Publications

A business unit that almost identically reproduces descriptive specifications, when using such specifications is no longer legal; another that declines a potential bidder’s request to visit a future construction site, even though this is a mandatory step for the latter’s bid to be eligible; a call for tenders that requires specific products exclusive to a single supplier, thereby excluding potential bidders... All those situations have been discl...

The Office of Inspector General investigated the performance by Ricova Services of two Ville de Montréal contracts on the sorting and marketing of recyclable materials. The investigation was prompted by denunciations of a possible conflict of interest by Ricova Services, which was reselling recyclables to one of its subsidiaries, Ricova International. Both contracts were legally assigned to Ricova Services as a result of financial problems experienced by ...

Following a denunciation concerning the awarding of a foundation formwork contract for the new Bellechasse transit centre by Société de transport de Montréal (STM), the Office of Inspector General’s investigating officers met with stakeholders and reviewed the documents in the case. The investigation consisted of two parts. The first part involved the awarding of a construction management contract and the second part the cancellation of a call for ten...

313 denunciations received 121 filed opened 172 files closes 56 surveillance operations

In the first six months of 2021, the Office of Inspector General responded to numerous denunciations regarding various tendering processes. The various Ville de Montréal business units acknowledged the alleged breaches and implemented measures, which are presented in the 2021 Mid-Year Report. In addition, several cases revealed that the rules applicable regarding the drafting of performance specifications were not always fully understood by several publi...

474 denunciations received 252 people trained 3 public reports 1 prevention bulletin

Termination of ten (10) catch basin cleaning contracts and two (2) sewer cleaning contracts awarded to Beauregard Environnement Ltée due to the illicit disposal of collected sludge on farmland, overbilling of weighed sludge and invoicing services not provided as revealed by the investigation. These fraudulent acts also led to the recommendation of a declaration of ineligibility for periods of five and three years.

296 denunciations received 6 public reports 1 mid-year report 292 hours of traning 2734 people trained

Rescinding of the contract of City consultant Pierre-André Liechti for the wastewater ozonation project, as he provided false information, placed himself in a conflict of interest and failed to meet his obligation of independence. The investigation also determined that Degrémont had an advantage in the qualification process for the provision of the ozonation unit, as it had prior access to the Station site for pilot testing and obtained a preliminary dra...

Attempted fraud on the part of a snow transportation subcontractor, Entreprise Sylvain Choquette Inc. When the truck’s dump box was measured, wood panels were added and then removed during transport operations. As a result, the measured volume was increased and, by extension, the hourly rate to be charged, as this measure determines the rate paid by the City for the transportation of snow. This scheme resulted in the recommendation of a five-year declara...

Upstream interventions: Clauses related to bidders’ experience Clauses restricting the market to large competitors Specifications related to equipment Investigation files Call for tenders for exclusive towing services for wrecked, broken-down and offence-related vehicles Professional court bailiff services Road works in the boroughs Security services Entry into force of the complaint processing component of the Act respecting the Autorité d...

Two snow removal contracts with Transport Rosemont Inc. were rescinded because the company repeatedly failed to load its snow transportation trucks to capacity, even though it was paid based on the full volume of their dump boxes. This scheme also resulted in the recommendation of a five-year declaration of ineligibility.

The contract of interior design firm Desjardins Bherer was rescinded due to its failure to include in its bid a declaration of personal ties with a person involved in the development of the bid documents, in this case, the spouse of the firm’s president.

In the plans and specifications prepared for the City, two professional firms, Poirier Fontaine Architectes Inc. and GBI Experts-conseils Inc., favoured a particular pool basin manufacturer. The developed equivalency criteria were also unachievable. Corrections with neutral performance criteria were requested. However, the revised call for tenders was still directed to the same basin manufacturer and the equivalency assessment remained inequitable. It was ...

Construction Lavacon Inc. concluded an agreement with its subcontractors to give the company a discount on the value of their work for every change order. These agreements created upward pressure on prices. The city was denied a fair price. The contractor did not act in the best interests of the city. This scheme justified the recommendation of a five-year declaration of ineligibility.

275 denunciations received 2 public reports 1 mid-year report 348 hours of traning 1705 people trained

Presentation of the Analysis and Preliminary Investigations Division Handling of denunciations Upstream interventions Clauses related to bidders’ experience Product specifications Other cases Sidewalk industry Profile of the industry since the CEIC revelations. The overall market is perceived to be more open and competitive. This industry is still a risky sector, however. Road resurfacing and sidewalk reconstruction surveillance operations The s...

The City broke the legislative framework in awarding of the contract for the promotion and organization of the event. The NPO “Montréal, c’est électrique” was used to circumvent the rules for awarding contracts and was only a conduit between the City and Evenko. The mayor’s office acted in such a way that the City effectively assumed the roles and responsibilities traditionally held by the local race promoter. It was recommended that a call for p...

Two contracts with Services Environnementaux Richelieu Inc. were rescinded. Several recurring breaches were observed, including collections from private companies far exceeding the allocated amounts, a collection that mixed recycling with garbage and private collections carried out outside the designated boroughs and even outside City territory. This garbage was mixed with the borough residents’ and merchants’ garbage then dumped, disposed of and bille...

269 denunciations received 4 public reports 24 traning sessions 845 people trained

Several serious breaches were noted by City representatives when the contract was awarded after two calls for tenders. However, at no time did the companies involved commit any wrongdoings. The Procurement Department failed to meet its good faith obligations toward the lowest bidder on the first tender, initially notified of a recommendation to award the contract in its favour. This supplier was not informed of the discontinuation of the process and was no...

