# Presentation: 089644

## Cooperative Purchasing

- Cooperative Purchasing for Information Technology:
*Leveraging Buying Power to Save You Time and Money*

- www.gsa.gov/cooperativepurchasing
*Leveraging Buying Power to Save You Time and Money*

## Background of Cooperative Purchasing

**Section 211 authorized GSA sales of Schedule 70 IT products and services to State & Local Governments through the introduction of Cooperative Purchasing.**

- Program sales commence May 2003
- IT products and services [no other products/services]

- Background of Cooperative Purchasing

**Notes:**
Congress implemented Section 211 of the e-Government Act of 2002 which amends the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act to allow for “Cooperative Purchasing”. As a little background, the E-Government Act of 2002 established a new agency within the Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Electronic Government, that is responsible for electronic information management and for promoting interagency cooperation to improve public services.

Section 211 grants the administrator of GSA the authority to provide state and local governments access to certain items offered through GSA’s Federal Supply Schedule for Information Technology and the Corporate Schedule Contracts containing IT SINs.  The Information Technology available to state and local entities includes firmware, software, supplies, support equipment, and services. The Cooperative Purchasing program was put into place in May 2003.  

A somewhat similar program was put into place in 1994 related to law enforcement products and services.  It is known as the 1122 program and was enacted so that state and local governments could purchase law enforcement equipment through federal procurement channels, provided that the equipment is used in the performance of counterdrug activities. There are currently 45 states participating within this program.   

##  Is Cooperative Purchasing Being Used?

- FY03 (March – September): $5 million
- FY04:  $75 million
- FY05: $140 million
- FY06 (to date): $203 million

**Notes:**
In the first six months of the Cooperative Purchasing program (May-September 2003), sales were $5 million.  Sales have grown tremendously within this program since this point in time.  With both help from regional GSA folks and industry, cooperative purchasing has seen a drastic increase in sales each fiscal year, with more states agreeing to purchase from schedule 70.

## GSA Schedule 70, Information Technology 
Consolidated Schedule with IT Special Item Numbers (SINs)

- Consolidated Schedule with IT Special Item Numbers (SINs)

- Scope of Cooperative Purchasing

**Notes:**
Schedule 70 is the designator for contracts covering the purchase of IT equipment, software and services. These contracts are available worldwide to all federal agencies and now to state and local governments (except where restricted by state and local procurement laws).  Schedule 70 is broken down into subcategories referred to as Special Item Numbers (SINs).  SINs cover specific product and service offerings.  Vendor contracts are organized based on these SINs.  

The Consolidated Schedule is a schedule previously known as Corporate Contracts.  When a vendor offers products and services under a number of Schedules, the vendor has the option of migrating to a single “Schedule”.  This contract allows the vendors to offer their entire product line through a single Schedule.  This can streamline acquisitions for contractors and buyers alike. The Federal Government currently purchases more than $235 million a year in information technology products and services through Corporate Contracts.

State and local entities are NOT allowed to purchase information technology from any other Federal Supply Schedules that may house information technology. Schedule 70 and CPSS are the only authorized Schedules.

## Schedule 70 Sales Trend

- 6.6

**16.9**

**15.2**

- Over 3400 CP Vendors

**Notes:**
The sales figures above are Federal sales only until 2003 and then they combine Federal and State and Local sales.  

## Who’s Eligible?

- The 50 states
- All counties, municipalities, cities, towns and townships
- Tribal Governments
- Public Authorities (Public or Indian Housing agencies under the U.S. Housing Act of 1937)
- Public authorities, school districts, and colleges

**Notes:**
If you’re with a state or local government organization, there’s a good chance that you qualify for Cooperative Purchasing.  Federal law no longer restricts any state or local government entity from qualification. Hence, you’ll find that virtually all public sector organizations within the United States are eligible.  
Any “instrumentality” of these entities, such as legislative and judicial departments, qualifies.  Even regional or interstate government entities are eligible.  

Grantees of the state or federal government that are NOT state or local entities are not eligible to purchase off of Schedule 70 or the consolidated contract IT SINs

To make sure you qualify, please refer to your state or local acquisition regulations.  

