Request for Qualification issued for the development of the Glen Campus of the MUHC

The McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) confirmed today that a Request for Qualification (RFQ) was issued on www.seao.ca, Quebec’s official electronic request for proposals Web site, to candidates interested in the design, construction, financing and maintenance of its Glen Campus. The RFQ is the first step in the procurement process towards the eventual signing of a public-private partnership (PPP) for the MUHC’s healthcare infrastructure on this campus.

“The MUHC Redevelopment Project will provide state-of-the-art facilities on two campuses, the Mountain and the Glen,” said Dr. Arthur T. Porter, MUHC Director General and CEO. “Today’s RFQ for the development of the Glen Campus launches the bid process, marking another step forward. I am confident that we’ll qualify an outstanding shortlist of consortia to submit detailed proposals. After all, a project like ours represents an amazing opportunity for developers around the globe.”

The Request for Qualification will ensure that healthy competition takes place. The RFQ will also be audited to ensure transparency and equity.

“There are two parts to the procurement and granting process,” added Dr. Porter. “This first part ensures that any interested company has all the background information on our project. As everyone can bid, not only is fairness guaranteed, but we can also ensure that standards of excellence will be the modus operandi from design right through to maintenance.”

With a PPP of this scale, however, no individual company has the means to bid on its own. The MUHC can expect companies of various sizes to form consortia. This, too, broadens the field of bidders. The objective of the RFQ is to qualify three potential partners, which will then be asked to submit detailed proposals.

“In order to qualify bidders, a selection committee will evaluate a number of criteria, including technical competency and experience in building university healthcare centres and research facilities,” explained Yanaï Elbaz, Associate Director General, Redevelopment, Planning and Real Estate Management. The seven-member selection committee will have four appointees by the MUHC; the government will appoint the three other members. Other criteria which will be studied include energy management, financial capacity and expertise, architectural accomplishments and teamwork.

The next major step in the PPP procurement process is an information session and site visit for potential partners, which will be held on July 11. Bidders must have their submissions in by September 17, 2007. The Agence des partenariats public-privé du Québec and the office of the Executive Director of the modernization of Montreal’s university healthcare centres will assist the MUHC with the Request for Qualification process.

About the MUHC Redevelopment Project
Guided by its mission and its role as the nerve centre of the McGill integrated university hospital network, the MUHC is carrying out a $1.579-billion Redevelopment Project that will help the Government achieve its vision for academic medicine in Quebec. Excellence in patient care, research, education and technology assessment will be fostered on two state-of-the-art campuses—the Mountain and the Glen—and through strong relationships with healthcare partners. Each LEED®-registered campus will be designed to provide patients and their families with “The Best Care For Life” in a healing environment that is anchored in best sustainable development practices, including BOMA Go Green guidelines. www.muhc.ca/construction

About the MUHC
The MUHC is a comprehensive academic health institution with an international reputation for excellence in clinical programmes, research, teaching and technology evaluation. The MUHC is a merger of five teaching hospitals affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University: the Montreal Children’s, Montreal General, Royal Victoria, and Montreal Neurological hospitals and Institute, and the Montreal Chest Institute. Building on the tradition of medical leadership of the founding hospitals, the goal of the MUHC is to provide patient care based on the most advanced knowledge in the healthcare field and to contribute to the development of new knowledge. www.muhc.ca

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