Case study on the quality of tenders submitted by Occupational Health and Safety Professionals in the South African built environment

Abstract

Purpose of this paper: The purpose of the paper is to provide an overview of the current state of tenders submitted by Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) professionals in terms of functionality criteria. Design/methodology/approach: The research design is based on a case study. The data was collected from responses by OHS professionals to a Request for Proposal (RFP) issued by the CSIR. Data was collected through a two stage evaluation, where tenders were firstly evaluated for functionality. Those tenders meeting functionality criteria were to be evaluated on the basis of price and preference. Findings: Findings indicate that many OHS professionals did not meet the necessary functionality requirements enabling them to progress to the second stage. It would appear that the OHS professionals were inadequately prepared to submit successful tender documentation based on functionality criteria. This may be a result of a lack of understanding on the part of OHS professionals about functional requirements and performance. Research limitations/implications: The data is sourced from 14 tenders submitted which might be too small a number to derive conclusive findings. The data reflects tenders submitted for an unconventional project and might not represent industry wide trends. Practical implications: Understanding the challenges facing various built environment professionals during procurement will significantly contribute to the improvement of procurement and bid documents. This is particularly in order for consulting companies to remain competitive. Original value of paper: Analysing bid submissions will provide insight into how the bidding success rate of OHS professionals can be improved. It would also assist in the preparation of bidding documents. This paper responds to the “Public Sector Procurement and Contracting” and “Construction Education, Training and Skills Development” themes in the conference.