Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Cooperative Purchasing Contracts Can Help Schools Stay Within Budgets

  • 11/01/17

Over the last several years there has been a proliferation of purchasing cooperatives in the education space and it’s easy to see why. Today’s procurement professionals continue to face the daunting challenge of spending less and getting more. Be it through increased efficiencies, aggregated knowledge or leveraging resources, cooperative purchasing contracts can help.

Strength in Numbers

The sheer volume of purchasing power aggregated by the size of the cooperative provides individual members with economies of scale — and pricing advantages — they would likely not be able to achieve on their own. Add to that the considerable time savings associated with researching new product categories, sourcing competitive quotes, and negotiating pricing. By eliminating time spent on these tasks, resources can be reallocated to focus on more strategic projects.

Cooperative contracts can also represent a revenue generating tool. On top of exclusive savings and rebates, a true member-owned cooperative typically shares its profits with members in the form of “patronage” refunds, which are based on a member’s annual purchases.

Time Efficiencies

“We average approximately 100 days from beginning to end, in terms of conducting an RFP,” said Rick Gay, Procurement Officer at Houston Independent School District. “Utilizing a contract that has already gone through a bid process means we have immediate access to an agreement that adheres to our board policies or state statutes. It also means we can quickly conduct a market trend analysis to ensure we’re in compliance with federal spend regulations.”

The procurement team at Houston ISD comprises 12 sourcing specialists that typically conduct 350-400 solicitations per year. That requires a significant amount of time and resources, and every measure of savings helps. “It’s all about ensuring that our end users get what they need, at the best price available, as quickly as possible,” Rick said. “If that means using a cooperative contract, I’m in!”

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • Opportunity by Design Framework

    Opportunity by Design

    Educational improvement efforts often focus on curriculum, instruction, assessment, professional development, and intervention systems while treating the physical school building as background. But school design is not a passive backdrop to learning — it is a structural lever for equity.

  • UT-San Antonio Begins Residence Hall Renovations

    The University of Texas at San Antonio recently began a $6-million renovation project to one of its residence halls, according to a news release. Originally completed in 1986, Chisolm Hall measures in at 120,860 square feet and is the oldest and largest residence hall on campus.

  • Spaces4Learning Announces 2026 Product Award Winners

    Spaces4Learning has just announced the winners of the 2026 Product Awards! The award program spotlights outstanding product development achievements of manufacturers and suppliers whose products or services are considered to be particularly noteworthy in their ability to enhance K–12 and higher-education learning environments.

  • Wold Architects & Engineers Announces Acquisition of JJCA

    Wold Architects & Engineers, based in Minneapolis, Minn., recently announced that it has acquired JJCA, an architecture firm based in Nashville, Tenn., according to a press release. JJCA specializes in healthcare and education design; the partnership allows both firms to expand their presence across the country while building on existing strengths.