STANDARDS AND SPECIFICATIONS OF A PUBLIC PROCUREMENT MODEL
TEC S. A.
1 Standards and specifications of a Public Procurement Model
GRASP: Green procurement and smart city support in the energy sector
D3.5: Standards and specifications of a Public Procurement Model
May 2014 TEC S. A.
2 Standards and specifications of a Public Procurement Model
Table of Contents 1
INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................. 4 1.1 1.2
2
BASIC STANDARDS OF ELECTRONIC PUBLIC PROCUREMENT MODELS .............. 5 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4
3
GENERAL DESCRIPTION .................................................................................................... 5 BASIC PRINCIPLES OF PUBLIC PROCUREMENT ...................................................................... 6 TENDER SUPPLY CYCLE ..................................................................................................... 6 THE PROCEDURES OF A PUBLIC PROCUREMENT.................................................................... 7
INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR PUBLIC PROCUREMENT ........................... 12 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.3.1 3.3.2 3.3.3 3.3.4 3.3.5 3.3.6
4
SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES OF THE DELIVERABLE ....................................................................... 4 STRUCTURE OF THE DELIVERABLE ....................................................................................... 4
GENERAL DESCRIPTION ..................................................................................................12 LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK FOR THE PUBLIC PROCUREMENT .................................................13 LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK FOR GREEN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT .............................................14 Supplies of Buildings & Building Materials ....................................................................... 15 Supply of Green Electricity ................................................................................................ 16 Supply of Electrical Appliances ........................................................................................ 16 Supply of lighting devices ................................................................................................ 16 Supply of Office Equipment .............................................................................................. 16 Supply of Vehicles ............................................................................................................. 17
GENERAL STANDARDS AND SPECIFICATIONS ................................................. 18 4.1 STANDARDS AND SPECIFICATIONS OF E-PROCUREMENT .......................................................18 4.2 STANDARDS AND SPECIFICATIONS OF GREEN PUBLIC PROCURMENT ......................................19 4.3 STANDARDS AND SPECIFICATIONS OF A COMMON PUBLIC PROCUREMENT MODEL ..........................21
5
SOURCES-BIBLIOGRAPHY .............................................................................. 27
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1 Introduction 1.1 Scope and objectives of the deliverable This report represents the "Standards and specifications of a Public Procurement Model" deliverable for the GRASP project and describes part of the work undertaken in WP3 “Procurement System Analysis: Transnational Mapping and Common Operating Model”. The main objective was to identify general specifications and standards that should govern a new eProcurement model, relative to the model implemented within the GRASP project
1.2 Structure of the deliverable This deliverable is structured in 4 chapters: Chapter 2 "Basic Standards of Electronic Public Procurement Models" which presents the basic standards that should govern a Public Procurement model and, also, possible "green" standards that can potentially govern its operation. Chapter 3 "Institutional Framework for Public Procurement" briefly describes the institutional framework of public procurement as it exists in Greece, taking also into account the "green" extensions of the specific institutional framework. Chapter 4, "General standards and specifications" describes general standards and specifications that should govern a new public procurement model with particular emphasis on “green” criteria for products and services.
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Basic Standards of Electronic Public Procurement Models 2.1 General description
"Public sector procurement" or "public procurement" or "government procurement" are terms used for contracts signed between a supplier and various agencies of the public sector for the purchase, rental and/or leasing of goods. As public sector procurement are considered also the contracts for the installation, maintenance, transfer or other services that are relative with the supply of these goods. The public procurement policy should aim at the creation of a transparent and competitive environment that will allow the supply of goods and services, on behalf of public bodies, in a way which ensures the best economic terms. In this context, the adoption, in practice, of electronic public procurement systems contributes in a greater transparency to the public money expenses, in the creation of an integrated market, in the open access to bidding information, in the faster processing and evaluation of tenders, in the reduction of bureaucracy and costs for the acquisition/supply of products/services. This means that if an e-procurement system is generalized, it can be saved up to 5% of the public expenditure and up to 50-80% of transaction costs for both the buyers (Public Sector) and their suppliers. In recent years, following the electronic Public Procurement, particular emphasis is placed on Green Public Procurement. Public bodies can not only set good practices but also to encourage the shift of the market towards to a more sustainable direction. The public sector spends about 2 trillion â‚Ź per year, which equates to approximately 19% of the gross domestic product of the EU. Therefore, by using its purchasing power and choose products and services that are more environmental friendly, can significantly contribute to the protection of the environment, since the continuous demand for environmental friendly products will be an incentive for suppliers to develop products and services that comply with the current quality and environmental requirements. In order to promote green procurement, the EU voted for respective Directives and Regulations, and set the target that the 50% of the public procurement by 2010 should be only green. Although this goal was not achieved, significant progress was made. Green procurement is a common practice in many countries of Northern Europe while the majority of the Member States has already prepared and submitted their National Action Plans.
