Job Order Contracting isn't new. Devised by the military, the concept has been around since the 1980s and is finding its way in the private and public sectors more and more. Why? Because it's far more efficient and effective than traditional procurement methods.

Job Order Contracting was developed to overcome the numerous problems inherent in the traditional Design Bid Build (DBB) method. With DBB, every government project, no matter how small, had to be designed and released for bid — with the lowest bidder winning the bid. With Job Order Contracting, agencies are able to ensure that small, simple, and commonly encountered construction/facilities projects are performed easily and quickly. With JOC in place, the government agency has an on-call general contractor who is familiar with the facility/project and the agency’s needs. Job Order Contracting has been successful at reducing and eliminating the common occurrences of construction delays, cost over-runs, and quality disputes.

Job Order Contracting is an excellent tool that should be in all local and government agencies' toolboxes. It is proven to increase reliability, cost effectiveness and local community involvement. Executed properly, it can do work faster, better and less expensively than traditional "low bid" methods