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The Region supports effective, objective, fair, open, transparent,
accountable, and efficient procurement processes through the solicitation
of multiple quotes, tenders, proposals and direct negotiation.
The following purchasing policy statements are intended
to further protect the interests of the Region, the public and persons
participating in the procurement process and to reinforce fairness, openness,
transparency and integrity by adopting consistent and standard approaches.
The statements are intended to compliment By-law 62-2001 (being the by-law
governing the purchase and disposal of goods and services) and the Regional
purchasing procedures and practices and otherwise respond to the requirements
of the Municipal Act 2001.
1.0 Procurement Processes, Goals and
Circumstances
The following processes and methods of acquisition are to
be used to give effect to Part I - Purchasing Objectives of the Regional
Purchasing By-law:
Request for Pre-qualification shall be used, and precede
a Request for Tenders, Quotations or Proposals in order to identify and
pre-select Vendors, where it is deemed that the nature and complexity
of the work involved warrants the time and effort required to pre-select
the most experienced and qualified Vendors.
Request for Expressions of Interest shall be used to determine
the interest of the market place to provide a scope of work or services
contemplated to be procured by the Region.
Request for Information shall be used to gather information
from the market place to provide a scope of work or services contemplated
to be procured by the Region.
Request for Tenders shall be used to obtain goods and services
over $100,000, whenever the requirements can be precisely defined and
the expectation is that the lowest bid meeting the requirements specified
in the Request would be accepted, subject to any other provisions of the
contract documents and the Regional Purchasing By-law.
Request for Quotations shall be used to obtain goods and
services under $100,000 whenever the requirements can be precisely defined
and the expectation is that the lowest bid meeting the requirements specified
in the Request would be accepted, subject to any other provisions of the
contract documents and the Regional Purchasing By-law.
Request for Proposals shall be used to obtain goods and services of a
unique or complex nature where all or part of the requirements cannot
be precisely defined and the expectation is that the proposal offered
by the highest ranked proponent resulting from an evaluation and meeting
the requirements specified in the Request, including the evaluation criteria
set out in the Request, would be accepted, subject to any other provisions
of the contract documents and the Regional Purchasing By-law.
An informal Request for Quotation shall be used to obtain
goods and services under $25,000 to obtain low dollar value of goods and
services expeditiously and cost effectively. The informal process may
be used by authorized employees of Purchasing or delegated employees in
accordance with Part IV - Purchasing and Purchase Contracts of the Regional
Purchasing By-law.
Co-operative purchases are encouraged with area municipalities,
local boards and other public bodies where there are economic advantages
in doing so, subject to any other provisions of the contract documents
and the Regional Purchasing By-law.
A non-competitive procurement process shall only be used
if the conditions contained in Part V - Purchasing Methods and Purchasing
Authorities of the Regional Purchasing By-law or any other provisions
of the Regional Purchasing By-law apply including Schedule "A"
to the By-law. In such cases a process of direct negotiation is undertaken
to obtain the best value in the circumstances for the Region.
2.0 Unsolicited Offers
It is the Regional position to support effective, objective,
fair, open, transparent, accountable, and efficient procurement processes
through the solicitation of quotes, tenders, proposals and direct negotiation.
In the event that the Region wishes to receive an unsolicited formal offer,
the acceptance of such offer can only be done with Council approval. A
report to Council shall include comments from the Manager of Purchasing.
3.0 Official Point of Contact
The Region is committed to the highest standards of integrity
with respect to the purchase of goods and services and managing the processes
by which goods and services are acquired.
An official point of contact shall be named in all Requests
for Quotations, Tenders, and Proposals to respond to all communications
in respect of the request from the time of issuance, during the competitive
process, and up to and including the announcement of award. The official
point of contact shall be the Manager of Purchasing or designate.
Communications in the context of this policy relate to communications
to and from staff or Council and the Vendor community as it relates to
the particular request in process.
Any Vendor found to be in breach of the policy may be subject
to disqualification from the request or a future request(s) at the discretion
of Council.
4.0 Public Openings
Any Request for Tender over $100,000 or Request for Proposals
(that are publicly advertised) are received by the Tender Opening Committee
at the time and location specified in the Tender or Proposal Document.
All other solicitations are not opened in a public forum
but the results will be available for review upon written request to the
Manager of Purchasing.
5.0 Tender/Proposal Irregularities
The Manager of Purchasing shall exercise judgement in determining
responsive bids and shall consider the advice of Legal Services in doing
so.