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Unfortunately, Greece has made little progress towards this direction. Although the Greek legislation has become stricter on environmental and particularly on the energy characteristics of the goods and services to be supplied, less than 20% of the public contracts contain any kind of “green” criteria, while the National Action Plan has not been submitted, yet.
2.2 Basic Principles of Public Procurement Public Procurement is governed by three basic principles: Principle of publicity: any procurement from a Public Body should be notified to the interested parties through the national press and the Journal of the European Communities. From this principle are excluded some categories of low value supplies which they are defined by law. Principle of procedures’ transparency: the execution process of a public procurement, at all stages of the tender (proclamation, vendor selection, award) is based on specific, and known in advance, terms which should be complete, clear and perfectly understandable. The terms of the tenders for public procurement cannot be changed after the proclamation, but only in the case where potential objections from the contestant suppliers, will be accepted. Principle of the equal treatment: the terms of the public procurement tenders shall not be discriminative against specific discriminatory policy or business categories.
2.3 Tender supply cycle The cycle of a tender supply is divided into the following phases: 1. Identification and description of the requirements: includes the primary purchase application, the identification of the product/service’s specifications, the cost and the time of supply, the formation of the budget from the corresponding department of Supplies and finally the publication of the competition (Declaration). 2. Research regarding the Suppliers: includes the identification of the conditions required for the selection of a potential supplier, the identification of these suppliers and the purchase analysis. 3. Selection and awarding: includes the way to conduct the procurement, the definition of the criteria needed to evaluate the suppliers’ offers, the execution of the tender, the selection of the tenders and the possible negotiation of the prevailing bid, the final choice of a supplier and the creation and signing of the corresponding contract.
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4. Procurement processing: includes the administration of the contracts with the suppliers, the management of the supplies and stocks, the financial arrangements with the supplier and the measurement of a supply’s efficiency.
2.4 The Procedures of a Public Procurement The procedures regarding public procurement are divided into low-value, open, restricted and negotiated ones. Specifically: Open call for tenders: This process ensures the greatest possible participation of the candidate suppliers, since it requires full publication of the notice of a competition and allows any interested supplier to submit a bid without implying the existence of a request by the side of the public authority for each supplier to bid. Restricted tender: in this case, the institution of the competition publishes a general call for expressions of interest. The interested suppliers submit their an offer including a file of their profile. Knowledge of the full proclamation of the tender is received only by those suppliers that are selected on the basis of their profile in order to submit a full bid. Negotiated tender: in this case the public bodies consult the suppliers of their choice and negotiate the cost, with or without publication of a contract notice. In negotiations without publication normally should be invited at least three suppliers. Low-value tender: The tender of this kind is conducted by a three-member committee that checks the submitted bids. During this kind of tender at least three suppliers are invited to submit their offers. Regarding the supplies for the Municipalities the following table shows in detail the conditions that are applicable in each case. Supplies A/ A 1
TYPE OF AWARD € Direct
LIMIT TO AWARD € 15.000 € + VAT
AWARDING INSTITUTION Mayor
ORDER
2
Low-value
60.000 € without VAT
Mayor
Ministry of Economy P1/3305/2010 (GG 1789/12.11.2010)
JMD No (Government 945 V/247-2002).
RELEVANT SECTION 27319/02 Gazette
1. Supplies "Supplies Execution methods" Direct award from the Mayor 2. MUNICIPALITIES’ EXPENDITURE "69Supplies"693 Direct Award from the Mayor 1. Supplies "Supplies execution methods" Lowvalue tender
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A/ A
TYPE OF AWARD €
3
Published in the Journal of the EU
LIMIT TO AWARD €
AWARDING INSTITUTION
200.000 € without VAT
ORDER
RELEVANT SECTION
Regulation (EC) No. 1251/2011 L319/43/30-11-2011- see and Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport and Networks circular28/D11 d/607/1/19.12.2011 and 54601 54576 / 04.01.2012
2. MUNICIPALITIES’ EXPENDITURE "69Supplies"692 Low-value tender 1. Supplies "Supplies execution methods" Open tender 2. Supplies "Supplies execution" Restricted tender 3. Supplies "Supplies execution" Direct awarding (Barren contest, emergency situations, etc.)
