Define the resources:

• Get the budget approved by the management, including the DPO (or Resources Coordinator for the experiments);
• Set up the team, roles and responsibilities for those in charge of drafting the IT documents, contract follow-up and acceptance tests, if any
• Anticipate material resources needed, if any (test benches, availability of test beam, early procurement of long-lead items, etc.).

Tip: Even before defining the resources, it may be advisable to draw up a Make-or-Buy plan to confirm that procurement is the right option. In doing so, ask yourself: who is in the best position to do the job?

Key questions to establish a “Make or Buy” plan: 
-    Preliminary technical requirements 
-    Does the technology exist?
-    Are there potential alternatives (ideally with off-the-shelf products) 
-    Is the industry mature enough? 
-    Did we make some prior consultation?
-    Time constraints?
-    Make at CERN (eg. via existing contracts)?
-    How do I organise the various procurements within the project? Why? Which services will I need within these contracts, and where can they be performed? 
-    …
Advantages of making: time flexibility, technical issues management, possibility to address unique characteristics, etc.
Risks of buying: loss of control, delegation of power to a third party that has diverging interests, etc.
Link: set of templates related to project management  
The Technical Officer may contact the Procurement Service to enquire about previous tenders or orders. The Procurement Service can retrieve a list of firms from its supplier database, provide examples of previous tenders as well as the firms that were consulted or a record of suppliers’ evaluation by other technical officers, etc.    

Where applicable, consult stakeholders to anticipate potential issues:

• Colleagues having already conducted similar tendering procedures in the past;
• The technical coordinator in charge of the CERN facility concerned, in particular for schedule feasibility purposes; 
• The relevant infrastructure (electrical, cooling and ventilation, transport, etc.) teams;
• HSE;
• Other potential users who could be interested in joining the procurement procedure;
• Potential suppliers;
• Procurement Service;
• Etc.

Prepare for the procurement start-up meeting: 

• Define the need (scope, quantities, etc.);
• Get a good understanding of the market (number of potential vendors, country of origin, industrial set-up, barriers to entry (existing patent, etc.), activities that are usually subcontracted, etc.);
• List documents needed to conduct the procurement procedure;
• List potential risks.

Tip:
Checklist (reconsider the situation in case of ‘NO’ to at least one of the following questions):
-    Am I able to define requirements?
-    Are the corresponding inputs and outputs clear for the industry to make a price?
-    Do I need to modify the existing infrastructure to install or use the supply?
-    Is the standard or specific equipment CERN already has enough to use the supply?
-    Is my price estimate consistent?
-    Are there vendors to fulfil my needs?
-    Is CERN key staff available?
-    Is the management in line with the approach? 

For the Experiments only, in light of the Memorandum of Understanding, make sure that:

• the procurement procedure for which CERN is requested to place the contract is in line with the Procurement Guidelines for Experiments at CERN as well as the General Conditions for Experiments at CERN;
• CERN has already received the funds necessary to place the order*.

Warning: the procurement rules vary according to the origin of the funding and the value of the request being made. In case of doubt, please consult the Procurement service as soon as possible.
For cases where CERN does not contribute to the financing of the project, if the requesting institute(s) in question has(-ve) not signed a Memorandum of Understanding, the Procurement Service will request it/them to sign a specific “Transfer of Risks and Liability Agreement” transferring contractual risks and liabilities from CERN to the institute as a condition for access to CERN’s purchasing service.
*For cases where CERN has not yet received the funds necessary to place the contract, the Procurement service may request that the Resources Coordinator commits on behalf of the requesting institute(s) or that such requesting institute(s) provide a “Funding Pledge”. 

 Templates for cases where CERN does not contribute to the financing of the project:
-    Transfer of risks and liability agreement
-    Proof of correctness, where applicable
-    Funding pledge, where applicable.