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E-tendering: a way forward | Builder & Engineer

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E-tendering: a way forward

Managing the entire contract process electronically has its attractions, but will the industry adopt it enthusiastically Since the arrival of broadband and the greater security of firewalls e-tendering for contracts has grown dramatically. In Hong Kong, for example, virtually every public sector contract is put out to e-tender. In the UK it is again the public sector which is pushing the boundaries - e-tendering is the Olympic Delivery Authoritys preferred method for procurement - but surprisingly the private sector has been slow to take advantage of the idea. Bodies like RICS have attempted to fill the gap: RICS eTendering is a web tendering service offered on a pay-per-tender basis to the construction industry. It allows companies to run tenders through a secure website. It offers a simple, secure, standard, efficient and cost effective way to manage tenders online. The advantages of e-tendering are obvious. Documentation is distributed and returned via a secure webbased system. This avoids the need for collating paperwork and also, important for construction, creates an automatic audit trail. During the tender period, updates and queries and changes are exchanged through the same system. Etendering can be used for all values of tenders, although primarily used for higher value contracts at present. However, it does appear that the UK construction industry is unwilling to listen. Three-quarters of UK firms still post or email tenders to their clients, according to a BCIS e-tendering survey report released last month. This showed the percentage of tender documents sent solely in electronic format has almost doubled since 2006, increasing from 8% two years ago to 15%. However, the percentage of electronic documents being delivered by physical means, such as on a disk, increased from 2% to 46% while the percentage sent by email decreased from 64% to 46%. The greatest barriers to switching to a web-based system seems to be the perceived costs associated with web based e-tendering and the assumption that clients are not interested. Yet in reality e-tendering systems are quite simple. The client uploads the notice or invitation to tender onto the system. Notification is sent out, and the suppliers download the information and complete their responses. The client can access the tenders only after the deadline has passed. All information is held in a central database. This is easily searchable and can be fully audited, with all activities recorded. There are a number of systems available, but they all will offer: some form of messaging function for informing tenderers of changes document management to keep track of the information an audit trail a user interface. Data is encrypted and users are authenticated by means such as digital signatures, electronic certificates or smartcards. Supporters of e-tendering also point out the cost saving benefits. As long ago as 2005 Construction IT firm BuildOnline was reporting that, by using its online tendering system, Laing Homes saved over 200,000 a year in running tender costs. Yet the cost saving may be something of a red herring. It is the efficiency savings which make e-tendering an attractive proposition. In its guide to e-tendering Constructing Excellence points out the following benefits: information supplied to tenderers is consistent; tenders are always legible; automatic tallying prevents arithmetical errors; there are reliable processes for distributing changes during the tender process; checks highlight incomplete bids; faster distribution of information;

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improved security;

E-tendering: a way forward | Builder & Engineer

tenderers who are based further away are not disadvantaged; there are improved communication and audit trails; better management information is provided; there is no need for paper copies; the standardised electronic format makes the comparison of bids more straightforward; Any drawbacks? Other than the fact that the systems must be failsafe, as much of the information they handle is confidential the simple answer is no.

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