15 Feb 2022

A Day in the Life of the Leads 2 Quotes Department

by | posted in: Construction Chat, General | 0

Upon arriving at the office, a cup of coffee is the first (read: most essential) aspect to attend to. Once the coffee has been made, it is time to read through the emails. L2Q Requests are checked and moved to their folder. The L2Q Requests that have not been uploaded before, are left in order, to be attended to on a first-come, first-served basis. The L2Q Requests that have been uploaded before, are assigned to the relevant person to attend to.

Once the emails have been attended to, it is back to the drawing board. Outstanding bills from the previous day are completed and the next is attended to in order.

PDF bills are converted to excel and then checked word for word and quantity for quantity, before being traded and uploaded. Excel bills are processed and checked before being traded and uploaded.

Buyers are contacted to find out if follow-ups are required on their control lists. Vendors and subcontractors are contacted as required, and feedback is provided to the contractors. Closed tenders are followed up on to find out if they have been awarded and to which company/companies. The relevant companies are contacted to obtained the required information and the awards are updated and sent out.

During the process of working on the bills, control lists and awards, we are required to answer calls on our assigned days. We also deal with telephonic enquiries from L2Q Subscribers, as well as, email enquiries from colleagues and subscribers. We assist with training subscribers on Leads 2 Busines and submit content for our Social Media Publications.

Should there be a day when we are not swamped with bills, we assist where needed, should that be Directory, Tenders or Projects.

We are always busy and love raising the L2B Flag high.

 

To view more Articles, please visit our Leads 2 Business Blog.
If you are interested in becoming one of our subscribers, please visit Leads 2 Business.
To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit Leads 2 Business Wiki.

About Cecile Van Deventer

I joined the L2Q Team in 2006, as a L2Q Support Assistant and have been the HOD since 2010. I supervise L2Q Bills, Daily Tender Bills, Control Lists and Directory.

4 May 2021

Tips for Buyers using L2B

by | posted in: Frequently Asked Questions | 0

To receive the best and relevant prices for your tender, take into consideration the following:

When Creating the L2Q Bill Request:

  • Ensure that the Vendors / Subcontractors are given enough time to price the RFQ, too short a lead time and they will be unable to submit a price.
  • Provide a start date, as this will determine whether their schedule will allow them to price.
  • Provide an accurate location (physical address or GPS co-ordinates) where the work will take place.
  • Provide as much information as possible, i.e., drawings or scope of works, etc.

When Sending out the RFQ’s:

  • Read the description of the company before selecting, as some companies might only do a specific part of a trade and it might not be the work that needs to be priced.
  • Select the companies that service the applicable region and send them to a select list.
  • Only send to one contact in the same company, as selecting multiple contacts in the same company may cause confusion.

After RFQ’s have been sent:

  • Respond to queries that may be sent to you from the Vendors / Subcontractors.

By following the steps above, you should receive a spread of prices to assist in compiling your tender, and as always, the L2Q Department is available for assistance and will assist in following up on prices still required.

To view more Articles, please visit our Leads 2 Business Blog.
If you are interested in becoming one of our subscribers, please visit Leads 2 Business.
To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit Leads 2 Business Wiki.

About Cecile Van Deventer

I joined the L2Q Team in 2006, as a L2Q Support Assistant and have been the HOD since 2010. I supervise L2Q Bills, Daily Tender Bills, Control Lists and Directory.

7 Apr 2021

Staff Spotlight: Cecile van Deventer

by | posted in: Staff Spotlight | 0
CvD STAFF SPOTLIGHT - doc

To view more Articles, please visit our Leads 2 Business Blog.
If you are interested in becoming one of our subscribers, please visit Leads 2 Business.
To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit Leads 2 Business Wiki.

About Cecile Van Deventer

I joined the L2Q Team in 2006, as a L2Q Support Assistant and have been the HOD since 2010. I supervise L2Q Bills, Daily Tender Bills, Control Lists and Directory.

11 Mar 2020

10 Richest Countries in Africa

by | posted in: Construction Chat, General | 0

While most listings of countries’ wealth are determined according to the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of each country, there are two other ways of determining a country’s wealth, namely: GDP (PPP (Purchasing Power Parity)) and GDP per capita.

