The Copacity Difference
See the Copacity Difference
Meet our hypothetical buyer, Nick. Nick’s organization has decided to switch to renewable energy. Nick has expertise in both facilities and procurement, but renewable energy is generally a one-time purchase – and his organization doesn’t have in-house renewable expertise. Where to begin?
Janet, meanwhile, represents a top-notch, affordable local solar developer. She could be a perfect fit for Nick’s organization.
Without Copacity
Before Nick can even get his bearings about him, he is contacted by several clean energy firms, pitching him on projects.
But he decides to develop an RFP to get more responses. Even though he’s a finance and procurement expert, there are some things about renewables he’s not sure to ask about. So he goes online, downloads some other posted RFPs, and cobbles together what becomes a long, complex, and cumbersome document.
Janet sees the RFP but decides it’s too complicated and time-consuming to complete. Other developers think similarly – and Nick doesn’t get as many responses as anticipated.
The few proposals Bob does receive are all long and loaded with unfamiliar technical information. All of them are in different formats, making it difficult to effectively compare options. Additionally, it’s virtually impossible to know which developers are trustworthy and reliable.
Nick spends weeks wading through the details, developing his own comparative matrix, and vetting developers – all while managing his other procurement tasks. It’s difficult to make heads or tails of the results. Ultimately, Nick picks a few final contenders – all of whom had pitched him before the RFP. After all, it’s easier to go with a familiar name.
Nick then calls a meeting with his organization’s leadership to discuss. During the meeting, there are certain technical questions that he didn’t quite have the answers for. Nick also learns that the proposal process didn’t meet certain organizational procurement requirements. So Nick needs to either update the process or start over.
Drained by the experience, Nick and the organization decide to put their clean energy transition plans on the back burner. An opportunity is lost. Nick is exhausted. Janet misses out on an excellent project.
With Copacity
Nick receives unprompted pitches from clean energy firms, but still wants to go through a comprehensive RFP process. He comes across the Copacity platform – an affordable, easy-to-use tool that guides organizations through the clean energy competitive bid process. Nick registers and easily creates a short, clear RFP that meets industry best practices and aligns with his organization’s procurement requirements.
Thanks to Copacity’s expert knowledge of wind, solar, and battery storage, Nick is certain that the RFP is written right in the first place and encourages qualified bidders to apply.
Janet has already registered her company with Copacity. She spots the new RFP and is enthused to apply. Since her information is in the system, she only has to answer the specifics – pricing, assumptions, etc. – of the proposal and press send. She is confident that all RFP responses will be provided to the client in a clear, consistent “apples to apples” manner, so they will be transparently evaluated.
Nick receives a set of streamlined, clean proposals with consistent formatting and information – and the proposals go well beyond the firms that initially pitched him. Nick is also able to vet developers with greater speed and accuracy.
Nick quickly compares proposals and ultimately picks Janet’s – which is the most cost-effective and meets the company’s needs. His leadership signs off without issue.
With Copacity, Nick saves time, money, resources, and administrative headaches. And his company gets a better-performing contract for renewable energy. Janet, meanwhile, spends far less time applying to the project and instead puts her energy towards what she does best – completing the clean energy transition.
