We are excited to announce that all requests for proposals, requests for quotations and requests for information (Solicitation(s)) processed through Purchasing Services will now be posted to the Purchase, Pay and Travel Website on the Solicitations page. As this page is publicly accessible, the posting of all upcoming, open, and previous Solicitations will provide increased transparency for opportunities to work with Pitt and aims to generate increased interest and proposals from local and diverse companies.
This change to the competitive bidding process will add a few additional but important steps that departments should consider when developing an overall Solicitation timeline:
- Upcoming solicitations will be posted to the PPT website;
- In Solicitations where small, local or diverse suppliers have been identified as potential bidders, a pre-bid meeting will occur prior to issuance of the Solicitation; and
- Once issued, the Solicitation will live on the website with its due date noted (this will hopefully increase awareness and participation in various Solicitations among local and diverse companies).
Your assigned procurement specialist will be available to work with you throughout the Solicitation process.
As an important reminder, Competitive Bidding is University policy, and is required whenever a purchase of goods or services will be greater than $10,000. Spending with local and diverse businesses is an institutional priority. The University has established goals, some as part of the Plan for Pitt, to support community and economic development by increasing spending with local and diverse businesses. Conducting the competitive bidding process along with the public posting of solicitations and minimizing the use of directed or sole source suppliers supports these goals by increasing the opportunities for local and diverse companies and allowing them the chance for business that they may not have been aware of or had previously. Learn more about the additional benefits that competitive bidding offers and information about all purchases on the PPT Website.