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All Invitations for Bid (IFB)/Request
for Proposal (RFP) are available for public viewing in the
Purchasing Department. The Purchasing Department is interested in the
maximum amount of competition. Specific IFB/RFP's may be
requested by telephone or in writing by prospective bidders at any
time prior to the bid opening. Bids/Proposals must be received
in the Purchasing Department prior to the specified time and date.
There are NO exceptions to this rule. Bids/Proposals received after
the time will be returned unopened. Timely receipt of
bids/proposals is the sole responsibility of the vendor,
therefore, it is in the vendor’s best interest to take into
account the possibility of unforeseen delays when submitting bids.
Bids/Proposals are available online for viewing at
Michigan Buyers, as advertised in
the Lansing State Journal and additional periodicals as deemed
necessary.
Any interested party may attend bid openings which are held on
most business days in the Purchasing Department. The information
provided at the bid openings is somewhat dependent on the type of
solicitation. In the case of bids where pricing information is
contained in the solicitation response, the vendor’s name and
total price will be announced and recorded on a Bid Tab Sheet. In
the case of Request For Proposals, only the names of the offerors
are announced. The information read aloud at bid openings does not
determine the award.
A bidder may withdraw an inadvertently erroneous bid with written
approval from the Director prior to the bid opening. Repeated
withdrawal of bids before the bid deadline is an abuse of the
purchasing process and may be grounds for debarment. Subsequent to
bid opening, if a bidder has been determined the lowest responsive
and responsible bidder and would be recommended for award, the
College may take whatever action is in the College’s best interest
regarding bid withdrawal.
Requests for return of a bid after the due date will not be
honored since the material becomes College property and is,
therefore, not returnable. The College will return unused samples
and/or exhibits at the vendor’s request and expense.
A vendor declining to submit a bid should return the signature
page of the IFB/RFP by the due date and time with a notation "No
Bid". A vendor’s failure to bid or to return the signature page
with required notation may cause the vendor to be removed from
future consideration for the requested good or service.
Vendors
who are receiving bids that they are not interested in should
submit a request in writing to be removed from future
consideration for the requested good or service.
The Purchasing Department is responsible for
the selection of reputable and reliable vendors. Bids are
posted online at Michigan Buyers to increase access to college purchases.
Every bid includes criteria for determining which
vendor offers
the lowest cost and meets the vendor qualifications, delivery
time, specifications, terms and conditions contained in the
solicitation. When a solicitation requires an oral presentation,
submission of test samples, or inspection of facilities or place
of business, these factors are part of the bid evaluation. The
total cost may include unit price, delivery, installation,
maintenance and cost of operation, as defined in the solicitation. In case of a discrepancy between a unit price and its extension,
the unit price will prevail.
The Purchasing Department does not consider the following in
evaluating bids:
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Assistance in developing specifications or other advisory services
a vendor provides. Although such assistance is valuable and
appreciated, there can be no preferential treatment for these
services.
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Equipment a vendor installs on a free trial basis.
- Reciprocity or Quid Pro Quo, there is no understanding or
agreement that a vendor will be awarded a contract or purchase
order based upon their financial contribution to the College.
Award of a purchase order/contract is based on the best value to
the College. As stated in the solicitation various criteria are
used in determining the best value including price, quality,
availability, delivery and fitness for the particular purpose.
Consideration is also given to the vendor's potential ability to
successfully perform under the terms and conditions and the
vendor’s past performance record.
The College reserves the right to award by item, group of items,
or total bid. The College further reserves the right to reject any
and all bids if it is determined by the director/coordinator, at
his/her discretion, that the best interests of the College will be
served by doing so. The College may reject all bids for a
solicitation and not make an award, and may choose to cancel a
solicitation or conduct a "rebid". In determining an award, the
qualifications of the vendor, conformity with terms, conditions specifications of supplies or services, cost and delivery
terms will be considered. The College will not award to a person
or firm that is currently debarred. Buyers will check the
Excluded Parties List System.
For competitive purchases, the Purchasing
Department notifies
vendors of award status in writing. Vendors may contact the
Purchasing Department to request status in writing.
Vendors may
contact the Purchasing Department to request status of a bid or check
the Bids/Proposals Awarded on the
Purchasing Department website.
If the lowest and most responsible and responsive bids received
are for the same amount or unit price and all the criteria
mentioned above in AWARD are equal, and one of which is a local
vendor, then the award shall be to the local vendor. If both
vendors are local, then date and time of bid submission will be
used.
The Purchasing Department encourages
vendors who have not been
successful in competing for a bid to arrange a debriefing session
with the buyer. A debriefing is not an appeal hearing. During a
debriefing session, the buyer will provide information as to where
the submission contained deficiencies and comment on the areas of
strength, as well as describe the reasoning behind the award. In
many cases, the bid response may well have addressed the
requirements of the bid, but the vendor was unsuccessful because
of pricing.
A debriefing can serve as an extremely valuable learning
experience for those inexperienced in the College’s purchasing
process, or for first-time bidders. The ability to find out what
was right and wrong with a bid response will be beneficial to the
vendor and the College on future bids. It is also an opportunity
for reviewing the winning bid if so desired. It is generally a
good idea to review why a vendor was unsuccessful before
initiating a vendor appeal of an award.
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