Table 1: Supplies awarding thresholds (Source: DimosNET)
Services
A/ A 1
TYPE OF AWARD € Direct
LIMIT TO AWARD € 20.000 € without VAT
AWARDING INSTITUTION Mayor
ORDER
RELEVANT SECTION
35130/739/09.08.2010 (GG 1291/11.08.2010 issue B) Decision Ministry of Finance
2
Low value
60.000 € without VAT
Financial committee
35130/739/09.08.2010 (GG 1291/11.08.2010 issue B) Decision Ministry of Finance
1. Services (PD 28/80) "Services’ execution methods" Direct awarding by the mayor (up to 20.000 €) 2. MUNICIPALITIES’ EXPENDITURE "Services-70 work- Transport” PD 28/80 (except law 3316/06) "705 Direct service award by the Mayor (to 20.000 € plus VAT) 1. Services (PD 28/80) "Services’ execution methods" Low-value tender (up to 60.000 € without VAT) 2. MUNICIPALITIES EXPENDITURE "Services-70 work-Transport” PD 28/80 (except Law 3316/06)" 702 Low value tender (Up to 60.000 € without
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A/ A
TYPE OF AWARD €
LIMIT TO AWARD €
3
Published in the Journal of the EU
200.000 € without VAT
AWARDING INSTITUTION
ORDER
Regulation (EC) No. 1251/2011 L319/43/30-11-2011- see and Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport and Networks circular 28/D11 d/607/1/19.12.2011 and 54601 54576 / 04.01.2012
RELEVANT SECTION VAT) 1. Services (PD 28/80) "Services’ execution methods "Open tender
Table 2: Services awarding thresholds (Source: DimosNET)
Construction Projects
A/ A 1
TYPE OF AWARD € Direct awarding of small works (Article 4 par. 2 Law 1418/84)
2
Direct awarding of small projects maintenance
3
Direct awarding to Municipalities’ construction firms
LIMIT TO AWARD € * 10.271,46 € plus VAT * 14.673,51 € plus VAT for City of Athens, Piraeus, Thessaloniki Up to 5.869,40 € without VAT
AWARDING INSTITUTION Financial committee
ORDER
RELEVANT SECTION
Ministry Decision No D2a/04/40/F.N.294/86 as the direct contracting boundaries adjusted directly with MD D17a/7/96/F.N. 249/92 (Official Gazette B 547). * For electrical projects the amounts are halved
MUNICIPALITIES’ EXPENDITURE "73 Construction Projects» 73.02 Small works (Article 4 Paragraph 2 Law 1418/84) (up to 10.271,46 € + VAT)
Financial committee
Article 15 of Presidential Decree 171/87
45,000 € plus VAT.
Municipal Council
P.D.171/1987, Article 10, § 1, as amended by § 12, Art. 19 Law 3242/04
MUNICIPALITIES’ EXPENDITURE "Small works maintenance works under 5.869,40 € without VAT (according to the Article 15 of PD 171/87) MUNICIPALITIES’ EXPENDITURE "73 Construction Projects» 73.05 Direct awarding to municipalities’ construction firms
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A/ A 4
TYPE OF AWARD € Direct awarding of small projects maintenance by School Committeesbelow 5.869,40 € without VAT
LIMIT TO AWARD € up to 2.934,70 € without VAT by Director, up to 5.869,41 € without VAT by the School Committee 5.000 € plus VAT
AWARDING INSTITUTION Director of School or Board of the School Committee
ORDER
RELEVANT SECTION
JMD 13172/1995 (GG217/1995 Issue II)
MUNICIPALITIES’ EXPENDITURE "73 Construction Projects» 73.11 Small projects maintenance by School Committeesbelow 5.869,40 € without VAT
5
Direct awarding of Artistic Works
Mayor
MIPAD Decision No. 13191307 (GG 58/24.1.2007)
Low value tender Brief process
60.000 € without VAT
Financial committee
Ministry of Finance, Decision 35130/739/09.08.2010 (GG 1291/11.08.2010 Volume B)
MUNICIPALITIES’ EXPENDITURE "73 Construction Projects» 73.09 Direct awarding of Artistic Works (Up to 5.000 € plus VAT) MUNICIPALITIS’ EXPENDITURE "73 Construction Projects» 73.10 Low value tender Brief process
6
7
Published in the Journal of the EU
5.000.000 € without VAT
Regulation (EC) No. 1251/2011 L319/43/30-11-2011- see and Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport and Networks circular 28/D11 d/607/1/19.12.2011 and 54601 54576 / 04.01.2012
Table 3: Construction projects awarding thresholds (Source: DimosNET)
A/ A 1
Studies TYPE OF AWARD € Direct
LIMIT TO AWARD € 30% ceiling license fee of the A class
AWARDING INSTITUTION Financial committee
ORDER
RELEVANT SECTION
Article 209 paragraph 3 N.3463/06 (For 2011 the studies limits are mentioned the Ministry’s
MUNICIPALITIES’ EXPENDITURE "74 Studies (Law 3316/05)
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A/ A
2
TYPE OF AWARD €
Published in the Journal of the EU
LIMIT TO AWARD € that each time applies to the corresponding group study > 200.000 € without VAT
AWARDING INSTITUTION
ORDER
RELEVANT SECTION
of Infrastructure, Transport and Networks decision D15/oik/6655/22.03.2011 (GG 743/05.05.2011 issue B '). Regulation (EC) No. 1251/2011 L319/43/30-11-2011- see and Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport and Networks circular 28/D11 d/607/1/19.12.2011 and 54601 54576 / 04.01.2012
»74.01 Direct awarding by the Financial Committee
Table 4: Studies awarding thresholds (Source: DimosNET)
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3
Institutional Framework for Public Procurement 3.1 General description
