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When the government needs to buy resources from the private sector, the players, it uses Government Orders (GO) to do so. You can think of these as tenders or procurement. To ensure fair order assignment, and cheap fulfillment, the government uses a form of auction, when picking which company to assign the order to.
The companies that want to bid for the government orders need to form teams of 3 to 8 contractors, and apply together creating a Government Order Bid.
⚠️ Government Orders are currently being revamped; please be aware that the information below is work in progress ⚠️
Tiers
Depending on your company size, you are assigned to a Tier. in general, the higher the tier number the more resources you need to deliver to fulfill the order, however, the number of your team members, contractors, on your application and their tier also determines how much you are delivering.
The Tier of the largest contractor on the Bid determines the tier of the bid, and resource amounts that have to be delivered. If there are low-tier contractors, the higher tier contractors have to backfill their part.
The bid screen shows exactly how much each contractor has to deliver.
Reward
The main contractor, the company that is creating the Government Order Bid, determines what compensation the team is getting for each resource. The reward is split between the contractors depending on the amounts they are delivering based of their respective Tier.
Government Order bids with low buyout prices are awarded first.
The reward is paid if the Government Order Bid was awarded and the contractor delivers the required amount. The reward is paid right away on the delivery, even if other contractors did not fulfill their part yet.
Deposit
Each contractor has to put down deposit. The deposit is returned once ALL contractors on the bid, in the team, delivered the required amounts.
The deposits are taken, at the time of Government Order Bid is being awarded. If any of the contractors doesn’t have enough cash, the whole bid is disqualified.
Fulfillment
Once the bid you are contractor on is awarded, you can simply click to deliver the resources against it. The reward is paid right away. The deposit is returned once all contractors on your bid deliver.
There is a time limit, in days, on how much time you have to deliver against the order.
What resources is the government buying?
The government needs resources across all industries and in high quantities and certain qualities. The examples are 700 trucks for the Fire Department. 20,000 laptops for the IRS offices. Some orders may combine multiple different resources: 120,000 apples and 200,000 oranges for the Foreign Relief Office, or 300,000 units of petrol and 500,000 units of diesel for National Reserves.
The amounts are determined by the tier and split between contractors on your bid.
More examples of possible GO’s:
(todo)
Where to find Government Orders?
Government Orders are located on the Exchange. They have their own section found in the Building icon on the far right of the top row.
The selection (awarding) process
New government orders are published periodically and there is a 5-day window in which companies can team up and place their bids. You can determine how much you want in return for delivering, what price you are delivering at. The bid remain secret and can be changed or cancelled anytime before the bidding period ends.
A multiple of Government Order Bids can be accepted and orders awarded, until certain percentage of applications was considered, or amount the government needs was ordered. You can assume 50% - 70% of bidding teams will be awarded.
The bids with the lowest price win, obviously, the government wants to save money.
One the awarding is done, the government publishes the amount which was ordered in all awarded bids.
Risks and considerations
Make sure you know your partners you are entering the Government Order Bid with. The more companies you have on the application, the less you have to deliver. While the benefits are great, there are risks you should be aware of:
if one of the other contractors does not have cash to cover their deposit, your bid is not considered and awarded
if one of the other contractors doesn’t deliver, you lose your deposit
the main contractor, the company that set up the bid, can attempt to change bid prices without discussing it with you
Recap
Your company must be level 20+ to apply
You need to form teams/bids with 3-8 companies
The lower your price, the bid, the higher chance your bid will be awarded
You need to be have cash for the deposit ready when the bids are being considered for awarding
You need to fulfill in time to get reward
Every contractor on your bid needs to fulfill in time for anyone to get the deposit back
Helpful articles from our local newspaper The Sim Companies Times:
The Eye of the Gov Order - Part I and Part II (both in same newspaper)
How I fulfilled a Government Order Larger than My Total Company Value
How to Succeed at Governmental Orders? Part 1
How to Succeed at Governmental Orders? Part 2
Basics of Government Orders - What are those weird things? (Part 1)
Library Guides:
Frequently asked questions, Guide for beginners, Interface tips, Research guide, Construction guide, Bonds guide, Executives guide, Government orders guide, Aerospace