Category: Raw materials
The Associated Press
October 17, 2010
DANVILLE, Ky. — A central Kentucky city has turned to online auctions to buy supplies such as road salt, water treatment chemicals and a new city fire truck.
Danville city commissioners and an official with the company running the sales say the method appears to be saving the city money.
Jock Kinnett, a representative of Louisville-based eBridge, told the Danville Advocate-Messenger that the city saved 16 percent on chemical purchases over the previous year.
The company organizes auctions for public procurement in a timed setting, much the same way an eBay auction is operated.
Kinnett said the company collects a percentage of the sale from the seller after the city has paid the vendor.
Read more: http://www.kentucky.com/2010/10/17/1483627/ky-city-turns-to-online-auctions.html#ixzz12iQDrDYo
A Kentucky city partnered with eBridge to purchase their road salt in preparation for the winter months. eBridge ran this same bid last year and the city knew the reverse auction process was necessary for their city to purchase the salt at a competitive price point.
eBridge’s team of purchasing professionals sourced suppliers for this bid, with four being chosen by the city to participate.
During the bidding event, a total of 160 bids were placed among the four suppliers, resulting in 80 first place turnovers and 59 extension of the clock, indicating the suppliers were ready to compete for this business.
At the conclusion of the bid, the city had realized a 10% savings versus last year’s pricing, indicating that while they purchased competitively last year through the reverse auction, they achieved true market value for their purchase for both this year and last.
In 2009, The City of Fort Smith Arkansas partnered with eBridge on the purchase of their water treatment chemicals, achieving significant savings and efficiencies in their purchasing process. Because of the success, Fort Smith immediately turned to eBridge to again provide expertise and leadership through this year’s chemical purchase. (Click here to read about last year’s event!)
For the 2010 bid, our team of purchasing professionals assisted the city in sourcing 17 suppliers to participate in the event. During the bidding event, 293 bids were placed by the 17 suppliers. In a paper bid process, the City of Fort Smith would have only received 14 bids rather than the 293 subsequent lowering bids that were placed by the 17 suppliers.
Throughout the bid process, eBridge provided consistent communication to the Fort Smith purchasing department about the status of the suppliers, bid documents and confirmation of communication to participating suppliers. The final deliverable was the reverse auction event that proved to be a huge success, yet again.
A mid-western city partnered with eBridge yet again to establish a road salt bid with one year extensions for the next four years. eBridge established the city’s road salt contract 5 years prior and with the contract up for renewal, the city looked to our team of purchasing professionals to deliver for them, yet again.
As purchasing professionals know, establishing road salt contracts early in the year helps your organization get a competitive market price for your purchasing jurisdiction.
The city anticipated a specific price per ton, however, at the conclusion of the reverse auction event, the auction yielded a low bid 15.38% lower.
‘Tis the season to be merry! Even though summer is here, now is the time to be purchasing for the upcoming winter season.
eBridge recently ran an event for deicing chemicals for a state transportation department.
True market value is our the main goal in each auction that we do here at eBridge and it was achieved on this chemical bid with a margin of 0.29% between first and second place. There were several suppliers competing for the top spot and first place changed hands thirteen times.
It doesn’t have to be raining out to buy a rain jacket and it doesn’t have to be cold to buy deicing chemicals so remember eBridge year-round for all of your purchasing needs.
BidBridge assisted a Kentucky city with the purchase of 11 chemicals for water treatment. Chemicals are a volatile commodity, with pricing for each varying throughout the year.
Twelve suppliers participated in the bid, placing 373 total bids throughout the 2 hour, 20 minute bid. First place changed hands 111 times and the clock extended 215 times, allowing suppliers to continue to compete for the business.
At the conclusion of the bid, the city saved 23% versus budget.
After a year when road salt prices were significantly higher than normal, prices appear to be declining for this year. eBridge hosted our first road salt bid of the 2010 season for a large Midwestern county.
Six suppliers from across the country bid on the contract. Throughout the course of the competitive bidding event, first place changed hands 19 times, resulting in a total of 98 bids placed among the six suppliers.
The bid concluded at 7.99% lower than 2009 purchase price, providing savings versus last year’s budget for the county and providing a key indicator that prices may be dropping for the 2010 salt purchasing season.