## Voluntary

No obligation by state and/or local governments to use the schedule.
Contractors decide whether to accept orders from state and local governments.
About 3,400 contractors have modified their contracts to participate in Cooperative Purchasing

- No obligation by state and/or local governments to use the schedule.
- Contractors decide whether to accept orders from state and local governments.
- About 3,400 contractors have modified their contracts to participate in Cooperative Purchasing

- State & Local Use of Schedule 70

**Notes:**
Cooperative Purchasing is voluntary for state and local entities and Schedule contractors.  State and local entities have the full discretion to decide if they wish to make a Federal Supply Schedule purchase, subject to any limitations that may be established under your own state and local laws and procedures. Any transaction for IT products or services is conducted entirely between the contractor and the state or local agency, without the federal government’s intervention.

Similarly, Schedule contractors have the option of deciding whether they will accept orders placed by state and local government buyers.  Existing Schedule 70 and Corporate Schedule contracts containing IT SINS are modified by mutual agreement between the contractor and FSS.  Even after an existing contract is modified or a new contract awarded, a Schedule contractor retains the right to decline orders received from state or local government entities on a case-by-case basis. Orders issued by state and local entities may be declined by Schedule contractors for any reason within a 5-day period after receipt of the order; however, credit card orders must be declined within 24 hours.  To date, over 2300 Schedule contractors have signed up to participate in the Cooperative Purchasing program – this number has grown steadily since the start of the Cooperative Purchasing program in May 2003.

## 5-year contracts with three 5-year periods
Streamlined acquisition program
Commercial Catalog – approved contractors
Prices already determined fair & reasonable
Continuous opportunity for competitive prices
Schedule solicitation – www.gsa.gov/elibrary

- Streamlined acquisition program
- Commercial Catalog – approved contractors
- Prices already determined fair & reasonable
- Continuous opportunity for competitive prices
- Schedule solicitation – www.gsa.gov/elibrary

- What is a Schedule?

**Notes:**
Purchasing from the Multiple Award Schedule program offers multiple advantages over purchasing on the open market.  This Federal contract becomes a safe and sure starting point from which you can create your own contract with mutually agreed upon modifications. Since the Schedules are designed as five-year contracts with three five-year options, you don’t have to start over each year. This vendor stability helps you achieve the kind of quality and customer satisfaction usually abetted by longer-term relationships. We establish Schedule contracts with both well-known and new technology firms.  

GSA has determined that prices under the MAS contracts are fair and reasonable. In setting up these contracts, GSA negotiates “most favored customer pricing” based on the aggregate buying power of the Federal government.  Thus, all of our buyers receive a “best customer discount” regardless of the quantity of their individual purchase.  We encourage state and local purchasers to seek price reductions when using Schedule 70, not only for orders over the maximum order threshold, but also when circumstances warrant, for orders below this amount in order to ensure that when using MAS contracts, they receive the best value at the lowest overall cost.

To access a copy of the Schedule 70 solicitation or any GSA Schedule, go to www.gsa.gov/elibrary and search by Schedule.  The contracting office associated with the Schedule within GSA is also listed on this site. 

## GSA’s Snapshot of Information Technology

- Over 1 million IT products
- Complete lines of IT services & technical solutions
- Many vendor catalogs
- Popular items include:
- Desktop Computers
- Laptops
- Printers
- Fax Machines
- PDAs/Blackberry Devices

**Notes:**
Over 5300 vendors currently on schedule.

## Schedule 70 Offerings

- Special Item Numbers (SINS)
- Professional IT Services
- IT Equipment
- IT Equipment Leasing/Rental
- Software
- Classroom Training
- And More!

**Notes:**
Schedule 70 is broken down into Special Item Numbers that better define specific areas of Information Technology.  Some of the products and services available within these SINs are as follows:
- Professional Services for IT management, computer programming, data conversion, electronic commerce, wireless installations, and related areas.
- Equipment purchases such as computers (desktop, laptop, or mainframe), digital cameras, fax machines, modems, navigation aids, pagers, printers, projectors, scanners, servers, two-way radios, and workstations.
Leasing or rental of IT equipment
Software license for programs ranging from database management, electronic commerce, or Internet access to virus detection, mapping, or multimedia design.
- Classroom training for using IT equipment
- Additional offerings include IT equipment and software maintenance, wireless services, data conversion services, and more...

