Scored bid packets for specialty contractors

Bid intelligence · not a bid mill

The work is public. The reading is the product.

Illinois janitorial, HVAC/mechanical, and electrical shops are the first market live; other states and trades stand up when shops ask.

Every Monday by 7:00 AM America/Chicago, The Bid Courier emails janitorial, HVAC/mechanical, and electrical shops a scored bid/no-bid packet, source-linked across city, county, school, park-district, and state solicitations. Midweek pings go out when a new due-this-week notice hits.

Claim a founding seat See this week's packet

First 10 shops lock $199/mo. Cancel anytime. Intelligence only. Proposal drafting is separate.

The work is posted. It is not in one place.

Illinois specialty work is scattered across portals that were not built for a three-person shop to read every morning. Aggregators dump listings. Matching still takes someone who knows the trade, the bonding, and the drive.

BidBuy: State of Illinois solicitations
Chicago: City eProcurement
Cook County: County purchasing
CPS: Chicago Public Schools
Local: Suburbs, park districts, and the rest of the pile

One missed matching bid costs more than a year of this fee.

Sample packet · week of 1 Sep 2026 · America/Chicago

What a packet looks like

Four live notices from this morning's read. Source-linked. Scored. One of them is a no-bid on purpose — that is the product.

Conditional

55 / 100

Roosevelt H.S. Boiler #3 Burner Replacement

Chase only if already on the CPS Various Trades pool

Agency / ID: Chicago Public Schools · ITB 26-1432 · Bonfire 251199
Trade: HVAC / mechanical (boiler burner)
Due: Tue Sep 8, 2026, 2:00 p.m. America/Chicago
Why: Real HVAC IFB with a seven-day fuse, but the posting is closed to the contracted Various Trades pool.

Source link: https://cps.bonfirehub.com/opportunities/251199
Portal index link: https://cps.bonfirehub.com/portal/?tab=openOpportunities

Chase

44 / 100

Grade Level Industrial Window Cleaning at various Rapid Transit Stations (Re-Bid)

Chase (janitorial-adjacent; HVAC primes only with a cleaning partner)

Agency / ID: Chicago Transit Authority · B25OP04650R3
Trade: Janitorial-adjacent (industrial window cleaning, stations, up to 36 months)
Due: Wed Sep 30, 2026, 2:00 p.m. America/Chicago
Why: Open IFB, questions still open, facility cleaning at CTA stations — not rooftop HVAC, not a closed SBE title on this re-bid.

Source link (status OPEN): https://webapps1.chicago.gov/vcsearch/cta/solicitationdetails/B25OP04650R3
Submit via: https://transitchicago.bonfirehub.com/portal/?tab=openOpportunities

Watch

41 / 100

EV Charging Stations

Watch / bid only if you already do City EV or electrical install

Agency / ID: City of Chicago, 2FM · Spec 1332033 · RFQ 66215,4
Trade: Electrical-adjacent professional services RFP (not a trade IFB)
Due: Mon Sep 28, 2026, 3:00 p.m. America/Chicago (Addendum 4). Ignore stale Aug 31 pages.
Why: Live opening moved by Addendum 4; electrical-adjacent, but it is an RFP for professional services, not a janitorial/HVAC IFB.

Source link (ACTIVE, Sep 28): https://webapps1.chicago.gov/vcsearch/city/solicitationdetails/-77322eprocurement
eProcurement list: https://eprocurement.cityofchicago.org/OA_HTML/OA.jsp?OAFunc=PON_ABSTRACT_PAGE&PON_NEGOTIATION_STATUS=ACTIVE
Submit: https://www.cityofchicago.org/eprocurement

No-bid

24 / 100

5 Day Janitorial L6576 Waukegan

No-bid unless you are already on the Illinois SBSA list

Agency / ID: CMS Bureau of Property Management · BidBuy 27-416CMS-BOPM4-B-53522
Trade: Janitorial / custodial (NIGP 910-39)
Due: Wed Sep 9, 2026, 11:30 a.m. America/Chicago
Why: Live janitorial IFB, but BidBuy states it is only for Small Business Set-Aside vendors registered at the time of bid, plus a mandatory walk.

Source link: https://www.bidbuy.illinois.gov/bso/external/bidDetail.sdo?docId=27-416CMS-BOPM4-B-53522

The Bid Courier does not write or submit the bid. Confirm every date on the source page before you price.

Monday packet. Midweek when it matters.

Every Monday by 7:00 AM America/Chicago, The Bid Courier emails a scored bid/no-bid packet, source-linked. Midweek pings go out when a new due-this-week notice hits.

What you get. What you still do.

The Bid Courier

A scored packet every Monday by 7:00 AM Chicago time
Midweek pings when a new due-this-week notice hits
City, county, school, park-district, and state coverage
Source links to the actual solicitation
A bid / no-bid call, with the reasons
First trades: janitorial (561720), HVAC/mechanical (238220), electrical (238210)

Your shop

You decide
You write the bid
You submit in the portal
You handle bonds, insurance, walkthroughs
You hold your own credentials

The Bid Courier does not write proposals, submit bids, hold portal logins, sell bid bonds, or promise awards.

Request a market

Tell us the next lane. We will not pretend it is live.

Coverage is what we actually read this week. A request is a vote, not a promise. If enough shops in a state and trade ask, we can stand that lane up in about ten days. Until then it is not on the packet.

Quiet lanes we can stand up in about ten days if demand shows up

Not live. Not linked. One list, on this page only.

Illinois plumbing / mechanical
Illinois fire / life safety
Illinois roofing
Indiana — same three live trades (janitorial, HVAC/mechanical, electrical)
Wisconsin — same three live trades
Missouri — same three live trades
Illinois + adjacent school / transit (the CPS / CTA pattern, beyond the current Chicago desk)

Use the Request a market form. Do not ship a page for a lane that has no packet.

Written proposal

When the notice needs a written response

The Bid Courier tells you which Illinois IFBs to chase. It does not write the proposal. GreatProposal merges your firm profile with the RFP into a mapped PDF and Word draft you edit before you submit.

Respond to an RFP →

Founding · first 10 shops

$199 / mo

Locked

Rate holds for as long as you stay. Cancel anytime. Stripe checkout is live.

$249 / mo

List

After founding seats fill.

Claim a founding seat

Questions? Email hello@thebidcourier.com

Before you write

Does this guarantee an award?: No. The Bid Courier is intelligence only. Awards are the agency's. Nothing here is a promise of work.
Will you submit the bid?: Never. You bid. You submit. The Bid Courier does not hold portal credentials and does not send anything in your name.
Is this a law firm?: No. Not a law firm, not legal advice, not a bid-writing service.
Are you affiliated with Illinois, Chicago, Cook County, or CPS?: No. The Bid Courier is a private product. It is not affiliated with the State of Illinois, the City of Chicago, Cook County, Chicago Public Schools, or any other public body.
Can I cancel?: Anytime. Founding rate stays locked only while the seat is active.