Definitions:

GDP: the value of all final services and goods produced in a country’s economy over a period of time, usually a year.

GDP (PPP): includes the fact that the same amount of money can buy a different amount of goods in each country (i. e. a basket of goods comparison approach).

GDP per Capita: the GDP divided by the population size. This provides an average GDP for individuals within the country but could be quite misleading.

The data is as follows (These stats are from the 11 October 2019 data report from the IMF, and are based on GDP current prices, U. S. dollars):

As you can see, the lists do differ according to the measurement employed. For instance, the GDP per capita is not a very accurate representation of the average income of individuals within the economy as Equatorial Guinea is listed third and yet they have a very high rate of poverty. Out of these measurements, the GDP (PPP) might be the best measurement to use, as this provides a measure of the standard of living within an economy.

To confuse matters even more, there is also a listing according to “Most Developed Country”. This listing is determined by the Human Development Index (HDI), released by the United Nations Development Programme annually. The HDI is determined by three factors: Healthcare, Education and Life Expectancy.

Accordingly, the top 10 Most Developed Countries are:

Whichever your preference might be, there are only two countries listed on all of these graphs, and they are Algeria and South Africa.

This could be due to the Algerian-South African High Binational Commission for Cooperation (HCBNC) which was formed in 2000, resulting in Algeria being South Africa’s largest trading partner in the region, with steadily increasing bilateral trade.

Establishing the richest countries in Africa, considering all the various factors that need to be taken into account, is more difficult than anticipated, and it might be a better representation of the true state of an economy to look at how many graphs each country is on.

Looking to the future, do you think that these countries will stay the same or might another country emerge to topple all those that came before it?

Sources:
sparknotes.com
quora.com
wikipedia.org
International Monetary Fund
Embassy of Algeria
The African Exponent
Financial Times
World Population Review

To view more Articles, please visit our Leads 2 Business Blog.
If you are interested in becoming one of our subscribers, please visit Leads 2 Business.
To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit Leads 2 Business Wiki.

About Cecile Van Deventer

I joined the L2Q Team in 2006, as a L2Q Support Assistant and have been the HOD since 2010. I supervise L2Q Bills, Daily Tender Bills, Control Lists and Directory.

