Procurement and tendering Flashcards
(116 cards)
1
Q
What module did you complete during your university studies?
A
“Estimating and Tendering of Construction Projects.”
2
Q
What foundational understanding did Estimating and Tendering of Construction Projects module provide you?
A
A foundational understanding of the tendering process.
3
Q
What are the four primary UK procurement routes you are well-versed in?
A
Traditional, Design & Build, Construction Management, and Management Contracting.
4
Q
How do you consider aligning the chosen procurement route with the client’s objectives?
A
By considering factors such as time, cost, quality, risk appetite, and current market conditions.
5
Q
Why is continuous monitoring necessary during the project?
A
Because client objectives may evolve over time.
6
Q
What documentation requirements for procurement routes are you familiar with?
A
Understanding the documentation requirements for various procurement routes, including familiarity with the RICS Tendering Strategies guidance note.
7
Q
How does the RICS Tendering Strategies guidance note assist in the tendering process?
A
It succinctly outlines the tendering process, providing valuable guidance for procurement.
8
Q
What types of tendering have you participated in?
A
Single and two-stage tendering.
9
Q
What procurement methods have you been involved in?
A
Traditional and design and build procurement methods.
10
Q
hat projects have you primarily worked on regarding procurement and tendering?
A
Projects with the British Council and Citi Bank.
11
Q
What responsibilities did you have upon receiving tenders?
A
Conducting thorough analysis, including equalization and normalization, compiling post-tender queries, and conducting mid-tender and post-tender interviews with contractors.
12
Q
What was your role during the 1 Triton Square project?
A
laying a key role in overseeing the tender process.
13
Q
What tasks did you undertake during the tender process?
A
Meticulous preparation of tender documentation, including compiling relevant design information, creating a comprehensive pricing schedule of works, and generating a detailed tender report.
14
Q
How did you ensure transparency and clarity in contractor submissions?
A
By conducting mid-tender interviews individually with each contractor.
15
Q
How did you participate in scoring the tenders?
A
Actively participating in scoring using a matrix aligned with the client’s needs and objectives.
16
Q
What educational workshops were conducted on the 1 Triton Square project?
A
Workshops were conducted to educate the client about available procurement routes and tendering strategies.
17
Q
What guidance did you offer regarding procurement routes on the 1 Triton Square project?
A
Guidance on selecting the most suitable procurement route, considering the client’s needs and project specifics.
18
Q
Why did you recommend a design and build procurement route for the 1 Triton Square project?
A
Due to the client’s desire to mitigate design risk.
19
Q
What contractor selection process insights did you provide on the 1 Triton Square project?
A
Insights into compiling a long list, conducting preliminary enquiries, and implementing a PQQ process to form a tender list.
20
Q
What did you utilize to prepare a comprehensive tender report after the 1 Triton Square tender?
A
Completed scoring matrix and tender analysis.
21
Q
What did the tender report for the 1 Triton Square project outline?
A
The tender process, analysis results, recommended contractor, areas of outstanding risk, and necessary steps to conclude the pre-contract process.
22
Q
What analysis did you conduct on the Sky Labs project?
A
Thorough analysis of second-stage tenders from three subcontractors.
23
Q
What factors did you consider when recommending a tender on the Sky Labs project?
A
Compliance, past relationships with the contractor, and price.
24
Q
What is procurement?
A
The overall process of acquiring construction work or services.
25
What should be considered when selecting a procurement route?
The specifics of the project.
The client objectives regarding:
o Cost.
o Time.
o Control.
o Quality.
o Risk.
26
What are the 4 main procurement methods?
* Traditional & General Contracting.
* Design and Build.
* Management Contracting.
* Construction management.
27
What is traditional procurement?
The design is completed by the client’s design team before competitive tenders are invited and a main contractor is employed to build what the designers have specified.
28
How does traditional procurement work?
The contractor takes responsibility and financial risk for the construction of the works to the design produced by the client’s design team for the contract sum within the contract period. The client takes the responsibility and risk for the design and design team performance.
29
When might traditional procurement be appropriate?
- If the employer has had the design prepared.
- If the design is substantially completed at the time of contractor selection.
- The client wishes to retain control over the design and specification.
If cost certainty at the start on-site is important.
- The shortest overall programme is not the client’s main priority.
30
What are the advantages of traditional procurement?
- Retaining control over the design can lead to higher quality.
- It offers increased levels of cost certainty before commencement.
- Design changes are reasonably easy to arrange and value.
31
What are the disadvantages of traditional procurement?
- The overall project duration may be longer due to a lack of overlap between design and construction.
- There is no input into design and planning by the contractor.
- A strategy based on price competition can lead to adversarial relations.
- There is a dual point of responsibility
32
What is design and build?
Where the contractor is responsible for the design, planning, organisation, control and construction of
the works to the employer’s requirements.
