---
title: "4.5 Sealed Bids"
space: "Vuna Sourcing"
url: "https://docs.navari.co.ke/vuna-sourcing/4-request-for-quotation/45-sealed-bids"
updated: "2026-10-28"
---

In a sealed bid, each supplier sends one quotation. No one sees any quotation, staff included, until the **opening committee** opens them together. This gives you a fair, tender-style process with a clear record of who opened what and when.



## Opening Committees

Create committees under **Sourcing → Bidding → RFQ Opening Committee**.



![RFQ Opening Committee](/files/desk-opening-committee.webp)




| Field          | What it does                                                                                      |
| -------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Committee Name | The name of the committee, for example, Tender Opening Committee.                                 |
| Members        | The users required to confirm the opening of sealed quotations. Each user can be added only once. |
| Disabled       | Prevents the committee from being selected for new RFQs.                                          |




When a sealed RFQ is submitted, each committee member is assigned a task to open it.



## Opening Conditions

By default, quotations open only when **all** of these are true:



1. **Bids closed**: the *Bids Close At* time has passed.
2. **Minimum quotations received**: at least the RFQ's *Minimum Expected Quotations* have arrived.
3. **Every committee member confirmed**: each member has clicked **Open Quotes**.



You can relax each condition for all sealed bids in [Sourcing Settings → Bidding](page:sourcing-settings).



## Opening the Quotations

1. A committee member opens the submitted RFQ. The **Committee Opening** section shows each condition as *Met*, *Waiting* or *Not required*.
2. When the member is allowed to confirm, the **Open Quotes** button appears. Click it.
3. When the last required confirmation is in, the quotations open. **Quotations Opened** is ticked and the confirmations are recorded with each member's name and time.



![Sealed bid RFQ with opening conditions](/files/desk-rfq-sealed.webp)



## After Opening

- The Supplier Quotations become visible in Desk and can be submitted.
- Once they are submitted, award the RFQ. See [Awarding Suppliers](page:awarding-suppliers).



:::note
Only committee members can open the quotations. Opening early (if allowed) stops suppliers from sending any more quotations.
:::