The International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) has launched a major new report at its Global Infrastructure Conference (GIC26) in New Delhi, setting out the evidence base for Qualifications-Based Selection (QBS) as the preferred procurement method for engineering and architectural consultancy services worldwide.
The report argues that selecting consultants primarily on price creates a false economy. While design and consultancy fees typically account for just 1–2% of an infrastructure asset’s total lifetime cost, the decisions made at this stage shape the vast majority of costs that follow – with operations, maintenance and rehabilitation accounting for up to 85% of a facility’s total lifecycle cost.
Drawing on decades of international research, including landmark studies by the ACEC Research Institute, the report finds that QBS-procured projects consistently outperform price-led projects ensuring on time and on cost delivery and a 50% greater likelihood of meeting all construction milestones.
Owner satisfaction on QBS projects stood at 89% and QBS projects were 23% more likely to deliver innovative solutions.
The report includes real-world case studies illustrating this in practice, including the Town Creek Culvert project in Greenville, North Carolina, where qualifications-based selection led to an innovative $33m stormwater solution – including the largest Regenerative Stormwater Conveyance project in North Carolina – that a low-bid process would never have produced.
FIDIC president Alfredo Ingletti said: “The infrastructure the world builds over the next decade will define quality of life, resilience and sustainability for generations. Selecting the right consulting engineer is not a cost to be minimised – it is the single decision that determines whether that infrastructure succeeds or fails. This report shows, with clear evidence, why qualifications must come before price.”
The report also examines how QBS and related quality-led procurement approaches are applied across different jurisdictions – from the United States’ Brooks Act and Canada’s growing adoption, to the EU’s Most Economically Advantageous Tender (MEAT) framework and the World Bank’s Quality-Based Selection and Consultant’s Qualifications Selection methods – and sets out practical guidance for clients on how to implement QBS effectively, including the role of the Informed Purchaser, transparency and integrity management systems.
“Infrastructure investment is accelerating globally, alongside growing complexity – climate resilience, ageing assets and digital transformation. Getting consultant selection right at the outset has never mattered more,”. said FIDIC CEO, Susanna Zammataro at the launch.
FIDIC is encouraging governments, development banks and public and private clients around the world to move progressively towards qualifications-based approaches to secure better value, quality and resilience from infrastructure investment.
