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Cost Estimating and Pricing for Tenders and Contracts

Many African businesses lose tenders because their pricing is either too thin to survive delivery or too high to win. This course shows finance and commercial staff how to build accurate bottom up cost estimates, load the right overheads and margins, and price competitively for public and private tenders. Participants leave able to defend a bid price line by line and protect profit once the contract is awarded.

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Register for this course

What you will be able to do

  • Break a scope of work into labour, materials, equipment and overhead cost components.
  • Calculate realistic overhead recovery and margin loadings for a bid.
  • Build a defensible cost estimate that survives client and auditor scrutiny.
  • Apply pricing strategies for competitive tenders without eroding profitability.
  • Identify pricing risks such as escalation, currency and scope creep before submission.
  • Track estimated versus actual cost once the contract is running.

Course outline

  1. 01Anatomy of a Tender Cost Estimate
  2. 02Direct and Indirect Cost Components
  3. 03Overhead Recovery and Margin Loading
  4. 04Competitive Pricing Strategies
  5. 05Escalation, Currency and Contingency Provisions
  6. 06Common Estimating Errors and How to Avoid Them
  7. 07Estimate Versus Actual Cost Tracking
  8. 08Defending a Bid Price to Clients and Evaluators

Who should attend

Estimators, bid coordinators, commercial accountants and finance staff who prepare or review pricing for tenders, quotations and contracts.

Dates, venues and fees

DatesVenueDaysFeeCalendarRegister
28 to 30 Sep 2026Cairo3US$1,500Closed
29 Sep to 1 Oct 2026Mauritius3US$1,500Register
30 Sep to 2 Oct 2026Dubai3US$1,500Register
5 to 7 Oct 2026Online3US$900Register
28 to 30 Oct 2026Johannesburg3R13,000Register
2 to 4 Nov 2026Cape Town3R13,000Register
3 to 5 Nov 2026Durban3R13,000Register
4 to 6 Nov 2026Pretoria3R13,000Register
9 to 11 Nov 2026Windhoek3US$1,500Register
10 to 12 Nov 2026Gaborone3US$1,500Register
11 to 13 Nov 2026Maseru3US$1,500Register
16 to 18 Nov 2026Mbabane3US$1,500Register
17 to 19 Nov 2026Lusaka3US$1,500Register
18 to 20 Nov 2026Harare3US$1,500Register
23 to 25 Nov 2026Lilongwe3US$1,500Register
24 to 26 Nov 2026Blantyre3US$1,500Register
25 to 27 Nov 2026Mozambique3US$1,500Register
30 Nov to 2 Dec 2026Nairobi3US$1,500Register
1 to 3 Dec 2026Dar es Salaam3US$1,500Register
2 to 4 Dec 2026Kigali3US$1,500Register
7 to 9 Dec 2026Kampala3US$1,500Register
8 to 10 Dec 2026Accra3US$1,500Register
9 to 11 Dec 2026Lagos3US$1,500Register

Fees are per delegate. South African venues are priced in rand; other locations and online in US dollars. Fees exclude 15% VAT where applicable. Group bookings of three or more delegates from the same organisation qualify for a reduced rate; contact us for a quotation.

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