC member scores every proposal separately against the PDS criteria. A firm's points are the average of all members, including the Chair.
Proposals below 70 points are non-responsive.
Get the technical evaluation approved, including prior review where needed, before anyone sees a financial proposal.

Only the PEC Chair sends clarification requests, through e-GP. They must not change the substance, key staff or make a non-responsive proposal responsive.
A technical proposal that contains financial information may be treated as non-responsive.
One CV per position; a key expert offered in two proposals for this assignment breaches ITC 23.15.

10Financial Opening and Scoring

Notify passing firms through e-GP of the opening date, usually at least 1 week ahead. Tell the others their financial proposals will be returned unopened.
The PEC opens financial proposals publicly; firm names, technical points and prices are read out and recorded. Attendees sign an attendance sheet. Give minutes on request.
e-GP has no arithmetic correction. Do not seek financial clarifications.
Activities not priced are treated as included elsewhere. If quantities differ from the technical proposal, do not adjust the price.
Exclude all taxes from evaluation; they are settled at negotiation.

Under QCBS, the lowest price gets 100 financial points and others are scaled:

Fp = 100 × Fm ÷ F Cs = Tp × T + Fp × F

Example: QCBS with T = 0.8, F = 0.2 Firm A: Tp 85, price Tk. 80 lakh. Firm B: Tp 78, price Tk. 64 lakh. Fp for B = 100, for A = 100 × 64 ÷ 80 = 80. Cs for A = 68 + 16 = 84; for B = 62.4 + 20 = 82.4. Firm A ranks first despite the higher price. Firm C, with Tp 68, failed the technical stage and its price was never opened.

Under FBS, select the highest technical score whose evaluated price is within the PDS budget (excluding taxes). Any price above the budget is non-responsive.

11Negotiation

Invite the top firm (highest Cs under QCBS, highest technical within budget under FBS) to the PDS address. It must first confirm all key staff are available.
Start from the PEC's comments and the approving authority's recommendations.
Technical: methodology, work plan, activity schedule, staffing, training and your facilities. These become the Description of Services. You may require a key expert found unfit to be replaced.
Financial: fine-tune for agreed technical changes only. Unit rates for remuneration and reimbursables cannot be negotiated. Clarify tax liabilities and add them to the contract price.
Allow staff substitution only for undue delay, death or medical incapacity, with equal or better qualifications. If key staff were offered without confirming availability, the firm may be disqualified.
Sign minutes and initial the draft contract. If talks fail, move to the next firm, never negotiating with two at once.

You may reject all proposals if they have major deficiencies, prices are substantially above budget and cannot be bridged, or professional misconduct is established under Chapter Seven of PPR 2025. Notify all firms within 7 days.

12Award, Security and Signing

Within 3 working days of approval, with no complaint pending and within validity, issue the Letter of Acceptance (Format Q) with the price, any performance security, and the signing deadline.
Within 24 hours, publish the award (Format R) on your notice board or website and the BPPA website, for 28 days.
Collect the performance security, if required, in the working days set under Rule 123(7): pay order, bank draft or unconditional bank guarantee (Appendix 7) from a scheduled bank, valid 28 days beyond completion. Verify it with the bank.
Sign within the days set under Rule 123(11). All JV partners sign.
Within 3 days, publish signing (Format S), with beneficial ownership on the BPPA portal for contracts above Tk. 10 lakh, for 30 days.
Notify technically responsive unsuccessful firms, return unopened financial proposals, and debrief on request about the firm's own proposal only.
Send the commencement letter (Format T) once conditions are met; this sets the Effective Date.

Example: performance security At 5% on Tk. 80 lakh the security is Tk. 4 lakh. You may claim on it if a notified breach or unpaid amount continues for 14 days or more, and must release it within 28 days of completion.

13Contract Management

Payments: against agreed outputs. Invoices are due within 15 days of each condition being met; pay within 30 days, or interest at the PCC rate applies.
Final payment: after the final report and final statement are approved. If you do not notify deficiencies within 60 days, they are deemed approved.
Suspension: by written notice stating the failure and giving up to 30 days to remedy.
Variations: by written agreement. Within 10% of the original price, the Approving Authority approves; above that, the next higher authority. Never beyond 30%. The firm's rate breakdowns are the basis for pricing.
Personnel: no changes without approval. Replacements must be equal or better, at no higher remuneration, with the firm paying the extra travel. You can demand replacement for misconduct or poor performance.
Tax changes: adjust the price, with HOPE's approval, so the firm's net amount is unchanged.
Time: act on early warnings, hold regular progress meetings and record them, and extend the completion date if the reasons are acceptable.
Facilities: provide Appendix 4 services free; if you cannot, agree an extension or extra payment.
Records: you may inspect and audit the firm's accounts for up to 5 years. All reports, data and software belong to you.

