Government Solicitations

The Government Solicitations database enables you to search for RFQs posted to various federal government solicitations web sites. Open solicitations are gathered and posted multiple times per week and enable users to search by specific Solicitation Number, NIIN or NSN and requesting Agency, among other fields. Type a Solicitation Number with or without dashes and obtain the same results.

Solicitations that have been posted to DIIBS / BSM also contain links to technical documentation packages.
Note: Because solicitations constantly change, this exact search may or may not be available. You change the date to a more recent date and you then click any solicitation number to see a similar example.

  1. Click Database > Pricing and Procurement > Government Solicitations.
  2. Click the pull-down menu for the Issue Date field and select Between.
  3. Place your cursor in the blank Date 1 field and using the calendar control, select 03/01/2018.
  4. Place your cursor in the blank Date 2 field and using the calendar control, select 02/06/2019
  5. Click the pull-down menu for Closing Date and select Up To to view solicitations that have closed.
  6. Place your cursor in the blank Date 1 field and using the calendar control, select 02/08/2019, and then click Search.
    Government Solicitations/RFQs Search
  7. On the Government Solicitation/RFQ Brief Listing window (results list), click solicitation number SPE1C120Q0044.
    Government Solicitations/RFQ Brief Listing
  8. On the Solicitation window, click the PDF icon in the Solicitation field to view a detailed synopsis of the solicitation.
    Solicitation page
    The detailed synopsis appears.
  9. Click the FSC code 8415 for a definition of that code.
  10. Click NIIN 01-591-7842 to view FLIS data.
  11. If your solicitation includes a link to View TechDocs on the Government Solicitation/RFQ Brief Listing window, you find additional drawings and technical documentation.

Drawings are available on DIBBS so long as a solicitation/RFQ is open. To access technical data, you must have an active DIBBS account.

Drawings posted can be in multiple formats (PDF, JEDMICS, etc.). For JEDMICS format, you require a JEDMICS or C4 file viewer to view the content. Applications that display JEDMICS drawings include the following1:

  • CPC View/CPC View Lite.
  • LGS LT Viewer (available for purchase on GSA Schedule).
  • Trix Systems JEDMICS and C4 viewers.

The U.S. government provides a free C4 viewer, ImageView, that works well for viewing a single file, but it will not save the C4 file in other formats (like PDF). ImageView can be downloaded from https://g6msd.redstone.army.mil/usingEDIS.html.

A unique characteristic of the C4 format is that each page of a document must be in a separate C4 file. Thus a 30 page Tech Data Package (TDP) may consist of 30 C4 files. Typically, a TDP provided with a solicitation will consist of a mixture of C4 and PDF files.

  1. Click Database > Pricing and Procurement > Government Solicitations.
  2. Type the solicitation number in the Solicitation Number field, and then click Search.
    The Solicitation window appears with search results.
  3. Select the desired solicitation from the list.
    The Solicitation window for that number opens.
  4. Click the desired drawing in the Document column to either open or download the drawing to your system. If you have a JEDMICS drawing viewer, the drawings will open in that application.

The technical documentation is available on DIBBS so long as a solicitation/RFQ is open. To access technical data, you must have an active DIBBS account.

  1. Click Database > Pricing and Procurement > Government Solicitations.
  2. Type solicitation number in the Solicitation Number field, and then click Search.
    The Government Solicitation RFQ Brief Listing window appears with search results.
  3. Select the desired solicitation from the list.
    The Solicitation window for that number opens.
  4. Using the Documents table, click the View Techdocs link.
  5. When prompted, provide your credentials (User Name and Password).
    Once you have logged in, the system automatically searches for the solicitation you were viewing in Haystack Gold and presents the results.
  6. To view technical documents associated with the solicitation, click the Material Group Number link on the Defense Logistics Agency window.
    If there are multiple categories of technical documents, you see them listed on the window presented.
  7. To view a document, click the appropriate Document link.

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