33
How does design and build work ?
The employer gives the tenderers the ‘Employer’s Requirements’ and the contractors responds with the
‘Contractor’s Proposals’, which include the price for the works.
34
When might design and build procurement be appropriate?
- Early start on site due to design and construction overlap.
- Client wishes to minimize risk by transferring design responsibility to the Main Contractor.
- Technically complex projects requiring the contractor’s expertise.
- Employer does not want to retain control over design development.
35
What are the advantages of design and build procurement?
- Single point of responsibility for design and construction.
- Earlier commencement on site.
- Increased early price certainty.
- Client benefits from contractor’s experience during the design phase.
36
hat are the disadvantages of design and build procurement?
- Clients may struggle to prepare a comprehensive brief.
- Client must commit to a concept design early.
- Variations from the original brief are difficult and expensive.
- Harder to compare tenders and determine value for money.
37
How much design input will the contractor have in design and build procurement?
Depends on the amount of design work completed by the employer at the time of tender, ranging from full design to production information and coordination only.
38
Who carries out the design for the contractor in design and build procurement?
- May be outsourced to a separate design company (contractor retains responsibility).
- In-house design capabilities.
- Client’s team may be novated to the contractor.
39
What is management contracting?
A management contractor is hired to contribute their expertise to the design and manage construction.
They are paid a management fee for their services.
40
How does management contracting work?
The management contractor has direct contractual links with all works contractors.
Responsible for construction works but does not perform them.
Design need not be complete before starting work.
Management contractor selects works contractors through competitive open book tender.
Client reimburses the cost of packages plus the management contractor's fee.
41
When might management contracting be appropriate?
When the client does not need cost certainty before commencement.
When an early start on site is a priority.
42
What are the advantages of management contracting?
Shorter overall project duration due to overlapping design and construction.
Contractor contributes to the design and planning process.
Changes can be accommodated in packages not yet let if they have no further impact.
Works are let competitively at current market prices on a firm price basis.
43
What are the disadvantages of construction management?
Price certainty is not achieved until the last trade package is let.
Changes to packages may adversely affect already let packages.
Client must be proactive and hands-on.
Client has to manage many consultants and contractors.
44
What is the difference between management contracting and construction management?
In construction management, the client has direct contractual relationships with each trade contractor, while the construction manager does not.
In management contracting, the Main Contractor has direct contractual relationships with trade contractors, and the client contracts only with the Main Contractor.
45
How do you identify the client requirements before recommending a
procurement route?
Through detailed discussions with the client and design team to identify their priorities in terms of cost, time, quality, risk, control requirements and experience.
46
If the client wishes to start on site asap, what route would you
recommend?
* My recommendation would need to take into account their other requirements such as cost and quality
* If time was their overriding priority, then Construction Management or Management Contracting may offer the best solution as they can offer the fastest start on site with overlap of the design and
construction.
* This is because start on site is not dependent upon a long tender period however the key tradeoff is a
reduction in cost certainty.
47
What would you recommend if the client wanted an early start but also
cost certainty?
* Design and build procurement may offer the best solution.
* This is because it allows the design and construction to be overlapped rather than being sequential.
* Design and Construction risk is transferred to the Main Contractor with their tender being based on a
lump sum price to offer high levels of cost certainty.
48
What is GMP?
Guaranteed maximum price.
49
What does GMP mean to you?
* A lump sum contract under which there is no adjustment of tender price unless design changes are
requested by the client.
* The contractor includes the additional risks involved in the design development process in his tender price.
50
What does PFI stand for?
Private Finance Initiative.
51
What is PFI?
* A government programme launched in 1992 to bring private sector project management and expertise into the public sector.
* The private sector is granted a concession to finance, design & build and operate major public projects such as schools and hospitals.
52
What are the three types of PFI projects?
* Financially free-standing
* Joint Venture
* Services Sold
53
What sort of projects might PFI be used on?
It is generally considered more appropriate for larger projects of value greater than £20m and where
there are significant ongoing maintenance requirements.
54
What is Build Lease Transfer (BLT)?
A facility is designed, financed and constructed by the private sector and then leased back to the
government for a predetermined period of time at a pre-agreed rental cost.
54
What is Build Operate Transfer (BOT)?
The facility is designed, financed, operated and maintained by a concession company, for the period of the concession.
54
What is Build Own Operate Transfer (BOOT)?
A variation on Build Operate Transfer where ownership stays with the concessionaries until the end of
the concession period at which time it is then transferred free of charge to the host government.
54
What is Partnering?
* A long term approach of structuring business relationships.
* It involves two or more organisations working together to achieve specific mutual objectives and deliver continuous measurable improvements.
55
What is project partnering
All members of the professional team become involved in the partnering process at the design stage including contractors.
56
What is Strategic Partnering?
