Poor quality control

Insufficient control mechanisms on delivered goods and services as well as invoices issued by contractors

Risk type: Cause

Risk driver: Internal

DESCRIPTION

Poor quality control throughout the project phases (execution, invoicing) creates loopholes for poor performance or overcharging of contractors, because low quality of work, breaching of standards and project delays are not likely to be detected. This leads to poor quality and unnecessary costs for the project owner (e.g. need for frequent repair work or replacement).

RED FLAGS

• Infrastructure or machines quickly become dysfunctional or require maintenance despite normal use.
• Water users complain about poor-quality goods and unfinished tasks.
• The contractor is not billed for damage or delays in project execution or completion.

KEY GUIDING DOCUMENTS

Stansbury, C. and Stansbury, N., 2008, Examples of Corruption in Infrastructure, Global Infrastructure Anti-Corruption Centre (GIACC)

GENERAL EXAMPLES

Colluding supervisor and subcontractor¹

Location: n.a.

A roofing sub-contractor installs a waterproof roof membrane. The membrane is accidentally perforated during installation which means that it could leak. The membrane needs to be approved by the contractor’s supervisor before it is covered over. The membrane should be rejected and replaced owing to the perforations. The sub-contractor offers to make a payment to the supervisor if he certifies that the sub-contractor’s defective membrane is water-tight. The supervisor accepts. The payment is made by the sub-contractor to the supervisor and the supervisor issues the certificate. The sub-contractor submits the certificate to the contractor, and obtains full payment for the defective membrane. Neither the sub-contractor nor supervisor discloses to the contractor that the membrane is defective.

FULL REFERENCES

1. Stansbury, C. and Stansbury, N., 2008, Examples of Corruption in Infrastructure, Global Infrastructure Anti-Corruption Centre (GIACC)