The Exciting World of Government Purchasing and Carpet and Flooring Replacement Projects

As I work with government entities, I meet people of all job titles who find themselves in the role of facility manager: community and recreation center directors, librarians, parks department personnel, police, and firefighters. As you might expect, some, but not nearly all, are experts in public procurement. After all, public purchasing is a discipline unto itself!

The Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply (CIPS) and The Institute for Public Procurement (NIGP), list on their Principles and Practices website a list of global best practices for public procurement.  Here, you can find a list of 20 documents outlining best public procurement practices. It's a lot to know!

One method of best practice outlined at principlesandpractices.org is the utilization of cooperative contracts, and the NIGP Sourcebook page highlights the U.S. Communities purchasing alliance at http://www.nigpsourcebook.com.

If you are making a government purchase, Missouri and Kansas state statute allows you to bypass the usual bid process -with all the associated time consuming record keeping, regulations, and contractor meetings-by utilizing a cooperative purchasing agreement.

Why is this true? These contracts have been nationally solicited and competed already and offer you the lowest pricing available to governments, and as such, satisfy your purchasing requirements.

And, did you know you can purchase an entire, turn-key carpet or flooring installation?

For more information on others in the Kansas City area who have utilized U.S. Communities for their flooring installations, please take a look at. http://allflooringkc.com/governments-and-nonprofits.html?

The #2 Reason You Haven't Done That Flooring Replacement Project at Your Government Facility

If you are in purchasing or facilities, you have undoubtedly been tasked with undertaking a carpet or flooring replacement project at some point in your tenure.

The #1 reason project managers give for delaying their flooring project (or window treatment installation project) = lack of budget resources.

The #2 reason = uncertainty about the public procurement process.

Undertaking a major purchase or project can in the public sector can be confusing. You will need to know the answers to a number of questions, like "Where and for how long should I advertise a request for bids? How many bids am I required to get at minimum? Must I choose the lowest bid or the best value? How do I document the best value? How do I document the process? For how long must I keep records on the bid process after the project is completed?

But did you know that you can purchase your entire turn-key carpet or flooring project installation through a government purchasing program WITHOUT going through the bid process?

There are a number of government purchasing contracts through which you can directly purchase a complete, turn-key carpet or flooring installation. These nationally competed contracts are pre-bid, and allow governments and nonprofits to purchase goods and services at that  nationally competed rate. Because these are ALREADY nationally solicited and publicly bid on a nationwide basis, they satisfy customary 3-bid requirements, and state statute often allows you to purchase directly through the program since the bidding has already been done for you.

Make your project easy.  Find out more at http://allflooringkc.com/governments-and-nonprofits.html.

We can help!  In the Kansas City area, call us at 816 309 7121.