@article{pantilimon voda2016rules author = {Oana Pantilimon Voda and Carolien Jobse}, title = {Rules and Boundaries Surrounding Market Consultations in Innovation Procurement}, journal = {European Procurement & Public Private Partnership Law Review}, volume = {11}, number = {3}, year = {2016}, abstract = {There is a general tendency to regard public procurement from a narrow perspective, focusing solely on the conduct of the procurement procedure, starting with the moment the contract notice is published and ending with the award of the procurement contract. However, procurement should be regarded from a much broader, comprehensive perspective, comprising both the preparatory stages (including the needs identification and their validation through market engagement) as well as the post-procurement phase (including monitoring of contract implementation). Specifically in case of innovation procurement, market consultation plays a crucial role due to the fact that the innovation cycle is normally longer than the procurement cycle. In this context, in order to attract suppliers’ interest to invest in the development and delivery of innovative goods or services, they need a thorough understanding of the public demand’s needs. Consequently, public procurement undoubtedly entails engaging with the market to allow public procurers to be provided with the right solutions to their identified needs. Whereas procurers have traditionally been using the competitive dialogue procedure to address this issue especially in complex projects, conducting a market sounding and engagement prior to the commencement of the procurement procedure itself may prove beneficial for numerous reasons. This article explores the insights of the market consultation process, focusing on the benefits thereof, the prerequisites and the legal rules and constraints that need to be kept in mind when planning and organising such a dialogue. It also gives insights on how and when to use a market consultation. Last but not least this article concludes with considering the results of the market consultation and how they can be used in a public procurement.}, url = {https://doi.org/10.21552/epppl/2016/3/7} doi = {10.21552/epppl/2016/3/7} }