The "General Directorate of Public Procurement, General Secretariat of Commerce, Ministry of Development" coordinate and carry out all the necessary procedures for the procurement of goods for the central public sector (ministries, hospitals, etc.) and regions, according to the "Public Procurement Regulation”, and based on an annual "Integrated Procurement Program”. More specifically, it is responsible for the proclamation of a tender, for finding the most advantageous offer and for the award of the contract. However, responsible for the supply are the "Procurement Committees". These Committees, as appropriate, whether defined and supervised by the General Secretariat of Commerce through the list submitted by the operator, or are in full control of the tender carrier. In addition, the General Directorate of Public Procurement provides expertise and technical support to other public sector organizations in order to carry out the supplies procedures. (General Secretary of Commerce, 2012) The municipalities carry out their supplies by themselves based on the special regulation that governs the local authorities’ supplies. Responsible are the municipal Finance Divisions and in particular the municipal procurement offices. However, they can also carry out their supplies through the "Integrated Procurement Program", which is coordinated by the General Directorate of Public Procurement, so as to receive technical support and achieve better prices. Finally, organizations of the broader public sector (eg common utility organizations) carry out their supplies on their own, through their Procurement/Financial Offices and in accordance with their own "Procurement Regulations”. In September 2011 the " Hellenic Single Public Procurement Authority" was established (Law 4013/2011) with main responsibility to promote the national strategy in the field of the public procurement, to ensure transparency, efficiency, coherence and harmonization of procedures for the award and execution of the public procurement with the national and European law, to improve the legal framework for public procurement and verify its proper observance on behalf of public institutions and contracting authorities. The Authority is
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consisted of 7 members and 7 alternate members who are persons of highly specialized training, academic or professional expertise in the field of the public procurement.
3.2 Legislative Framework for the Public Procurement The general legal framework for the award and execution of the Public Procurement is defined by law 2286/1995 "Public sector procurement arrangements and relative matters", as amended by Law 2741/1999 (article 8) and Law 3065/2002 (article 1). The Presidential Decrees 60/2007 and 59/2007 in line with the Directives 2004/18/EC and 2003/17/EC respectively, define the procedures for the award of contracts for goods, services and works whose estimated net value is equal to or exceeds specific thresholds. These thresholds depend on the scope of the contract and the nature of the contracting authority and are redefined every few years under the relevant regulations of the European Commission. More specifically, the Presidential Decree 60/2007 "Adaptation of Greek legislation to the provisions of Directive 2004/18/EC on the coordination of procedures for the award of public works contracts, public supply contracts and public services" as amended by Regulation No 1251/2011, governs all procurements of goods and services by public authorities and bodies listed in Annex IV of the same Decree, whose estimated net value is equal to or greater than 130.000 € and contracts for goods and services of other public authorities and institutions, whose estimated net value equals or exceeds 200.000 €. It also governs all contracts whose estimated net value is equal to or greater than 500.000.000 €. On the other hand, the Presidential Decree 59/2007 "Adaptation of Greek legislation to the provisions of Directive 2004/17/EC" regarding the “coordination of the procurement procedures of entities operating in the water, energy, transport and postal services", as amended by Regulation No 1251/2011, governs all contracts for goods and services whose estimated net value is equal to or greater than 400.000 € and all contracts whose estimated net value is equal to or greater than 500.000.000 €. The contracts of the central government (ministries, regions, etc.), whose net value is lower than the thresholds set by PD 60/2007 and 59/200, are governed by Presidential Decree 118/2007 "Public Procurement Regulation”, while the corresponding Municipalities’ contracts are governed by the Ministerial Decision 11389/1993 "Integrated Supplies Regulation for Local Authorities". Furthermore, the respective contracts of agencies and organizations in the broader public sector are governed by their respective internal procurement regulations.
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Finally, the services and projects contracts are governed by the Law 3316/2005 "Award and execution of public contracts, studies and supply of relative services and other provisions" and Law 3669/2008 "Ratification of the codifying of the legislation regarding the construction of public works." The National Regulation regarding Public Procurement foresees that the contracting authorities shall use the National Electronic Procurement System (ESIDIS) at all stages of the procurement process, from the submission of the request until the signing and execution of such contracts with budget more than 60.000 € without VAT. Especially for Municipalities, there is an obligation to conduct each tender by using the platform of the National eprocurement system through the portal "PROMETHEUS", according to the Law 4155/2013 (A 120) 'National e-procurement system and other provisions" as applicable by the Article 9 of Law 4205/2013 (A 242).