## SIN Number		Description	
132 12	  	Maintenance of Equip/Repair		
132 3		Leasing of Product			 
132 32		Term Software Licenses 		
132 33	      	Perpetual Software Licenses		  
132 34		Maintenance of Software		
132 4		Daily/Short Term Rental		
132 50        		Training Courses			
132 51		IT Professional Services		 
132 52		E-Commerce Services			
132 53		Wireless Services			 
132 8		Purchase of Equipment			
132-60             	Access Certificates for Electronic Services (ACES) Program
132-61		Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Shared Service Provide (SSP) 		Program				 	
132-62		HSPD-12 Product and Service Components 	

_**132 12**__**	**__**  **__**	**__**Maintenance of Equip/Repair**__**	**__**	**_
_**132 3**__**	**__**	**__**Leasing of Product**__**	**__**	**__**	**__** **_
_**132 32**__**	**__**	**__**Term Software Licenses **__**	**__**	**_
_**132 33**__**	**__**      **__**	**__**Perpetual Software Licenses**__**	**__**	**__**  **_
_**132 34**__**	**__**	**__**Maintenance of Software**__**	**__**	**_
_**132 4**__**	**__**	**__**Daily/Short Term Rental**__**	**__**	**_
_**132 50        **__**	**__**	**__**Training Courses**__**	**__**	**__**	**_
_**132 51**__**	**__**	**__**IT Professional Services**__**	**__**	**__** **_
_**132 52**__**	**__**	**__**E-Commerce Services**__**	**__**	**__**	**_
_**132 53**__**	**__**	**__**Wireless Services**__**	**__**	**__**	**__** **_
_**132 8**__**	**__**	**__**Purchase of Equipment**__**	**__**	**__**	**_
_**132-60             **__**	**__**Access Certificates for Electronic Services (ACES) Program**_
_**132-61**__**	**__**	**__**Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) Shared Service Provide (SSP) **_**	****	**_**Program**__**	**__**	**__**	**__**	**_** ****	**
_**132-62**__**	**__**	**__**HSPD-12 Product and Service Components**_

**Special Item Numbers**

## 
Direct Vendor/Customer Relationship
Purchase Card
Blanket Purchase Agreements
Teaming
Price Reductions/Discounts
Maximum Ordering Provisions

- Direct Vendor/Customer Relationship
- Purchase Card
- Blanket Purchase Agreements
- Teaming
- Price Reductions/Discounts
- Maximum Ordering Provisions

- Schedule Features

**Notes:**
MAS contractors are required to accept governmentwide purchase cards for payments equal to or less than the micro-purchase threshold ($2500). Schedule contractors are also encouraged to accept the government-wide credit card for dollar amounts above this $2500 threshold.  

Blanket Purchase Agreements can be issued by state and local governments using Schedules.  A Schedule BPA is a simplified method of filling recurring needs for services and products, it leverages a customer’s buying power by taking advantage of quantity discounts, saving administrative time, and reducing paperwork.  A BPA is an “account” established by a customer with a Schedule contractor.  With a Schedule BPA, customers can order as little as they want, as much as they want, or as often as they want. Customers are not restricted by a dollar limitation when placing orders under an BPA.  A BPA cannot exceed the contractor’s Schedule contract period.  Also, state and local governments cannot use existing BPAs, unless they were initially included as authorized users of BPAs.  And existing BPAs cannot be modified to include state and local government entities. 

The Schedule contract allows teaming between contractors  - these arrangements help you save time by acquiring multiple offerings through a single order.  You can obtain a complex solution with a one-time negotiation, under which multiple contractor partners can work together to provide total solutions.  Instead of managing complex contractor and subcontractor relationships, you can arrange a “customized multi-vendor solution” simply and efficiently. 

The GSA Schedule contract pricing is only a ceiling amount.  The Schedules program always permits and encourages you to seek a better price.  State and local governments are responsible for doing these additional negotiations, based on your own requirements.

GSA does not restrict your order with a maximum order limitation.  Schedule contractors can accept any size order.  You then have more options and the chance to get the best possible value by negotiating downwards from the ceiling price.  In accordance with FAR 8.404(b), the Maximum Order Threshold always represent the point for you to seek a further price reduction. While this point is where price reductions must be sought, GSA encourages customers to seek price reductions at any purchase level.

