A case-based comparison of the efficiency and innovation potential of integrative and collaborative procurement strategies

Both efficiency and innovation are highly demanded in the construction industry, not least in public procurement in the infrastructure sector. Although competitive tendering and arms-length relationships have long been the norm in this sector, many scholars and practitioners increasingly emphasize the need for more collaborative relationships. The purpose of this paper is to investigate and compare in what ways different types of collaborative procurement strategies may enhance efficiency and innovation in public infrastructure projects. Further, implementation challenges are identified and discussed. Interview-based case studies were performed of nine infrastructure projects in Sweden and the Netherlands. The projects involve four types of collaborative procurement strategies - collaborative Design-Build contracts, early contractor involvement (ECI) agreements, Design-Build-Maintain (DBM) contracts and Design-Build-Finance-Maintain (DBFM) contracts. In this research we consider collaboration as a multi-dimensional concept that can be described in terms of the four dimensions of scope, duration, depth, and intensity. The preliminary findings indicate that the duration of the collaboration is fundamental in setting the limits for innovation, and that early involvement as well as long term commitments open up for more innovation. Naturally, the potential for increased efficiency is higher than for innovation, and also occurs in collaborations with limited duration. However, most of the projects studied were pilot projects, and the parties involved experienced considerable and often unexpected difficulties in adjusting to the new ways of working. Misalignments occurred, for example, in the level of specification in the DB-contacts, setting target costs in the ECI contracts, integrating maintenance knowledge in the DBM and DBFM contracts, and risk aversion of private investors in the DBFM contract. Thus, for a public repeat client to realise the full potential of a new strategy, it is important to have a long-term perspective and capabilities to analyse and learn from these difficulties.