Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-05-24
ECONOMY RULES IN
BUYING FOR COUNTY
Competitive System invented
by Freebooter Protects
Newark Taxpayers.

II one of the august Judges at the
County Court House needs a pin TO
attach couple of papers together
he has 10 go through just as much
detail to get 1t as does the manage
ment of the Overlook Asylum for
the Insane when the contract for a
years supply of coal, 1000 tons, is
let
Now don't run away with the idea
that 1t takes lot Of red tape or
other slow moving methods to get
needed supplies to conduct the BUSH
ness of the county, for it does not.
But the opening paragraph tells
briefly how the Board OF Freeholders,
through Its purchasing committee,
has systemized the buying and ac-
counting for county supplies until
the system is now well-nigh perfect
and the result is a great saving of
money for the taxpayers each year.
It's Waste of Money.
Until the establishment of the pur-
chasing committee a couple of years
ago things were run in rather a
haphazard style by the county Of
flcials. Each department practical
ly ran itself when 1t came TO the pur-
chase OF supplies of any and all
kinds. and, as result. there was a
woeful waste of money.
For instance, each department
would buy it's own lead pencils, pens
and other such articles. They were
bought in small quantities, and COR
respondingly high prices were paid.
The same was true of blankboolSs
and stationery. and unless the
amount required was very large, such
a thing as competitive bid was
never heard of.
All that is done away with. The
purchasing committee now buys
everything used by the county,
whether 1t be the aforesaid pin need
ed by a Judge or the 10000 tons of
coal for the Overlook Asylum.
Working In close conjunction with
the purchasing committee Is the sta
tionery and publication committee,
the latter having supervision over
the supplying of blankbooks and
forms, pencils, pens, ink. etc.
Seymour p. Gilbert is chairman of
the purchasing committee and Rich
ard F. Malta of the stationery and
publication committee. while George
C. Bergen, superintendent of the
purchasing department, is the man
directly in charge of the details of
the work of purchase and supply
1t Is No sinecure.
When 1t is considered that there are
probably 5000 different forms of sta
tfonery used in the county courts and
institutions it can be seen that part
of the work alone is no sinecure. Then
there is the Overlook Asylum for
the Insane, the County Contagious
Diseases Hospital at Soho and the
Caldwell penitentiary, all to be kept
supplied with edibles, clothes for the
inmates and, as well. needed drugs
and hospital appliances of all kinds.
The system is simplicity itself, but
has taken some time to work out. A
institution needs something.
1t makes no difference whether 1t is
a. cake of soap for use at the peni-
Tertiary or four dozen steel wheelbar-
rows for use on the farm at the Over
brook Asylum, the procedure is the
same.
The warden, or person in charge of
the institution. fills out requisition
form and sends it to the purchasing
committee. BY the committee 1t is
referred to Mr.. Bergen for action.
The county already has contracted in
advance with dealers for almost every
kind of supplies needed Superintend-
ent Bergen orders the article, or arti-
cles, needed by the institution and 1t
is delivered, together with an invoice.
This invoice is checked by the per-
son receiving the goods at the insti-
tuion and then used later TO check
the monthly statements in the case of
running accounts. Bergen has
check on the institution through his
order blanks and the system is so per-
feet there is no possible chance for
a mistake to go long unrectified.
still Another Check.
But that is not all. There Is a
still further check and one that has
already resulted in dealers furnishing
supplies to the county finding out that
the goods delivered must be up to
sample submitted with their bids or
back they go. Mr.. Bergen super
intends this part of the work himself
He visits every institution several
times a week. The visits will be
made daily as soon as the department
is provided with an automobile. He
- -