What is a council building panel, and how does a contractor get on one?

Councils use building panels so they do not have to run a full public tender on every small project. A panel is a group of contractors the council has assessed once and can call on for building work over a set term, which gives its project managers a known group to price each job.

Monument won its first Canterbury Bankstown Council building panel in 2012, and that relationship continues today.

How a panel works

The council goes to market once and asks contractors to show their experience, safety systems, insurance and financial capacity. Those that pass are appointed for a term the council sets.

When a project comes up, the council's project manager asks panel members to price it. Each project still has its own scope, price and contract, so a place on the panel gives a contractor the right to be asked and nothing more.

How a contractor gets on one

A panel opens when the council calls for it, and there is no way to apply outside that window. The contractor answers the tender like any other, with examples of similar work, its management systems and its references.

Councils look for work that resembles their own, which means amenities, clubhouses, community buildings and civil works on sites that stayed open to the public. Audited systems help too, because someone outside the company has already checked them. What those certificates prove is covered in what ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 mean for a contractor.

Panels and prequalification

These are two separate things. A council panel belongs to one council and applies to that council's work.

Prequalification is assessed by the NSW Government and sets the value of building work a contractor is eligible for. NSW Government Scheme SCM 0256 covers work up to $1M, and NSW Government Scheme SCM 1461 covers $1M to $9M. The higher band is explained in SCM 1461 prequalification explained.

What a panel settles for a council officer

The panel settles who is eligible to price the work. It leaves the officer to compare each price against the scope, the programme and the constraints of that site.

Insurance and certificates expire during a panel's term, so they get checked again before a job is awarded. How to verify a principal contractor sets out what to ask for.

Monument's panel history

Monument joined the NSW Public Works CSG Building Panel in 2011, which opened its first government-sector projects. The Canterbury Bankstown win followed a year later, and the Defence Housing Australia building panel came in 2019.

Its work for the City of Canterbury Bankstown includes the Parry Park amenity buildings at Lakemba, the Roberts Park Clubhouse at Greenacre and the Beaman Park amenities at Earlwood. More of that work is listed in who builds amenities and facilities for the City of Canterbury Bankstown.

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