## How can Cooperative Purchasing Benefit the Customer?

- Monetary Savings
- Streamlined Process
- Commercial Items
- e-Tools
**	****	**

**Notes:**
By granting access to a wide variety of qualified commercial firms who provide products and services on the GSA Schedule, state and local governments can realize monetary savings through the reduced pricing acquired as a result of the volume buying within the Federal government. To make your job easier. vendor pricing has already been deemed to be fair and reasonable, therefore, state and local users will also experience administrative savings. FSS has done a majority of the contracting work for customers – setting up the basic contract, negotiating a fair and reasonable price, vetting the contractors through responsibility determinations, and doing size determinations.  Because we have done all that, it is possible for you to focus on important factors such as....what do I need? What is the price for it?  And how am I getting good value for the taxpayer? Then by working with the contractor, you are able to purchase that product or service using your agency credit card – making the process easier and faster. GSA also provides on-line tools that make market research easier  - you can go online and obtain pricing on products and services offered by companies who want to do business with you. 

Cooperative Purchasing offers the ability to set up a BPA with vendors on Schedule 70 helping to reduce the time involved with ordering. GSA’s e-tools also reduces order time by providing you the ability to do faster market research.  By using our GSAAdvantage system to perform research, the process for obtaining quotes becomes a quicker process allowing you to have products and services when you need them.

Schedule 70 keeps pace with the fast-moving changes in information technology.  The vendors are constantly updating the technologies available on the Schedule  - GSA writes contracts that allow continuous refreshment with new technologies. Therefore, as a customer seeking IT, you will always have access to the latest technology. 

## Why Should State and Local Governments use GSA?

-  Greater Discounts for Large Buys
- Low Administrative Costs
- Huge Selection
- GSA has Taken Care of the Basics
-  Makes Buying Easy for Customers

**Notes:**
- GSA has negotiated a “Most Favored Customer Discount” on all contracts.
Past performance of vendors is also checked.  
Direct relationship between the state and local customer and the vendor.

## What is “Best Value”?

- Price
- Technical Solution
- Corporate Experience
- Past Performance
- Delivery Date
- Warranty
- Etc.

- What is Best Value?

**Notes:**
GSA is dedicated to providing a “Best Value” to their customers.  

This includes discounted pricing as well as solid past performance and in some cases expedited delivery of items. 

**Streamlined Ordering Saves Time**

**Notes:**
Purchasing through GSA offers a significant advantage over other contract options available within the government.  GSA is able to greatly diminish the amount of time involved with setting up a contract by doing a lot of leg work up front.  We determine what prices are “fair and reasonable” and work with the vendors to make sure that they are responsible and competent vendors. This help reduce the number of steps that you have to go through when establishing the contract.  

For example, our FSS Marketing in Chicago has done over $2 million in purchases through the Schedule program.  We have multiple BPA’s set up with Schedule vendors that make our purchasing process easier for repetitive ordering.  This allows us the ability to place an order today, if needed. The large number of vendors available through the Schedules program also allows us to have a wide selection of choices for all of our procurement needs.

## Exceptions from Cooperative Purchasing

- Prompt Payment
- Disputes
- Patent Indemnity Clause
- Commercial Item Contract Terms and Conditions Unique to the Federal Government

**Notes:**
Payments by non-federal ordering activities, allows for the terms and conditions of a state’s prompt payment law to apply to orders placed by eligible non-federal ordering activities.  However, if the ordering activity is not otherwise subject to a state prompt payment law, the activity will be covered by the federal prompt payment act in the same manner as all other ordering activities.

Disputes are an exception from the Cooperative Purchasing agreement.  The FPMR states that when purchases are made off of GSA Schedules by Federal customers, disputes are to be resolved between the Schedule contracting officer and the vendor.  Under Cooperative Purchasing, GSA is not a party within that dispute.  The federal government is not liable for the performance or non-performance of contracts established between the Schedule contractor and state and local government.  Any dispute under the Cooperative Purchasing program is to be resolved by the parties of the new contract or if this is not possible, it will litigated in any state or federal court with jurisdiction over the parties using the principles of federal procurement law and the uniform commercial code, as applicable and appropriate. Alternate dispute resolution (ADR) is also encouraged to resolve disputes between the parties to this new contract.