9 Jul 2018

Unusual Finds During Demolition, Excavation and Renovation

by | posted in: Did You Know | 0

Unusual Finds During Demolition, Excavation and Renovation

Unusual Finds During Demolition, Excavation and Renovation

1. An entire Mosque discovered in apartment during renovations:
Palermo, Italy. When the owners of the apartment in Via Porta di Castro bought the apartment, they started with renovations. They intended to knock down a wall to open the area, but discovered that the plaster was wet and when they cleaned the wet area, they found Arabic writing. The writing covered all four walls and the inscriptions are in gold and silver. The couple have left the mosque as they found it, not wanting to destroy history.		 Unusual Finds During Demolition, Excavation and Renovation
2. £50k jackpot in rare tiles found by demolition man:
Southbourne, Dorset. When Stephen Malton was contracted to tear down the home of Victorian artist, Arthur Bell, he never expected to find a fortune in Delft tiles. Due to the eagle eye of his foreman, the tiles were saved from destruction as he stopped the team while they were pulling down a wall behind the fireplace, where the tiles were hidden. Due to a clause in his contract, Stephen has the right to keep any treasure found during the demolition process. This find is estimated to bring him £50 000.		 Unusual Finds During Demolition, Excavation and Renovation
3. Letter To Santa Claus From 1943 Found In A Chimney:
United Kingdom. A young boy’s letter to Santa was discovered during the demolition of the chimney of a 1930’s house. The letter asked simply for a Rupert Annual, slippers, a silk tie, a pencil box, chalk, soldiers and Indians. Lewis Shaw, the builder whose crew discovered the letter, decided to find the author of the letter and make his wishes come true. He connected with David Haylock (who wrote the letter when he was six), and David was very excited to receive his Christmas wish from 1943.		 Unusual Finds During Demolition, Excavation and Renovation
4. Bethel Church (1905) demolition leads to time capsule extraction:
Chicago, Illinois. During the demolition of the Ingleside Community Church of the Nazarene, extra care was taken during the removal of a cornerstone column. A time capsule was extracted and opened – a Tetley tea tin, containing religious documentation in Danish (or possibly Norwegian) and two U.S. pennies from 1899 and 1901. It is believed the capsule was added to the cornerstone by L.A. Larson, the presiding elder and person who built the church.
5. A Mysterious Discovery halts Demolition of House:
Middletown, Pennsylvania. A hidden room and tunnel were discovered after a crew knocked out a wall during the demolition of a home. The local historical society visited the site due to the age of the building. They advised that it might have been part of the Underground Railroad and used as a speakeasy during Prohibition.
6. Pictures taken of “Mannequin” by Demolition Crew, only to discover it is a dead body:
Merriam, Kansas. The disturbing discovery of a dead body was made by a demolition crew when a load of trash was picked up to move. Initially they thought it was a mannequin and started taking photos, while laughing. Then, the stench got to them and they called 911. Demolition was halted while investigators determined whether it was a homicide.
7. Convent Rubble Yields Priceless Relic:
Christchurch, New Zealand. A large antique safe concealed at the back of the altar of the under-deconstruction Nazareth House convent in Christchurch was found by Paul King, Graceworks Demolition and Recycling boss, while he was working in the chapel. The caretaker managed to find a key that fit the lock and when they opened the safe, they discovered a sacred ceremonial monstrance. Paul returned the monstrance to the nuns who had been living there at the time of the earthquake and they were overjoyed.
8. Stripping of Cottage Wall leads to Discovery of 400-year-old Mummified Cat:
Devon, United Kingdom. A mummified cat was discovered when builders stripped a wall in the bathroom of a house in Ugborough. It is believed that years ago, cats were put behind walls to ward off evil spirits and witches. Richard Parson, the owner of the house, has indicated that the cat will be placed back in the wall after the renovations are complete.
9. Demolition of Abandoned home leads to Surprising Treasure:
Saint Cloud, Florida. During the demolition of a dilapidated home that had been abandoned by the owner(s), silver coins started pouring out of the windows of the house. The coins were gathered up by the crew and they found that there were 202 dimes, a few nickels, over a thousand quarters and 861 half-dollars. These coins had been hidden in the walls of the house in jars and the oldest coin was dated to 1917. The coins were handed to the city of Saint Cloud.
10. Treasure Hidden in Cooler Box:
Johannesburg, South Africa. While digging up a six meter trench for a drainage system near a building in 10th Avenue, Rodgers Nkuna discovered a mud-spattered blue and white cooler box. The police were notified and when they opened it, they discovered R20 and R50 notes, estimated to a value of R1.5 million. It is unknown how long the cooler box had been buried there.

 

If you are interested in becoming one of our subscribers, please visit our website.
To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit our Wiki site.
To view more articles, please visit our blog.

Sources:
HTTP://WWW.ANSAMED.INFO/ANSAMED/EN/NEWS/SECTIONS/CULTURE/2013/08/27/PALERMO-MOSQUE-DISCOVERED-DURING-HOME-RENOVATIONS_9205871.HTML
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3246619/Demolition-man-unearths-50-000-rare-tiles-hidden-fireplace-called-knock-artist-s-house.html
https://www.yahoo.com/news/letter-to-santa-found-in-chimney-wall-fulfilled-72-184511409.html
https://www.today.com/news/78-year-old-man-reunited-santa-letter-he-wrote-boy-t61511
HTTPS://WWW.URBANREMAINSCHICAGO.COM/NEWS-AND-EVENTS/2018/02/02/UNUSUAL-TIME-CAPSULE-EXTRACTED-FROM-BETHEL-CHURCH-DURING-BUILDINGS-DEMOLITION/
https://www.theblaze.com/news/2014/05/27/a-construction-crew-demolishing-a-home-was-forced-to-stop-after-a-very-mysterious-discovery

Demolition crew takes pictures of “mannequin” only to find it is a dead body

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/christchurch-earthquake-2011/8113672/Priceless-relic-found-in-convent-rubble
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/5200089/400-year-old-mummified-cat-found-in-walls-of-cottage.html
http://yournationnews.com/construction-workers-find-surprising-treasure-during-demolition-of-abandoned-home/
https://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/mud-covered-treasure-box-found-in-edenvale-436810

Photo Credits:
Mosque, Palermo, Italy – Photo by Franco Lannino
Bethel Church, Chicago – Photo by Eric J. Nordstrom

 

 

About Cecile Van Deventer

I joined the L2Q Team in 2006, as a L2Q Support Assistant and have been the HOD since 2010. I supervise L2Q Bills, Daily Tender Bills, Control Lists and Directory.

