Public Procurement Service Abolishes Submission of Raw Material Usage Confirmation Documents for Composite Wood and Others

Abolishment of Document Submission for Contracts of Four Items Including Composite Wood
Reduction of Industry's Time and Cost Burden Due to Document Submission
Over 250 Companies, Annual Document Submission Burden Decreased by 10,000 Pages

The Public Procurement Service announced on the 17th that it will abolish the 'obligation to submit documents such as raw material input/output ledgers' applied during multiple supplier contracts for four items: natural stone boundary stones, natural stone slabs, manhole covers, and synthetic wood.

Previously, due to issues with the use of Chinese raw materials, it was mandatory to submit ledgers of raw material input/output and electricity consumption when contracting items such as natural stone boundary stones. This was to manage whether the products were directly produced domestically.

However, on-site parties have expressed burdens due to the time and costs incurred from the mandatory submission of raw material usage verification documents.

The Public Procurement Service explained that during a recent meeting with the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, it listened to such field difficulties from the industry and decided to abolish the document submission obligation through immediate inspection and follow-up measures. This decision was made considering the document submission obligation as a shadow regulation hindering corporate growth.

With the abolition of the document submission obligation, the Public Procurement Service expects that about 250 companies in the industry will be relieved from the burden of submitting approximately 10,000 pages of documents annually.

Kwon Hyuk-jae, Director of the Purchasing Business Bureau at the Public Procurement Service, said, “The abolition of the document submission obligation is the first step in the ‘hidden shadow reform at procurement sites,’ which is a key focus this year. The Public Procurement Service will continue to speed up field-centered regulatory innovation so that procurement companies do not feel unnecessary administrative burdens on site.”