The rescinding of the contract with Construction Généphi Inc. is justified by the filing of false information concerning the actual identity of the City’s contracting party. Given the value of the contract, authorization from the AMF is required. Genéphi holds such authorization and submitted a bid in its own name. It did not reveal the existence of a joint venture agreement with Congeres Inc., which does not have AMF authorization but which did, in f...

With regard to the towing of wrecked vehicles, the investigation revealed a territory-splitting agreement and a climate of violence and retaliation. The presence and influence of organized crime kept this system in place. In terms of renting tow trucks with operators for snow removal operations, contractors communicate with each other to share their bidding intentions and the prices to be proposed. Several recommendations were made to reduce the risk of co...

260 denunciations received. 7 public reports.

Rescinding of the contracts of Excavation Anjou Inc., 9499237 Canada Inc. and 9335-5139 Québec Inc., which served as nominees to allow contractors on the Register of ineligible persons for Ville de Montréal calls for tender to continue towing operations, via new businesses, as if nothing had happened. It was also recommended that their officers be prohibited from participating in any calls for tenders and denied the possibility of obtaining any contracts...

Contracts awarded without tenders between the non-profit organization “Montréal en histoires” (MEH) and service providers because MEH was unable to properly execute the mandates alone. To that effect, they must negotiate with suppliers, consultants and sub-contractors to execute important clauses included in the contracts since they possess neither the necessary equipment, personnel, nor the expertise and qualifications. MEH in fact serves as a front...

A contract was awarded to Enseignes Dominion, which did not hold a general contractor’s licence as required by the tender documents, but only a specialist contractor’s licence. The borough failed in its obligation to accept only an eligible and compliant bid. The contract was rescinded.

Three contractors, Remorquage Taz Inc., Remorquage Mobile and Auto Cam 2000, entered in an arrangement regarding intention to bid, price and number of tow trucks to enter in their bids. They divided up certain sectors and agreed to “respect” the sectors assigned to others. They admitted that they had communicated with each other and with other competitors, exchanging information and trying to find out what their intentions were with respect to certain ...

Demix’s bid was rejected on the grounds that its authorization from the AMF had expired at the time the call for tenders was published. The contract was awarded to the second-lowest bidder, Eurovia. However, Demix had included in its bid its renewal application to the AMF, submitted more than 90 days before the expiry of the original certificate. Its authorization from the AMF was therefore still in effect, under the rules, at the time the bids were subm...

A contract was awarded to Xylem even though the company did not meet several requirements specified in the call for tenders. It did not provide a signed letter from one of its customers attesting to the reliability of the proposed pumps, as required in the call for tenders, and it attempted to mislead the Inspector General in this regard. Moreover, the pump cooling system proposed by Xylem did not meet the terms of the specifications and equivalency was gr...

An officer at J.L. Michon Transports Inc. contacted a competitor to convince them not to submit a bid on a contract that J.L. Michon Transports Inc. had won in the past and to encourage this competitor to convince other contractors to do the same. The steps taken were attempts to enter into collusive agreements with a competitor. It was recommended that the tendering process be cancelled.

296 denunciations received. 5 public reports.

The contract awarded to A & O Gendron Inc. was subcontracted when this practice was formally prohibited by a clause in the contract. In fact, all snow removal operations for almost half of the tendered territory had been outsourced to Transport DM Choquette. The borough managers have been aware of the subcontracting since the contract was awarded in 2012. The contract was rescinded.

BIG uncovered various collusive schemes and attempts to control the snow removal market in Montréal. Mutual financial compensation, contract assignments and subcontracting are mechanisms amongst other means are used by a select group of contractors to control the distribution of contracts in certain sectors.

Initiated after allegations of collusion or irregularities in connection with the contract for the restoration of the arches and the pagoda in Chinatown, the investigation does not demonstrate any collusive practice or directed call for tenders in favour of the specific tile supplier. The complainant was the victim of his potential subcontractor, who attempted to secure a competitor’s bid.

The suspension of the contract awarded to Demix Construction, issued on September 22, 2015, was lifted following confirmations sent to the City by the contractor and the SNC-Lavalin supervisors that the surface and depth correction work would be carried out in accordance with the tender documents.

The suspension of the contract awarded to Demix Construction, issued on September 22, 2015, was partially lifted following the City’s request to complete, before the end of the season, the work not related to the deficiencies that led to the suspension. The City made a commitment to seek clarification and commitments from its contracting parties.

Serious deficiencies were noted when no in-depth remediation was carried out by Demix Construction, although surface conditions after the road milling required it. The extent of the surface defect remediation was also insufficient. Confronted with the specifications, the SNC-Lavalin supervisor eventually acknowledged that the foundation defects required thorough repairs. The contract was suspended while the contractor and SNC-Lavalin established measures t...

The contract awarded to Excavation R. Lécuyer & Fils Inc. was rescinded. The company carried out the contract using a device that was not the one listed in its bid and that did not meet certain important technical specifications, including engine power and depth of excavation. The compliance study conducted by the borough managers was botched since it was actually a modified technical data sheet for the device that had been submitted by the contractor.

308 denunciations received. 3 public reports.

Four professional service contracts were awarded, individually, without tenders being submitted which is against the rules of the law, to Quartier international de Montréal’s project manager. The organization either ignored or misapplied the rules of contract adjudication. Several major irregularities were noted in various contracts, including the absence of prior cost estimates, the establishment of a minimum flat fee as well as the incorrect methodolo...

The call for tenders was not conducive to a competitive market. Several restrictive criteria gave it the appearance of favouring the firm Acertys, which had been given a contract by mutual agreement for the preliminary study. Furthermore, the composition of the selection committee did not comply with the applicable frameworks, due to the participation of a division head who was effectively acting as the project manager. This person also contacted Acertys...