A long-term relationship that is established with a view to undertaking a number of projects over a long period.
56
What are the key characteristics of partnering?
* More trust is achieved between the parties.
* There is a reduced risk of adversarial relationships
* Increased cost certainty and speed of calling off contracts is gained.
56
What are the benefits of partnering?
The overall construction and design programme is shortened because there is a prior understanding of
the Client and their requirements from previous projects.
57
What is tendering?
A structured procedure for generating quotations from suppliers or contractors looking to obtain an
award of business activity either under competition or via negotiation with a single contractor.
58
What are the main methods of choosing a contractor?
* Open tendering.
* Selective tendering:-
o Single or Two Stage.
* Negotiated tendering.
* Serial tendering.
59
What is open tendering?
This is an indiscriminate request for tenders to be submitted to the open market.
60
What are the advantages of open tendering?
* It provides opportunities for capable firms which the clients may have not previously considered
* It should secure maximum competition from the open market.
61
What are the disadvantages?
* There is a danger of increased errors within the tender submission due to a risk of inexperienced
contractors
* There is no assurance that the lowest tenderer is capable or financially stable
* The total cost and time needed to review the tenders is increased.
62
What is selective tendering?
This restricts the number of tenderers by pre-selecting a limited number of contractors to tender for
the work.
63
What are the two types of selective tendering?
* Single stage.
* Two stage.
64
What is single stage tendering?
A structured process of receiving competitive tenders from a number of pre-selected capable
contractors.
65
What are the advantages of single stage tendering?
* It ensures only capable and approved firms submit tenders.
* It tends to reduce the aggregate cost of tendering.
* It reduces the risk of receiving tenders from unsuitable contractors.
66
What is two stage tendering?
Two stage tendering is where the Client seeks to appoint the Contractor based on an outline scope of work that is not fully defined.
67
What is the purpose of the first stage in two stage tendering?
* The client provides an outline project design to each of the tenderers.
* The tendering contractors will submit prices for helping the client develop and finalise the design using their buildability expertise.
68
What is the purpose of the second stage?
* Following development of the design to a defined stage, a formal negotiation process is undertaken
during stage 2 to agree:-
o The final price.
o The contract conditions.
o Programme.
69
What do tenderers return as part of the first stage?
* Detailed build up of prices for the preliminaries items.
* Percentage additions for profit and overheads.
* A construction programme.
* Proposed sub-letting of the works.
70
What are the advantages of two stage tendering?
* Early involvement of the contractor.
* Encouragement of collaborative working.
* Potential for an earlier start on site.
71
What are the disadvantages of two stage tendering?
* Cost certainty may not be achieved before construction starts.
* Additional pre-construction fees are incurred for the main contractor.
* The contractor could take advantage of second stage negotiation and increase costs.
72
Why should you use 2 stage tendering?
* With a complex building.
* Where the magnitude of work is unknown at time of contractor selection.
* If early completion is required.
73
What is negotiated tendering?
Where the client has an existing preference for appointing a particular firm and only negotiates with one contractor.
74
When might a negotiated tender be used?
When the contractor has carried out work successfully for the client previously where they have an
existing relationship.
75
How does negotiated tendering work?
* There is no competition and only one contractor is invited to tender.
* The contract sum is arrived at by a process of negotiation.
* Schedule of rates or prices from previous projects may be used as the basis of agreeing a price.
76
What is serial tendering
Contractors are asked to bid for a project on the basis that if they complete the initial project
satisfactorily, other projects of a similar type will follow and the same bill rates will be applied.
77
What could selecting the wrong contractor lead to?
* A bad client & contractor relationship.
* A dissatisfied client.
* An insolvent contractor.
78
How would you put together a set of tender documents?
* A preprinted formal statement in which the tenderer fills in the blank spaces.
* The tenderer provides their name, address and the sum of money for which they offer to carry out the
works.
79
What are the employer’s requirements?
* They set out the client’s requirements including the function, size, accommodation and quality requirements of the project.
80
What are the contractor’s proposals?
* The contractor’s response to the Employers Requirements.
* They are the key documentation for the client to consider at the tender review.
81
What would you include in the pre-qualification questionnaire?
* Details of contract particulars.
* Company turnover.
* Previous relevant experience and references.
* Company accounts.
* Management and organisational structure.
* Health and safety records.
* Quality systems and environmental policy.
* Provision of bonds, warranties & PCGs.
82
How would you determine the duration of the tender period
It depends on the procurement process and size of the project.
83
Whats the difference between MC and CM? When would advise one over the other?
MC (Management Contracting): Involves a management contractor overseeing the project and hiring subcontractors. Suitable for projects where construction can commence before the design is fully complete.
CM (Construction Management): Involves a construction manager managing multiple trade contractors directly. Suitable for projects with complex requirements where expertise is needed in managing numerous trades.
