Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/717930
54 • september 2016 • world fence news Low-ball bingo – Part 2 What really happens at bid lettings by stephen saucerman If you recall, in last month's col- umn I related some insights into what happens in the back rooms at con- struction bid lettings. I like to use a tongue in cheek presentation, but be- hind the humor is a lot of truth, based on my 40 years in the business. When we left off, a city office ad- dition was being bid. On the day of bid opening, DingleDirt Brothers Co. submitted a base bid of $596,111.32 (the lowest), while Ringshank Build- ing Group was in with the high bid, $14,710,000. The rest were in the $2 million range. You guessed it: the job went to DingleDirt Brothers. The architect pats the uneasy mayor on the back as they walk out of the letting, congratu- lating him on being under budget. The mayor is starting to feel a lit- tle sick to his stomach. The horrifying and all-to-familiar events that unfold are an experience one simply must live through to fully appreciate. It goes a little like this: 1. Having left mega bucks "on the table," Donny and Danny DingleDirt (the DingleDirt Brothers) head direct- ly from the bid letting to Arnie's Pub & Eatery. 2. Everyone at Arnie's has the most amazing time because there are two crazy contractors buying every- one Jaeger ® shots and gyros. They keep mumbling something about their lives being over. 3. The total bar bill is $6,287 (which also covers a new stuffed moose. Don't ask.) 4. Three days later, Danny (the eldest) calls the project architect "to discuss the project." During the con- versation he cautiously floats out that there "may have been a mathematical error in their bid." The architect holds his ground for all of 16 nano-seconds before caving (he's never been good with confronta- tion) and the negotiating door swings wide open for the DingleDirts. 5. In the end, the budgeted $1 million project ends up costing the city $1,916,512. There were 173 change-orders, 91 intense meetings, 1,816 threats of litigation and/or stran- gulation, six punch lists and one may- oral impeachment hearing. 6. Two-and-half years after com- pletion, there is still no door on the women's bathroom and no one can figure out where that "dead animal" smell is coming from. In an unrelated note, no one has seen Donny Dingle- Dirt's ferret "Mr. Scuppers" since ear- ly in the building project. 7. The tax-paying public is out- raged by the construction cost over- runs and the overall gross incompe- tence of the players. Investigations are conducted, meetings are held, councilmen are piously outraged, and walnut gavels pound on lecterns. Meanwhile, Donny & Danny DingleDirt are popping PBRs and teasing alligators from their custom airboat in a popular Sows Ear, Loui- siana swamp. (Town motto: They Will Never Find You Here!) Ok… ok, maybe I've embellished a little, but it's only to illustrate a point. I'm betting that – as a building contractor – there's much in the sordid tale of the DingleDirts that resonates with your personal experience. I'm also guessing that we've all felt at times that the tradition- al competitive bid award system is a severely damaged vehicle – as in s e c o n d - h a n d -Yugo - i n - a - d e m o li - tion-derby damaged. But if that in- deed is the case, then we have to ask ourselves, how did we get here? How Did We Get Here? Well, there are many reasons – ranging from unrealistic expectations to innocent incompetence to outright greed and corruption. And like many train wrecks that only get addressed after things have gone awry, the real culprit turns out not one single reason but instead many disparate, separate causes. Our bid letting saga is only one small cog in a great big, dysfunctional construction competitive bid mecha- nism. There's a lot more at play: • It's by its very nature adver- sarial. From the moment a contract is signed, the construction process (as a result of competitive bid) turns all the participants into manic, fren- zied "money-grabbing" trolls where owner, general contractor, architect, engineer, subcontractor and material supplier scratch, scrap, cheat and steal continued on page 56 COMPARE AND SAVE ON TEMPORARY FENCE PANELS WE SHIP COAST TO COAST 4,000 + PANELS of 6 X 10 & 8 X 10 ARE IN STOCK SWAN-BOND Fused-Bonded Wire 800-688-SWAN (7926) www.swanfence.com 600 W. Manville St., Compton, CA 90220