 |
Inspiration Card
Governance Actions |
|
|
|
G35 Introducing MEAT award criterion in public procurment
For effective adoption of the NBS concept and its integration throughout municipal structures, the often prevailing “lowest price offered” mentality in public procuring needs to be overcome within the existing legal framework. If NBS are to be adopted in the mainstream city development, the municipal procurement scheme needs to be able to incorporate the holistic costs and benefits provided by NBS. One approach includes the Most Economically Advantageous Tender (MEAT) criterion when evaluating the bids. This criterion enables the procurement officers to consider qualitative aspects of the proposed solution, in addition to the price dimension.
- Emphasis on innovation and overall quality over lowest price-offering of the tendered service or a solution.
- Assessment criteria reflecting estimated impact on the lives of the target group.
UNaLab Stories: Innovative procurement, Eindhoven
Eindhoven is experimenting with innovative approaches to public procurement regarding complex projects and solutions. For the procurement of the city’s street lighting system, tendering to the lowest price bidder would not ensure a sufficiently innovative and sustainable street lighting solution. Within the legal procurement boundaries, Eindhoven engaged in so-called “best-value procurement”. This approach aims to get the best value for the money spent. Applying this logic, the City of Eindhoven engaged in a number of market consultations with potential suppliers. Rather than asking what is the lowest price a solution supplier could offer (limiting potential for innovation), Eindhoven asked what is the most (CO2 savings, positive social impact, public engagement, etc.) that the potential supplier could deliver for a fixed amount of money. This small tweak in framing the procurement process means that rather than just savings, the city looks at the amount of positive benefits that could be created with that investment