Joint contracting

The contract supervisor (PRM) can award a contract to several suppliers. The Public Contract Code (CMP) gives companies the right to submit grouped applications to candidatures or tenders.

Said companies then constitute a "temporary consortium" (GME), also referred to as a "joint-contracting" arrangement and cannot be modified later on safe in the case of a specific decree defence (DSD) procedure in this case, the grouping ("temporary consortium" - GME) can be formed, either before candidatures or tenders submission.

This system enables mainly SME to pool their technical and financial resources, and thus to offer services which they would not be able to provide on their own in the time allowed, and thereby to compete with larger firms.

Consortia must be formed prior to submission of applications to tender.

One of the companies in the consortium is empowered by the others to represent the consortium in dealings with the public authority. This mandate must date prior to signature of the contract.

Each member of the consortium is a signatory of the contract, as the consortium has no legal status.

There are two types of consortium :

a) Joint contracting arrangement

The operation is divided into work packages with each member company committed to perform the package(s) to be awarded in the contract. The consortium leader represents all the members of the group and is the only one that has mutual responsibility, and only if the contract so specifies. Mutual responsibility means that the leading contractor is committed for the entire contract and must remedy any failure on the part of the other group members.

b) Mutual responsibility

Each company enters into a commitment in respect of the entire contract, and is therefore under an obligation of substitution in the event of default by its partners.

The consortium leader has only a representative role in dealings with the public authority.

Note: A switch from a group of one form to a group of another form cannot be required for tender submission purposes, but the group may be required to convert once the contract has been awarded to it. In such a case, the required form after contract award is mentioned in the tender regulations (RC). The RC can forbid the candidates to be presented at the same time as individual candidates and as members of one or more groupings. In addition, a person receiving benefits cannot be agent of more than one grouping candidate.

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