TITLE
Recommendation to adopt Specifications RFP No. FM12-009 authorizing City Manager to execute an agreement and any amendments thereto with Complete Office of California, Inc., of Garden Grove, CA (not an MBE, WBE, SBE or Local), for a Citywide office supply program, in an annual amount not to exceed $1,300,000, for a period of one year, with the option to renew for two additional one-year periods, at the discretion of the City Manager. (Citywide)
DISCUSSION
City Council approval is requested to authorize the City Manager to execute an agreement for the purchase of environmentally preferable office supplies for all City departments, including the Water Department and the Harbor Department. Complete Office of California, Inc. (Complete Office), will provide the departments with a core list of environmentally preferable office supplies with fixed pricing, customized user-friendly online ordering and reporting system, desktop delivery service, a company representative who will establish office hours at City Hall, as well as other facilities, to provide customer service support and establish a "green" marketing campaign to educate users on environmentally preferable office products.
On February 2, 2010, City Council adopted the Long Beach Sustainable City Action Plan, which calls for Citywide support in creating a more sustainable Long Beach. At that time, the Purchasing Division created a Sustainable Office Supplies (SOS) Program in support of the Sustainable Action Plan. The SOS program focused on green initiatives through the City's previous office supplier contract, which included the substituting of non-green products for green products automatically and to limit the number of delivery days each week from five to two days, to reduce emissions associated with product transportation. This proposed agreement with Complete Office will advance the initiatives of the SOS Program to broaden the use of environmentally preferable office supplies and take steps towards a more "greener" office supplier contract.
The Request for Proposals (RFP) conducted for this office supplies agreement had a 20 percent Small Business Enterprise (SBE) goal. In order to meet this goal, Complete Office has partnered with InkPeace, LLC (InkPeace), of Long Beach, CA (SBE, Local).
InkPeace specializes in environmentally responsible ink and toner cartridges for printers, fax machines and copiers. Through this SBE collaboration, InkPeace will supply Complete Office ink and toner related supplies for this agreement.
The Request for Proposals (RFP) for a Citywide office supply program was advertised in the Press-Telegram on February 9, 2012, and 781 potential bidders specializing in office supplies were notified. Of those bidders, 54 downloaded the RFP via our electronic bid system. The RFP was made available from the Purchasing Division, located on the seventh floor of City Hall and the Division's website at www.lonabeach.Qov/purchasina. An announcement was also included in the Purchasing Division's weekly update of Open Bid Opportunities, which is sent to 30 local, minority and women-owned business groups. Seven proposals were received on February 28, 2012. Of those seven proposers, three were Minority-owned Business Enterprises (MBEs), two were Women-owned Business Enterprises (WBEs), none were certified Small Business Enterprises (SBEs), and one was a Long Beach business (Local).
A selection committee consisting of representatives from the City Manager Department's Sustainability Office, Financial Management, Parks, Recreation and Marine, Harbor and Water Departments, reviewed the seven proposals and selected the top two finalists to provide a presentation. After presentations, interviews and further evaluations and deliberations, the panel selected Complete Office of California, Inc., of Garden Grove, CA (not an MBE, WBE, SBE and Local) for offering the best overall proposal. These evaluations were based on a number of criteria: experience in performance of comparable engagements, expertise and availability of key personnel, reasonableness of cost and conformance with the terms of this RFP.
Local Business Outreach
In an effort to align with our outreach goal, Long Beach businesses were encouraged to submit bids for City contracts. The Purchasing Division also assisted businesses with registering on the Bids Online database to download the bid specifications. Through outreach, eight Long Beach vendors were contacted to submit bids, of which four downloaded the bid and one submitted a bid. The Purchasing Division is committed to continuing to perform outreach to local vendors to expand the bidder pool. In addition, the Purchasing Division reached out to our City partners: Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD), Long Beach City College (LBCC) and Cal State University of Long Beach (CSULB) to inquire if any of their office supply needs could be obtained through this contract. All of the agencies expressed interest in the possibility of "piggybacking" off of this agreement. However, they were not prepared to fully transition due to preexisting contracts and other operational factors. The Purchasing Division will continue to work with these agencies in an effort to obtain "economies of scale" discounts and monitor activity on a quarterly basis, with the intention of providing contractual opportunities to these agencies.
This matter was reviewed by Deputy City Attorney Amy R. Webber and Budget Management Officer Victoria Bell on May 7, 2012.
SUSTAINABILITY
This plan will make it easier for the City to implement its environmentally friendly initiative measures by providing a larger selection of green alternative products:
· Products-remanufactured toner cartridges for printers, an increase in reusable products and a wider selection of products with recycled content.
· Delivery-limited to two days per week; a reduction to packing material and a reduction to emissions associated with product transportation.
· Reporting-website allows for reporting on green purchase usage, which will provide usage tracking.
TIMING CONSIDERATIONS
City Council action to adopt Specifications RFP No. FM12-009 and award an agreement concurrently is requested on May 22, 2012 to ensure that an agreement is in place in a timely manner.
FISCAL IMPACT
The cost of this agreement, in an annual amount not to exceed $1,300,000, is budgeted throughout all City departments and funds. This amount results in a 13 percent decrease from the previous contract amount. The award of this contract will provide continued support to our local economy by assisting in the preservation of two full-time employees residing in Long Beach with employment.
SUGGESTED ACTION
Approve recommendation.
Respectfully Submitted,
JOHN GROSS
DIRECTOR OF FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
APPROVED:
PATRICK H. WEST
CITY MANAGER