The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) on Friday explained why it adopted a "specific" method in finding a contractor to install a nameplate and undergo a logo redesign for Bang Sue Grand Station.
The rail agency came under heavy fire after it was revealed that the work would cost 33 million baht. The project, criticised for being costly and for possibly using questionable methods for hiring a contractor, drew attention from the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC).
Unique Engineering and Construction Plc (Uniq) was hired for the redesign project, which follows His Majesty the King renaming the station as "Krung Thep Abhiwat Central Terminal" in September.
In its statement, the SRT said it opted for the specific method of bidding because the redesign work involved improvement of the completed construction work that is still within the warranty period.
As a result, the contractor was required to follow the scope of work specified in Contract 1 of the Red Line project, and Uniq was the only firm that was qualified to undertake the project, according to the SRT. It insisted the procurement process was in line with Section 56 of the Government Procurement Act of BE 2560.
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The SRT also provided details about the work involved after netizens made an observation that with a 33 million baht price tag, the installation of the nameplate cost 500,000 baht per letter.
The rail agency said the project costs covered not only the installation of two SRT logos and 110 Thai and English characters but also the removal of the old nameplates, the replacement of glass panels, the lighting system and a one-year warranty, among other costs.
For structural work, the removal of glass panels and the old nameplates from the eastern and western sides of the terminal cost about 4 million baht, while steel structure work and safety equipment cost 2.2 million baht.
The architectural work, which included the installation of new glass panels and the procurement of 110 letters and two logos, cost 24.2 million baht. The design work cost almost 1 million baht. About 1.6 million baht was reserved as a provisional sum.
The Thai and English characters to be installed were huge and made from special materials for durability, according to the rail agency.
The Thai characters are 3 metres high, 2.6 metres wide, and 40 centimetres thick, while the English characters are 2.1 metres high, 2.2 metres wide, and 40 centimetres thick. The SRT logos are 7 metres high.
Activist Srisuwan Janya on Friday criticised the composition of the 10-member committee set up by the Transport Ministry to look into the project's transparency.
Srisuwan: Critical of committee