9.1.1 As stated in the policy, the objective of government procurement contracting is to acquire goods and services and to carry out construction in a manner that enhances access, competition and fairness and results in best value or, if appropriate, the optimal balance of overall benefits to the Crown and the Canadian people. Inherent in procuring best value is the consideration of all relevant costs over the useful life of the acquisition, not solely the initial or basic contractual cost.
9.1.2 The clear identification of the requirements associated with the decision to contract is of primary importance. There are acquisitions in which the requirements and specifications are clear, the records of likely suppliers are relatively uniform and discretionary judgement is at a minimum; price or cost is therefore the primary consideration. However, other procurements call for greater judgement and it is unwise to focus simply on price or lowest initial cost (in recognition of this fact, the higher competitive authorities may be used for service contracts in which the lowest or best value bidder is selected - see definition of competitive contract in Appendix A). Often, the goods or services offered by different suppliers are not identical. Assessments and trade-offs should be made between different performance characteristics, costs, dates of delivery, service, follow-on procurement and logistic support. Equally important are those cases in which a product or facility has been designed to meet specific government requirements. In such instances, detailed analysis of materials and components in terms of their function and price may be needed before the contracting process. This should clarify the requirement which should, in turn, result in best value.
9.1.3 The analysis necessary to achieve best value should not be confined to the actual procurement process; it should begin in the planning and appraisal of alternatives and continue through the definition of requirements which would include assessment and award criteria, evaluation of sources, selection of contractor, preparation, negotiation, execution and award of contract, contract administration and post-contract evaluation. Sophisticated evaluation techniques, such as cost/benefit analysis, may be needed to define the best combinations of quality, service and time considerations, at the lowest total cost over the useful life of the acquisition.