Procuring a legacy

A review of ODA Procurement

January 2009

Tags: tender, procurement

The report finds that the ODA’s processes have been largely successful in ensuring their sustainability standards and sustainability issues in their design briefs are brought forward into Invitations To Tender (ITT) and contracts.

The report expresses some concerns in these areas:

  • How the BREEAM standards have been incorporated into contracts
  • That the ODA need to mitigate the risk that sustainability standards aren’t achieved where specific standards are not specified in contracts
  • That the ODA need a system to manage this through their supply chain

Key Findings

  • ODA processes have largely been successful in ensuring sustainability standards and sustainability issues from design briefs are included into ITT and contracts
  • Concerns about how BREEAM standards have been incorporated into contracts
  • The ODA need to address the risk of sustainability standards not being achieved when specific standards haven’t been specified in contracts
  • The ODA need a system to monitor and manage their sustainability standards through their supply chain to ensure they are delivered
  • The ODA has been successful in sending signals about their sustainability requirements to the marketplace, as companies have been ready to respond when procurement started
  • This good practice should be taken up throughout the London 2012 programme
  • CompeteFor is being used by the ODA
  • As part of the longer term evolution of CompeteFor, it should be used to encourage environmental improvements in businesses registering with it

Recommendations

  • That the achievement of a BREEAM excellent rating be specified in all permanent venue contracts.
  • That the ODA ensures that the risk of not achieving its sustainability standards is mitigated where the contractual arrangements do not mandate specific targets, such as recycled content, or compliance with sitewide contracts or delivery of an equivalent level of sustainability that these enable.
  • That the ODA has a system to manage procurement risk and delivery of the sustainability objectives and standards throughout their supply chain.
  • That, as part of the longer term evolution of CompeteFor, it is utilised to encourage and promote additional environmental criteria to drive improvements in businesses registering with it.
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