Audit finds ‘due regard to best value,’ flags gaps in $6M of Vancouver furniture buys

Vancouver’s auditor general says the city met its objectives of “due regard to best value” in buying nearly $6 million in office furniture over 30 months, “with some exceptions.”

The report, released Wednesday, is only the second audit by auditor general Mike Macdonell and his office, and makes five recommendations to the city.

Vancouver’s office furniture purchases made headlines in September 2020, when a Global News report revealed it had spent nearly $317,000 on high-end furniture for a renovation at city hall amid COVID-19 cost pressures.

The performance audit does not speak to that purchase specifically, but covers a period from Jan. 1, 2020 to June 30, 2022.

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The audit looked at procurement-related policies from the city’s supply chain management (SCM) department and purchases made by the real estate and facilities management (REFM) department.

However, its scope did not include decisions made by the city as to whether to make office furniture purchases — something Macdonell said his office would review in 2024.

Overall, the audit found that the city’s office furniture purchases adhered to its established purchasing-related policies.

“The City had an assessment process to select office furniture, a reasonably comprehensive procurement policy, and used up-to-date supplier agreements,” Macdonell found.

However, the audit found “several areas where the City did not fully meet our audit criteria, and we found opportunities for the City to improve its processes moving forward,” he concluded.

According to the audit, there were several concerns related to the SCM department’s policies.

The report details how furniture suppliers were pre-qualified via a 2016 request for qualifications (RFQ). However, it noted a lack of clarity in that RFQ about the selection process and outcomes and whether the RFQ was binding, and said suppliers were given just 12 days to respond to a 76-page document.

Further, it found the city deviated from its own policy and trade agreements when it failed to add more qualified suppliers after 2016 and extended its arrangements with pre-qualified suppliers beyond the RFQ term.

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It said most purchases made by the REFM department were based on past furniture selections, which were based on weighted assessments, but also flagged concerns.

The department didn’t have a defined and documented timeline on when and how often to conduct and refresh its assessments, it found.

The department also failed to establish price lists with all suppliers, and in at least one case, it conducted its assessment without the appropriate level of documentation.

The audit recommends the city update its Procurement Policy to ensure it meets all trade agreement obligations, and that both the REFM and SCM departments update their procurement strategies ahead of the city’s next furniture policy.

It also calls for the SCM and legal services departments to review and update their RFQ templates.

And it calls on the REFM department to create clear guidelines on when and how often to assess furniture and systems to get best value, and to consistently establish price lists in supply agreements for commonly sought furniture.

In a statement, Deputy City Manager Armin Amrolia said “many” of the audit’s comments and recommendations would “inform senior management to update policies with recent regulatory requirements, create procurement strategies, change templates and standard operating procedures and continue to build upon existing processes in preparation for the next procurement of office furniture and other future purchases.”