Qualifications-Based Selection (QBS) procurement is a proven method for owners to procure high-quality professional construction services, but it can also consume more time than procurement staff can afford to commit, and it requires uncommon expertise to implement properly.

Georgia State University (GSU), a leading higher education institution located in downtown Atlanta, is one of a growing number of universities that have realized the efficiency of outsourcing QBS procurement of design and construction services. Since the spring of 2005, GSU has engaged Draper & Associates to conduct the University's QBS procurement of construction services on 17 renovation projects, ranging in value from $150,000 to $120 million.

GSU entrusted Draper’s QBS experts to manage and administer the entire procurement process in essential collaboration with University officials. In that capacity, Draper developed all the solicitation documents required by State law and the guidelines of the University System of Georgia Board of Regents, issued the RFQ/RFP, facilitated providers' compliance with its requirements, and led informational meetings to ensure that potential providers understood both the University's needs and the procurement process.

Draper conducted customized orientations for each member of the University’s Selection Committees to ensure uniform understanding of their responsibilities under QBS, and facilitated Selection Committee reviews of vendor proposals.  

Draper's consultants documented the entire procurement process and, upon selection of a candidate, facilitated the University's negotiations with that firm to reach fair and reasonable terms in the executed contract.

By following time-tested, formal, Georgia state government procedures, with which we are intimately familiar, Draper ensured fairness in the selection process and protected the University from exposure to selection protests.

While our QBS expertise comes from more than 20 years of procurement experience in State of Georgia, we are prepared to deliver these services wherever they are needed. In 2008, for example, we managed the QBS procurement for two significant projects ($8 million and $35 million, respectively) at Clemson University.