What to include in a tender bid
Pharmac usually opens the Invitation to Tender (ITT) for just over a month.
On this page
What Pharmac needs from you
Suppliers need to provide information about themselves and their product. For example:
- chemical information, including:
- form
- strength
- brand name
- pack size
- type of packaging
- Medsafe consent status
- If unapproved at time of bidding, include information on the required regulatory approval application.
- price
- lead time
- name and location of:
- manufacturer of the finished product
- manufacturer of the API
- any alternative manufacturers
- proposed distribution and supply arrangements
- your company structure
- your financial resources
- your quality assurance processes
- how your organisation contributes to environmental sustainability
- how your company complies with the Supplier Code of Conduct.
Download the Supplier Code of Conduct – Procurement.govt.nz(external link)
What is ‘lead time’ compared to ‘time to market’
‘Lead time’ is the number of months the supplier needs to secure enough stock and have it available in New Zealand to supply the entire funded market demand.
Suppliers must make the medicine or related product available at the tender price on the 12th of the month before it is listed on the Pharmaceutical Schedule.
Lead time does not include the time to get Medsafe approval.
‘Time to market’ is the time to gain all necessary consents before the product can be supplied.
Learn more about approval timeframes on Medsafe’s website(external link)
Terms and conditions are not negotiable
Tender bids cannot put conditions on or make qualifications to the ITT agreement. If suppliers do not want to accept the ITT terms and conditions then they should not make a bid.
Suppliers can have their say on the proposed terms and conditions during the ITT consultation in July/August. That is the time to alert Pharmac to any issues.
Consents for medicines and related products
Suppliers can submit a tender bid for a product even if the supplier has not yet gained all necessary regulatory consents.
Pharmac does not approve medicines or related products for marketing in New Zealand. We cannot advise on what types of consent are needed for any given product. It’s the suppliers’ responsibility to make sure these are right.
Learn more about getting medicines approved in New Zealand – Medsafe’s website(external link)
Electronic portal
Pharmac uses an electronic tendering system to receive tender bids. In-Tend provide this service. We recommend suppliers register early.
Read the User Guide [PDF, 589 KB]
Suppliers can sign up to GETS for notifications about tenders from the New Zealand Government
Learn more about GETS on procurement.govt.nz(external link)