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Procurement
A GUIDE
FOR VENDORS
ON "HOW TO"
DO BUSINESS WITH
THE CITY
OF PORTSMOUTH
WELCOME
This brochure extends a warm welcome to all vendors interested
in serving the City of Portsmouth with goods and services,. It
is our desire to make dealing with the City a pleasurable and
rewarding experience for all parties involved.
GOAL
The goal of Purchasing is to procure all needs of the City in
the best possible quality, quantity, manner and at the most
economical price available.
POLICY
It will be our policy to conduct all purchasing activities in
accordance with applicable Federal and State laws and Portsmouth
City Ordinances.
BID LIST
Equal competitive opportunity can only be ensured by providing
an opportunity to interested suppliers. Our staff will provide
all interested and qualified bidders the opportunity to bid on
their product or services. Your company shall be placed on our
bidders list upon completion of a City of Portsmouth bid list
application.
Each vendor is assigned a number and placed on a list with an
indication of the type of items or services it can provide. This
list is consulted when a commodity or service is needed by the
City, and also serves as the reference through which competitive
pricing is secured.
The City of Portsmouth is an equal opportunity agency. It is our
goal to provide all prospective bidders the opportunity to do
business with the City, within the laws that govern public
procurement.
FUNCTION OF PURCHASING
The Purchasing Section performs a service function for all City
departments, and acts as a liaison between suppliers and the
City. We maintain an inventory of company catalogs and product
literature, and encourage vendors to supply us with product or
service information in this form. While we are the sole
purchasing body for the City, we often work closely with various
City departments in composing specifications and analyzing bid
proposals. Therefore, having product literature available is
mutually helpful for all City departments and for the vendor as
well.
All outstanding formal bid invitations are posted on a bid board
in Purchasing. We will gladly provide any interested vendor with
a copy on which to submit his proposal. Specifications are
included with bid solicitations and are also available upon
request. In some instances, it may be necessary to use trade
names or model numbers to designate the quality of merchandise
desired. In such cases, the phrase "or equal" will be specified.
The decision of "equal" rests solely with the City. The burden
of proving "equality" rests with the vendor.
The completed bid form should be signed and delivered to the
City Purchasing Agent prior to the designated opening time on
the form. Bid response envelopes should indicate the bid number
and opening date thereon.
BID OPENING
Bids are opened and read publicly in the Finance Department -
Purchasing Section. Vendors are welcome and encouraged to attend
any bid opening. After public reading, all bids will be open for
inspection for a reasonable period of time, as determined by the
City Purchasing Agent or his approved representative.
After tabulation of the bid, the results will be posted on a
tabulation sheet clipboard adjacent to the outstanding bid board
for public review.
In our day-to-day activities we strive to promote communication
and good will in community, supplier and employee relations and
to uphold the highest standards of business ethics. You can be
of invaluable service to us if you:
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Address and deliver all shipments to the "deliver to" instructions on the
Purchase Order or Contract
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Mail all invoices according to the "invoice to" instructions on the
Purchase Order.
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Let us know if you feel our specifications for a product or service can be improved
to offer a better option or lower costs.
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Be sure that your shipping label contains our Purchase Order number.
DO NOT accept orders or make
shipments until a Purchase Order number has been obtained from
Purchasing.
If you have questions at any time during the procurement
process, please consult with Purchasing for clarification.
DEPARTMENT PROCUREMENT \ RISK
MANAGEMENT
801 CRAWFORD STREET
PORTSMOUTH, VIRGINIA 23704-3822
TELEPHONE: (757) 393-8858
Fax: 757-393-5475
MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY
8:00 - 5:00
EXCEPT SATURDAYS, SUNDAYS
AND LEGAL HOLIDAYS
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