A delegation from the strategic forum is to meet officials from the Office of Government Commerce to voice concerns over online reverse auction bidding.
The meeting, which takes place on 1 March, comes as it has emerged that the OGC is recommending central government departments use reverse auction bidding for procurement for some contracts.

It has not made it clear whether the procurement method will be used simply to buy commodities or whether it will also be used for complex construction projects.

An industry insider said the strategic forum wanted the OGC to spell out exactly what it would use online auctions for.

Peter Rogers, chairman of the strategic forum, said in an interview with Building last month: "We need absolute clarity from the OGC on when it will use reverse auctions and absolute clarity on what the benefits are."

He said reverse auction bidding was probably acceptable for buying commodities but not for complex projects where there was a degree of variability and intellectual input.

This meeting is the latest in a flurry of responses to the OGC's announcement.

The Construction Industry Council has published a briefing note on the topic in association with the Specialist Engineering Contractors Group. This recommended that reverse auctions ought to be used only to procure commodities.