Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism/Proposal to revise the outline of the Quality Assurance Act implementation guidelines, encouraging the use of new technologies such as VFM
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has revised the ``Basic Policy'', which includes measures that public contractors should take, based on the revised Public Works Quality Assurance Promotion Act (Public Works Quality Assurance Act). outlines the “Operations Guidelines”, which are general rules for work related to order. The plan has been revealed. The operations guidelines emphasize the use of new technologies in public works, encourage the adoption of materials, equipment and construction methods that are consistent with VFM (value for money) and reflect them in the plan price. It will also include contents related to work style reform and improvement of disaster response capabilities, such as the "quality improvement" of the two-day work week led by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and the planned price of workers' compensation insurance premiums in the event of disaster response.
Central and local governments are obliged to make efforts to implement measures in accordance with basic policies. In addition to the revised Public Works Acquisition Act, the draft proposal for the amendment also specifies measures based on the revised Construction Industry Act. Due to recent problems in the construction industry, adjustments will be made to require overtime regulations and construction schedules to take into account extremely hot days.
The new operational guidelines will incorporate the provisions of the revised Public Works Acquisition Act into specific ordering methods and response measures as much as possible. For example, if a situation where there is no competition in the region is expected, the use of a ``voluntary contract system of the participant's confirmation type'' that will be tested in directly managed construction work will be given as an example. We encourage the use of ``recovery/reconstruction construction joint ventures (Recovery/reconstruction joint ventures)'' as a means of cooperation between technologically capable companies and local companies in responding to natural disasters.
In the workers' compensation insurance contract for construction work based on a natural disaster agreement, the scope of insurance premiums to be borne by the customer is also specified. The expected price will include special subscription to the workers' compensation insurance for company executives, non-statutory insurance such as personal accident compensation insurance, and insurance contracts that guarantee the amount required to compensate for damage caused to third parties. It is necessary to implement a cooperative system to implement large-scale maintenance and management with attention to the "Regional Infrastructure Group Recovery Strategy Management" of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Examples include multi-year contracts, comprehensive/joint orders, methods in which contractors participate from the design stage, and the use of CM (construction management) methods.
The use of new technology will be independent as a new chapter. In addition to customer requirements such as consideration of VFM and decarbonization, this document is supplemented with information on national measures. In order to increase the motivation for private entities to be responsible for research and development of advanced technology, the government has stipulated that in government-commissioned research and development activities, intellectual property rights such as patent rights will not be transferred from contractors.
The revised outline of the operational guidelines will soon be sent to local governments and construction industry organizations, and a process will begin to solicit comments. We will conduct the revision work with the aim of starting operations on issues related to order in 2025.