3.3 Legislative framework for Green Public Procurement The Greek Legislation-mainly because of the need for harmonization with European legislation-is becoming stricter on environmental and energy performance of particular products/services. The PDs 60/2007 and 59/2007 clearly allow the use of environmental criteria in the award of a contract to the "most economically advantageous offer”. More specifically, the PD 60/2007 contains provisions relating to the compliance of service and works providers with certain environmental management standards (no. 46 and 48), the existence of environmental criteria in the award criteria (No. 51), the use of environmental characteristics in the technical specifications (no. 53), and the use of environmental parameters in the special terms relating to the execution of the contract (no. 54). Accordingly, the PD 59/2007 contains provisions on the use of environmental features in the specifications (No. 26), the use of environmental parameters in special conditions relating to the performance of the contract (No. 30), the implementation of environmental management during the performance of service and projects (No. 43), and the use of environmental criteria in the award criteria (no. 46). In contrast, there is no clear use of environmental criteria in contracts not governed by PDs 60/2007 and 59/2007, in other words contracts whose net value is below the lower limits set by Regulation No 1251/2011. However, environmental criteria can be used in the technical specifications or award criteria, when the contract is awarded to the "most economically advantageous offer”, in case they do not distort the competition. Furthermore, the use of the environmental features in the technical specifications will be foreseen clearly in the
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upcoming amendment of Article 3, paragraph 2 of the PD 118/2007 "Public Procurement Regulation." Additional national laws and European regulations that encourage "green procurement" in Greece are the following. - PD 32/2010 "Determination of ecodesign requirements regarding energy using products and amendment of the Presidential Decrees 335/1993, 178/1998 and JMD D6/V/17682", in compliance with Directive 2005/32/EC. - Law 3855/2010 "Measures to improve energy efficiency in end-use, energy services and other provisions", in compliance with Directive 2006/32/EC. - Regulation (EC) No 106/2008 regarding "The EU Ecolabel” - Regulation (EC) No. 1221/2009 "on the voluntary participation by organizations in a Community eco-management and audit scheme (EMAS) and repealing Regulation (EC) No 761/2001 and Commission Decisions 2001/681/EC and 2006/193/EC " Below are briefly presented the basic laws and ministerial decrees which provide the legal framework for the 'green' procurement of buildings, building materials, green electricity, electrical appliances, lighting, office equipment and vehicles.
3.3.1 Supplies of Buildings & Building Materials The CMD D6/V/5825/2010 "Regulation of Buildings’ Energy Performance" sets the minimum energy efficiency requirements for the new buildings and the existing ones that are radically being renovated, as well as the minimum standards with respect to their orientation, the characteristics of their shell and the electrical equipment (lighting, heating, ventilation and air conditioning). It also introduces an energy classification of buildings and foresees energy performance certificates. The Greek legislation is not yet aligned with the Directive 2010/31/EU "on the energy performance of buildings" (Recast). However, the upcoming national legislation will foresee that until December 31, 2020 all the new buildings must be buildings of nearly zero-energy consumption, which will be produced in “very large extent” from renewable sources. Additionally, foresees that all the new buildings occupied by public authorities or are their property should be buildings of nearly zero-energy consumption, after the date of the 31th of December 2018.
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3.3.2 Supply of Green Electricity The PD 60/2007 allows the public contracting authorities to require, through the technical specifications, specific procedures and methods for producing a product or service. The technical specifications, unless they are justified by the subject of the contract, cannot make reference to a specific source, or to a particular production process, or to make reference to trade marks, patents, types or a specific origin or production that would effect of favoring or eliminating certain undertakings or certain products (No. 53, paragraph 8). In other words, for example a public authority may be able to require electricity which is generally produced from renewable sources, but not electricity produced from a specific renewable resource or renewable technology, eg wind energy.
3.3.3 Supply of Electrical Appliances The CMD D6/V/14826/2008 "Measures to improve energy efficiency and energy savings in the public and broader public sector" foresees that all devices the public sector and institutions of the public sector will obtain must carry energy labeling and certified energy performance indicator. In particular, air conditioners, refrigerators, freezers and cookers should have, at minimum, Energy Labelling "A" (No.7).
3.3.4 Supply of lighting devices The CMD D6/V/14826/2008 "Measures to improve energy efficiency and energy savings in the public and in broader public sector" foresees that until 31.5.2009, all the light fixtures, in the buildings of the public and broader public sector (proprietary or leased), consisting of incandescent or fluorescent bulbs should be of energy efficiency classes A or B, and also be equipped with integrated or external ballast and alternatives of magnetic type and of high performance (No. 5, paragraph 1). Furthermore, it foresees that the lights of every new supply should have the above mentioned energy characteristics that comply with the above energy requirements (No. 5, Paragraph 2). The CMD D6/V/5825/2010 " Regulation of Buildings’ Energy Performance" foresees that all the general lighting systems in residential buildings should have maximum energy efficiency of 55 lumen/W (Minimum building specifications: article 8 (g)).
3.3.5 Supply of Office Equipment The Regulation (EC) No. 106/2008 "on the labeling program of office equipment energy efficiency" foresees that all the public procurement of office equipment, governed by Directive 2004/18/EC, should set standards of energy efficiency that will be at least as stringent as the Common Specifications of Energy Star.
