The Australian industrial procurement handbook.

How tier-1 procurement officers actually evaluate

First-pass, pages 1-4 of the capability statement

Procurement officers spend 60-90 seconds on the first pass. Pages 1-4 do all the work. Page 1: hero project image + two-line capability summary + contact strip. Page 2: capability matrix (service × geography × project-value-band). Page 3: tier-1 reference projects with named clients (where permitted). Page 4: safety + accreditation credentials.

If page 3 is a generic "our values" spread, you're screened out at minute 2. If page 4 doesn't surface ISO 45001 + ICAM + NSCA visibility clearly, you're screened out at minute 3. The first-pass filter is brutal.

Second-pass, equipment + methodology + leadership

If you survive first-pass, the procurement officer spends 5-10 minutes on the second pass. Pages 5-7. Equipment register (rig fleet, plant register, capability ratings). Methodology (JKMRC-aligned where applicable, project-management framework, reporting cadence). Senior leadership (named principals, fellowships, professional memberships).

This is where the procurement officer decides whether to schedule a discovery call. If equipment register is absent, they assume you don't have the equipment. If methodology is generic, they assume operations are amateur. If senior leadership is unnamed, they assume you don't want them named.

Third-pass, reference checks + tender-response track record

Once you're shortlisted, the procurement officer rings 2-3 of the named tier-1 references on page 3. They ask about safety incident transparency, project-completion timeliness, methodology adherence, change-order management discipline. Reference checks decide between final-2 candidates.

Six things procurement officers want to see (not hear)

1. Named tier-1 reference projects with named clients (where permitted) on page 3
2. ISO 45001 + ICAM + NSCA + safety-incident transparency on page 4
3. Equipment register + capability ratings + deployment readiness on page 5
4. Methodology disclosure + project-management framework + QA discipline on page 6
5. Named senior leadership with fellowships + professional memberships on page 7
6. Named procurement-facing senior contact + direct phone + direct email on page 8

Six things they don't want to see

1. Generic "our values" spread on page 3
2. Safety credentials buried on page 12 of 16
3. Equipment register absent or anecdotal
4. Methodology described as "tailored to client needs" without specific framework
5. Senior leadership described as "experienced team" without naming + credentials
6. Generic info@ contact email + reception phone number

Read more:

• Tier-1 panel-pursuit playbook →
• Capability statement design →
• Free Capability Statement Audit →