加拿大：加拿大哈密爾頓城市委員會在與蒂森克虜伯公司簽訂電梯維護(hù)協(xié)議后，另兩家電梯公司提出抗議，稱在招標(biāo)過程中，委員會拒絕他們的投標(biāo)。
這兩家公司——通力電梯和奧的斯電梯稱委員會在招標(biāo)說明中將他們排除在外，不過委員會官員說他們已經(jīng)和通力公司合作了十年，通力沒有符合委員會提出的條件。
這份維護(hù)協(xié)議價值821747美元，長達(dá)十年，覆蓋了23個市的電梯業(yè)務(wù)。
上述三家公司是此次招標(biāo)中僅有的三家，委員會稱通力和奧的斯不符合招標(biāo)要求，兩家公司表示不服。
哈密爾頓市支援服務(wù)負(fù)責(zé)人Alan Knowles和采購總監(jiān)Gail Roppo表示這次的招標(biāo)是公平的。
通力公司分店經(jīng)理Barry Lambert在給Roppo的一封信中說通力的招標(biāo)價格比蒂森克虜伯更低，可省下189,786美元。
3月16日決定中標(biāo)者之前，Lambert告訴委員會他覺得通力和其他公司已被排除在外。
Lambert說：“競標(biāo)過程中，一些競爭項(xiàng)目對我們不公平。那些項(xiàng)目根本無視規(guī)則。”奧的斯分店經(jīng)理Ken Donner周一表示他持同樣的想法。Donner說：“那些招標(biāo)說明的目的就是要把奧的斯和其他公司排除出去，中標(biāo)者早就內(nèi)定了?！?BR>這份協(xié)議特別要求競標(biāo)公司要在Chattanooga市（美國田納西州）有辦事處，Roppo和Knowles稱中標(biāo)者并非內(nèi)定，通力公司在Chattanooga安排了兩名技術(shù)人員，但沒有辦事處；而奧的斯符合這項(xiàng)要求，不過哈密爾頓市采購總監(jiān)Roppo說奧的斯在產(chǎn)品庫存方面不符要求。
支援服務(wù)負(fù)責(zé)人Alan Knowles說委員會經(jīng)過這幾年意識到電梯公司需要在地方設(shè)立辦事處。他說：“公司在各地的辦事和管理機(jī)構(gòu)可以提供及時維護(hù)服務(wù)，避免了拖延時間?！?BR>位于佛羅里達(dá)的咨詢服務(wù)公司老板Robert Dieter是招標(biāo)說明制定者之一，他表示沒中標(biāo)是通力和奧的斯的問題，“如果通力公司準(zhǔn)備充分，可能結(jié)果就不一樣了?！?BR>蒂森克虜伯分店經(jīng)理Michael Boerner表示他們中標(biāo)是因?yàn)槠湓贑hattanooga市設(shè)有辦事處，“辦事處才是我們獲勝的關(guān)鍵?！?/P>

Elevator companies cry foul on contract

Two elevator companies say they got the shaft when the Hamilton County Commission recently awarded an elevator maintenance contract to ThyssenKrupp Elevator while rejecting their bids.
The companies — Kone and Otis Elevator Co. — allege the county wrote its bid specifications to exclude their companies. But county officials said Kone — which has held the county contract for 10 years — had the opportunity to meet the bid requirements and chose not to.
The contract is worth $821,747 over 10 years and covers the maintenance of 23 county elevators.
The three companies were the only bidders on the contract, but the county said Kone Inc. and Otis did not meet bid specifications. The losing companies have written to the county to challenge the award.
Alan Knowles, superintendent of support services, and Purchasing Director Gail Roppo said the county gave all bidders an equal chance.
In a letter to Roppo, Kone branch manager Barry Lambert said Kone’s bid was lower than ThyssenKrupp’s and would have saved the county $189,786.
On March 16, before county commissioners awarded the contract, Lambert told them that he felt Kone and other companies had been excluded.
“During [the bid] process, there were several items we felt like were unfair for competitive bid practices,” Lambert told commissioners. “Some of the items were put in to rule out, not necessarily our company, but some other companies.”
On Monday, Otis branch manager Ken Donner said he also thought the bid process excluded other companies.
“The way I viewed it, it was written to eliminate certain parties,” Donner said. “It was written for certain-sized companies.”
The new contract specifically requires the company to have an office in Chattanooga.
Roppo and Knowles said the bids were not written to favor anyone. Knowles said Kone has two technicians in the area, but it does not have an office in the city.
“We didn’t rule them out because they could’ve made a decision to open an office [here],” Roppo said.
Otis has an office, but Roppo said the company was disqualified because it failed to meet another mandatory requirement related to parts inventory.
Knowles said the county has learned over the years that it’s important for an elevator company to have a local office.
“Having a physical organization and supervision in town day to day just has a huge impact in everything regarding the maintenance service and diminishing the delays,” Knowles said.
Robert Dieter, owner of Florida-based Dieter Consulting Services, which helped the county write the bid specs, said it’s Kone’s and Otis’ fault that they did not receive the contract. Dieter said it is clear that the job requires local supervision.
“If [Kone] had done everything they could have and should have, the outcome might’ve been different,” Dieter said.
Michael Boerner, a branch manager for ThyssenKrupp, said the county awarded the contract to his company because it has a local office.
“That was the main thing, local supervision,” Boerner said.