Identification and Prevention of Unbalanced Bids Using the Unascertained Model
Publication: Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Volume 144, Issue 11
Abstract
Unbalanced bidding has presented a significant issue in the construction industry. The award of a contract to an unbalanced bid poses a significant threat to the construction cost, as well as construction activities. The nature of an unbalanced bid, irrespective of the form, consists of quotations higher or lower than the reasonable unit price. In this paper, the engineer’s estimated price was chosen as the evaluation criterion. Consequently, a model was developed in order to identify unbalanced bids based on unascertained model. The unbalanced bid can be identified, which provides useful inputs for bid evaluation. As a result, unbalanced bids can be prevented. The feasibility of the method was verified via a case study. The method proposed in this paper facilitates an effective and efficient quantitative assessment of unbalanced bids. This model not only assists owners in effectively and efficiently identifying unbalanced bids, but also discourages bidders from unbalancing their bids.
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Data Availability Statement
Data generated or analyzed during the study are available from the corresponding author by request. Information about the Journal’s data sharing policy can be found here: http://ascelibrary.org/doi/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0001263.
Acknowledgments
The authors acknowledge with gratitude the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Project Nos. 71302191, 71402045), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities of China (Project Nos. 2017B18114, 2014B01314), and Foundation for Distinguished Young Talents in Higher Education of Henan (Humanities and Social Sciences), China (No. 2017-cxrc- 023). This study would not have been possible without their financial support.
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©2018 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Nov 30, 2017
Accepted: May 31, 2018
Published online: Aug 28, 2018
Published in print: Nov 1, 2018
Discussion open until: Jan 28, 2019
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