Part Files

A part file is a subdivision of a main file or an extract file. In Canadian federal procurement, a part file is used when more than one solicitation is issued under the same file and the result is separate contracts. The definition appears in the Supply Manual glossary on CanadaBuys.

The term belongs to procurement-file administration. It describes how the Government of Canada organizes its records when one file produces several solicitations. The Supply Manual, which sets out federal supply and contracting procedures, is where the term is used and explained.

How part files relate to main files and extract files

A part file never stands alone. It always sits beneath a main file or an extract file. When procurement activity under one of those files calls for more than one solicitation, the file is divided into part files. The Government of Canada Supply Manual states that part files may be created when more than one solicitation is issued under a main file or an extract file.

The manual also addresses the extract file case directly. When part files are created under an extract file, the extract file is handled in accordance with the procedures the manual specifies.

The one active solicitation rule

Each part file may have only one active solicitation in progress. This keeps the record tidy. A single part file tracks a single solicitation at a time, and the contract that follows is tied to that part file.

If a buyer needs to run a second solicitation under the same main or extract file, it does not go into the same part file while the first is still active. It goes into another part file. That is the practical reason part files exist.

When part files must be created

The CanadaBuys glossary states that part files must be created when more than one solicitation is required under a main file or an extract file. The Supply Manual uses the softer wording that part files may be created when more than one solicitation is issued. Taken together, the two sources establish the same trigger: more than one solicitation under one file.

The outcome is also the same in both. Separate solicitations under a single file lead to separate contracts, and each contract is associated with its own part file.

Where the term appears

• The CanadaBuys Supply Manual glossary, which gives the definition and the one active solicitation limit.
• The Government of Canada Supply Manual, published on publications.gc.ca, which describes when part files are created and how extract files are handled.
• Public Services and Procurement Canada procurement guidance, which is the department that maintains the Supply Manual.

What part files mean for a supplier

For a supplier, each solicitation and the contract that results from it is a separate procurement opportunity. Two solicitations under the same main file are not one bid with two parts. They are distinct solicitations, each tied to its own part file and each leading to its own contract.

Bid teams should read the requirements of each solicitation on its own terms and comply with the requirements that apply to that part file. Current solicitations are listed on CanadaBuys tender opportunities. Winning one solicitation does not carry over to another solicitation issued under the same main or extract file.