19 May 2017

L2B Blog: Reporting for Dummies (Part 3)

by | posted in: Frequently Asked Questions, Introducing..., Recommended Reading | 0

Reporting for Dummies (Part 3)

All graphs provide the ability to download the graph to the following formats: png, jpg or pdf. You can also annotate the graphs with your own notes and observations and open the graphs to full screen.

 

Trending:

A. Market Intelligence – Projects:

1. Projects Published Trending over time – you search for your specific date range within all the Industries, all Values and all Regions. By filtering, you can choose the parameters you would like to view.

2. Projects Published by Region – you can search for your specific date range within all the Industries and all Values. By filtering, you can choose the parameters you would like to view.

3. Projects Published by Industry – you can search for your specific date range within all Values and Regions. By filtering, you can choose the parameters you would like to view.

4. Projects Published by Value – you can search for your specific date range within all the Industries and all Regions. By filtering, you can choose the parameters you would like to view.

B. Market Intelligence – Tenders:

1. Tenders Published Trending over time – you can search for your specific date range within all the Industries, CIDB Gradings and Regions. By filtering, you can choose the parameters you would like to view.

2. Tenders Published by Region – you can search for your specific date range within all the Industries and CIDB Gradings. By filtering, you can choose the parameters you would like to view.

3. Tenders Published by Industry – you can search for your specific date range within the CIDB Gradings and Regions. By filtering, you can choose the parameters you would like to view.

4. Tenders Published by Value – you can search for your specific date range within all the Industries and Regions. By filtering, you can choose the parameters you would like to view.

C. Most Viewed: When you click on Most Viewed, it will display the Projects / Tenders that have been viewed the most on the website.

D. Most Monitored: When you click on Most Monitored, it will display the Projects / Tenders that have the most monitors on the website.

Thank you for your interest in our Reporting Features. We are always willing to assist, should you require any assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

If you are interested in becoming one of our subscribers, please visit our website.
To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit our Wiki site.
To view more articles, please visit our blog.

About Cecile Van Deventer

I joined the L2Q Team in 2006, as a L2Q Support Assistant and have been the HOD since 2010. I supervise L2Q Bills, Daily Tender Bills, Control Lists and Directory.

12 May 2017

L2B Blog: Reporting for Dummies (Part 2)

by | posted in: How To, Introducing..., Recommended Reading | 2

 

Your Online Footprint:

 

A. Online Activity – This details your overall usage statistics, such as how many searches you have performed, items you have viewed, downloaded, monitored or annotated, you can search up to 3 months.

By clicking on the blue links, you will be able to view the specific Projects / Tenders viewed or monitored over the period selected.

 

B. Site Engagement – provides a graph showing the number of searches performed on the site and the number of Leads that have been tagged within the time period chosen, not exceeding 3 months.

By clicking on the headings, you can expand the categories to see the searches performed and you can choose to perform that specific search again, or to display the date, name of tag and item tagged.

 

C. Project Engagement – This details your engagement with Project Leads. Informative graphs illustrate your Industry focus, what stage of the project lifecycle is beneficial to your business, which geographical area you target and the allocation of potential revenue values across the projects you monitor, can be searched for the last 3 months.

 

D. Tender Engagement: This details your engagement with Tender Leads. Informative graphs illustrate your Industry focus, which geographical area you target and the allocation of potential revenue values across the tenders you monitor. You can search for up to 3 months.

 

E. Vendor Engagement: This details your engagement with the Requests for Quotes you have received from Buyers on our site. It showcases the Requests you have responded to by pricing online /offline or declining to price. You can perform a search for three months.

By clicking on the headings, you can expand the various categories to see the specific instances where you have priced online, submitted your intension to price, declining to price or not responded to a RFQ.

 

F. Buyer Engagement: This details your engagement with Bills of Quantity you have sent using our electronic pricing distribution system for up to a range of 3 months.