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The CMD D6/V/14826/2008 "Measures to improve energy efficiency and energy savings in the public and broader public sector" requires that all devices to be purchased by the Public sector and its institutions must have energy labeling and certified indication of energy efficiency. In particular, computer screens, laptops, printers and fax machines will either have the certified energy efficiency indicator "EnergyStar" or will meet energy efficiency standards that are at least as stringent as the common specification "EnergyStar" (No. 7).
3.3.6 Supply of Vehicles The Law 3982/2011, in line with Directive 2009/33/EC foresees that public authorities when purchasing vehicles should take into account the energy consumption and environmental impacts (CO2, NOx, NMHC, PM ) throughout the life of the vehicle. The cost of the energy consumption and the environmental impacts throughout the vehicle’s life are calculated by using the methodology presented in the Appendix of the same Law (n. 65-71). In addition, the Ministerial Decision 90364/2002 “Information programme for consumers about the fuel economy and CO2 emissions of the new cars", in line with Directive 1999/94/EC, defines the content of the consumer information and identify the obligations of the seller with respect to consumer information.
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4
General standards and specifications
4.1 Standards and specifications of e-Procurement E-procurement can be defined as "the use of information and communication technologies in all stages of the procurement process in order to increase the efficiency and to reduce the costs". In other words, e-procurement is referred to the "exploitation" of technology at all stages of a procurement process in order to reduce both the direct and indirect costs. Direct costs can be reduced by using ICT in order to: - Find more suppliers, and sometimes also from the abroad. - Use technology so as to increase the competition (e.g. electronic auctions). - Increase the transparency of procedures and avoid "concerted practices" during the auction or venality and other cases of "transaction." Accordingly, indirect costs can be reduced by: - Reducing administrative costs for the execution and management of a specific procurement. - Reducing errors and duplications. In Greece today, all public bodies are required to publish online and in the dedicated digital platform their demands and notices of tenders for the supply of materials or services with a market value of more than 1.000 €. This platform is the National Electronic System of Public Procurement (ESIDIS) and is available at www.promitheus.gov.gr. Through this platform all public sector bodies, gradually, will execute the bidding process of a public contract electronically. Specifically, through the system, specific processes are supported i.e. the preparation and publication of an invitation for a tender, the submission of bids by the candidates, their offers’ evaluation, and processes such as training and contracting the tender. Also, through the system a public authority is able to monitor the enforcement of the contracts, including procedures such as electronic ordering, e-invoicing and e-payment. Through the system, is given the opportunity to all the public bodies to implement new techniques in the procurement procedures, such as electronic auctions, dynamic purchasing systems, competitive dialogue and a framework agreement. One piece of ESIDIS is the Central Electronic Public Procurement Registry. Its purpose is to collect, process and publish data relating to all public contracts in the country. Its scope is the execution of works, the supply of goods and provision of services at all stages of the procurement, independently of the award process, in case the amount is over 1.000 €. In
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this Registry, all public sector bodies is mandatory to register through the portal, for each contract, the data relating to the primary request, its authorization, its statement, the Contract itself and all the relevant payments made for its implementation. In ESIDIS there is, also, the Suppliers Registry (established under law 4013/2011), which includes all participating firms in a tender. The purpose of this registry is to collect, process and publish all data that are relative to all the public procurement in the country. This section provides access to the services provided by the system to the suppliers for the automated, transparent and secure electronic preparation and submission of an offer. Field of operation is the execution of works, the supply of goods and provision of services at all stages of the procurement, independently of the award process, in case the amount is over 1.000 €.. Aim of the Registry is the transparency in procurement processes of the broader public section and the enhancement of the competition. The following chart summarizes the entire process of a contract supported by ESIDIS.
Picture 1: Function of ESIDIS
4.2 Standards and Specifications of Green Public Procurement The concept of Green Public Procurement in Greece, unfortunately is still under development. The limited number of “green procurement” by 2010 is primarily the result of the inefficient national strategy towards this direction. By 2010 Greece had not developed
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specific policies to promote green procurement and not even had initiated a National Action Plan. Only in August 2010, an Interministerial Committee was created for the preparation and monitoring of the implementation of a National Action Plan. The Interministerial Committee consists of representatives from the following ministries and agencies: "Ministry of Environment, Energy and Climate Change", "Ministry of Finance", "Ministry of Interior", "Ministry of Development & Competitiveness”, " Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport and Networks" and "Center of Renewable Energy Sources." The Interministerial Committee has intended to achieve the simultaneous "greening" of the supply and demand for the benefit of the Greek economy and the environment. So they conducted (through technical advisor) a research by using electronic questionnaires, in order to investigate whether the Greek market is ready to offer “green” products and services. Overall, 4.401 suppliers participated in the survey. 89.39% of them said that they have some kind of certification (ISO 9001-66,67%, ISO 14001/EMAS-19.70% and other certifications 27,27%), while 31.82% said it has an environmental certification. (Sartzetakis 2012) Moreover, with an initiative of the Ministerial Committee a ”Green Procurement and Environmental Standards Office" was set up in the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MD 45414-21/10/2010). The Office is responsible to support the Committee, both at the stage of drafting the National Plan, and later in its application, while it is responsible for monitoring the environmental certification of EMAS and Ecolabel. For the effective implementation of the Green Public Procurement the elaboration of a National Action Plan is required, which will take into account the needs of the public procurement, the readiness of the Greek market and the environmental impact. The country is lagging behind in the design and implementation of the Green Public Procurement, although the National Action Plan was expected to be completed in 2013. However, important steps have been made and continue to be developed towards the introduction of the green dimension into the public contracts which will be created between the service providers and the public authorities, regarding projects and works that will reduce their operating costs. For example, the public sector will be able to purchase “green cars”, to implement building structures that will be "dressed up" with energy efficient building materials (eg, windows) and also equip agencies with energy efficient bulbs, which will save energy.
