Procurement And Tendering Quiz

While 'Public Finance Initiatives' no longer exist, they are interesting to be aware of in terms of the history of tendering and procurement routes. They were an option available to Large Public Bodies who would seek tendering parties to build and operate the project, whereby they would have access to profits the project generates during the length of the program. Typically clients would not put forward any funding, hence the appeal to Large Public Bodies.

Fairness and Competition are the two most important traits, allowing healthy competition among parties fairly. These are upheld by removing oneself from actions that could be interpreted as demonstrating favoritism, such as responding to a tendering party in private, offering additional site visits, allowing one party to offer an alternative solution and therefore tendering proposal, etc. It's not that the above should not take place at all, but all parties should be given the opportunity.

Understanding the priority mix of the client is critical to capture early in Stages 0 and 1 within the Project Brief. Not being privy to this information at this stage could result in work being completed at risk of abortive work and changes.

During construction, the role of the Employer's Agent can often appear synonymous with that of a Contract Administrator, including tasks such as issuing instructions, managing change control procedures, considering claims, etc.

The purpose of the 'Specification' is to assist with the description of products, materials, and work required by a contract.

The approach to cost and program are the primary differences. Lump Sum seeks a single respective cost for the project in question, while more complex or uncertain scopes of work may be more appropriate down a Cost-Reimbursement route whereby the contractor approaches the client within specific timeframes with proof of receipt of all costs incurred during that time with the addition of profit (either fixed or as a percentage).

NEC Contracts were originally used for engineering and infrastructure projects, but with their growing popularity, they have seen use on the likes of the London Olympics and HS2. The benefits have been that collaboration has been NEC's approach to risk allocation and management, which seeks to be more collaborative through instruments like 'Early Warnings,' while JCT fundamentally contracts the contractor to use their best endeavors to prevent delay to the works.

The purpose of 'Assessment' or ' Evaluation Criteria' is to provide a clear basis for appropriately selecting the final tender and sharing the assessment between all parties who partook in the tender to understand their shortcomings and weaknesses as to why they were not selected. It promotes equal opportunities, makes the process transparent so that winning tenders are doing so for the right reasons, and allows tendering parties to focus their attention where the weightings might require it. 

A 'Schedule of Rates' is useful during tendering, typically in the absence of a Bill of Quantities, or during two-stage tendering as a part of the first stage to provide cost comparisons between parties.

Traditional requires the full coordination and preparation of design information prior to starting on site, thus requiring the longest program in an effort to execute the best possible quality for the project. Design and Build is quicker in that it has single-point responsibility for executive designs to be made, while Construction Management allows for the overlapping of multiple designs and build packages. 

Since the UK is leaving the European Union, the UK will not be advertising public procurement notices on OJEU (Office Journal of the European Union). Instead, with the upcoming revisions of the Public Procurement Bill 2022-23, the UK Government introduced the 'Find a Tender' service. The principle is similar, whereby certain thresholds of types of work by public bodies need to be publicly listed on FTS for consideration.

'Two-Stage Tendering' allows for the early appointment of contractors who are able to contribute buildability knowledge and offer insight in terms of construction, cost, procurement, and feasibility. It does not offer cost certainty or single point responsibility, like Design and Build, or overlapping Design and Build programs, like Construction Management.

When the architect is novated following the contractor's appointment, they become solely responsible for both the design and construction of the project. A full design team is still required, although who appoints them varies and notoriously. 'Design and Build' has a reputation that says it does not compete with traditional procurement in terms of achieving maximum quality.

Single tenders should only be reserved for specialist works, whereby finding a shortlist of tenders proves to be difficult. Single tendering should not be deemed an appropriate tendering route purely because of timelines, the type of client (especially not if they are a public body who need to demonstrate they are achieving value for money), or simply because of contract value size.

A 'Contractor's Design Portion' is whereby a very specific, allocated portion of the works is reserved for the contractor to take design responsibility for. The contractor will be given an Employer's Requirements as a form of scope, and in the absence of design information provided by the architect, or design team, will be responsible for providing a design, in-house or by others.