September 3, 2008

Tendering

Ottawa Construction Association wants faster bid approvals process

PATRICIA WILLIAMS

staff writer

In conjunction with the General Contractors Association of Ottawa, the Ottawa Construction Association (OCA) has urged buyers of construction services to shorten the bid approvals process to 15 days or less from the usual 30 to 90-day period.

The recommendation comes in response to a number of significant price escalations in key commodities such as steel and copper and most recently, petroleum-based products such as asphalt.

“Contractors in many supply situations are only able to obtain quotes from suppliers based on a 15-day time limit,” the OCA said in a news release.

The association represents more than 900 companies active in the Ottawa region’s $3 billion construction market.

“The risk to paving and roadbuilding firms is even higher, as they cannot obtain any price guarantee on the supply of petroleum-based asphalt cement — the key ingredient for asphalt,” it states.

The OCA said buyers also would benefit from a faster approval process, as contractors would not have to include premiums in bids to cover higher commodity costs.

As of Aug. 25, the association had not received a response from owners.

Clive Thurston, president of the Ontario General Contractors Association (OGCA) said his organization considers faster turnaround on bid approvals absolutely essential, but he questioned whether a 15-day time period is in fact achievable, at least in the case of public agencies.

For the past several years, OGCA has pressed more than a dozen municipalities, colleges and universities to speed up the bid approvals process, but to no avail, Thurston said.

Taking a different tack, the association has convinced some owners, however, to compensate contractors for price escalations “that are above and beyond the norm.”

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