WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1565/98 by Viviane REDING to the Commission. Centralization of supplies purchasing for the European institutions
Date: 1998-05-20
Institutions: European Parliament, REDING
Subjects: EU institution, award of contract, costing, furniture industry, reduced price, restriction on competition, small and medium-sized enterprises, supplies contract

C 386/150

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

11.12.98

(98/C 386/204)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1565/98

by Viviane Reding (PPE) to the Commission

(20 May 1998)

Subject: Centralization of supplies purchasing for the European institutions

Together with the other European institutions, the Commission is seeking, in the interests of cost-cutting, to
centralize the purchase of supplies, particularly furniture, in Brussels. They are keen both to order larger
quantities at a time and to extend the duration of contracts, which may reach 10 years by successive renewals.
This new approach, which seems to promise savings, has its defects, however. Firstly, the average life of the
furniture is often shorter than the contract periods the Commission is seeking to obtain. Second, the new approach
openly favours big firms which are able to cope with orders of an ever increasing volume.

Is the Commission aware that the increasing size and duration of contracts, and their centralisation in Brussels,
disadvantages small and medium-sized enterprises? Is the Commission aware that in the interest of marginal cost
reductions it is heavily penalising one of the sectors of the economy on which it is most reliant for job creation?

What measures does the Commission propose to take to avoid its cost-cutting efforts having a negative impact on
small and medium-sized enterprises?

Answer given by Mr Liikanen on behalf of the Commission

(22 June 1998)

The purpose of long-term contracts and centralised furniture purchases is not solely to reduce purchasing costs. It
is also to standardise equipment with a view to simplifying inventory management, encouraging exchanges and
reducing the volume of furniture to be moved when staff change are relocated.

The purpose of the contracts is to supplement and renew the furniture in use at the Commission and possibly at
the other institutions. The duration of the contracts is not related to the life span of the equipment.

Long-term contracts bind the Commission › or another institution › to a supplier for a longer period, but they
have no impact on the annual volume of purchases. The volume tends to be very substantial and can vary
considerably from one year to another. Since the Commission wishes to have its orders performed efficiently
without disrupting the financial equilibrium of its suppliers, it deals with firms whose production capacity
matches its requirements but does not impose clauses that discriminate against European firms in general or small
and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in particular.

As a rule, given the need to optimise the use of public funds in the current climate of budgetary restraint, the
Commission(cid:146)s purchasing strategy aims to secure the best possible value for money. This reflects the European
policy on public procurement, which seeks to improve competitiveness of European firms.

(98/C 386/205)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1578/98

by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission

(25 May 1998)

Subject: Asteroids

The Commission will be aware of recent reports in the press that there is some possibility of the earth colliding
with a small asteroid at some time in the future. These concerns will be augmented in the summer with the release
of the latest Steven Spielberg film on this theme.

Scientists tell us that levels of danger are extremely low, with the risk to each individual being equivalent to being
killed in a plane.