ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 venue development director and chief operating officer, Donald Lockerbie, said businesses must be prepared to consider uniting with peers in their respective industries to strengthen their prospects of being successful in tendering for certain jobs or to supply equipment.
Regarding the Central Procurement Programme (CPP) – which will acquire the myriad 'temporary elements' such as video replay boards, tents, public address systems and magnetometers for stadium overlay in the nine host venues – he pointed out that Caribbean firms are likely to have many of these items though maybe not in the quantities required.
“Caribbean nationals should consider looking for partnerships within the region and to create consortiums. In Trinidad and Jamaica and a few other regional countries, we are aware that there’s a very lively entertainment and event industry – certainly with stage equipment, sound systems and tents and perhaps even temporary grandstands," he said.
"It might make sense for those companies to create consortiums."
He said that even after companies are pre-qualified as primary or secondary suppliers – and therefore eligible to tender when their particular item or service is advertised next year – those pre-qualified businesses will be allowed to unite and strike deals if they desire.
“At that point, when we start tendering, we will advertise the lists of all the primary and secondary suppliers. Two or three pre-qualified companies could then create consortiums, based on the knowledge that as a united entity they have the right amount of equipment that we need,” explained Lockerbie.
ICC Cricket World Cup commercial manager Stephen Price said: “Overseas companies have already been joining together to try and secure various CWC 2007 contracts and we would certainly like to see similar initiative among regional businesses.”
