Re: Re: Mission Creep - Was Re: The new US Army APC the Stinger

> > The AE approach is more along the lines of financial penalties for
> > over budget and over schedule.  This means that bids tend to be
padded
> > a bit, as insurance, but it also means that we get predictable
> > numbers.
>
> But you still buy from the lowest bidder,  do you ?

No, we buy from the best bid, not necessarily the lowest.

> Which means companies
> must bid low (and risky), and may go bust if they risk too much.
What
> happens to the project then ? Another bone of contention is any
change to
> the design after the contract is agreed on. Is it part of neccessary
> development (to be paid by the contractor) or a change request (to
be paid
> by the buyer) ?

Change requests are always paid by the buyer.

> And now that he has the main contract, he can charge
> anything he wants for the upgrades.

Upgrades can go out for bid just like anything else.  Documentation is
owned by the buyer, not the contractor.  It may be fiscally
advantageous to go back to the original source, even if he's
overcharging you...but you can always make it clear that it'll be