The bidding process, the black five-pointed star and "#" labeling is of great significance, they usually represent the core terms of the bidding documents, these terms are regarded as the bidding of the mandatory conditions, any bidding documents fail to meet the terms of the asterisks will lead to the disqualification of the bid.
China's legal basis, such as the "Measures for the Implementation of International Tenders for Electromechanical Products", Article 21 clearly stipulates that the key provisions will be marked with an asterisk, and if the bidder fails to meet these asterisks, it is regarded as failing to satisfy the substantive requirements of the tender documents, and the bid will be ruled invalid. These substantive clauses are mainly related to compliance aspects, such as the payment of bid security, the format of the bidding documents and qualification requirements, which are the basic thresholds in the bidding process.
Commercial requirements sections, such as payment methods and quality assurance deposits, especially for projects using financial funds, are often marked as asterisked clauses as these clauses tend to have strict implementation standards with little room for negotiation. Understanding and meeting these key metrics is a prerequisite for ensuring successful bidding.