RFQ questions and supplier exceptions: what to record

Start a register against the quoted specification

The quote comparison guide explains how to compare scope and costs. This register adds a record of who must answer each question, what evidence closes it and who approves an exception. Start with the specification revision and quotation reference, using the product specification guide for the underlying brief.

For each entry, record the requirement reference, your question, the supplier’s exact response, its source and date, the status, the effect on the order, the person responsible for follow-up and the agreed response date. Keep the original message or attachment available. Record your interpretation separately from the supplier’s words.

Use statuses that preserve uncertainty

Keep requirement status separate from evidence status. A supplier can confirm that the quoted product uses the requested material while the supporting material evidence remains outstanding. Acknowledging receipt of the specification does not answer every question in it.

Turn each exception into a decision

Ask the supplier to state the requested requirement, the offered alternative and the reason for the difference. Record the effect on price, performance, packaging, inspection, delivery and documents wherever relevant. Give each exception its own entry so approval of a packaging change cannot be mistaken for approval of a material substitution.

For example, if the quotation offers bulk cartons instead of requested individual boxes, record this as an exception. Ask for the requested packaging to be quoted and identify any freight effect. Have the relevant buyer approve or reject the alternative in writing. Keep a rejected exception visible until the supplier confirms the requested scope.

Decide what must be resolved before acceptance

Mark questions that affect product suitability, the price you are accepting or the delivery scope as acceptance blockers. For evidence that will only exist later, agree what will be supplied, who checks it and which production, payment or shipment stage depends on approval. Avoid an open-ended promise to resolve details after the order.

UK government guidance says buyers must be able to demonstrate that products they import comply with relevant regulations and meet safety requirements before placing them on the market. As a practical quotation check, identify the evidence needed and unresolved questions about its coverage. Use the test report verification guide to examine reports offered by the supplier; a reassuring reply should not close an evidence gap.

Carry the decisions into the acceptance pack

Before accepting, assemble the current quotation, specification, approved exceptions and register. Ask the supplier to acknowledge this package together and replace conflicting wording. Record who authorised acceptance and preserve the earlier versions. If a later quotation changes an agreed detail, reopen the affected entry rather than carrying its confirmed status forward.

A useful clarification request is: ‘Please answer each open entry against the referenced specification. State any change, exclusion or condition explicitly, identify its price and delivery effect, and return a revised quotation reflecting the agreed decisions.’ Send this package for a quote check if you want Cambridge China Bridge, with its own staff in China, to review the remaining gaps.