Example: variation limits on Tk. 80 lakh Variations up to Tk. 8 lakh (10%) go to the Approving Authority; from Tk. 8 lakh to Tk. 24 lakh (30%) to the next higher authority. Nothing beyond Tk. 24 lakh is allowed.

14Termination and Disputes

Default: either party, with at least 21 days' notice, for a fundamental breach: the firm not remedying a suspension, a knowingly false statement, corrupt practice, ignoring an arbitral award; or you failing to pay within 45 days of notice or to remedy a material breach within 45 days.
Insolvency: either party, without compensation.
Convenience: you, at any time, by notice stating the extent and date.
Force majeure: notify within 14 days; HOPE decides whether it exists. If a material part is blocked for 60 days or more, either party may terminate. Lack of funds is never force majeure.
On termination: pay for satisfactory services and, except for the firm's default, reasonable wind-down costs.
Disputes: amicable settlement; after 28 days, either party may give notice of arbitration under the Arbitration Act 2001 at the PCC location. Both keep performing and you keep paying sums due.

15Points to Correct in the Draft

The December 2025 draft has cross-references that do not match. Fix them in your RFP or ask BPPA:

ITC 4.2 says "ITT Sub Clause 4.3"; it means ITC 4.3.
Form 5A1 points to "ITC Sub Clause 56.1 of the PDS" for the start date; the PDS entry is ITC 60.1.
The table of contents names Form 5B2 as Summary of Costs, but the forms are 5B2 remuneration, 5B3 reimbursables, 5B4 summary. GCC 21.6 cites 5B3 and 5B4 as the price breakdown; it should be 5B2 and 5B3.
GCC 6.1 lists "Appendix 1 to 8"; the contract has Appendices 1 to 7.
Termination is cross-referenced as GCC 61–64 and arbitration as 72.2; they are GCC 62–65 and 73.2.
GCC 55.1 gives 30 days to remedy a suspension, while GCC 62.2(a) treats failure within 28 days as a fundamental breach. Align them.
PCC 18.1, 19.1 and 20.1 do not line up with the GCC clause numbers (GCC 18.1 is the Effective Date, 19.1 commencement, 20.1 expiry).
Appendix 7 cites "ITT Clauses" and PPR 2008; the commencement letter cites a GCC 33.2 on insurance that does not exist.
ITC 16 speaks of the "e-Request for Application Notice" and "Tenderers"; read as the RFP notice and Consultants.

16Issuing Checklist

EOI and short-list are complete; the estimated cost is within Tk. 1 crore; the scope suits a lump sum.
Letter of Invitation lists only short-listed firms.
PDS: method, staff-months (QCBS) or budget (FBS), key staff minimums, reimbursables, validity, criteria totalling 100, pass mark 70, T and F, performance security decision.
TOR covers objectives, scope, reports and schedule, your inputs and institutional arrangements.
PCC: parties, effectiveness, timings, liability, advance, payment schedule, interest, arbitration place.
Information that could give one firm an advantage is shared with all.
Cross-references corrected; italic guidance removed; ITC and GCC unchanged.

Preparing a consultancy RFP?

Bidorix can review your PDS, evaluation criteria, TOR and PCC before you issue them.

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17Common Questions

Can we disclose the budget?

Only under FBS, where the budget is the cap. Under QCBS give the estimated staff-months and keep the budget confidential.

Can we negotiate the firm's rates down?

No. Under QCBS and FBS, unit rates for remuneration and reimbursables cannot be negotiated. Financial negotiation only reflects agreed technical changes and taxes.

Is a performance security mandatory?

No. Set it in the PDS only where needed, typically when deliverables are time-critical or feed later work, at 3–5% of the contract price. Otherwise state "Not Applicable".

Can two short-listed firms join as a JV?

No, and such a proposal must be disqualified. A JV or sub-consultancy with a firm that applied but was not short-listed needs your approval before the deadline; a firm that never applied may be a sub-consultant without approval.

What if we do not respond to the final report?

It is deemed approved 60 days after receipt, and final payment falls due. Send written notice of any deficiencies within that window.

Can a government officer be on the team?

Yes, if on leave without pay, not hired by their own agency immediately before the leave, and with the employer's written certificate included in the technical proposal.