Action 24 of the Accelerating Infrastructure Report and Action Plan sets out that the National Development Finance Agency (NDFA) will offer support at every stage of the development process for specific major projects. This ranges from assistance with the internal Government assessments required to promote value for money, such as the Strategic Assessment and Preliminary Business Case, to expertise on the appropriate procurement strategy to be adopted, to the Corporate Governance arrangements that will determine how the major project will be operated when it is completed.
Unique supplier identifiers are not currently a feature of the legal regime underpinning public procurement. Typically tax reference numbers are used as part of the tax clearance process but they are also used to cross check the identity of a tenderer.
As part of its work on the National Data Infrastructure, the Central Statistics Office has identified 3 National Data Identifiers, one of which is a unique business identifier (UBI).
A unique supplier identifier, or UBI, is useful in determining the extent to which work is concentrated with particular suppliers. It does not tell the whole story and other metrics are necessary to build a picture. Where construction projects are concerned other data such as the duration of each contract and the spend profile thereunder would be required to analyse the capacity of a main contractor in the round.
Naturally, any data that the public sector holds does not capture the full extent of activity that a contractor has with private clients which, for many contractors, represents a significant element of their balance sheet.
Any spend analysis conducted on suppliers is challenging where construction projects are concerned since many of the rates that are tendered vary depending on the volume of the work associated with the rate, the conditions under which the works are being executed and other factors that are unique to the project.
Spend analysis may prove useful in addressing rates associated with elements of a building project that are undertaken in a controlled environment such as in a factory, although rates may also vary due to volume discounts achieved at a supplier (not project) level or minor differences in specification.
Many of the factory produced elements on a construction project are undertaken by members of the supply chain and not the main contractor. The details of same may only become available to a contracting authority as the contract is performed and not as part of the procurement process.
The presence or absence of a unique supplier identifier would not impede any moves to greater levels of standardisation since these must be driven initially at client level, following consultation with the market, through the design stage and onward into the construction stage.
Designing within budget and ensuring that costs are managed are key to cost management prior to tender. Engagement between the designer and cost consultant is essential when reviewing design options to ensure that value for money is safeguarded whilst maintaining a quality outcome. During the contract, tendered costs are managed and, where value engineering proposals are made, alternative approaches and materials should be evaluated to ensure value for money is achieved.
