Procurement Guidelines
In accordance with the Procurement Policies and Procedures established by the University System of Maryland and implemented by UMBC, where the procurement is reasonably expected to exceed $200,000, the procurement must be forwarded to the Department of Procurement for processing. Any of the following formal procurement processes may be used as deemed appropriate by the Procurement Officer:
- Competitive Sealed Bids – for orders reasonably expected to exceed $200,000, the bid process is a formal written bid process in which bids are generally sent to an adequate number of bidders to ensure competition. Specifications are developed working with the department and permit a bid based on lowest bid from a bidder who is both responsive and responsible and meets the specifications set forth in the bid documents. Formal competitive sealed bids are typically processed in 30 – 45 days depending on dollar value, complexity of procurement, and location of bidders. Solicitations must be published in a manner that best meets the needs of the solicitation. Publication may be accomplished by posting the solicitation on the Procurement bid board, on the eMaryland Marketplace website, trade journals, UMBC’s electronic bid board, etc.
- Competitive Request for Proposals (“RFP”) – two step process in which there are separately received, evaluated, and scored Technical Proposals and Financial Proposals. Generally used where the requirements of the procurement are difficult to quantify and award will be based on factors other than cost. Due to the complexity of the RFP documents and the evaluation process, this process typically takes 60 – 90 days. Solicitations must be published in a manner that best meets the needs of the solicitation. Publication may be accomplished by posting the solicitation on the bid board, in the eMaryland Marketplace website, trade journals, UMBC’s electrinic bid board, etc. Procurement will work closely with requesting department to establish the specifications and criteria for the RFP.
- Sole Source Procurement may be used if appropriate and justified by the using department with concurrence by Procurement. Department must attach a written justification (memorandum to appropriate Procurement Officer) stating the following:
- Need for the service or commodity
- Uniqueness of the vendor’s qualifications, experience, commodity
- Attempts to find other sources or basis for the sole source
- Impact if this vendor was not selected. Procurement will obtain a written confirmation of pricing and negotiate to obtain the best prices and terms for the University.
- Emergency Procurement – An emergency is a sudden and unexpected occurrence or condition which the University reasonably could not have foreseen that requires an action to avoid or to mitigate serious damage to public health, safety or welfare. An emergency is not a situation which arises as a result of poor planning or lack of funds. Generally, time constraints in resolving the emergency situation may require immediate action that precludes the use of any formal procurement process, where time permits, the University should attempt to seek as much competition as possible. Contact Procurement on ext. 5-2273 as soon as an emergency arises to see how best to proceed.
- Cooperative purchasing agreements with other institutions, agencies, governments, etc. – The Department of Procurement may from time to time combine procurement requirements with the needs of other institutions, agencies or governments to achieve the maximum efficiency and economies in making purchases. These contracts would be available for use by the campus as the need arises.
- Contracts shared with other institutions, agencies, governments, etc. – UMBC, as well as other campuses of the USM, inserts a requirement into bid documents permitting other campuses to use contracts that have been issued by UMBC. The advantage is that it reduces the processing time that may have been needed to do a separate solicitation. Where such contracts are made known to the campus, they are available for use by departments.
- Once the procurement process is completed, the purchase order will be issued by the Department of Procurement.
If you have any questions, contact the Department of Procurement on ext. 5-2273.