Background
Cocksedge Building Contractors were established in 1938 and are now over 80 years old. They specialise in building projects with colleges, care homes, sports and leisure, commercial and housing. Projects range from £500k to £20 million with Design & Build, Traditional and 2-stage open book procurement. They currently have 165 employees and offer apprenticeship and under-graduate management training schemes.
Cocksedge have framework contracts with Norfolk and Suffolk County Councils and the University of East Anglia.
Construction Framework Contracts
Major Construction Work | Lot 2 | Projects £3.5m to £9.0m | 5 Contractors
Major Construction Work | Lot 1 | Projects £500k to £3.5m | 7 Contractors
Minor Construction Work | Lot 1B | General Building £200k to £800k | 5 Contractors
Minor Construction Work | Lot 3 | Electrical £30k to £200k | 3 Contractors
All Framework Projects Procured via mini-competitions with price / qualitative assessments.
Recent Turnover via Norfolk County Council Framework Projects
2020 | £5.3m to date
2019 | £6.6m
2018 | 3.2m
Advantages for SMEs
Steve Nugent, Managing Director, outlined the advantages for SMEs to be working with the public sector, particularly that secure payment terms, equals cash flow benefits. He also noted that a known pipeline for mini-competitions means that the business can opt-in, or opt-out, dependent upon workflow. Where the company does opt-in, the360 review feedback received from the applications allows for improvement with future submissions.
Steve likes that working in partnership with others as it encourages industry innovations and the monitoring of the specified KPIs for the framework, enables improvements to Cocksedge’s performance. He is particularly keen to promote and engage with a wider Norfolk-based supply chain.
Asked about his top tips for Bid Preparation, Steve listed the following:
- Get to know the Norfolk County Council In-Tend Portal – ensure at least two people are linked to avoid missing new opportunities and mini-competition updates
- Check requirements for Industry Accreditations / Qualifications for Staff etc.
- Carefully consider the Descriptors for the Award Criteria for Quality Marks
- Use the full knowledge base within your organisation to assist with Qualitative Question Answers
- Read the Qualitative Questions carefully. Make you your answers project specific. Avoid generic statements unless a best practice solutions is requested
- Use examples of challenges and lessons learnt on previous contracts, where relevant
- Keep to the word count – plan your answer in sections and use small paragraphs and bullet points to provide succinct and relevant information
- Review mini-competition feedback in a constructive manner to improve your next bid
For more information about how to ensure your businesses is ‘Bid Ready’ visit the Procurement Hub: https://norfolkchambers.co.uk/procurement-hub
