[cowpie]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/serv...250/BNStory/National/home?cid=al_gam_mostview

Toronto firm fails to get TTC contract, may launch legal challenge

JEFF GRAY



April 23, 2009 at 9:42 AM EDT

A Toronto-based firm disqualified from a multimillion-dollar contract to modernize the TTC's subway signal system is protesting against the result and may launch a legal challenge.

They say it's a "misunderstanding" over credit guarantees. I don't know who to blame in these instances--the TTC, the company, or the lawyer who drafted the letter.

 

[RedRocket191]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/serv...250/BNStory/National/home?cid=al_gam_mostview



They say it's a "misunderstanding" over credit guarantees. I don't know who to blame in these instances--the TTC, the company, or the lawyer who drafted the letter.

"I wish companies would realise that things are different & that in a post MFP world rules must be followed exactly during TTC RFP processes or it leads to being disqualified." - Adam Giambrone.

The good chair is right. If you don't cross your T's and dot your I's you're going to get disqualified, misunderstanding or deliberate omission. These companies have been around for how long? The courts should not be used as spell checker!

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

If they can't even follow the rules around bidding, what are their chances of the company following them after they've gotten the contract? And threatening to sue because of what looked like their failure in the process? Sorry that sounds like a company that's going to be trouble in the future.

If there is something with the potential for misunderstanding, you ask for clarification - not guess and hope for the best, then sue when you find out you've made a mistake.

AoD

 

[valkoholic]

"I wish companies would realise that things are different & that in a post MFP world rules must be followed exactly during TTC RFP processes or it leads to being disqualified." - Adam Giambrone.

The good chair is right. If you don't cross your T's and dot your I's you're going to get disqualified, misunderstanding or deliberate omission. These companies have been around for how long? The courts should not be used as spell checker!

Normally I'd agree with you, but having bid on TTC work in the past I have to say it is the stupidest and most confusing bid process I have ever seen. I'm convinced the companies that get TTC contracts do so on the basis on being able to somehow interpret dozens of pages of contradictory rules rather than being the best value for the TTC. The TTC seem entirely focussed on ensuring certain rules are met rather than actually picking the right combination of quality and price. If they are sued they’ll probably just add an addendum to their next contract (addendum # 2345-34-5442) that specifies bidders cannot sue the TTC.

 

[RedRocket191]

Normally I'd agree with you, but having bid on TTC work in the past I have to say it is the stupidest and most confusing bid process I have ever seen. I'm convinced the companies that get TTC contracts do so on the basis on being able to somehow interpret dozens of pages of contradictory rules rather than being the best value for the TTC. The TTC seem entirely focussed on ensuring certain rules are met rather than actually picking the right combination of quality and price. If they are sued they’ll probably just add an addendum to their next contract (addendum # 2345-34-5442) that specifies bidders cannot sue the TTC.

I think that rule based culture came from the MFP leasing scandal. It's like 9/11 - it changed everything.

Yeah, that's right, I went there.

 

[nfitz]

The TTC bidding process has to be the most black and white process I've ever seen. The more minor deviation from the requirements get's an entire bid tossed, for the most mundane red tape reason, that have no consequence on the bid. I can assure you that when we tender in the private sector, that we focus on the technical and financial aspects of the bid, and if there is a red-tape issue, we simply resolve it, without rejecting the bid.

Though I've seen more than one TTC bid won by the last company standing, because everyone else managed to break some strange rule.

I guess the trick is to have your most anal-retentive contracts guy go through the bid submission with a fine-toothed comb, and make sure that all the i's are dotted and t's crossed.

On the bright side, TTC bidding actually seems quite fair and open - which is quite unusual for a municipality, where often the fix is in right from day one - particularly in smaller towns.

 

[Swarley]

Since the TTC's a government entity they probably can't allow for any deviations from their requirements. Otherwise if say... Bombardier won a streetcar bid and they missed one of the requirements, Siemens could cause a big stink and accuse the TTC of corruption and sue them, etc etc

 

[threnody]

Since the TTC's a government entity they probably can't allow for any deviations from their requirements. Otherwise if say... Bombardier won a streetcar bid and they missed one of the requirements, Siemens could cause a big stink and accuse the TTC of corruption and sue them, etc etc

That may be true, but that doesn't mean the requirements have to be so stringent in the first place.

 

[kettal]

Financial accountability on behalf of the bidder is a good requirement.

 

[rbt]

That may be true, but that doesn't mean the requirements have to be so stringent in the first place.

Between the MFP scandal bringing in a number of additional rules and two elections at the federal level being won over accountability issues; you should not be surprised in the least there is a huge amount of expensive red tape.

We, the electorate, demanded it over the last 5 years.