Tenders to win the tender for new schools to be provided to schools for restarting must be submitted by 30 July: the call, published yesterday evening by the emergency commissioner Domenico Arcuri, provides for the purchase of a maximum of three million benches, of which 1.5 of traditional single-seaters and 1.5 of innovative equipped seats. The unexpected cost: The desks with the best value for money on the market will be chosen, which will respect the criteria imposed by the call, they let the commissioner’s office know. Contracts must be signed by August 7, and by 31 the counters must be delivered and assembled at the expense of the companies. But the announcement is only the epilogue of a long day in which the innovative benches have been at center of controversy.
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The modern bench
Where does the idea of the chair with tip, conference model come from? Galeotta was the photo presented at the press conference by Minister Lucia Azzolina on 26 June last, when she explained the plan for the restart of the school. And, between one slide and the other, the image of the ergonomic desks, already used in the Majorana high school in Brindisi. The benches of the future, they seemed, a bit expensive – we are talking about 300 euros each, compared to 50 for a normal single bank – but potentially able to solve space problems. The principals had already expressed doubts in recent weeks, but yesterday Matteo Richetti, senator of Action, directly attacked the minister with a parliamentary question: What are the criteria that led to the choice of chairs and how many schools will be purchased ?, he asked . And again: Why do the purchased chairs cost twice as much a similar chair for sale online ?. The Priorit Committee at the School has feared that behind thecase a conflict of interest was hiding: We discovered – write Arianna Ugolini, Barbara Piccinini and Cristina Tagliabue – that the chair should be produced by Stefano Ghidini, owner of the C2 Group, cited as a consultant to the Ministry of Education, although he specifies that he is he was only an expert of the school office in Lombardy free of charge. Some consumer associations ask to clarify all aspects of the contract. But actually there hasn’t been any contract yet. And even the owner of the company blurts out: I was proud of that photo, and instead I find myself in the storm. It is true that we market them like other Italian retailers and we believe they can be a valid tool. But as always and as required by law, we participate in calls for tenders, hoping, like our competitors, to be able to win with respect for the best service to schools.
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The opinion of the principals
Many principals restane however undecided. They seem out of place – says Cristina Costarelli, Newton High School in Rome -. The needs are many, better to allocate resources to something else. Perplexit that he feels to share Matteo Loria, of the IIS Caramuel-Roncalli, Pavia: We have different needs from the futuristic desks, which by the way are not suitable for very tall kids. Domenico Gravante, from Einstein-De Lorenzo di Potenza, worried: I tried them: after a few hours they are uncomfortable. But Alessandra Rucci, Savoia Benincasa of Ancona, defends them: I bought them in the past, the high cost but the unparalleled robustness. And today, meter in hand, we have verified that they save space.
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July 20, 2020 (change July 20, 2020 | 9:47 PM)
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