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4.3 Standards and specifications of a common public procurement model Based on the above data, we conclude that the existence of a common procurement model which includes e-procurement that takes into account "green" extensions of products/services is an important factor that contributes positively to the efficient use of energy and money saving for the Public Sector. The procedures of such a model should cover all phases of the supply cycle and the stages of the transaction, from the call for tenders, the examination of the necessary conditions and terms, until the payment and management of the respective contracts. Such a model should be an integrated solution that automates, monitors and controls the processes of green procurement in the best possible way for the public bodies and the suppliers. This common model should, also, follow the evolution stages of already existing public eprocurement systems. Specifically: 1. Existence of a website that provides general information and on-line forms for a tender. 2. Searchable databases and complete online forms. 3. Two-way communication with the respective suppliers and safe introduction of suppliers’ confidential data. 4. Sharing of certified data with other services, with the condition that there is consent from the part of suppliers. Additionally, the GRASP Green Procurement model, may adopt operational models and standards used by Public Authorities and organizations across Europe. Indicative examples are the following: e-Tendering: through e-Tendering the creation and publication of the tender notice and the creation and circulation of the required documents are processed electronically. Usually, the process is coordinated through a central portal where all the necessary tender documents are available (e.g. notices, specifications, FAQs, etc.). Furthermore, through the portal the suppliers may submit their offers by using the standardized electronic forms (e-Access, eSubmission). Regarding the necessary information and administrative documents from the suppliers involved, these are available in the respective electronic registry of suppliers from which are recovered in order to be checked. Finally, through the portal it is possible the
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communication between the Public organization that manages/publishes the tender and the participating suppliers. A typical e-Tendering model includes the following stages: Online tender publication: access to published tender notices through the portal, usually through databases accessible via Internet. Electronic delivery of documents: the participating suppliers can access the Portal and either “download” the tender documentation (eg notice, specifications, etc.), or receive them via email. In this way, a supplier may save time as he can quickly determine whether the declaration of a tender interests him or not. Electronic submission of tenders (e-Submission): the participating suppliers may submit their offers electronically. A requirement for the implementation of this step is the existence of appropriate certification and transaction security applications (eg, electronic signatures, etc.). Online auctions: electronic auctions are based on an electronic mechanism responsible for submitting financial offers for a tender. The auctions are not a full evaluation process but an important part of this. They are performed after a preliminary evaluation of offers has been conducted (open, restricted, negotiated tender), allowing them to be ranked by using an automatic evaluation method. Once the preliminary evaluation of the offers is held, the organization performing the tender sends an electronic invitation to the selected suppliers so that they may participate in the auction. Electronic marketplaces: this standard acts as an e-market where suppliers present their profile and offered products/services, thus offering the possibility for public bodies to have an overview of the market. In conjunction with potential electronic catalogues, it is possible the creation of an online platform through which the public bodies may order products/services. Electronic catalogues: Electronic catalogues have specific structure and rely on integrated electronic suppliers’ and products’ registries that are also based on standards for their structure. By using of electronic catalogues the following advantages are foressen: A reduction of the time needed for data analysis is achieved and the errors are minimized, since no iterative checks regarding suppliers’ data are required.
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The standard structure of the electronic catalogues allows finding suppliers through specialized searching queries in the electronic catalogues based on specific criteria (eSourcing). Facilitation of the process for selecting the winning supplier (eAwarding) since the data lists are directly comparable. Facilitation of the process for receiving electronic orders (eOrdering).
