NSW Government backs ASI procurement initiatives

Opportunities for ASI’s steel fabricators and manufacturer members to supply to the NSW Government have been improved under two ASI-backed initiatives.  In the first, the government has endorsed a number of ASI recommendations to a NSW Government Upper House Inquiry into the Procurement Practices of Government Agencies in NSW seeking to protect local manufacturers from cheap unfairly traded, low-priced imports. They include: 

• tenders being compliant with minimum wage modern slavery requirements, helping to level the playing field with imports coming from non-market economies 
• tenders broken down into smaller parts to better enable small businesses to participate 
• government agencies to consider product lifecycle in their procurement needs analysis and specifications. This includes ensuring reuse, repurposing, recycling and disposal of goods

In the second, the NSW Government has issued a Procurement Board Directive (PBD) requiring its agencies to state in decision-making documents for tender processes for projects or contracts with a budget of $7.5 million why a local supplier has not been selected if one is available. The purpose of this direction is to ensure local suppliers are provided a full and fair opportunity to compete for government contracts. NSW Government agencies were required to implement the PBD no later than 1 January 2025.