Another exception to Cooperative Purchasing is the Patent Indemnity Clause and portions of the Commercial Item contract terms and conditions which specify compliance with laws unique to federal government contracts.  The Patent Idemnity Clause states that “the contractor will indemnify the Government and its officers, executives and agents against liability, including costs, for actual or alleged direct or contributory infringement of, or inducement to infringe, any United States or foreign patent, trademark or copyright, arising out of the performance of the contract, provided the contractor is reasonably notified of such claims and proceedings”.  Being that you are a state or local entity and not Federal, these terms and conditions would not apply. 

## State and Local preference programs are not waived or otherwise affected by Cooperative Purchasing

- State/Local Preference Programs

**Notes:**
Many states have preference programs set up within their state – Cooperative Purchasing does not waive or in any way affect this requirement.  However, there may very well be many IT contractors involved in the Cooperative Purchasing program within your state – In Illinois alone, there are over 20 contractors listed.  Some of these contractors include JC Technology Inc in Arlington Heights, Fox River Graphics in Carpentersville, Amitex in Chicago, Barcode in Chicago, SoftChoice Corporation in Chicago, and CDW Government in Quincy.  I know that within our region, there are a few states with preference programs.  Minnesota has a preference program in place for in-state vendors as does Ohio and Illinois. I believe that within Illinois, an in-state bidder would receive preference over an out-of-state bidder.  This requirement is not waived within the Cooperative Purchasing program – it is still required that state and local requirements be met.

One of the ways that GSA works to address this issue is through our small business contractors.  We can work with you to help companies in your area obtain a Schedule contract.  We are committed to helping small business  - and if this helps you meet your preference requirements, then it is a win-win situation. 

## Credit Cards

- Contractors must accept all state and local Government-issued credit cards for orders placed under the Schedule.

- Small Business Participation

- 70%-75% of Schedule 70 contracts are held by small businesses
- Over 30% of schedule sales are to small businesses
- Agency orders count toward meeting Small Business

**Notes:**
If socioeconomic goals are a purchasing concern in your state regulations in addition to any preference programs, GSA has contractors on Schedule that can address your need. Currently 70-75% of the contracts on Schedule 70 are held by small business and over 30% of Schedule sales are to small business so it shouldn’t be a problem finding something that works for your procurement needs.  Orders through the Cooperative Purchasing program can be used towards your state and local socioeconomic requirements. Our online tools, e-Library and GSAAdvantage!, allow you the ability to search for Cooperative Purchasing vendors that are within your area.

## Industrial Funding Fee

- The Price of Supplies and Services Available to State/Local Entities will include the Industrial Funding Fee (IFF) to cover the Administrative Costs Incurred to Operate the Schedules Program.

**Notes:**
As touched upon earlier, the Schedule contract price includes an industrial funding fee (IFF), which is represented in the prices paid by ordering activities and passed on to GSA by Schedule contractors.  The IFF reimburses GSA for procurement and administrative costs incurred to operate the GSA Schedule program.  You will not see a line item on your order that represents the IFF – instead, this cost is built into the prices you pay for the products and/or services.  The current IFF is .75% as of January 2004 – reduced from 1%.  

## Ordering Procedures

- Every Task Order = New Contract
- State and local governments are encouraged to use GSA Schedule Ordering Procedures (FAR 8.4)
- Incorporate by referencing GSA Schedule terms and conditions
- Additional State/Local requirements are permitted but must NOT conflict with GSA Schedule Terms and Conditions

**Notes:**
An important thing to remember with ordering procedures under Cooperative Purchasing is that acceptance of an order by the Schedule contractor under Cooperative Purchasing constitutes the formation of a new contract between the non-federal ordering activity and the Schedule contractor. Every new task order is equal to a new contract between you and that vendor.  The ordering activity’s Contracting officer is responsible for all contract administration under the new contract.

When it is not feasible to use the Schedules ordering procedures, state and local entities may follow their own ordering procedures for buying products and services from Schedule 70.  However, by using Schedule ordering procedures, you are able to leverage the “best customer discount” that the Federal government has been able to obtain with its vendors. Additional price reductions and discounts are something GSA encourages its customers to pursue especially with purchases over the maximum order threshold. The paperwork and lead times involved within this process are reduced through our on-line tools and purchase card requirements for vendors.  