With regards to all the graphs, you have the ability to download the graph to the following formats: png, jpg or pdf. You can also annotate the graphs with your own notes and observations and open the graphs to full screen.

 

Part 3 of Reporting for Dummies coming soon…

About Cecile Van Deventer

I joined the L2Q Team in 2006, as a L2Q Support Assistant and have been the HOD since 2010. I supervise L2Q Bills, Daily Tender Bills, Control Lists and Directory.

20 Apr 2017

L2B Blog: Why Specify?

by | posted in: General | 0

Why Specify?

What does it mean to specify? According to Dictionary.com the definition of “specify” is:

“verb (used with object), specified, specifying”

  1. to mention or name specifically or definitely, state in detail: He did not specify the amount needed
  2. to give a specific character to
  3. to set forth as specification
  4. to name or state as a condition: He specified that he be given my power of attorney
  5. to make a specific mention or statement

In the instance where specify is mentioned in the building and construction industry, we can take it to mean: “state in detail” and that is what is done. Whether you are building a house or a hospital, there are specifications that are required with regards to methods of construction or even material standards. For more on these specifications, take a look at the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications Act of 2008 (Act No 5 of 2008) (https://www.thedti.gov.za/business_regulation/acts/national_regulator_act.pdf and other helpful websites are http://sans10400.co.za/ and https://www.sabs.co.za/)

Regarding other items to specify in the construction of a building, those could be chosen according to the owner’s choice. For instance, the type of bathroom you are envisioning would depend on the accessories you choose. You can specify the tiles – type, colour, manufacturer, etc:

 

(Photo credit: commons.wikimedia.org)

versus

(Photo credit: pixabay.com)

 

The type of window – wooden, steel, aluminium, etc:

(Photo credit: iha.com)

versus

(Photo credit: iha.com)

 

The shower door – sliding door or not, etc:

(Photo credit: iha.com)

versus

(Photo credit: iha.com)

 

The specific type of bath, toilet, wash basin, etc. Everything depends on what you wish the end result to be and to that end, you can specify to your heart’s content.

 

References:

https://www.thedti.gov.za/business_regulation/acts/national_regulator_act.pdf

http://sans10400.co.za/

https://www.sabs.co.za/

 

If you are interested in becoming one of our subscribers, please visit our website.
To view notes with screenshots on how to use our website, please visit our Wiki site.
To view more articles, please visit our blog.

About Cecile Van Deventer

I joined the L2Q Team in 2006, as a L2Q Support Assistant and have been the HOD since 2010. I supervise L2Q Bills, Daily Tender Bills, Control Lists and Directory.

18 Apr 2017

L2B Blog: Reporting for Dummies (Part 1)

by | posted in: Recommended Reading | 0

1. Projects / Tenders: Here you can download reports on the tenders and projects that have been added in the last month, according to your advisory settings. These options are located on your Dashboard under Reporting:

To do so, click on Projects / Tenders and follow the steps:

1. Select which type of report you wish to download.

2. Select the report frequency: once a week, every second week or once a month

3. Choose the information that you would like to be included in the report by selecting the various report fields under Projects or Tenders.

4. Click on Download Projects or Download Tenders. You will notice that the downloaded report contains tabs and each tab has the projects or tenders for each region that you have selected in your advisory settings.

2. Your Timeline: Here you can see the projects or tenders you have monitored, the L2Q Bills you have priced and the Requests for Quotes you have priced within a selected date range not exceeding 2 months. You can view all or choose a specific option to view using Filter By.

3. Monitors: When you click on Monitors it will expand to show all the monitors you have on your profile.

Once you have chosen the monitor that you would like to view, you can choose the date range up to a year. This will display a graph with the number of Leads (Projects and Tenders) that the monitor is monitoring and when they monitored them:

Below the graph is the prospect list that can be viewed and downloaded. It will also show if the monitor has interacted with anyone on the specific lead:

Stay tuned for Part 2 of Reporting for Dummies…

 

About Cecile Van Deventer

I joined the L2Q Team in 2006, as a L2Q Support Assistant and have been the HOD since 2010. I supervise L2Q Bills, Daily Tender Bills, Control Lists and Directory.

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