Procurement & Tendering Flashcards
What are the four main procurement routes?
Traditional – Project is designed and is tendered as a fully developed scheme – Client retains design responsibility.
Design & Build – Contractor is responsible for completing the design and constructing the works, design risk transferred to the Contractor.
Construction Management – Client directly appoints multiple subcontractors instead of a single main Contractor.
Management Contracting – Client appoints a management contractor to manage the works, who in turn appoints trade contractors.
What are the different tendering strategies?
Single Stage – tender documents are issued to competing contractors who bid based on identical information.
Two Stage – Client provides an outline design for Contractors submit a bid based on their prelims, OH&P percentage and PCSA fee. Contractor chosen based upon quality of their bid and join the design team through a PCSA to progress the design.
Second stage is then negotiated to agree a final price, contract conditions and programme.
Negotiated – single-stage carried out between the Client and a single contractor.
What is a framework agreement?
An umbrella agreement that a party enters into with one or more suppliers (contractors for example) to procure goods and services. They typically last 4 years but this is determined by the Client.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of a framework agreement?
Advantages:
- They can help develop stronger relationships with parties and encourage collaboration
- They can speed up the procurement process
- Repeat Work
Disadvantages:
- Contractors can become complacent
- Can take a long time to bid for a FA and not get it
- May restrict innovative new suppliers
What governance is there around public sector vs private sector?
For public procurement there are regulations and policies in place to be followed. This usually involves registering the project on the find a tender platform for contractors and suppliers to openly bid.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of design and build?
Advantages:
- allows design and construction to be overlapped, reducing project delivery time
- contractor takes on responsibility for design and construction, risk passed on and single point of responsibility for the contractor
- provides greater cost certainty than traditional
Disadvantages:
- Client has less control over quality
- Contractor will build risk into the price
- More time consuming and complex to compare tender returns
What are the advantages and disadvantages of traditional?
Advantages:
- Employer retains control of the design
- Submissions are easier to compare
- Minimal risk premium built in
Disadvantages:
- Not possible to overlap design and construction, so delivery time may increase
- Limited buildability input from the contractor
- Post contract changes will be a variation
What are the advantages and disadvantages of single stage?
Advantages:
- competitive tendering process, competitive prices
- employer can benefit from a fixed priced
Disadvantages:
- No buildability input at the point of tender
- The price is only as good as the design information it’s based upon
- Contractors may not be willing to price a single stage depending on the economic climate
What are the advantages and disadvantages of two stage?
Advantages:
- Contractor appointed through a PCSA to provide buildability advice
- An earlier start on site possible
- Increased opportunity to value engineer and identify risk
Disadvantages:
- Less competitive than a single stage due to the negotiated second stage
- Additional cost for a PCSA fee
- Potential for negotiation to fail which would leave to significant loss of time and incur costs
What is an EOI? What is included in an EOI?
A document outlining a project and requesting a response from prospective contractors on whether they are interested in tendering the project.
Within an EOI you’d expect:
- Project name and location
- Client details
- Scope of Works
- Procurement Route
- Approximate Value
- Form of Contract
- Key Programme Dates
- Existing Drawings
Talk me through the PQQ process on The Connection?
Following return of the EOI a list of tenderers was established.
A Pre-Qualification Questionnaire was produced and issued which asked the contractors to provide information on their financial records, health and safety information, insurances, resourcing and relevant experience.
The PQQs were returned, and a weighted scoring matrix was produced and distributed to the design team
The returned scores were tabulated, and I produced a report outlining the process to the client and concluding with our recommended contractors to put forward.
I sent the report to the Client and arranged a meeting to follow it up and present in more detail.
On Mill Studios, what information was your pre-tender estimate based upon?
RIBA Stage 2 design information.
What is the difference between naming and nominating subcontractors?
Named Subcontractor – Client can influence selection of subcontractors, but contractor bears responsibility for performance and has the right to reasonably object to all of them.
Nominated Subcontractor – Client requests use of a specific subcontractor. Contractor must use this subcontractor, but Client bears responsibility for performance.
What are the provisions within the JCT D&B 16 contract for naming and nominating subcontractors?
Naming – Schedule 2 Supplemental Provisions Part 1.
Nominating – no provision – needs to be written into the Schedule of Amendments.
What disadvantages did you advise the Client around nominating a subcontractor?
- Contractor relieved of subcontractor design liability.
- There would be a risk the subcontractor would not comply with British Standards and Building Regs if from outside the UK.
- Any delay caused by the nominated sub contractor may entitle the contractor to loss and expense and extensions of time claims.
Why did you recommend a D&B procurement route on Mill Studios?
Client was new to construction projects and the brief was limited.
Client wanted contractor to take on the full design responsibility and provide buildability advice to help develop the design.
Limited budget and limited programme time, so these were key drivers over quality.
What were the possible routes to tender on Mill Studios and what were the advantages and disadvantages you provided?
It allowed the contractor to be onboarded early through a PCSA and work alongside the design team to help develop the design, provide buildability advice and derisk the project.
A single stage would not allow the contractor to provide buildability advice at the point of tender.
Brief and design was limited so two stage was the best option here.
Negotiated tender would have allowed a PCSA to take place but wouldn’t have been able to do a competitive two stage.
What would you include in a tender pack?
- A draft copy of the contract / form of contract
- Proposed amendments, particulars, novation agreement and PCG/Performance Bond (if relevant)
- Prelims
- Supplementary Info around planning, BREEAM, Pre construction information
- Existing site information, surveys
- Drawings and Specifications
- TSA
- Form of Tender
What is included in a tender return?
- Form of Tender
- Priced TSA
- Clarifications and Exclusions
- Resourcing
- Indicative Programme
- Key Risks
- VE Opportunities
How would you manage errors in a tender return?
Alternative 1 – Tenderer provided details of errors and given the opportunity to confirm or withdraw tender.
Alternative 2 – Tenderer given opportunity to confirm their offer or amend to correct errors.
What additional information may you request as part of a tender return?
Previous Experience
Methodology
H&S Information
Logistics Plan
What happens if a tender is submitted late?
Public Sector – should not be accepted
Private Sector – at the discretion of the Employer but recommend to not accept due to collusion/bid rigging
On what grounds would you re-tender a project?
If insufficient tenders are returned.
If the returns were not at the budget requirements and it was believed re-tendering to different tenderers would provide a better result.
If the design had changed significantly to what was originally tendered.
What is a CSA?
Contract Sum Analysis – alternative pricing document to a Schedule of Work or Bill of Quantities.