As previously discussed, it is highly encouraged for state and local organizations to use the GSA Schedule Ordering Procedures when entering into a contract with a vendor. Some of the GSA Schedule Ordering Procedures which could be adopted by your office include.....
 - Purchases under $2500 can be awarded to any contractor of your choosing under the Schedules program
 - Purchases over $2500 for products must have at least three vendors evaluated. This can be accomplished by using GSAAdvantage! to review at least three Schedule contractors’ pricelists. Or if your evaluation criteria do not take price into account, quotes should be evaluated using your “best value” criteria.  For service purchases over $2500, a RFQ(with a statement of work) must be prepared and sent to at least three Schedule vendors. Your outlined evaluation criteria are then examined against the quotes and a best value selection is made. 
 - For those purchases which exceed the maximum order threshold, price reductions are to be pursued between the contractor and customer.
 - Documentation should always include the products and/or services purchased, the Schedule contractor from which the services were purchased, and the amount paid.  If the purchase is over $2500, all quotes must be included within the documentation with a justification as to why the awardee received the contract.  

The terms and conditions of the underlying Schedule contract can be incorporated by reference into the order between state or locality and the contractor. Some of these terms and conditions include prompt payment, small business participation, and the Trade Agreement Act. 

Additional state and local statutes, ordinances, regulations or orders can be added into the requirements of the contract but they cannot be conflict with the GSA Schedule Terms and Conditions.  Some examples of modifications include special security clearances or shorter delivery times.  

## Getting on Schedule	

- Obtain copy of Solicitation from IT Center website:  www.gsa.gov/schedule70solicitation or submit offer via e-offer:  www.eoffer.gsa.gov.
- For assistance in filling out Solicitation call 703-605-2700.
- Submit offer.  When requested, turn in additional needed information to Contracting Officer.

- How to get a schedule contract

- To participate, modify your contract to include state and local SINs Contact your contracting officer

- How to Become Eligible as a Vendor

## www.gsa.gov

GSA Cooperative Purchasing

E-Library

GSAAdvantage!®

- GSA Cooperative Purchasing
- E-Library
- GSA*Advantage!**®*

- GSA E-Tools

**Notes:**
The GSA homepage is an extremely good resource for up-to-date information on GSA’s many programs. A great deal of information can be accessed on our Schedules program including FAQ’s, contact information, and general overviews.

E-Library is a great tool for researching the companies that are on a Schedule with GSA.  A special link was set up for Cooperative Purchasing users so that you can see those contractors which are available to you within this program. This site will link you to what products and services the contractor offers, the contact information for that contractor, and specific information regarding their contract with GSA.  This is also the site where you can go to download a copy of the Schedule 70 solicitation.

GSAAdvantage! is GSA’s online ordering tool.  All GSA Schedule contract holders are required to be on GSAAdvantage!.  All of their products and services are loaded into the system with an image of the product and a price (for services – a description of the offering). This is a great tool to do price comparisons between companies.  We will go through in more detail how this program can be used to maximum advantage for your office.  

E-Buy is a new tool within GSA that can be used to submit RFQ’s to contractors.  This tool is not available to state and local governments but we’ll go over it briefly as this tool is being considered for your use.  

## www.gsa.gov

**Notes:**
This is the home page for GSA. As you can tell from the heading, this site can be found at www.gsa.gov.  This site will inform you on the various offerings GSA has through it’s three agencies – PBS, FTS, and FSS.  Like I mentioned earlier, this site is a great tool for learning more about Cooperative Purchasing and the Schedules program.  To go directly to Schedules information, you would look to the right hand side of the web page – I have indicated this area with a red arrow – this arrow points to a link to information on GSA Schedules.  This is where you would find additional information on ordering procedures, terms and conditions, and Q&A on items which may be important to you.

## www.gsa.gov/cooperativepurchasing

**Notes:**
To go directly to the page on the GSA homepage which features Cooperative Purchasing, you can type in www.gsa.gov/cooperativepurchasing.  This page can also be found off of the GSA Schedules page, which was referenced on the previous slide.  You can see that an FAQ section is available for Cooperative Purchasing.  These same FAQ’s can also be found within the Cooperative Purchasing brochure which you should have received. There is also contact information to the right of the screen in case you have any additional questions. 

