12.10 The goal of the OBC is a measured evaluation of a defined business need and a possible solution, costed to prove viability. The preferred option in the OBC is not the final solution as participants should not be constrained under PPP. The major impact on design quality should be the robustness of the case to build. Should the scheme need to be substantially changed in the context of design quality, a changed scheme is usually less of a success than a scheme that was conceived of correctly from the outset. Flexibility and adaptability should be considered and quantified and designed in to the solution. The need should be quantified as a functional requirement on a department by department basis.
12.11 The specification of design quality forms part of the output specification for the facilities which should be taken account of in the OBC. This should involve:
• design quality standards - an essential part of the design brief is an initial statement of design quality intent which the client should prepare as part of the operational policy for each department or functional part of the health building. This should set out the design quality aspirations of the users. The client needs to be satisfied that these are properly interpreted by the professional design advisers who should prepare the specification of design quality. The quality of design in terms of the functionality of the building should proceed from the clients definition of required outputs and capacities which will be translated into space requirements. These design standards need to be tailored to meet the specific requirements of a project;
• building quality standards - the quality of the building structure, materials and finishes may be specified in terms of the required performance or in terms of appropriate quality. Some performance characteristics can be measured, such as sound attenuation or thermal insulation values, while others are not easily quantifiable and can only be specified by description.
12.12 The Invitation To Participate in Dialogue (ITPD) is the first comprehensive project description the selected participants see and will form the basis of the final contract. At this point the required standards of design quality should be firmly defined, although additional details can be provided during the dialogue period. With more traditional procurement routes, the client customarily relied on the professional competence and integrity of the design teams and allowed time for the designers to get to know the aims and objectives of the client in terms of quality. In contrast, PPP procurement relies on a single issue of information and discussions with the participants and their designers. This must specify quality aspirations effectively. The tendency has been for NHSScotland bodies to rely on designers to hypothesise the unstated project quality objectives. This is a high risk approach to PPP. Instead, the project team should take time to debate the issue with the NHS body's senior and operational management teams to understand the value of quality standards and to establish appropriate benchmarks or aspirations. The design is then priced up in the CPAM. Affordability impact is critical.