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Procurement
Mission Statement
The City of Marlborough Procurement Department is committed to ensuring fair, open, transparent and strategic procurement processes in compliance with Massachusetts General Laws (MGL). The Chief Procurement Officer (CPO) provides guidance and oversight to all City departments, ensuring that public funds are spent efficiently, ethically, and in the best interest of the community.
Responsibilities
The Chief Procurement Officer (CPO) oversees procurement activities, contract execution and monitors compliance with applicable Massachusetts General Laws including:
- c.30B - (Uniform Procurement Act) Supplies/Services, Real Property, Surplus Equipment
- c.30,39M - Public Works Construction
- c.149 - Public Building Construction
- c.7C, §§44-57 - Designer Services (Request for Qualifications)
The Chief Procurement Officer also coordinates insurance coverage for property and casualty insurance, automobile liability, excess/umbrella liability, school board liability, public officials' liability, and law enforcement liability in order to maintain comprehensive and cost-effective coverage. The Procurement Department also collaborates with City departments on training and other risk management initiatives to reduce costs and protect the City's interests.
Please Note: Interested parties who download solicitations from the City's website or the City's external hosting site (Project Dog) are responsible for checking the website periodically for any addenda issued by the City prior to the date and time set for receipt of bids/proposals.
Documents and Forms
- When is a public procurement process required?
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Subject to periodic changes by the Commonwealth, current law requires a public procurement procedure for expenditures of supplies or services and construction projects estimated to cost $10,000 or more. Under $10,000, the City of Marlborough follows sound business practices. Sound business practices is defined as "Ensuring the receipt of favorable prices by periodically soliciting price lists or quotes." For a summary of procurement thresholds and requirements for public procurement, click on the following link. Office of the Inspector General Procurement Charts
Below is a brief summary:
- Less than $10,000 - Sound Business Practices
- $10,000 to $50,000 - Formal Quote Process ($100,000 for municipal or regional school districts - As of Nov. 25, 2022)
- $50,000 or more - Sealed Bid (IFB) or Proposal Process (RFP)
- Where do I find current bids/proposals?
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Current procurements requiring public notice are posted under the Current Bids Section of the Procurement Office website page.
Notices for bids/proposals including deadlines, where and when plans and specifications are available, how to obtain bid/proposal documents, pre-bid conferences and related information, and contact information for the appropriate person is listed in each public notice.
In addition, questions or requests can be emailed to the Procurement Office unless otherwise directed in the public notice.
Many inquiries come to the City as the result of outside hosting services using abbreviated notices in the Central Register, notices advertised through the Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (Commbuys) or a newspaper legal notice - Mass Public Notices. Please reference the official bid or proposal documents for all information.
As a convenience to potential bidders/proposers, the City of Marlborough utilizes an online hosting website for construction projects. Project Dog contact information is listed in the public notice. As of the release date, this information is available 24 hours/7 days a week. Addenda notification is automated. Instructions to obtain bid documents: "Go to the Project Dog website and select "Sign Up" for free set, or login to your existing account. Enter the project code number (from the public notice advertisement) in the project locator box. Select "Acquire Documents" to download bid documents; review a hard copy at Project Dog's physical location at 18 Graf Road, Suite 8, Newburyport, MA 01950; or request a free project CD. Questions regarding the website or project distribution should be directed to Project Dog at 978-499-9014."
- How do I obtain bid/proposal results?
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Do not call the day of the bid/proposal opening to request results. Summaries of construction bid results are generally posted on Project Dog’s website (if Project Dog hosting was used for the bid/proposal process). For other bids, review the closed bid section of the Procurement page for updates, or Contact the Procurement Office for other inquiries.