## www.gsa.gov/cooperativepurchasing

**Notes:**
This page shows you the list of FAQ’s which are posted for Cooperative Purchasing.  A number of these questions are areas which we have covered today but this allows you a reference point as this may include additional items as time goes on.  Be sure to check this site for any new information on Cooperative Purchasing.

## www.gsa.gov/elibrary

**Notes:**
A great tool for doing market research is e-Library.  By going to www.gsa.gov/elibrary, this home page will come up. You will see that to the right of the screen is an area specifically for Cooperative Purchasing. This will take you to a list of vendors that have modified their contracts to participate in the Cooperative Purchasing program.  As you can see from this page, this site allows you to search for any contractor who has a GSA schedule.  Within the search engine block, you can search by keyword, contractor name, contract number, product, or service.

## www.gsa.gov/elibrary

**Notes:**
By clicking on the Cooperative Purchasing icon, I am taken to a page that lists Schedule 70 and the SINs that are within this contract.  This is also the area where you can download the Schedule 70 solicitation for more information on the terms and conditions within the contract. Each of the SINs within Schedule 70 are hyperlinked so you can link directly to a page which contains a listing of only Cooperative Purchasing contractors under each area.  

I have selected to link directly to the contractors under SIN 132 8 which is Purchase of Equipment.   

## www.gsa.gov/elibrary

**Notes:**
By clicking on that specific SIN, I am taken to a list of contractors who are participants within the Cooperative Purchasing program.  You can see by the CoopPurch logo that they are part of this program.  You will see that within this screen, information is given on the contractor name, contract number, phone number, location, and business type such as small business, HUBzone, or 8(a).  It is within this area that you can also sort by state within the location field.  This is useful if you want to locate local businesses – you can also search by business type, allowing you to search on those companies which may help you reach socioeconomic goals.  The GSAAdvantage! logo allows you to view the contractor’s product and service pricing.  I have selected CDWG as the company which I would like to see more information on...by clicking on this hyperlink, I am taken to the next page.

## www.gsa.gov/elibrary

**Notes:**
I now know the location and contact information for that organization.  I could call or e-mail this individual to find out more information about their products or services.  I already know that they participate in Cooperative Purchasing because of the logo that is found in the middle of the screen by their contract numbers.  Below the contact information, information is listed on what products and services CDW actually offers.  There are three SINs listed and by clicking on these, you would find out exactly what categories of IT they deal within. At this point, I could also choose to go directly to the CDWG website to view their offerings and possibly their government pricing list.

## www.gsa.gov/elibrary

**Notes:**
If I were to go back to the e-Library homepage, I could search by keyword.  This would be helpful if you knew of a particular need you had and wanted to see if it was offered and by whom under Schedule 70.  Remember, that within this bar you can also search by contract number, contractor, and Schedule.  

I determined that I had a need for IT security services – I typed this within the search bar.  When using keywords to search, you want to keep it fairly general because as you get more specific in your search terms, it becomes more difficult to find among the contractors.  

## www.gsa.gov/elibrary

**Notes:**
When I searched on “IT security services”, Schedule 70 came back as the Schedule which carried this service.  SIN 132 51 is the specific SIN that corresponds with this service – it is listed under IT Backup and Security Services.  I can click on the hyperlink for “IT Backup and Security Services” to go directly to the contractors that are available to me under that category.

## www.gsaadvantage.gov

**Notes:**
This is the front page of GSAAdvantage! – The main item that you will be looking at on this page is the search/browse bar – the rest of the items pertain more to Federal customers.  I have decided to search for laserjet printers on Advantage! – I typed this right into the search box.  You can search by contractor, keyword, and contract number within this search engine.

## www.gsaadvantage.gov

**Notes:**
The search engine returned 4884 results for my term “laserjet printers” – you will see that the following information is listed for each products – the manufacturer of the product, the contractor who sells this products – the GSA contract number associated with this contractor, the price, a description of the product, the delivery terms of the product, and the socioeconomic label if it is applicable.  You will see that the prices and delivery terms vary significantly for this product so you would want to carefully examine the price quotes to determine what is the best value for you.  To make this a more manageable search, you can sort the results by contractor, contract name, product name, price, manufacturer, part number and most relevant.  This capability is located on the right hand side of the screen.  You can also perform an advanced search that allows you to further reduce the number of contractors listed.  

