scope:

Description of Driving Event:

The Project was required to develop and deliver a major scientific instrument for a project and had used both research grants and contracts to acquire services/products from their vendors. The vendor funded through a grant, which was closely aligned with a University, was paid up front and did not have any other risk or incentive to meet the Project's requirements. The vendor's priorities changed and the Project had no recourse or control over them. As a result the hardware being funded through the grant was delivered years late. On the other hand, the Project also had a formal contract with a different vendor, not associated with a research institution or University, to deliver another piece of hardware. This procurement gave the Project options to deal with vendor non-performance. In addition, the vendor was a relatively small business with lots of motivation to establish credibility with its customers. As a result of this, the products delivered by this vendor were on time, on budget, and within all technical requirements.