Twm Owen Local Democracy Reporter
Ninety per cent of firms that bid for contracts to provide three Welsh councils’ building and electrical maintenance services worth £86 million were from Wales.
Efforts to encourage local small and medium sized companies to bid for the contracts were encouraged as part of the tender process and have been hailed a success.
Five different contractors have been appointed by Torfaen Borough Council to provide it with building maintenance and repairs services as well as electrical works estimated to be worth a combined £25 million over four years.
The total contracts, worth £86m over the same period, firms were invited to bid for include providing the same services to Monmouthshire and Blaenau Gwent councils.
Torfaen council assistant director Gerry Mills told its cabinet, which awarded its two contract lots, the councils wanted to encourage local firms to keep its spending in the region.
He said: “Of the 29 bidders 90 per cent were from Wales including from Newport, Torfaen, Merthyr Tydfil, Caerphilly and Cardiff and one from Blaenau Gwent and resulted in really good local representation.”
Events were held in Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan to explain the contracts with lots divided along the local authority boundaries and between the building and electrical disciplines for each.
Torfaen’s Labour leader, Councillor Anthony Hunt, said it was “really pleasing” to see local firms had bid and a firm from Pontypool came top of the scoring system for Torfaen’s general building works contract.
He said it was evidence effort to encourage local firms “actually works with 90 per cent from Wales and the vast majority from south east Wales.”
He suggested the council should explain how the process works to local business groups and said: “It is almost like when we go into local schools and say look at what young people from your school have gone on to achieve and what can be done if you follow your ambitions, and this is how we can assist you.”
Mr Mills said the contracts also have key performance measures built in “so we won’t end up saddled with poor contractors underperforming and if they are we can address that very quickly and are able to switch contractors.”
Contracts were judged on 60 per cent quality, 30 per cent price and 10 per cent community wellbeing benefit which was amended, from previous contracts, with suppliers only required to deliver commitments where they are awarded work to reduce barriers to entry and avoid the need to develop detailed proposals for unknown future projects.
Successful contractors will be named at a later date.
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