Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
and contracting strategy and will be based on a set of predetermined
questions.
Once these formalities have been covered, the same standard questions
can be asked at each meeting. The duration of the one-to-one meetings
may vary from 40 minutes to one hour, depending on the nature of the
questions and the number of one-to-one meetings to be held. If they are
being held after an industry day, the time available is usually restricted
and because of the need for a standard protocol the time allocated to
each meeting needs to allow for the exiting group to leave and the sub-
sequent group to be brought in. The output from the one-to-one meet-
ings is a summary report to the project team, to be used to inform the
emerging procurement plan.
One-way supplier dialogue - Meet the buyer events
'Meet the buyer' events provide a forum where opportunities to improve
the value for money obtained from the supply chain are identifi ed
through a dialogue between suppliers and buyers. Programmes may
arrange their own meet the buyer events for specifi c common compo-
nents and commodities, or may attend sector-based events organised by
third parties.
At meet the buyer events the programme supply chain team can meet
with all interested suppliers and outline the routes to engagement, high-
light current opportunities, direct suppliers to any pre-registration
mechanisms, give details of the programme's web presence, distribute
copies of the supplier guide and generally explain the programme supply
chain objectives.
For some large programmes on the scale of London 2012, this type of
engagement was particularly effective for resolving logistics issues for
timber supply, investigating lighting solutions, sustainable building
wrap innovations and supply solutions for programme-wide temporary
seating. More recently, on an even larger programme - namely, the
Crossrail infrastructure programme - the same approach was used to
engage with reinforcement and concrete suppliers to discuss common
component supply issues, potential pricing and supply issues and best-
value logistics solutions. Feedback from these specifi c meet the buyer
events proved invaluable and consequently shaped the procurement
approach for these elements. Meet the buyer events are quite different
from meet the contractor events.
