Water Business Overview

Introduction   The Standard Bidding Document for the Procurement of Works–Small Contracts (SBD Works-Small) has been prepared by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for use in contracts involving “smaller” contracts—valued at generally less than $10 million by open competitive bidding. It is based on the Master Document for Procurement of Small Works, prepared by multilateral development banks and international financing institutions. It reflects the structure and the provisions of the Master Document, except where specific considerations within ADB have required a change. The SBD Works-Small follows a postqualification procedure that requires Bidders to submit the information pertaining to their qualifications together with their bids. In this event, it will be necessary to ensure that a Bidder’s risk of having its bid rejected on grounds of qualification is remote if due diligence is exercised by the Bidder during bid preparation. For that purpose, clear-cut, pass-fail qualification criteria need to be specified by the Employer in both the Invitation for Bids as well as the Bidding Document to enable Bidders to make an informed decision on whether to pursue a specific contract and, either to do so as a single entity or in Joint Venture. Postqualification criteria, requirements, and relevant forms for submission are covered in Section 3 (Evaluation and Qualification Criteria) and Section 4 (Bidding Forms). The SBD Works-Small is intended for both lump sum (activity schedule) and admeasurement (unit prices in a bill of quantities) types of contract, which are the most common in civil works contracting. Lump sum contracts are used particularly for building construction and other forms of construction where the works are well defined and are unlikely to change in quantity or specification, and where it is unlikely to encounter difficult or unforeseen site conditions (for example, hidden foundation problems). Otherwise, admeasurement contracts should be used. The main text is applicable to both types of contracts (lump sum and admeasurement). Fixed prices are provided as a default unless price adjustment is allowed and indicated in Section 2 (Bid Data Sheet). An important feature of the SBD Works-Small, which is only available in electronic format on the ADB website, is that it can be used with minimum changes, as it does not contain explanations, footnotes, or examples that should not form part of the Bidding Document. The provisions in Section 1 (Instructions to Bidders) and Section 7 (General Conditions of Contract) must be used with their text unchanged. This user’s guide is provided to guide employers in preparing a bidding document based on the SBD Works-Small for a single-stage: one-envelope bidding procedure. This guide includes the Bidding Process and the Invitation for Bids, which are not part of the Bidding Document. ADB welcomes any feedback or experiences from both Borrowers and Bidders on the use of its Standard Bidding Document. For information on procurement under ADB-financed projects, contact 

Introduction: This study guide is designed to provide an overview of the key elements, important historical context and current debates in the field of Quality Management. It aims to give a coherent view of the underlying principles of quality management, and how these relate to practical application in a range of organizations. The tools and techniques which support the principles are not covered in detail in this guide, More information on these can be found in the companion guide: “Six Sigma: Principles and Practices” also available at Bookboon.com. The guide starts with a development of the theory in each area and then provides a contex tualisation which considers what the theory might mean for organizational practice. Due to the complexity of many of the issues addressed, it is possible to write much more on any single topic, but I have tried to cover most of the key points in order to provide a foundation, and further literature linked from the text allows the reader to investigate any topic in more depth if they wish. Finally, at the end of each chapter there are a number of questions for you to develop your thinking in the area.