A Midwestern state’s water district engaged BidBridge for the purchase of two water treatment chemicals. The bid was comprised of four line items, with pricing segmented out for a 6 month and 1 year contracts for each. The chemicals included ferric sulfate and hydrofluorosilicic acid.
Seven suppliers placed a total of 31 lowering bids over the course of the one hour, 58 minute event. The final overall pricing for the event yielded a 21% savings versus budget.
The buying organization was thrilled with the pricing and is slated to run several more events through BidBridge reverse auction process in the near future.
Suppliers Actively Compete for New Q1 Coal Contract
TRION, Ga., Jan. 19– At the end of 2009, Mount Vernon Mills, Inc. closed a contract that helped the company acquire coal for manufacturing operations over Q1 of 2010. The organization teamed with BidBridge, a proven eAuction services provider for the public and private sectors, to leverage an electronic reverse auction platform.
Mount Vernon Mills, Inc. is a diversified and integrated manufacturer of textile, chemical and related products for the apparel, industrial, institutional, and commercial markets. The company’s Trion, GA location consumes approximately 1200 tons of coal per week to fuel diverse manufacturing operations like the production of denim, fabrics with indigo and sulfur dyeing, piece dyed and finished fabrics (cotton and blends) including flame retardant, military uniforms, sportswear and career apparel.
Trent Jordan, Division Controller for Mount Vernon Mills’ Trion location, chose BidBridge’s unique eProcurement platform because it was the best option for running a smooth, efficient bid that could potentially save money for the organization. In partnering with BidBridge, Mount Vernon Mills placed its suppliers in a forum that allowed them to actively compete for the company’s business.
In an event that logged 35 first place turnovers and 76 time extensions, four suppliers placed 84 bids to win the business. The bid event resulted in a significant cost savings that represents just one of the many benefits purchasing organizations gain by using BidBridge’s e-Auction platform.
“With BidBridge, the bid event ran smoothly, and we were able to monitor the entire process as it unfolded via the company’s web-based platform,” said Jordan. “At no cost to us, we were able to leverage the dynamic transparency and reporting capabilities provided by BidBridge to keep the reverse auction process under our control at all times.”
About BidBridge
Founded in 2002, Louisville-based BidBridge provides fully managed eAuction services to both the public and private sectors. Through its competitive sourcing and online procurement system and services, BidBridge assists its buyers in achieving true-market value for the goods and services needed for ongoing business operations. Significant cost reductions and procurement efficiencies have allowed BidBridge’s buyers to save millions of taxpayer, corporate and investor dollars, ultimately producing a positive effect on compressed budgets.
For more information, please visit: www.bidbridge.com.
Logs Less than Two Percent Separation between First and Second Place Bids on All Line Items
DANVILLE, KY (December 9th, 2009) – In October, the City of Danville, KY set out to acquire new contracts on eight water and sewer treatment chemicals. City officials recognized the need to use innovative techniques in procurement to attain the pricing they were hoping to achieve. As a result, the city looked into leveraging an electronic reverse auction platform for the bid.
Earl Coffey, Chief Engineer for the City of Danville partnered with Louisville-based BidBridge, a proven e-auction services provider for the public and private sectors. While the public sector’s traditional one price per supplier response has lasted over the years, BidBridge offers an alternative for public organizations that recognize the need for better competition in the bid process. By using a secure, real-time electronic sealed bid platform that allows suppliers to place multiple bids, the purchaser gains visibility and creates a more dynamic and competitive purchasing environment.
With BidBridge’s help, the city was able to attain the following line items with a mere two percent separation or less between first and second place suppliers:
– Hydrofluosilicic Acid
– Potassium Permanganate
– Liquid Alum
– Alum
– Mississippi Rotary Lime
– Powdered Activated Carbon
– Bulk Powder Activated Carbon
– Sodium Aluminate Solution
Fifty-five bids were placed for the bulk powder activated carbon line item, resulting in 29 first place turnovers and 89 time extensions. The event lasted two hours and three minutes.
While all of the elements produced heavy competition, the most competitive element was bulk powder activated carbon. With only .10 percent separation between first and second place suppliers, the City of Danville was able to attain true market value for its purchase.
“The City of Danville represents yet another example of the public sector’s renewed focus on efficiency through cutting-edge technologies and strategies,” said BidBridge CEO Jim Headlee.
BidBridge also hosted another Danville bid event for a rescue pumper fire apparatus on November 24.