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Schools Building Projects Administration

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 17 December 2013

Tuesday, 17 December 2013

Questions (204, 205)

Kevin Humphreys

Question:

204. Deputy Kevin Humphreys asked the Minister for Education and Skills the reason the framework for architectural services for large school project contracts includes a provision that applicant architecture practices must have completed three projects in the past five years of a value greater than €2.5 million; the specific reasons for this condition which limits the pool of applicants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53924/13]

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Kevin Humphreys

Question:

205. Deputy Kevin Humphreys asked the Minister for Education and Skills the action or measures his Department has taken or put in place to ensure that new, existing and struggling architecture practices may apply for all tendered school projects, including the large school project contracts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53925/13]

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Written answers

I propose to take Questions Nos. 204 and 205 together. My Department is currently conducting a tender exercise to put in place a Framework Panel for Consultancy Services for large school building projects. These Frameworks will replace the existing Frameworks which were put in place in 2012 and which expire in April 2014. The panels will provide the basis for Architectural, Engineering and Quantity Surveying firms to tender for major school building projects throughout 2014 and 2015. Separate panels will be in place for category 2(b) projects (construction value between €2.5m and €5m) and category 3 projects (construction value greater than €5m). In order to qualify for inclusion on a Framework Panel firms must satisfy certain minimum criteria which essentially demonstrate the firm's capacity to provide the required service as part of a design team on a major school building project. One of the minimum criteria is the need to have completed at least 3 major projects of a similar scale and complexity in the last 5 years. For category 3 projects, one of the three completed projects is required to be a school building project. This particular requirement does not apply to category 2(b) projects. The minimum threshold of €2.5 million for the three completed projects applies only to the category 3 framework. This means that in order to qualify to tender for projects valued in excess of €5 million a firm must show that it has successfully completed three building projects each with a value of at least €2.5 million in the previous 5 years. The minimum value for each of the three completed projects to qualify for the category 2(b) framework is €1 million. There is therefore ample opportunity for smaller firms to compete for category 2(b) projects and if, successful, to demonstrate their capacity to compete for category 3 projects in the future. These minimum criteria are based on the current Suitability Assessment Questionnaire for Principle Service Provider to be assessed under a Restricted Procedure published by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform (QC1 v2.0 16/07/2013). However, in cognisance of the downturn in the construction industry, my Department has chosen to extend the period for which completed projects are eligible for inclusion from a three year period (which applied for the 2012 Frameworks) to a period of five years for the new Frameworks. It is important to understand that this refers to completion dates for projects and that all firms completing such projects in the last 5 years would, by necessity, have been working on the design phases of such projects for anywhere up to three years before the completion date. While the three projects must have been completed in the last 5 years this, in effect, gives firms an eight year window to provide three examples of large scale building projects which they have worked on in order to satisfy this condition. It is also worth noting that the number of applications for the 2014 panels has exceeded the level of interest expressed back in 2012. The evaluation process of the applicants is ongoing and the Framework will be operational by its target date of April 2014. Finally, it should be noted that the appointment of design teams on school building projects of a value less than €2.5 million will generally not be tendered to the above Frameworks but will be conducted by open tender on the Governments e-tenders web-site.

Question No. 206 answered with Question No. 203.
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