SAFEGUARDS IN TENDERING

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28972, 13 August 1959, Page 23

SAFEGUARDS IN TENDERING

Proposals By Contractors

In its approach to the problems of bonding and pre-qualification for contracts, the principle of competitive tendering was fully supported by the Associated General Contractors’ Federation, said the report to the annual conference in Christchurch yesterday.

“There is no desire to exclude from tendering for any job any contractor whose resources and experience qualify him to undertake the work,” said the report. “The federation is anxious to retain this condition of affairs at all costs and at no stage should its proposals be construed otherwise.”

The federation's proposal was that, while preserving the accepted principles. of tendering, steps be taken with a view to:—(1) reducing delays and frustrations which in the past had been caused largely by contractors with insufficient experience and resources; (2) affording the Government some protection by establishing the status of contractors who were, in fact, qualified properly to complete a job; (3) excluding from contracting only unqualified contractors; (4) while safeguarding both public and private interests, prohibiting the creation of any form of monopoly in the contracting sphere. “Discussions with the senior administrative officers of the Ministry of Works have now. reached a stage where a pattern is taking shape which could develop satisfactorily for the industry as a whole,” the executive reported. The Ministry had shown keen interest in the introduction \ of an adequate scheme to ensure that contracts put out for tender were satisfactorily completed within the terms of the agreement. After representations to the Minister of Works and trading activities of local bodies, instructions were issued that no contract was to be let to local authorities which took advantage of the taxation concession to obtain business at lower prices in competition with private contractors. Steps had also been taken to see that local body tenders for metal supplies were i.ot accepted when suitable supplies were obtainable from commercial contractors.