A study by the Army Corps of Engi-neers of its own construction pro-curement practices could put the kibosh on use of Internet-based reverse auctions in the public sector. The findings, included in a report issued late last month to Congress, conclude that "reverse auctioning is neither an efficient nor effective method to procure construction services." The study concluded that reverse auctions could be used for commodities procurement. Specifically, the Corps found "no factual, significant or marginal savings in the use of reverse auctioning methodology over the standard sealed bid process" when used for construction services. The report claims that reverse auctioning does not save time and results in higher costs because it is more labor intensive. "The issue of 'savings' in terms of manpower and man-hours cannot be ignored as government budgets and contracting personnel are continuously reduced," the study found.
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