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Suppliers

Working with suppliers

Orchords works with a small number of suppliers for hosting, software, design, professional, and operational services. We do not run open public bids or promise a response to every unsolicited enquiry. This page explains the information that helps us assess a supplier conversation without creating a procurement commitment.

How supplier conversations work

  • A supplier relationship starts only when Orchords accepts a written quote, order, contract, or statement of work.
  • Scope, payment terms, deliverables, acceptance criteria, and ownership are agreed before work begins.
  • Risk checks are proportionate to the service, data, access, and jurisdictions involved.
  • We may decline or ignore unsolicited approaches, especially when identity, authority, fit, or risk cannot be assessed.
  • Do not send confidential information, credentials, customer data, or sensitive material unless we request it through an approved process.

Baseline information

Supplier requirements are proportionate. A low-risk design or advisory enquiry does not need the same evidence as hosting, security, payments, legal, or production-access work.

A. Supplier profile

  • Legal identity. Registered or trading name, country, website, and contact details that can be checked where appropriate.
  • Authority. The person contacting us should be able to explain their role and authority to discuss the service.
  • Service fit. A short description of the service, relevant experience, and why it may be useful to Orchords.
  • Risk controls. Insurance, security, privacy, continuity, or contractual protections may be requested when the work justifies them.
  • References or evidence. References, case studies, public work, assurance reports, or other evidence may be requested when relevant and lawful to share.

B. Standards and assurance

You do not need to be certified unless the scope requires it. When a supplier mentions a standard, framework, audit, or assurance report, the claim should be accurate about scope, issuer, date, and status.

General suppliers

  • ISO 9001 — quality-management vocabulary may be useful for controlled process or service work.
  • ISO/IEC 27001 — information-security management vocabulary may be relevant where systems, credentials, or sensitive data are involved.
  • ISO 14001 — environmental-management vocabulary may be relevant if a supplier makes sustainability claims.

Technical and SaaS suppliers

  • SOC 2 or equivalent assurance — may be relevant where the service handles production systems, customer data, or critical operations.
  • ISO/IEC 27017 — cloud-security vocabulary for hosted-service work.
  • ISO/IEC 27018 — PII-protection vocabulary for public-cloud processing.
  • ISO/IEC 25010:2023 — software and ICT product-quality vocabulary, including functional suitability, performance efficiency, compatibility, interaction capability, reliability, security, maintainability, flexibility, and safety.
  • ISO/IEC 20000-1 — IT service-management vocabulary where the supplier owns support or operations processes.

Service and operational suppliers

  • ISO 31000 — risk-management vocabulary for operational decisions.
  • ISO 22301 — business-continuity vocabulary where availability of the supplier matters.
  • ISO 45001 — occupational-health-and-safety vocabulary for any on-site work.
  • ISO 9001 — quality vocabulary for managed service delivery.

Design and creative suppliers

  • ISO 9241 — human-system interaction vocabulary for user-centred design work.
  • ISO 14915 — multimedia-interface ergonomics where relevant.
  • WCAG 2.2 — accessibility guidance for web content and interfaces.
  • ISO 9001 — quality vocabulary for controlled, reviewed design processes.

C. Procurement information

A supplier proposal should be clear enough for us to understand the commercial and risk position before any commitment.

  • Scope. Describe deliverables, dependencies, assumptions, acceptance criteria, and exclusions.
  • Commercial terms. State price basis, taxes if known, payment terms, validity period, delivery timing, and renewal or cancellation terms where relevant.
  • Change control. Explain how changes, versions, delays, and approvals will be handled.

Any template, questionnaire, or evidence request will be shared only when it is relevant to the proposed work.

How we onboard

Supplier onboarding depends on risk. Some suppliers may need only a short introduction and agreed quote; higher-risk work may require legal, security, privacy, continuity, sanctions, tax, or procurement checks before a pilot or order.

Open conversations

Use the contact form for supplier enquiries and include a short non-confidential introduction, the service you provide, your jurisdiction, and the reason it may be relevant to Orchords. A submitted enquiry does not guarantee review, response, selection, or payment.