Local firm caught in States work dispute
Wednesday 27th February 2013, 12:00PM GMT.
The States will be asked to approver a £24m. facility to replace the Castel Hospital and to accept Harbour View Construction as the main contractor.
THE nominated contractor for a new Guernsey mental health and wellbeing centre has denied owing more than £300,000 to a sub-contractor on another States project.
States members will be asked today to give the go-ahead for the £24m. facility to replace the Castel Hospital and approve Harbour View Construction as the main contractor.
But Building & Technical Services (CI) Ltd, which sub-contracted for Harbour View on work at the former St Peter Port School site, claims the outstanding sum has left it on the verge of bankruptcy.
‘The late and non-payment of this contract has brought BTS to the point of collapse and, as a consequence, has not been able to settle its debts with many suppliers,’ said director David Mabbs.
Harbour View commercial manager Mark Farey denied his company owed the money, but said there was a contractual dispute.
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I thought Charles Le Quesne was a Jersey firm, not local?
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Phil Charles le Quesne ltd have two branches one in guernsey and one in jersey just like r g fallas gurnsey they have a sister firm in jersey Cameron’s
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You could not make it up ….. correct me if i am wrong but is Harbour view construction the former Charles le cane from Jersey ? if so its not a local company , but to be fair the states are getting closer to employing local . why not try tried and tested local companies like Rg Falla / Rihoy or a multitude of others.
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£24million for building?
How come our newly built state of the art was built for £4million.
Is it plans for huge ammount of administration offices to,which already exist at the PEH.
We should be investing to patients and nurses needs not office blocks.
Revise the plans again
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re meant Hospice
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I have worked on many contracts over the last few years and found out that Charles Le Quesne (guernsey ltd) or now Harbour View Ltd who don’t want to use local trades they have in the past brought cheap labour from the mainland (tilers. painters .ect) we have been ripped off up the airport is this the next one
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correct, Jayand, and imported COWBOYS at that.
One in particular bought a local licence house, sold for a stupidly inflated price that only other licence holders could afford, and better than that,
was then sacked for gross misconduct…
only to start operating his very own building company over here, so now we get to keep him permanently.
Lovely. Innit….?
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This is an absolute disgrace (one of many) what is more annoying is I honestly believe that people in the SOG contracting Dept don’t give a monkeys.
This companies reputation as well as quality is renown locally, the only people that don’t seem to know (or care) are the SOG.
If you tick the right boxes, then come on down, and feel free to take us for a ride!
Very few local companies will go near them, which plays right into their hands as they will import them at reduced rates (and quality)
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Procurement is generally poor in all public organisations, not just SoG / HSSD; the UK government (Ministry of Defence, Department of Health and many others) have been heavily criticised for similar failings, as well as the EU and US government.
The issue is largely related to the States awarding contracts to achieve a spurious criterion of “value for money”, which is normally seen by procurement staff as “cheapest bid”. There is no provision to specify that only “local” tradesmen / subcontractors should be used (and such clauses would be unlawful anyway).
As the States are unable to manage something as simple as “a new computer system” SAP (which still isn’t properly working for teachers, nurses and farm payments), it is unlikely they would put themselves in charge of managing a large development, and appoint subcontractors themselves. This would be a recipe for disaster.
Taking a step back, the questions should be (before putting pet projects forward to please some Deputy’s ego): do we need it? can we afford it? (in both cases, no) and could we use somewhere else to achieve the same objectives? (yes! KE VII has space, just refurbish it)
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HVC and the SoG a marriage made in heaven.
I have had the misfortune to enter in business activities with both of these entities over the last few years and I think they deserve each other.
To be honest I wish I had never heard of HVC.
They talk the talk.
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Having worked in the local building trade for 20 years and worked with (but never for) CLQ and HVC on various contracts including the new clinacle block im amazed that the states are considering them as a prefered contracter again.
There cannot be a single subcontracter on the island and many off it that hasnt had dispute over non paymenyt with them.
the only reason the states use them in because the are cheap. the states need to wise uo and use fallas or rehoys. failing that look to the mainland anything but nother hvc debarcle.
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I wouldn’t be too quick to say Fallas are any better.
Also, there are more firms that HVC owe money to and they WILL be appearing in petty debts…
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he answer is easy,NO PAYMENT TO SUB CONTRACTORS THEN NO MORE CONTRACTS WITHOUT GUARANTEES OF PAYMENTS.
The above advice is free of consultants fees.
Aren`t I a kind person?
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I heard that Lagans came a close second on this one, surely time for a recount.
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No ta, too many things wrong when it comes to getting paid by this lot. Been on the receiving end and it’s not nice.
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Whats frustrating to local subcomtractors who have been taken for mugs by this lot is the states are now keeping a seperate pot for the subbies. So there wont or shouldnt be any issues with payment on this job. Now they need to just make sure its local companies with local workforces that are subcontracting and not bring in more financially unstable set ups from the UK like Lauren Lloyd.
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Just goes to prove that the SOG contract paragraph that states ‘we are not bound to except th elowest or any tender’ is not worth the toilet roll it is written on.
The SOG will go with the cheapest tender EVERY time regardless of the poor reputation, outstanding faults on other contracts, debts etc that the nominated contractor has.
I have yet to find a sub-contractor willing to work for this contractor. We certainly wouldn’t touch them with a (very long) barge pole.
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Surely following todays news this all needs looking at again. Rediculas state of affairs.
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Thing is, if they go to the next tender, that means Lagan!
Lagan are only taking subcontractors that will wait 3 months for payment! Who could work for that over here with suppliers needing payment?
That would mean yet again more non local firms coming to the island.
Fallas were the third contractor to tender but they are deemed too expensive… This is only compared to the other two tenders though and with all the revelations about about them, you can see how they can come in cheaper because they don’t pay anyone and aren’t forced too and are rewarded for it with £24 million contracts.
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Talking of Lagan, a little insider bird informs me that Lagan are going for the private hangar job up in the Forest, and using leftover materials from the airport contract to keep prices down, also, of course, they’ll be using their own labor who conveniently live just down the road on that vinery….
anyone else heard this? Know if it’s true?
– I didn’t think they were actually allowed to do that.
If it is true, what chance did local contractors stand of matching their prices…?
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Quote me if I am wrong, but I though Lagan’s were not allowed to tender for any other jobs when there were presented with the airport job – now they have the private hanger job and the clinical block that they have quoted for….Lagan’s were presented with the Airport job as they were experienced with building runways such as terminal 5! Who allowed then to quote for other jobs and more importantly why….
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Ali M
Very good point, a lot of us in the industry are wondering how they managed to get around that one!
God knows it bloody tight enough out there as it is, without outside competition.
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