## www.gsaadvantage.gov

**Notes:**
By clicking on the product number, I am taken to a screen where it lists the terms and conditions related to this product.  The delivery terms are listed as 45 days – it lists the contractor and contract number (their socioeconomic status is also listed) – the manufacturer – the part number – and the delivery method.  This is about as far as state and local governments can go within the system but this alone provides you with a great deal of information on the product and company. 

## www.gsaadvantage.gov

**Notes:**
This screen shows the advanced search method that is available – you may want to use this to par down your options if a few thousand returns are shown on a search.  This advanced search also allows you to search companies by socioeconomic status and by other categories such as Section 508 compliant items – energy efficient items – recycled items and more.  

I decided to limit my search to “laserjet printers” that are offered by Women-owned contractors.  After I entered this in, I then clicked on “go”.

## www.gsaadvantage.gov

**Notes:**
This eliminated about 2000 vendors from our list – I have included a page of the results on the screen.  The circled area indicates where information regarding socioeconomic status is listed.  The one that I listed says (s d w) – which indicates a small business = s, disadvantage = d, women-owned = w.  All of the results of this search should be women-owned businesses.  At this page,  you can again click through to a description of the product and additional information on the contractor.  

## www.gsaadvantage.gov

**Notes:**
This page shows me the location of the vendor – their contact information – and their socioeconomic status – as you can see they are a small business located in Stevens Point, WI.  Their GSA contract number is also listed on this page.  Within their contact information, you can link to their website from this page as well.  

## www.gsaadvantage.gov

**Notes:**
The last search option that I wanted to show you relates to IT services.  Looking at a search for services obviously differs from a product – I did a search on “IT security services” and over 2000 records came back.  In my results you will see the same format that we saw for products except that you are now seeing an hourly rate for the service.  There is also a delivery date associated with the service in regards to how soon you could expect someone to perform your requested need.  By clicking on the NSN/Mfr number, you will be connected to a page that will again give a description of the service – the level of expertise performing the service and the minimum skill requirement.  You will also see the contractor contact information and the destination areas associated with this service.  

As you can see, GSA Advantage! offers a great deal of functionality in terms of doing research for GSA products and services.  You are able to search in multiple ways such as price, contractor, contract number,and manufacturer.  The ability to compare prices among contractors is also a great feature that could be extremely useful to all of your organizations as you call contractors to negotiate your contract.

## State/Local Training

- FSS Center for Acquisition Excellence
- www.fsstraining.gsa.gov
- On-line “Cooperative Purchasing” course
- On-line “Using GSA Schedules” course
- Cooperative Purchasing Brochure

**Notes:**
GSA has an online classroom environment – the FSS Center for Acquisition Excellence – that offers online training classes related to Cooperative Purchasing and the Schedules program.  In order to connect to this site – you need to go to www.fss.training.gsa.gov – you can then select to take the “Cooperative Purchasing” course or the “Using GSA Schedules” course.  I have taken the Cooperative Purchasing class and it was very helpful – we went over a great deal of the material today but it is a good class to refresh yourself on the topic or to train others within your office.

We have made available the Cooperative Purchasing brochure for you today – this is a great resource guide with FAQ’s related to the program – contact information by region and nationally – an overview of what exactly is available through Schedule 70 – and many other items related to Cooperative Purchasing.  

We have also made the Multiple Awards Schedule Owner’s Manual available to you – this is a great guide to the terms and conditions underneath the GSA Schedules program.  Please take the time to look this brochure if you would like more in-depth information on the Schedules program.

As I mentioned earlier, additional contact information is available within the Cooperative Purchasing brochure for each region – for the state of Illinois – I would be your point of contact.  I have included my business card within each of the folders so that you can contact me via phone or e-mail with any questions that you may have.

## Points of Contact

**IT Center POC:**
_**Tricia Reed**_**	****	****	**_**Thomas Corcoran**_
**213-534-0094****	****	****	****703-605-2764**
**Patricia.reed@gsa.gov****	****thomas.corcoran@gsa.gov**
_**Benjamin Taylor**_
**703-605-0523**
**Benjamin.Taylor@gsa.gov**

## Question & Answer

**Question & Answer**

**Notes:**
We appreciate the time that you took of your schedules to listen to us present this great new program – Cooperative Purchasing!  We would like to open the floor now to any questions any of you may have regarding this program.