OSPE - COVID-19 Economic Recovery Recommendations - Provincial Government - 19

The Benefit to Ontarians:

i. Better value to taxpayers

QBS encourages innovation which in turn drives better value on the infrastructure investment. It provides accountability by

ensuring that fees will directly correspond to the level of service and the value of deliverables to be provided. QBS also results in

more realistic and predictable budgets and schedules for project expenditures.

ii. Significant life-cycle savings

QBS maximizes the value of the consultant's contribution to a project while reducing the project's life cycle costs. A recent

American Public Works Association study shows that using QBS for professional services reduces construction cost overruns

from an average of 10% to less than 3% - equivalent to a savings of up to $700K on a $10M capital project.

iii. Benefits small firms

QBS helps small firms compete by providing them a process through which to demonstrate the advantages that they often have

over larger firms, including a greater degree of niche market expertise, greater knowledge of the local market and greater

involvement of senior level management in the execution of the project.

iv. Promotes communication and technical innovation

Using QBS provides owners the opportunity to fully define the scope of work of the project during the selection process. This

results in a project that is thoroughly thought out and fosters innovative, creative, cost-saving, and timesaving approaches to

problems. It also fosters better communication and business relationships between owners and proponents as the process

makes them partners in the job.
b. Effectively report life-cycle costing
It is essential that all infrastructure projects conducted by the province properly report and consider life-cycle costing. In order to gain the
maximum value for money, all costs incurred over the whole life span of infrastructure projects must be estimated. This will ensure that
taxpayer's money is used for infrastructure projects that are able to produce multigenerational benefits for most Ontarians at a proper
cost.
c. Consider diversity and inclusion
The provincial government should implement supply chain diversity policies. This will enable the province to use procurement to advance
equity, diversity, and inclusion. The benefits of a diverse supply chain are well documented in research done by the Centre for Diversity
and Inclusion and the Conference Board of Canada. Small to medium enterprises owned by women and members of other equity seeking
groups provide value to large organizations, reduce the risk of streamlined supplier pipelines, and lead to economic growth. The federal
government has committed to increasing the participation of under-represented groups and Indigenous businesses in federal procurement, while cities like Toronto have established social procurement programs with similar objectives. It is imperative that the provincial
government establish this to ensure that engineering companies led by women and members of equity seeking groups are provided with
access to public procurement opportunities.

OSPE - COVID-19 Economic Recovery Recommendations - Provincial Government

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of OSPE - COVID-19 Economic Recovery Recommendations - Provincial Government