Brian Hayes TD, Minister of State with special responsibility for the Office of Public Works (OPW), today gave details of a range of procurement initiatives launched by the National Procurement Service (NPS) of the Office of Public Works (OPW). The Minister was making a keynote speech at the opening of the National Procurement Conference in the Alexander Hotel, Dublin 2.
Minister Hayes said: “Public Service expenditure (all-island) on the procurement of works, goods and services amounts to approx €21 billion per annum. This represents approx 10% of GDP, a very significant volume of economic/commercial activity. The new Programme for Government has identified the role public procurement can play in becoming a tool to support innovation and to ensure access by Small and Medium Sized (SME) businesses to the public service market”.
“Only this week I launched a prime example of innovation: the Framework for Managed Print Services which is expected to generate savings of up to €22 million annually over the next two to four years. A managed print service provides a print solution that is strategic and cost effective. It provides the public sector access to a modern and reliable service that has been tailored for the specific needs of the organisation. It is a tool for real public service reform that provides transparency in cost, and generates savings that will be of direct benefit to all of the taxpayers of this country. Last week I launched a pilot project on e-Invoicing across a number of Government Departments and other public sector bodies. The full rollout of e-Invoicing could lead to multi-million euro savings for the exchequer in terms of reduced administrative and transactional costs, as well as providing savings to suppliers to the public sector. In addition, Irish service providers in this area could become leaders in this technology across the EU Member States”.
The Minister continued: “there is a need for Government to achieve increased value for money from the marketplace. In 2011 centralised procurement arrangements realised savings in excess of €29 million through the establishment of cost effective, centralised contracts in many areas of large spending including: electricity, gas, stationery, clothing and uniforms, paper, cars/vehicles, advertising and janitorial supplies amongst others. These contracts also result in considerable savings on administration costs. The Public Service needs to realise real and immediate efficiencies in the procurement process that will translate into verifiable savings”.
Minister Hayes continued: “The publication by the Department of Finance of Circular 10 of 2010 is a very significant development in ensuring that SMEs are not excluded from public procurement. This emphasises the need for transparency: placing tenders valued at €25,000 or above on www.etenders.gov.ie. It ensures that criteria & insurance are proportionate to risk/value of the contract. It reduces the administrative burden by allowing tenderers self-declare their capacity to undertake the contract and it puts an emphasis on contracting Authorities encouraging joint bidding among tenderers”.
“The launch of a new Suite of Procurement documentation in June 2011 considerably reduces the administrative burden on both suppliers and buyers. It means that suppliers wishing to compete for contracts can now expect to receive the same documents regardless of which public body issues them. Such a development should significantly reduce costs for suppliers when transacting business”.
“For Irish Public Service procurement the www.etenders.ie website is a very important platform. Through this website, suppliers wishing to do business with the State can see, and compete for, all contracts over the value of €25,000. In 2011 the NPS expanded the number of suppliers registered on this site to in excess of 80,000”.
The Minister concluded by recommending all delegates visit www.procurement.ie, a dedicated NPS website which is a valuable source of information for both buyers and suppliers. It is recommended that companies register as suppliers through this site, view upcoming opportunities and avail of a range of guidance material across the Government procurement spectrum.