In the case of non-responsive bids including, but not limited
to the following examples of irregularities contained in a Tender or publicly
opened Proposal received by the Region, the Manager of Purchasing shall
take the following actions:
| IRREGULARITY |
ACTION |
| Late submission |
Automatic rejection and not read publicly. |
| Insufficient Financial Security or uncertified cheques. |
Automatic rejection. |
| Incomplete submission or submission not
signed in ink |
Automatic rejection unless, in the opinion
of the Manager of Purchasing, the incomplete nature is deemed to be
minor. |
| Qualified submission (qualified or restricted
by an attached statement, unless allowed for) |
Automatic rejection unless, in the opinion
of the Manager of Purchasing, the qualification or restriction is
deemed to be minor. |
| Submission received on documents other than
those provided by the Region |
Automatic rejection unless, in the opinion
of the Manager of Purchasing, the matter is deemed to be minor. |
| Minor Irregularities |
The Manager of Purchasing shall have the authority to
waive irregularities deemed to be minor. |
6.0 Mathematical Errors
Terms and conditions for unit price contracts shall include
a statement indicating that where there is a discrepancy between the total
price and the unit price, the unit price shall prevail.
During the evaluation process, where any discrepancy exists
between the total price and the unit price, the unit price shall prevail
and the total bid price shall be adjusted accordingly.
7.0 Tied Bids
In the event of a tied bid, the process will be deemed an
irregular result and the award shall be reported in accordance with the
requirements of the Regional Purchasing By-law.
In order to minimize the risk of tied bids, Request for
Tenders, Quotations and Proposals should include such terms and conditions
that promote best overall value and allow responses to be evaluated accordingly.
This includes but not limited to such considerations as price (including
discounts and prompt payment terms), quality, delivery (including response
time), service, and past performance.
8.0 Evaluation of Proposals
An Evaluation Committee shall be established for Requests
for Proposals. The size of the Evaluation Committee shall be reflective
of the complexity and dollar value of the assignment. Committee members
must have the relevant experience to evaluate proponents' submissions.
All calls are to include clear specifications and evaluation
criteria, terms and conditions that can be applied in a fair and consistent
manner to all respondents.
9.0 Vendor Debriefings
All requests for a formal or informal debriefing shall be
received by the Region in writing to the Manager of Purchasing in order
to obtain feedback on why their submission was not successful. Debriefing
will not alter the award decisions.
10.0 Vendor Complaints
The Region is committed to the highest standards of integrity
with respect to dealing with vendor complaints. Complaints shall be handled
with fairness and equity for all participants in a Tender, Quotation or
Proposal call.
All vendor complaints, whether addressed to elected officials
or staff, are to be referred to the Manager of Purchasing for resolution.
Objections to a recommendation for award must be in writing.
The Manager of Purchasing shall review the objection and determine, in
consultation with the Regional Solicitor where necessary, whether the
objection is material i.e. it is not frivolous or vexatious or solely
related to a review of any listed irregularities as defined in this policy
or is not non-responsive as defined in the Regional Purchasing By-law.
Where the objection is determined not to be material, the
making of the award shall proceed in accordance with the Purchasing By-law.
Where the objection is determined to be material and cannot
be resolved, the award shall be made by Council in accordance with the
Regional Purchasing By-law. In such case, the Manager of Purchasing and
the Regional official on whose behalf the call was made and, where necessary,
the Regional Solicitor shall report to Council with respect to the recommendations
for award. The Manager of Purchasing shall inform the Vendor of his/her
right to make a deputation before General Committee and shall advise the
Vendor to contact the Clerk's Office for further information on the deputation
process. Upon hearing the deputation and considering the staff report,
the General Committee shall make a recommendation to Council with respect
to the award.
11.0 Vendor Performance
The Region shall maintain records relating to vendor performance
or non-performance. The information shall be used to supplement a pre-qualification
process, to justify an award to other than the lowest submission where
it can be demonstrated that such records are part of the evaluation process
and criteria or to ensure contract compliance.
12.0 In-House Bids
In-house bids will be encouraged insofar as they are contemplated
in the Managed Competition process prepared in accordance with the Council
report of October 13, 1999, Recommendation GC-292-1999 approved 1999-1259.
13.0 Ethics
Further to Part VII - Prohibitions and Compliance of Regional
Purchasing By-law, and in addition to any conflict of interest policy
applicable to employees, as adopted by Council from time to time, the
code of purchasing ethics established by the National Institute of Governmental
Purchasing and the Purchasing Management Association of Canada shall apply
to all staff involved in the procurement process.
14.0 Review of Purchasing By-law, Policies and Procedures
The Manager of Purchasing shall undertake a comprehensive
review of the Regional Purchasing By-law and Council Purchasing Policies
every five (5) years and report to Council accordingly.
The Manager of Purchasing shall review the Regional Purchasing
Procedures on an ongoing basis and publish new or revised procedures on
the Region of Peel intranet.
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