The High Cost of Low Prices: Avoiding Pitfalls in AEC 采购

Successful organizations are often admired for aggressively pursuing 成本 efficiency. 这些组织通过强大的采购和采购团队优先考虑降低成本，并利用他们的议价能力来降低有形商品（如原材料）的价格, 设备, 和耗材. 在许多行业，微薄的利润和激烈的竞争放大了对这种心态的需求，因为它会转化为更强劲的财务业绩.

然而, 在执行资本项目和聘请工程师和建筑师等知识型服务提供商时, 对成本的单一关注往往是有害的，并导致客户组织的不良结果. 在极端情况下, 这种方法可能会破坏客户的总体目标，并对关键的业务关系产生负面影响.

Capital projects are complex endeavors involving multiple parties, 比如利益相关者, 设计师, 承包商, consultants and jurisdictional governments. These complex business relationships require agility and flexibility to manage; each organization will have its own unique recipe for success. Unlike purchasing a tangible object, which may be the same regardless of the location, organization or method of use, 专业服务的采购必须根据其具体情况的独特需要进行调整. Project managers frequently cite the concept of the triple constraints, 在质量, 成本, 时间表存在某种形式的冲突，一个约束的优先级会对其他约束产生不利影响. A project with high 质量 standards that is fast-tracked is likely to be expensive. 预算和进度紧张的项目可能会出现设计捷径和质量下降.

那些具有工程和设计元素的资本项目需要对客户的系统和操作有细致的了解，以开发定制的解决方案. 采购-driven organizations, 从本质上说, prioritize 成本 savings in project execution, thus resulting in either a constraint in project schedule or project 质量. This aggressive focus on 成本 forces providers to make difficult decisions, frequently to the detriment of the project outcome. 更快的时间表和匆忙的设计过程可能会降低成本，但会减少创新和探索替代方案的机会. 顾问可能会利用廉价的一刀切的解决方案来降低成本，从而导致客户错过更适合他们需求的定制方法.

在任何情况下, 在服务提供商的背景下，不加选择地大幅削减价格导致关键知识工作者的可用时间减少，或者限制了更昂贵（有经验）的个人可以贡献的小时数. The professional relationship may risk taking on a transactional, 甚至是敌对的, dynamic rather than that of a productive partnership. The proliferation of organizations abusing competitive bidding to price-check, 复杂的采购管理软件平台和第三方采购团队削弱了客户和供应商之间的关系. 虽然许多公司已经使用这些元素来简化有形商品的采购过程，并实现更好的整体价值, that benefit has not translated to purchasing services.

正相反, 具有质量第一思维的组织将卓越作为其运营的主要驱动力. 这些客户了解专业知识和创新的价值，并愿意投资优质服务以取得卓越成果, aware that it may not always be at the lowest price point. A 质量-first approach fosters a conducive environment for innovation, allowing service providers the time and resources necessary to develop meaningful solutions. 项目 are more likely to be executed precisely and deliver the client’s needs and vision. The technical project teams can focus on the project’s purpose and not its price, typically resulting in a more open and collaborative project culture. Of course, a singular focus on 质量 is not without challenges. 那些质量驱动的组织可能会发现他们的项目与固定预算或设定时间表的现实相冲突, 当无休止地追求完美阻碍了及时交付好的东西时，就会导致潜在的对抗动态.

The reality is that there are only a small number of organizations where the focus is exclusively on 成本 or exclusively on 质量; the vast majority operate on the awareness that different initiatives may require a different weighting of importance between those mindsets. When it comes to successfully executing knowledge-based projects and procuring those servicers, 双方都应该考虑到质量的内在价值，并倡导公平的定价模式，以反映专业知识和创新的真实成本.

It is possible to create a 质量-driven culture that co-exists with a 成本-driven one; the key to success is nurturing true partnerships and moving away from transactional dynamics. 消除成本或质量的二元思维，取而代之的是促进开放的沟通和灵活的方法，以基于每种情况的需求和关键要求为客户提供最大的价值.

作者简介： Michael Asher is Director of Operations for 澳门足彩app’s 生命科学 Division. 他是项目管理协会（PMI）的认证项目管理专家（PMP）和项目管理领导小组（PMLG）的认证项目经理（CPM）。. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical 工程 from Washington University in St. 路易.