It's Just Too Sad To Be Single

摘要

A recent article in Building by Simon Rawlinson (21 November, page 68) claimed clients were increasingly returning to single-stage tendering. So, does this move make sense?rnThe trouble with single-stage tendering is that it does not generate reliable outturn costs. In fact, this method of procurement often produces a fragmented project team with the contractor appointed too late to influence the design, programme or risk management strategy, and braced to claim compensation to make up for errors in its estimates. The result is that there is more conflict between clients and contractors, with variations and claims working up the original tender price. Not a good recipe.rnSimon says single-stage tendering offers the discipline of completing designs before the contractor is appointed. This ignores evidence, from the Banwell Report in 1964 through to the National Audit Office in 2005, that contractors and subcontractors have more to offer than simply a price for building someone else's designs. Systems that obtain timely contractor input to buildability and affordability offer real discipline, and a proper two-stage process achieves this.