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jabbadarth t1_iqxn2zr wrote

Reply to comment by andio76 in Harford Road Bridge to open tomorrow after a raft of cost overruns – and more to come (9/31) by Ritaontherocksnosalt

What's crazy is every single homeowner suggestion about hiring contractors says never pick the lowest bid. Why does an entire city ignore this advice?

Like if 3 bids are close sure but when the big is 30% lower than an engineering estimate that's just dumb.

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temptags t1_ir04fk3 wrote

Low bid procurements are pretty standard in this industry and typically have the most potential to yield the best value to the owner. There are no guarantees that going with a higher bid would bring better value, absorb more risk, or be more reliable. That said, accepting a bid that's 30% lower than the engineer's estimate would be very difficult to justify as reasonable unless there were unique circumstances.

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