The cover letter says no exceptions

Anyone who levels subcontract bids knows the cover letter is the least useful page. The bid is in the attachments: terms that take precedence, an addendum nobody acknowledged, a keynote no spec repeats. That means reading every bid against every file, the week before award.

One case on our Try page: four HVAC bids. Yesper checked them against 63 requirements, attachments included. One had priced a superseded addendum. Another said no exceptions and attached terms that override the subcontract. No bid covered the grease duct in full, called out only in a keynote.

You award on what each bidder actually priced, questions already written. The missed addendum turns up before award, not as a change order. And the rest of the Try page: what each tender left out, a scope matrix for a bid invitation, a bid package before it goes out.

Try it yourself →