Cooperative Procurement for Higher Ed

College and university leaders face the daunting task of navigating through rules and regulations that hinder the procurement process. This usually lengthy process requires committing limited time and resources. Then there’s the challenge of finding qualified bidders. Now, higher education institutions have the option to turn to cooperative purchasing networks to maximize resources and expedite the process.

These networks owe their growing popularity to their variety of labor-based and service offerings. Cooperative purchasing happens when one public agency competitively bids and establishes a contract available for other government agencies to “piggyback,” or adopt as their own. The combined leverage of multiple agencies’ budgets creates a price advantage and the piggybacking agency saves time and resources by leaning on existing contracts.

While traditional construction procurement has a reputation for being expensive and inefficient, purchasing construction services through a co-op can streamline this inflexible process. By utilizing contracts through co-ops, colleges and universities have access to competitively awarded local contractors who are available to start work immediately. They also see efficiencies across their schools increase as operational processes related to procurement become streamlined. Schools of all sizes and types save time and effort and avoid disputes and project delays, all while increasing budgetary control on small-to-large construction projects.

Acquiring goods and strategic services through cooperative purchasing networks is now regarded as a best practice. By enabling colleges and universities to trade the time and expense of traditional procurement for speed, efficiency, and the power of group buying, cooperative networks are offering a new alternative to decades-old processes.

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management November/December 2018 issue of Spaces4Learning.

About the Author

Matt Peterson handles Business Development – National Cooperatives for Gordian Group. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • MiEN Releases White Paper on Community College Space Innovation

    MiEN Company recently released a new white paper called “Designing New Innovative Spaces for Community Colleges” to address the needs of community colleges post-pandemic, according to a news release. The eight-page guide by Dr. Christina Counts, MiEN Company VP of Education and Marketing, covers topics like the enrollment drop that these schools have seen since COVID-19, the roles they play in higher education and local workforces, and five suggested key changes that can improve students’ experiences.

  • New Jersey PreK–12 School Breaks Ground on New STEM Building

    Saddle River Day School (SRDS) in Saddle River, N.J., recently announced that it has broken ground on the new Dr. Kristen Walsh Hall of Science & Entrepreneurship, according to a news release. The school partnered with DIGroup Architecture for the design of the new facility, which will provide the school with space to expand its STEM and business education classes.

  • modern college building with circuit and brain motifs

    Anthropic Introduces Claude for Education

    Anthropic has launched a version of its Claude AI assistant tailored for higher education institutions. Claude for Education "gives academic institutions secure, reliable AI access for their entire community," the company said, to enable colleges and universities to develop and implement AI-enabled approaches across teaching, learning, and administration.

  • Image courtesy of Armstrong International

    The Modern Hot Water System Approach to Keep Higher Education Buildings Safe and Operational

    Higher education campuses face unique structural and operational demands. With a range of old and new buildings, a variety of facility types, and ambitious sustainability goals, it's essential that no aspect of infrastructural performance is overlooked. Facility managers must be equipped to provide a safe, reliable and efficient space for students, faculty and guests.

Digital Edition