Catskill Central School District announced today that it has joined the Empire State Purchasing Group, a regional purchasing group that helps local governments post, distribute and manage RFPs, quotes, addendums and awards online. BidNet’s Empire State Purchasing Group (www.bidnetdirect.com/new-york) provides notification to registered vendors of new relevant solicitations, and any addenda and award information from over 200 participating agencies across New York.
Catskill Central School District joined the purchasing group in November. In joining, Catskill Central School District has become the 208th participating local government agency utilizing the system to streamline their purchasing process. The Empire State Purchasing Group is a single, online location for managing sourcing information and activities and provides local New York government agencies a method to minimize costs and time delays associated with the procurement process. Catskill Central School District was distributing bids and managing the procurement process manually before joining the system. In joining, Catskill Central School District looks to save time, increase competition and achieve cost savings over the traditional paper-based bid process.
Catskill Central School District now has access to an extensive vendor pool, thereby enhancing competition without increasing distribution costs. In addition to the existing vendors on the Empire State Purchasing Group, all vendors looking to respond to bids with local government agencies can register online by visiting www.bidnetdirect.com/new-york. Catskill Central School District invites all current vendors not already registered on the purchasing group to do so today. Vendor registration is easy and takes only a few minutes online.
Registered vendors can access bids, related documents, addendum and award information. In addition, the Empire State Purchasing Group offers a value-added service to notify vendors of new bids targeted to their industry, all addenda associated with those bids and advance notice of term contract expiration. A robust NIGP code category list allows vendors registering to find the correct codes and receive matched bids.
“By using the Empire State Purchasing Group, our valued vendors can now access not only our open bids, but those from other municipalities, counties and school districts throughout the state. In addition to the time savings we anticipate, our vendors will also benefit from registering in one location for all local bid opportunities. We invite all of our current vendors to register or contact the vendor support team with any questions,” stated Joseph Jimick, Business Official of Catskill Central School District.
Vendors may register on the Empire State Purchasing Group at www.bidnetdirect.com/new-york. BidNet’s vendor support team is available to answer any questions regarding the registration process or the bid system at 800-835-4603 option 2.
Other local New York government agencies looking to switch from a manual bid process, please contact the Empire State Purchasing Group for a demonstration of the no-cost sourcing solution.
About Catskill Central School District:
Catskill CSD is set apart by an exceptional pre-K to 12 curriculum that allows students to build a strong academic and social foundation for success. Our learning community values our ethnic, racial and cultural diversity. Our school district serves approximately 1,550 students in three school buildings. Our elementary school serves approximately 800 students in pre-K to grade 5. Our middle school serves approximately 320 students in a team-based grade 6-8 community. Our high school serves approximately 430 students in grades 9 to 12. The annual budget for the district is approximately $40 million.