Bitumen Tenders Offer Huge Business Opportunities Due to Consistent Demands in the Market

Government organizations are the largest procurer of bitumen and they used to float bitumen tenders at regular intervals. Corporate houses also float such tenders because they also require construction of transportation facilities for running their work smoothly. Prospective bidders should realize that certain requirements need to be fulfilled before bidding for such tenders. Not only the bitumen should conform to the specifications and quality requirements but also the procurer should have license for supplying bitumen if that is the legal requirement.

One of the item for which demands are not likely to come down at any time in India is bitumen. Communication and transportation is essential for any state or community as well as for civilization and it is even more important for an upcoming economy like India. That is why bitumen tenders come up very often on the print and electronic media, and more important on the internet.

Who Floats Bitumen Tenders - Perhaps the largest procurer of bitumen in India is government organizations. At every tier of the government, some road construction works are undertaken and bitumen becomes a necessity for such works. However, apart from the government and public authorities, large industrial houses also float bitumen tenders for carrying out their construction and transportation works.

Bitumen Tenders at Various Levels - According to the existing law of the land, almost all the work orders are issued on the basis of tendering methods. At lower levels in the Block and Gram Panchayat levels it is mostly free tenders and open competition. On the other hand at higher levels like DRDAs and ITDAs, Works Departments, Municipal Organizations, Rural Development Departments, and Irrigation Departments, and other construction agencies, it is always tendering process. Usually the departments and corporate bodies provide the construction materials to the agencies undertaking such works on their behalf. Bitumen tenders are floated by them since the materials are often supplied centrally. In other cases such tenders are floated by the executing agencies who have undertaken the works.

Requirements for Successful Tenders - Some of the basic requirements for successful tenders are as follows. Bitumen supplied must conform to the quality specification and pass the tests conducted by the authority for the purpose. Rates should conform to price levels as decided by government. In some cases it is required that the supplier is either licensed or registered with the procuring department. Requirements of corporate houses are much the same without the legal stamps that accompany the official bitumen tenders.

Background of Bidders - It should be remembered by every bidder that either the government or the corporate bodies may conduct verification of their antecedents and reputation in the market. It is therefore very important building up the reputation and goodwill before bidding for either government or the corporate organization tenders.

Construction of Flexible Pavements and Scope of Bitumen Tenders in Indian Construction Industry

Rapidly expanding road transport infrastructure has inspired the road construction authorities in India to opt for highly ambitious road networks across the country. Road expansion is likely to continue for some times to come owing to the growing habitations and consequential demands for transportation facilities. Bitumen tenders are integral parts of the process and offers vast opportunities for entrepreneurs to expand their business by responding to such tenders.

Sources for Bitumen Tenders
Largest source of bitumen tenders in India are the public authorities involved in road construction works.

These include –

• National Highways implementing the NHDP or National Highways Development Program;
• State Highways development and implementation programs;
• Bharat Nirman program;
• Pradhan Mantri Gramya Sadak Yojna or PMGSY;
• Roads constructed by Rural Development Departments of the Central and State Governments;
• Canal embankment roads constructed by the Irrigation or Water Resources Departments;
• Roads constructed by the local self governments like Municipalities and Notified Area Councils in urban and semi-urban area; and
• Corporate houses setting up intra-roads in their project areas.

Bitumen is essential item in most cases where black topping of the road is done and thus one can find numerous bitumen tenders all around the country.

Requirements of Fast Growing Economy
A fast growing economy, there is huge demands for road transport network in India. Demands also include the urge for having high quality pavement structures catering to the heaviest traffic in terms of number as well as the axel loading of the vehicle plying over the road.

Major Projects Requiring Supply of Bitumen
While bitumen is universally applicable in many construction cases, they are a must feature in top class projects like the North-South and East-West corridor project developed by the government in collaboration with international organizations like DFID and IFAD and others. There are multiple such other projects for which bitumen tenders are floated on periodical basis.

Requirements for Flexible Pavements
Majority of the Indian roads contain flexible pavements with bituminous layers. It is an outcome of the past scarcity of cement for which the engineers resorted to flexible and bituminous toppings for the roads. One of the reasons for preference given to flexible pavement over cement concrete roads is that they can be strengthened gradually and in stages with the growth of traffic. Naturally, there are quite substantial demands for the bitumen in road construction works. Since most of the transactions are carried out using tenders, bitumen tenders offer reasonably good scope for business promotion.

Less Expensive
Flexible pavements and bituminous roads can also be milled as well as recycled for rehabilitation. Hence in the long run they are less expensive than the traditional and concrete roads.

Aspirant entrepreneurs looking to respond to the bitumen tenders floated in news papers, electronic media, Internet as well as in the office or organization notice boards should ensure that their response is well prepared and it creates a positive impression in the mind of the authorities awarding the contract on scrutiny of bitumen tenders.