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Bid Express® Knowledge Center

Tables and Item Lists

For Bid Express owner-agencies

In this article:

As an owner-agency, you can import or add items to the item list of your solicitation.  

You can modify your tables using the advanced options. Retitle your item list columns, choose whether you collect data from the vendor, reorganize the placement of your columns, and more.

  1. Open your solicitation if it is not already open.

  2. To add an item list, click Item List in the Components slider and drag it below the General Info section. 

  3. To add a table, click Table in the Components slider and drag it below the General Info section. 
Are you requesting pricing? Use the item list component.
The item list allows up to two columns for currency input. This is usually used for labor and material bids.  The Bid Express service calculates the extended total price by adding the two prices together and multiplying by the quantity.

Import a table or item list

You can import an item list or table from a spreadsheet program into an existing table, or let the solicitation create a new table during the import. You can also import an item list already set up in the Appia service. If you add the imported table to an existing one, you can either overwrite and replace the information in the current rows or add the imported rows to the current table.

Contact customer support for assistance on building and formatting your spreadsheet for importing into the Bid Express service.

Things to know

  • You must import an Excel spreadsheet, if you are not importing with Appia. 
  • Every table or item section in the file must have a unique name and be listed in a specific title column.
  • Before importing the table or item list, make sure the table or section in your solicitation contains all the columns being imported. For example, if the table you are importing includes a column for equipment, add the Equipment column to your table using the advanced options. This will make it easier for you to populate your table in the Bid Express service. If you forget this step, you can add the column after the import and enter any value needed.
  • You must clearly define which items belong to specific columns in your file.

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  1. With the solicitation open, click  More and select Import for the item list or table in your solicitation.

  2. Click Select file...

  3. Navigate to and select the table or list. Click Open.

  4. If necessary, select the worksheet in the Select Worksheet field.

  5. Click the down arrow next to the field headings to identify the matching columns in the imported list or table. Each column can be matched only once.

  6. Enter a number in the Skip the first field to tell the Bid Express service how many rows to skip at the top of the worksheet.  

  7. Select the Replace Existing Data check box if you wish to replace the rows in your list or table with the imported information. If you select this option, any information already in the list or table in your solicitation will be deleted.

  8. Click Import. The Import button will not be available until all required fields have been entered.

The Bid Express service imports the file.  You can edit the list or table as necessary, including changing its name and the order of the rows.

Use the search bar to find and edit any imported items.

Add item

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  1. With the solicitation open, click Edit for the item list or table. The Item List component expands to allow you to add a label to the Item List and begin adding items.

  2. If you wish, you can change the Item List name by clicking in the Title field and entering the new name.

  3. Select the Optional Component check box if this is not a required bidding component.

  4. Select the Alternate Component check box if this list of items may be awarded independently from the rest of the bid.

  5. If you are creating an RFP, enter the component weight in the Weight field.

  6. If you are editing the list, change any item information.

  7. Click Add Item... to add items to your solicitation.

  8. Enter the item information. The Item Code, Description, Quantity, and Units fields are required. Other fields may be required by your agency.

  9. If the unit price or labor is fixed, select the Fixed check box and enter the unit price or labor. Otherwise, you can leave it available for vendors responding to the solicitation.

  10. Click Save.

Repeat these steps until your Item List is complete. If you want to add another item list, select Item List in the Components slider and drag it to your solicitation. 

If you wish to add sales tax or set the decimal places for the unit price or quantity, use the Advanced options.

Reorder items

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  1. Click Edit for the item list.
  2. Enter the proper order number for the selected item. For example, if you want the item to appear tenth in the list, enter a 10 in the Order field for that item.
  3. Click elsewhere in the list or press the Tab key.

The Bid Express service moves that item to the specified location and shifts the items afterward down in the list.

Delete an item list or table

As an owner-agency, you can delete an item on the item list or table, or you can delete the entire list.

Delete an item

  1. With the solicitation open, click Edit for the item list or table. 

  2. Click the X next to the item you wish to delete.

  3. Click Save, or click Cancel if you deleted the wrong item.

Delete an item list

  1. With the solicitation open, click More for the item list or table.

  2. Click Delete.

  3. Click OK in the delete confirmation window.

The Bid Express service deletes the item list or table.