A 12,000 student technical college in Arkansas ran its first reverse auction with eBridge this week.  The reverse auction was part of a comprehensive RFP that will base the contract award on multiple quality factors, so it’s not just about getting the low price.  eBridge worked with the college to develop specifications and source vendors to participate.  In the end, a dozen vendors were approved by the college to participate in the online bidding, including four minority-owned businesses certified through the Arkansas Economic Development Commission.  Four vendors came in with pricing below the current rates, and the two lowest priced vendors submitted pricing that would save the college 30% annually on their cleaning fees.

The Director of Procurement for the college said, “We were very pleased with the savings produced by the eBridge reverse auction.  I was even more impressed with the value added by the operations team and the veracity of the auction process.  They really helped put together a high quality RFP and brought reputable vendors to the table.  We’re looking at savings in excess of $100k annually because of this one bid and we can’t wait to use this process again.”