Procedure by which a client, or a potential buyer, asks several companies to submit a costed offer, with a view to obtaining a service or product. Any syndicate of co-owners may be justified in launching a call for tenders, for example to have work carried out in the building. The purpose of this procedure is to put various bidders in competition, in order to determine who will be best able to meet the needs of a co-ownership, based on its expertise and the proposed price. The invitation to tender may be: