The more quotes I read, the less useful the word commissioning becomes. I am making one list of what each supplier says will be working at the end, what evidence they will leave, and what I have to provide first.
Is that a reasonable way to compare them, or is there a better short checklist for a first cell? I am not after a perfect acceptance document, just a way to spot the empty promises.
Use the same headings for every quote and make each supplier fill the gaps. Include dependencies on your side, because a quotation can look complete while assuming the network, machine interface or data is already ready. That is where comparisons usually go soft.
Right, the list needs a column for assumptions, not only deliverables. I was treating the missing detail as a question to ask later. Putting it next to the price will make it much harder to ignore.
Keep 'not answered' different from 'excluded'. I'd hate to see a blank turn into a zero-cost assumption just because the comparison sheet needs a tidy total. Or, more precisely, let the total stay visibly incomplete until the missing scope has an answer.