Bid Registration

UT maintains a public sourcing opportunities board where anyone may view UT’s current solicitations. Click the button below to view the sourcing opportunities board. IMPORTANT: companies must register as a bidder with the University if they wish to receive email notifications and submit responses for UT solicitations.

Instructions for Registering as a Bidder with The University of Tennessee

The University of Tennessee utilizes ESM Solutions, a third-party e-procurement software provider, for its sourcing (bid) system. Each of UT’s four procurement offices post their bids through ESM Solutions‘ platform.

All bidders who wish to receive notifications of UT’s public, competitive solicitations must register with ESM Solutions, Inc. There is no charge and it only takes a few minutes to register.

Important Tips for Registering as a Bidder

• We recommend that your company create a group email account, such as “bids@_____.com.” This helps to ensure that your company will continue to receive notifications, even if a specific individual leaves the company.
• CHECK THE SPELLING OF YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS when you register in ESM. If your email address is spelled incorrectly, you will not receive notifications or be able to log into the system to respond to solicitations.
• After you register, edit your email notification settings in your ESM profile to reduce the number of notifications you receive. You can learn how here.
• After you register, open the first ESM email notification you receive (even if it does not apply to your company) and log into ESM from within the email. If needed, contact ESM for assistance.

FAQ Regarding ESM Email Notifications

Why am I receiving so many ESM email notifications?

• By default, ESM Solutions sends registered bidders notices of all open invitation bids from all ESM customers. Keep reading to learn how to reduce the number of email notifications you receive.

How can I reduce the number of ESM email notifications I receive?

• We suggest creating a customer list in your ESM profile, then editing your ESM email notification settings so that you only receive notifications from your selected customers. You can learn how here.

I registered in ESM, but I am not receiving ESM email notifications. What should I do?

• We have been informed that ESM email notifications may go to your junk or spam email folders. Add noreply@esmsolutions.com to your address book or safe sender’s list if necessary.
• Make sure you spelled your email address correctly when you registered in ESM.
• Check your ESM email notification settings. For UT notifications: if you selected “notify users of open invitation events for all assigned NIGP codes,” you should also create a customer list and select “notify users of open invitation events from assigned customers.” Learn how here.

Have questions? Need help?

ESM’s support team is happy to assist with technical issues. There are three ways to request help from ESM.

• Submit a customer service request ticket, https://support.esmsolutions.com/.
• Call (877) 969-7246, ext. 3
• Email at support@esmsolutions.com.

Visit our supplier training webpage, specifically the resources labeled Supplier Orientation, Part 1: REGISTER, for more registration resources.

If you have questions for UT, please contact Abbie Shellist at ashellis@utk.edu.

Important Notes

• Registering as a bidder is not a guarantee that your company will be selected as a winning bidder.
• The University does not maintain an “approved vendors” list. Registering as a bidder does not make your company an “approved vendor.”
• Bids published by the Department of Capital Projects (capital projects, construction, demolition, etc.) are not posted in the ESM Solutions system. Please contact Capital Projects for further details.