Website redesign RFP template for a manufacturer in Berlin in 2026

The verdict in three sentences

A 400-employee manufacturer that invites 4 agencies to pitch without a structured RFP almost always receives quotes that cannot be compared, often varying threefold. With a 25-section document, a precise inventory of the 1,500 pages to migrate and a weighted scorecard (technical 50 %, price 30 %, team and method 20 %), a Berlin redesign narrows to 40,000 to 120,000 EUR net for a 10 to 14 week project. Writing the RFP takes 5 to 10 days of internal work, a small investment compared with the change requests it prevents.

The 25 sections of a manufacturing website RFP

A mid-sized manufacturer's website serves several audiences at once: buyers and engineers looking for a datasheet, distributors downloading documentation, candidates applying for jobs, investors and banks checking the group's strength. In Germany, the site usually needs German and English versions, and since June 2025 the Barrierefreiheitsstärkungsgesetz (BFSG) has raised the bar on accessibility for many B2B services. The RFP must let every agency price these needs without guessing. Here is the structure we recommend, grouped into 7 blocks.

Migration remains the most underestimated block. On a 1,500-page estate, the 2026 order of magnitude seen on industrial sites is roughly 40 % of pages to delete or merge (outdated news, duplicates, discontinued products), 35 % to rewrite and 25 % to migrate automatically. Attaching a Search Console export with traffic per URL lets every agency price the 301 redirects without an excessive safety margin.

Redesign budget in 2026: what each line item costs

For a 400-employee manufacturer in Berlin, serious bids land between 40,000 and 120,000 EUR net. The spread depends mostly on the number of integrations (ERP, PIM, CRM) and on the volume of content to rewrite in two languages. The split below is an estimate you can use to sanity-check the quotes you receive.

On timing, plan 2 weeks of discovery, 3 weeks of design, 4 to 6 weeks of development with migration running in parallel, then 1 to 2 weeks of QA and one week for go-live. A quote promising less than 8 weeks for 1,500 pages and two integrations deserves a pointed question during the pitch.

The weighted scorecard to attach to the RFP

Publishing the scorecard in the RFP pack clearly improves the quality of the answers: agencies know where to focus. Price counts for 30 %, technical value for 50 % across three criteria, team and governance for 20 %.

Score price on the 3-year cost of ownership rather than the project fee alone: a 60,000 EUR bid with 2,000 EUR per month of maintenance costs 132,000 EUR over 36 months, more than an 80,000 EUR bid with 1,000 EUR per month (116,000 EUR). A simple rule is to give 30 points to the cheapest bid and score the others pro rata.

Mini case study

Jonas, head of marketing at a 400-employee manufacturer of industrial valves in Berlin, first ran a pitch with a 4-page brief. The result: 4 quotes between 38,000 and 125,000 EUR net, with no shared scope. He relaunched with a 25-section RFP, the inventory of 1,500 pages and the scorecard above. The 3 shortlisted bids then sat between 70,000 and 90,000 EUR net.

The maths: writing the RFP took 8 internal days at an estimated loaded cost of 700 EUR per day, so 5,600 EUR. On this type of project, change requests caused by a fuzzy scope commonly represent 15 to 25 % of the initial budget. On 80,000 EUR, avoiding 20 % of change requests is worth 16,000 EUR. The estimated net gain exceeds 10,000 EUR, before counting the weeks of delay avoided.

FAQ

How long should a website redesign RFP be?

For a mid-sized manufacturer, 20 to 35 pages are enough, appendices included (URL inventory, current mock-ups, analytics exports). Beyond 50 pages, agencies skim and price in a safety margin.

Should the RFP impose a CMS?

Only if there is a real constraint, such as group SSO or an existing PIM. Otherwise, let the 4 agencies argue their case: the scorecard gives 20 % to technical architecture, which is enough to separate the options.

How much time should agencies get to respond?

Allow 3 to 4 weeks, with a written Q and A round halfway through. A 10-day deadline usually produces generic bids and price gaps of 30 to 50 %.

Should agencies be paid for the pitch?

It is not mandatory in private procurement, but a fee of 1,500 to 3,000 EUR for finalists clearly improves the quality of the designs presented.

How do we avoid losing traffic when migrating 1,500 pages?

Require a 301 redirect plan approved before go-live and Search Console monitoring over 90 days. A temporary drop of 10 to 20 % in organic traffic is common; beyond that, the redirects need an audit.

Let's scope your project. Send us your brief or page inventory and we will price the scope, an indicative budget and a realistic 10 to 14 week timeline. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.