Advice: Use MC for projects needing early start and flexibility with incomplete designs. Use CM for complex projects requiring detailed management of multiple trades.
84
If I wanted a quick start on site but a high-level of cost certainty, what procurement route would you recommend?
Consider Design and Build procurement. This route allows for faster site commencement by integrating design and construction, providing clearer cost certainty earlier in the process.
85
How would you adjust a procurement strategy which has already been implemented?"
Review the current strategy, assess project requirements and market conditions, and implement necessary changes. This may involve renegotiating terms, adjusting timelines, or switching procurement methods if required.
86
Do you think single-stage is more expensive than two-stage?
Single-stage tenders are generally less expensive in terms of administration compared to two-stage tenders. However, two-stage tenders can offer more cost certainty by allowing initial work to start while final details are refined, potentially reducing overall costs.
87
How much more expensive is a negotiated tender compared to a competitive tender?
Negotiated tenders are typically more expensive compared to competitive tenders due to less competitive pressure and potentially higher contractor margins. Competitive tenders usually drive lower prices through bidding competition.
88
How would you deal with an element of work with limited or no design in your Pricing Schedule to be issued to the tenderers?
Issue a provisional sum or preliminary cost allowance for the undefined work. Clearly outline that the final costs will be adjusted based on the completed design and confirm that all parties agree to this approach.
89
What was included in the PQQ on 1 Triton Sq?
The PQQ typically includes questions on contractor experience, financial stability, technical capabilities, health and safety practices, and references. It assesses the suitability of contractors before tendering.
90
Why is it important to normalise tenders?"
Normalizing tenders ensures that all submitted bids are evaluated on a consistent basis. It involves adjusting for differences in tender assumptions, quantities, or pricing structures to provide a fair comparison and accurate assessment of costs.
91
What were the pros and cons you provided on 1 Triton Sq procurement advice?
Pros: Streamlined procurement process, clear project timeline, and competitive pricing.
Cons: Potential for increased complexity in managing multiple contractors or phases, and possible cost overruns if design changes occur.
92
How would you control cost increases in a 2nd stage tender?
Implement rigorous cost control measures, ensure thorough review of the second-stage tender submissions, and negotiate with contractors to address any cost increases. Monitor the project closely and adjust budgets as needed.
93
Can construction works be carried out under a PCSA?
Yes, PCSA allows for certain early works to commence before the main construction contract is finalized. It provides a framework for pre-construction activities such as design development and site preparation.
94
What goes into a tender report?
Includes a summary of the tender process, evaluation criteria, comparison of bids, recommendations, and any identified risks or issues. It provides a detailed analysis to support decision-making.
95
What does 'best value' mean?"
'Best value' refers to achieving the optimum balance between cost, quality, and efficiency. It involves evaluating not just the lowest price but the overall value for money considering factors like performance, durability, and lifecycle costs.
96
What does NBS stand for?
National Building Specification
97
What is NBS?
is a well-known system for generating preliminaries in construction projects
98
What online tool can you use to help write the NBS preliminaries documents?
The NBS Chorus service
99
What features does NBS chorus have ?
- Templates, for building contracts.
- Collaboration, allowing team members to contribute to the preliminaries
- Version control, keeping an audit trail
- Customised stylesheets, allowance for branding
- Guidance, access to help with the writing.
100
What are some common problems with preliminaries ?
- Contractor design differing from consultants' design duties
- Design proposals being changed after agreement
- Key information being omitted from the preliminaries
101
who approves Contractor’s Proposals in d&b procurement ?
The clients design team
102
In a traditional form of contract is it a CAI or EAI ?
CAI
103
what is novation ?
novation is the process of transferring contractual rights and obligations from one party to another
104
how does novation work?
- a client initially hires a design consultant/ architect to create the project design and specifications
- then before or during the construction phase the client and design consultant enter into a novation agreement with the contractor.
- through novation the original design contractor between the client and the consultant is effectively 'transferred' to the contractor.
105
what is are the benefits of novation?
- a single point of responsibility- the contractor assumes responsibility for both design and construction.
- Risk Transfer - the client transfers design-related risk to the contractor.
- streamlined communication
106
What does stand for CDP?
Contractors design portion
107
what is cdp?
refers to elements of the project’s design that are assigned to the contractor, rather than the client’s original design team.
The main design work maybe developed by the clients design team but specific parts are left out of for the contractor to complete
108
What are derogations?
refer to exemptions or relaxations from a set standard, rule, or regulation, often granted formally.
109
what do derogations allow in construction and procurement?
Derogations may allow a contractor or supplier to use alternative materials or methods that do not fully comply with the original specifications, as long as they meet agreed-upon criteria.
110
Do derogations require approval?
yes derogations require formal approval to ensure that any deviations maintain project quality, safety, and compliance standards.
111
