A Guide for Suppliers Public Procurement Rules In common with all Government departments and many other public sector bodies, the DTI is subject to a series of EC regulations (that are part of UK law) that govern how it may purchase goods, services and works over a specified value. Where the estimated value is expected to exceed the relevant EC threshold, requirements have to be advertised in the daily supplement to the Official Journal of the European Commission (OJEC). The threshold varies from time to time and has traditionally been amended every two years on 1 January. The thresholds only apply to certain services that need to be advertised and the current level is approximately £104435 for those as well as all goods. The level for works is approximately £4,016,744 The Regulations stipulate timescales that must be adhered to. These are intended to ensure that suppliers are given a reasonable time to respond to adverts. This includes responding to requests for expressions of interest as well as responding to invitations to tender. There are different types of tendering procedures that can be adopted, although the DTI has for the most part chosen to opt for the "Restricted Procedure". This means that all companies who reply to an OJEC advert within the stipulated time limits will be assessed against the stipulated published pre-qualification criteria and considered for tendering against stipulated published criteria. The best qualified firms will be invited to submit a tender, but the numbers will be restricted to that indicated in the original advert. The EC rules also require the DTI to publish an annual Prior Information Notice. This contains information about those known anticipated purchases of particular categories of goods and services expected to exceed the specific threshold over the coming year. the purpose is to give potential suppliers early notice of any planned large requirements The OJEC notices are now published in electronic format and access to this is by several sources. There is an electronic on-line data service provided by the European Commission that can provide details. This service can be obtained from: Echo Customer Service BP 2373 1023 Luxembourg Another source of procurement information on DTI and Government purchasing generally is "Government Opportunities". This is published weekly by Business Information Publications Ltd. It also contains information on Better Quality Services Reviews, Private Finance Initiative & Private/Public Partnerships reports and reviews for Agencies and Non-Departmental Public Bodies as well as lists of procurement publications and Government Contacts. Business Information Publications Ltd (BiP Ltd) Freepost Glasgow G3 6BR Tel: 0141 332 8247 Fax: 0141 331 2792 e-mail: bipcontracts.com www.bipcontracts.com This magazine is the only publication that will contain a paper version of the Department's OJEC notices. As official agents of the European Commission's publishing house- EUROP, BiP Ltd also provide the OJEC on CD-ROM format.