Advance Contract Award Notice (ACAN) Response Period

An Advance Contract Award Notice (ACAN) is a public notice that a department or agency intends to award a contract for goods, services or construction to a named supplier. The ACAN response period is the window during which any other supplier can respond by submitting a statement of capabilities. The statement shows that the supplier can meet the requirements described in the notice.

The response period is not a normal bidding period. Suppliers do not submit a full bid against competing rated criteria. They submit a written demonstration that they meet the advertised requirements. The notice states the closing date and time, and that deadline ends the period. For Government of Canada ACANs, the notice is posted for no less than 15 calendar days.

How long an ACAN stays open

CanadaBuys describes an ACAN as a notice that departments and agencies post for no less than 15 calendar days before awarding a contract to a pre-identified contractor. The Government of Canada's ACAN guidance describes the response as happening within a fifteen-calendar-day posting period.

The same period appears in individual announcements. When the government issued an ACAN for the life extension of the CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent, it gave other interested suppliers 15 calendar days to submit a statement of capabilities. The exact closing date and time are always set out in the notice itself, so that is the deadline a supplier works to.

What a supplier submits during the period

The Government of Canada's model ACAN wording says that suppliers who consider themselves fully qualified and available may submit a statement of capabilities in writing. The statement must clearly demonstrate how the supplier meets the advertised requirements. In practice, a supplier should:

• Read the full ACAN and identify every mandatory requirement.
• Send a written statement of capabilities to the contracting contact named in the notice.
• Show, requirement by requirement, how it meets the advertised goods, services or construction needs.
• Submit before the closing date and time stated in the notice.
• Follow the inquiry process and format the ACAN specifies.

What happens when the period closes

If no statement of capabilities meets all requirements by the closing date, the contracting officer may proceed with the contract award to the pre-identified supplier. This is stated in both a Government of Canada ACAN and the Supply Manual annexes. A contract that follows an ACAN with no compliant challenge is effectively a sole-source award.

A statement that arrives after the period ends, or that does not demonstrate the stated requirements, may not stop the contracting officer from proceeding with the named supplier. A compliant statement of capabilities is what keeps the opportunity open to others.

Where ACAN response periods appear

ACANs can cover goods, services or construction, and they are posted on CanadaBuys by a range of buyers. Public Services and Procurement Canada uses them for specialized goods and services. National Defence has issued them as well, including for research and advisory services. Organizations outside the federal departments also post them, such as the University of Ottawa, whose notice gave prospective service providers a chance to demonstrate compliance before the posting closed.

What it means for a supplier bidding on Canadian public contracts

The response period is short, so a supplier that wants to challenge an ACAN has to act quickly. Check CanadaBuys regularly for notices in your category. When one fits your business, read the requirements on the day you find it. Build a statement of capabilities that maps your qualifications directly to each stated requirement. Confirm the closing date and time and the contact to whom the statement must go.

A supplier that stays silent leaves the pre-identified contractor as the only option. A supplier that responds on time with a compliant statement can prevent the contract from going to the named supplier by default.