Suppliers

National Overview

The State Hospital’s Procurement Department provides a comprehensive procurement and logistics service for the purchasing of goods and services and developing procurement processes, procedures, strategies and policies in line with national best practice.

The increased importance attached to collaborative procurement is a direct result of the Public Sector Procurement Reform Programme.

Collaborative procurement is about achieving value for money for the Scottish public sector through partnership working between buying organisations and suppliers. This partnership working is facilitated by Centres of Expertise (CoE) in the various sectors. For Health the CoE is NHS National Procurement.

This approach utilises expertise across the public sector to leverage volumes and secure benefits from economies of scale through harnessing combined sector purchasing power. Where a need is identified, the State Hospital will in the first instance seek to meet that need through the use of collaborative contracts.

Wherever possible, the Framework Agreements set up by the Scottish Government are utilised. Such agreements cover commodities which are needed by multiple public bodies at a national or sectoral level. Full details of these contracts can be found on the Scottish Government’s Procurement Directory.

Where a need for a commodity has been identified which cannot be met through a Framework Agreement, opportunities will be opened up through the Public Contracts Scotland Portal (PCS) for all contracts above the £50k regulated level. We will also use the “Quick Quote” module on PCS for contracts below this level. There is no charge to use this service and suppliers are encouraged to register.

Suppliers who are perhaps looking to improve their skills in the area of tendering can also register with the Supplier Development Programme who offer free training events and workshops regionally across Scotland.

Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014

The Procurement Reform (Scotland) 2014 Act has been introduced and will officially be in place from April 2016.  There are a number of specific duties that contracting authorities are now obliged to fulfill, these being:

• All regulated contracts must be published on the Public Contracts Scotland website.
• Community benefit requirements must apply to all contracts at or above £4,000,000.
• A number of other measures designed to offer benefits to potential bidders in terms of greater transparency, and ensuring that processes are proportionate.

Each year all contracting authorities are obliged to publish their organisations annual report, strategy documents and contract register.

State Hospital Tender Opportunities

All tender opportunities for the State Hospital are advertised on the Public Contracts Scotland Portal.

The State Hospital supports the Suppliers Charter and is committed to facilitating access to public sector procurement opportunities. The Scottish Government has prepared the Suppliers Journey that provides useful guidance to help companies that are seeking to bid for public sector contracts.

State Hospital Contract Register

All public contracts can be found on the Public Contracts Register within the Public Contracts Scotland website.

The State Hospital’s Contract Register – Public Contracts Scotland

State Hospital Procurement Strategy and Policies

All Procurement Annual Reports can be found on the Performance Reports & Accounts page of this website.

The State Hospital’s Procurement Policy for Tendering and Contracting (March 2022) (QP26) can be found on the Policies page of this website.

eProcurement

The eProcurement Scotland system (Single Instance PECOS) is used by the State Hospital for the placement of orders. The system has improved efficiency in the ordering process through the use of electronic catalogues and a paperless order process.

Sustainability

Sustainable procurement should address the social, economic and environmental implications of product and service choices. It should embrace whole life costing and address how aspects such as design, manufacturing materials, operating costs, energy consumption, waste and recycling options support a more sustainable approach.

We will comply with the Sustainable Procurement Duty on all regulated contracts to ensure we consider how to improve the environmental, social and economic wellbeing of our area. Including supporting climate change targets, transition to a net-zero carbon emissions organisation, the circular economy, supporting the Community Wealth Building Agenda and ensuring Fair Work criteria are included in all contracts.

Contact State Hospital Procurement

For more information email TSH.Procurement@nhs.scot

Stuart Paterson, Head of Procurement – Stuart.Paterson3@nhs.scot