What to put in your request
A supplier can only price what they can see. Answer these and the quotes come back for the same job, which is the only way they can be compared.
- Each item with its quantity: desks, chairs, tables, storage, shelving, reception and canteen furniture, or built-in joinery.
- Sizes, and a floor plan with the layout, so desks, storage and walkways fit the space and power and data reach every desk.
- For chairs: the adjustments you need (seat height and depth, backrest, armrests, lumbar support), how many hours a day they are used, and the weight they must carry. If you have had an ergonomic assessment done, attach its findings.
- Finishes and materials: board or solid wood, the edging, the colour, and the fabric or leather, with a sample or the name of a range if you have chosen one.
- Whether you will accept an equivalent to a named brand, and how close it must be.
- Delivery and installation: the address, the floor, lifts and stairs, assembly on site, and removing the packaging.
- For built-in fittings: drawings, the materials, and any plumbing or electrical work that goes with them. If you rent the premises, say whether your landlord has approved the work.
- Old furniture to be taken away, and the date the space must be ready.
What to compare when the quotes come back
The lowest total is where comparing starts, not where it ends.
- The exact range and model of each item, with dimensions and materials, so a lower price is not a thinner board, a lighter frame or a simpler chair mechanism.
- For chairs: the mechanism, the adjustments, the weight rating, and the standard the chair is tested to, if any.
- The lead time, and whether each item is in stock, made to order or imported, and what happens if the date slips.
- What the price includes: delivery, carrying in, assembly, installing built-in work, and removing old furniture.
- The warranty on each item, with frames, mechanisms, gas lifts and upholstery listed separately, and who handles a claim.
- The deposit, and when the balance falls due: on delivery, or after installation and a snag list.
- For a large order: a sample or a showroom visit before you commit, and whether the delivered items must match it.
On SupScope every quote arrives with the same three figures: the total, the lead time and the deposit. The first comparison is done before you open anything. The rest of this list is what to read in each supplier's notes and documents.
Paperwork worth asking for
- A written quote that names every item
- The range, model, dimensions, materials, finish and colour of each item. It is what you check the delivery against, and what settles whether a substitute was agreed.
- The warranty terms in writing
- For each item, what is covered, for how long, and what voids the cover, such as use beyond the rated weight or hours. Terms differ between makers, and between the parts of one chair.
- A delivery note, checked before it is signed
- Check quantities, colours and damage when the furniture arrives, and write any problem on the delivery note itself. Damage found after the packaging has gone is harder to prove.
- A certificate of compliance for any new wiring
- If built-in fittings or workstations need new circuits or fixed socket outlets, that is electrical installation work, and the Electrical Installation Regulations require a certificate of compliance from a registered person. Desks that plug into existing sockets need none.
And from any supplier
- A SARS Tax Compliance Status PIN
- It replaced the old tax clearance certificate. Checking it on eFiling shows the supplier's status on the day you check, not the day it was issued.
- A B-BBEE certificate or sworn affidavit
- Only if your own scorecard counts it. Small suppliers (turnover up to R10 million) may use an affidavit instead of a verified certificate.
- Company registration and a bank confirmation letter
- Worth having before the first payment, so the account you pay is the company you chose.
General guidance, not legal advice. Regulations change, and some depend on your municipality or the job, so confirm anything you rely on with the authority concerned.
How this works on SupScope
- Step 1
Post it once
Describe the job and choose Furniture & Fittings and your province.
- Step 2
It reaches the right suppliers
Only suppliers who work in this trade and cover your province see it.
- Step 3
Compare and award
Quotes arrive side by side. Accept one and the others are told.