OGC decision point 1

The Office of Government Commerce (OGC) has now been absorbed into the Efficiency and Reform Group (ERG) within the Cabinet Office.

When it existed, the OGC produced a great deal of guidance about best practice in procurement and project management. This OGC guidance has now been archived, however, it is still cited in the new Government Construction Strategy and the revised Common Minimum Standards (to become the 'Construction Standards') and links are still provided from government websites such as the Major Projects Authority. The OGC gateway review process still provides one of the best and most comprehensive sets of guidance for public projects. It is for this reason that the project plan for public projects within Designing Buildings Wiki follows the OGC gateway review process. See Public project: outline work plan.

The procurement routes preferred by the Government Construction Strategy and described by the OGC gateway review process are private finance initiative (PFI), prime contracting and design and build (see OGC Achieving Excellence Guide 6: Procurement and contract strategies). The Government Construction Strategy states that traditional procurement routes that separate design from construction should not be used unless it can be demonstrated that they offer better value for money.

The three preferred routes involve appointing a single integrated supply team (including designers, contractors, suppliers and perhaps facilities managers) after the project brief has been prepared, before design commences. This means that the main decision to invest (i.e. to appoint the integrated supply team), takes place before any designs have been prepared.

The OGC Gateway Review process offers a structure for projects following these procurement routes, based around a series of independent peer reviews carried out at key stages to verify that projects should be allowed to progress to the next stage.

These peer reviews, or 'gateway reviews' are commissioned on a confidential basis by the Senior Responsible Owner:

• OGC gateway review 0: strategic assessment.
• OGC gateway review 1: business justification
• OGC gateway review 2: delivery strategy (or procurement strategy)
• OGC gateway review 3: investment decision
• OGC gateway review 4: readiness for service
• OGC gateway review 5: operations review & benefits realisation (or benefits evaluation)

There are also two additional decision points specific to building projects:

• OGC decision point 1: outline design.
• OGC decision point 2: detailed design.

In practice, some of the design work leading up to these decision points is likely to be carried out during the tender process (or bidding process on PFI projects).

According to OGC, decision point 1 is the point after which no client change should be made. The tasks that should be undertaken prior to decision point 1: outline design are:

• Confirm availability of funds.
• Confirm business case and procurement route.
• Where integrated supply team (IST) is not already in place, award contract to tenderer offering best VFM (value for money).
• Appoint IST.
• Hold workshop with senior management from parties in IST and the client to form integrated project team (IPT) and agree partnering charter.
• Agree common goals, detailed criteria for sharing of benefits, dispute resolution process, performance criteria, partnering champions and risk managers; confirm delegations (financial and decision making).
• Carry out value engineering (VE) study to optimise whole-life design quality and cost.
• IPT (integrated project team) to assess buildability of options.
• Review by IPT (integrated project team) senior management to address major issues arising.
• Identify residual risks and continue to manage risks and risk allowance.
• Ensure stakeholders understand and accept design proposals and initiate planning for occupation use.
• Agree joint risk management approach.
• Ensure that operator and maintainer of facility are fully involved in design development.
• Review outline design and for project to proceed to detailed design.
• Consider affordability.

ref OGC Achieving Excellence Guide 3 - Project Procurement Lifecycle P14.

It may also be appropriate to make an outline planning application or detailed planning application during this stage.

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For a detailed description of the sequence of tasks necessary on public projects, see the work plan available from Designing Buildings Wiki: Public project: outline work plan. OGC decision point 1: outline design takes place at the end of the work stage: Public project: concept design.

[edit] Find out more

[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki

• Common Minimum Standards.
• Design and build.
• Designing Buildings Wiki: Public project: outline work plan.
• Gateways.
• Government Construction Strategy.
• OGC.
• Output based specification.
• Private Finance Initiative.
• Prime contract.
• Public procurement.
• Public project: business justification.
• Major Projects Authority.

[edit] External references

• OGC: What is OGC gateway review?
• OGC: Achieving Excellence Guide 3 - Project Procurement Lifecycle.
• OGC Achieving Excellence Guide 6: Procurement and contract strategies.
• Major Projects Authority.