Monitoring Number and Severity of BTO Flat Defects Associated with Particular Contractors
Ministry of National DevelopmentSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns HDB’s monitoring of BTO flat defects by contractor and how these records influence future contract awards. Mr Leon Perera inquired about defect tracking during and after the Defects Liability Period (DLP) and its weight in tender evaluations. Minister Desmond Lee explained that HDB evaluates contractors biannually via the Contractors Performance Assessment framework, where high defect rates result in lower scores. These scores are factored into the quality component of the Price Quality Method used to score future building tenders. Minister Desmond Lee added that HDB investigates post-DLP issues and engages contractors to rectify any identified inherent defects.
Transcript
37 Mr Leon Perera asked the Minister for National Development (a) whether HDB monitors the number and severity of BTO flat defects associated with particular contractors in particular developments, both during and after the one-year defects liability period; (b) whether HDB takes into account the number and severity of defects caused by particular contractors in prior developments when awarding future contracts; and (c) if so, how much weight is accorded to such defects when awarding future contracts.
Mr Desmond Lee: HDB tracks the performance of contractors closely during construction, and the Defects Liability Period (DLP). During this time, contractors are assessed every six months under HDB's Contractors Performance Assessment (CPA) framework, which takes into account the progress of site works, the quality of works completed, as well as site safety. Poor performance, including a high incidence of defects, whether at the construction or the DLP stages, will result in lower CPA scores, and impact the contractor’s ability to secure future HDB projects.
In evaluating building tenders, HDB adopts the Price Quality Method (PQM) where tender bids are scored according to price, quality and productivity criteria. The CPA scores of a particular contractor constitute part of the quality component in the PQM evaluation.
The vast majority of defects are reported during the DLP, and would therefore be factored into a contractor’s CPA score. For issues reported after the DLP, HDB will investigate the likely cause and advise flat owners on the follow-up action accordingly. If the issue is assessed to be due to an inherent defect or quality issue, HDB will engage the building contractor to rectify it.