Taking the High Road
When it Comes to Low Bids

© 2000 Wendy Dager

But does this mean it’s mandatory for children to have anything more than a standard swingset, medium-sized sandbox, and nice patch of grass during recess? Folks at the Early Childhood Center at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York seem to think so.With a playground conceived by Rusty Keeler, a former industrial designer for Kopman/Big Toys, the outdoor environs at the Early Childhood Center will resemble a theme park rather than the traditional blacktop.

With its “huggable” sculptures, chimes built into handrails, and the use of local plants and materials, Keeler has created a “playscape” for youngsters to explore.

“It’s important,” says Keeler, “to create a really rich, diverse environment that introduces them to the living earth.”

All this communing with nature, however, costs the big bucks—which is something public school administrators aren’t exactly willing to part with. Especially when it comes to stuff like huggable sculptures.

The Wrong Prescription

While simplicity remains the rule for most playgrounds, simple common sense often goes by the wayside. In the old days, the customer would get three bids, throw out the highest and lowest, and work with the guy in the middle. Today, government entities, including public schools, very often go with the lowest bid. And sometimes, they get precisely what they pay for.

Going low bid can mean the resulting work is below par, whether it’s apparent immediately after the job or some time in the near future.

That’s because two types of specifications are commonly used in contracts dealing with landscape projects: Performance and Prescription. A performance spec merely states what the final outcome of the project should be, while prescriptive specifications tell the contractor what to do and how to do it. In other words, the contract is fulfilled if the contractor simply plants three prescribed trees at prescribed spots in prescribed holes of a prescribed depth, and so on.

While this completes a contract, it doesn’t necessarily make for an abundantly grassy school playground. Problem is, when you go with prescriptive specifications, nothing actually has to grow to meet the prescription.

And plant growth is the name of the game when it comes to landscape contracting, particularly when you’re talking about a habitat for kids. Most schoolchildren aren’t going to have a Rusty Keeler-designed “playscape,” so the grassy area they do get is crucial to their well-being. Which is why performance-oriented specs is a better approach for public school contracts. Under performance specifications, the contractor is left to his own devices, but must deliver a finished, growing, healthy landscape, and not just go through the motions.

Best Value

It does seem as if some government agencies and others requiring landscape services are beginning to take note. Rather than immediately accepting the lowest bid, they are instead seeking out “best value,” where technical considerations as well as cost factors apply. Organizations will retain the service of a contractor at a price that is fair and reasonable, rather than just cheap. These are the contractors who win the bids because they are able to show how well they perform.

Playing For Keeps

To maintain that reputation based on performance, a contractor also has to provide an exceptional product. Albright Seed Company suggests you look to us for the best in custom seed mixes, as so many of our customers do.

David Lang, Albright customer consultant, gives the example of a local contractor who recently received a contract for re-seeding a large number of playgrounds.

“All the schools in Camarillo (California) have re-done their playfields here and they’ve all used our seed,” says David. “It’s a custom mix of Perennial Rye Grass, Dwarf Tall Fescue and Improve Bermuda. Because Southern California is subject to the whims of Mother Nature, we adjusted the mix based on many variables.

“We took into consideration drought tolerance, wearability, and disease resistance, and this is the blend we came up with that would give the best all-around performance for a turf with high-traffic areas.”

According to David,this blend works well in Southern California, but for other areas’ special climatic conditions, its best to call Albright for custom formulation of turf grass for your specific site.

Landscape contractors tip the odds in their favor by using custom turf seed mixes from Albright Seed Company for sports fields, public parks, or school playgrounds.

The huggable statues are optional.

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