Furthermore, to the above standards additional functions can be implemented, so as to complete the functionality of a GPP model. Such indicative functions are the following: Qualification systems: In public procurement, suppliers are required to prove that they meet specific financial and technical specifications, as well as their experience. In addition, they must submit various administrative documents for each tender (e.g. balance sheets, legal documents, Chamber certificates, bank statements, etc.). Qualification systems can reduce the bureaucratic procedures, since they support the automatic submission and control of procurement documents. The documents of each company are being checked once at a specified time from the institutional framework, and after their initial submission are available on-line for all public bodies. e-Awarding: This function aims to help the offers evaluation process both through the automation of the standard procedures and through the use of decision support tools which assist in the ranking of suppliers and the selection of the contractor, thereby enhancing transparency and integrity of the respective process. Moreover, this function is able to send a notice and all related documents to the selected contractor-supplier. e-Evaluation: this function helps the evaluation of the offers submitted by a supplier in order the final tender contractor to be selected. e-Contracting: This function takes over to support the electronic management of training and the monitoring of the contracts execution. e-Ordering: this unit performs all functions that are relative to the creation and distribution by electronic means of all the documents related to specific orders. e-Invoicing: This function is responsible for automating the process of creating and distributing the respectictive invoices between the buyer and the supplier.
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e-Payment: Refers to the information distribution regarding payments and/or accomplishment of electronic payments between the buyer, the supplier and the bank. In addition, this component supports the electronic management of the Bank Guarantees. For all the above functions/standards the existence of standardized electronic catalogues (eCatalogues) per supplier is required. The existence of electronic records for suppliers/products contributes substantially in avoiding errors and automating the process of public procurement. Finally, a common Green Procurement model should take into account certain "green" standards for the products/services that will include. Indicative examples are the following: When it comes to the packaged products these should have in their packaging this certain Green Seal. This seal on the product’s packaging means that the company that produces the product has fulfilled its obligations in relation to the responsibility for the recovery and recycling of the packaging as it is foreseen by Directive 62/1994/EK and the relevant law 2339/2001. The products/services should have eco-labeling and meet specific environmental criteria. The EU has created a specific “green procurement” toolkit (http://ec.europa.eu/environment/gpp/eu_gpp_criteria_en.htm) which includes energy criteria for the following: Copy and printing paper, cleaning products/services, office IT equipment, constructions, transport, furniture, electricity, catering services, textiles, gardening products/services, glass, insulation, hard floor coverings, walling, cogeneration of heat and electricity, roads and road markings, street lighting and signaling, cell phones and interior lighting. Therefore, if for the product/service requested environmental criteria were set, then the technical specifications should include these statutory criteria. The use of criteria from voluntary or mandatory energy/eco-label certificates in tenders may lead companies to produce greener products globally. Indicative energy labels are the following:
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Picture 2: Energy/Green labels
The legislative framework established for the supply of specific products/services should be taken into account (see also Section 3.3). Briefly we mention the following: o Minimum requirements for the energy performance of new and existing buildings. Energy performance certification for buildings. o Supply of electricity which is generally produced from renewable sources, and not from a particular source or technology. o Supply of electrical appliances (e.g. air conditioners, refrigerators, cooker, etc.) of energy class A, at least. o Supply of lamps of energy efficiency classes A or B and which have electronic ballast. Also, the lighting systems in buildings should have maximum energy efficiency 55 lumen/W. o Office equipment (e.g. screens, PCs, laptops, printers, fax, etc.) should be certified at least with the «Energy Star» certificate. o For the procurement of vehicles the operational energy consumption and environmental impacts throughout the life of the vehicle should be taken into account. In this model should not be included products containing substances or subproducts which are harmful to the environment such as polyurethane products, asbestos products, detergents and cleaning products with phosphates, vinyl products (chlorinated plastic PVC), etc. Finally, a Green Procurement model as the model to be implemented within the GRASP project should take into account certain "green" product/service categories which will be included in its databases. Such categories, together with the individual sub-categories are the following: Energy Efficiency, which includes:
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o Public Lighting. o Building renovation & retrofitting. o Building climate control o Heating and cooling efficiency o IT equipment Renewable energy sources (RES) which include the following: o Solar Energy. o Wind Energy. o Geothermal Energy.
For the above two categories, the model should include important information concerning individual features of the offered "green" products/services. Indicatively: Key specifications and characteristics of "green" products / services. Energy Performance criteria. Key technologies and/or cutting edge technologies. Cost/Benefit considerations.
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Sources-Bibliography
1. http://www.cosmo-one.gr/educommerce/wp-content/img/en4_2.pdf 2. http://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/conferences/od2013/presentations_frame.cfm 3. http://www.eeb.org/EEB/?LinkServID=7073853F-5056-B741DB185D44F5C2CB4E&showMeta=0 4. http://www.greenbanking4life.gr/Documents/Greenbanking/Prasines_Promithies.p df 5. http://www.eprocurement.gov.gr 6. http://www.buy-smart.info 7. Papamikroulea, L. (2012). Energy-efficient public procurement experience in Greece & practices. Workshop Green Procurement in Europe, November 30, 2012, Thes / ki, Greece. 8. Sartzetakis, E. (2012). Green procurement in Greece: national politics & current situation. Workshop Green Procurement in Europe, November 30, 2012, Thes / ki, Greece.
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