County Bid Information

Central Services coordinates requests for goods and services for the County. Each purchase request is thoroughly reviewed to determine the appropriate means for the purchase and at the best price available.

We have a formal bidding process in place and strongly encourage all vendors to participate. For County purchases outside of bidding requirements, a great way to get started is by contacting the Bureau and providing the appropriate business information so should a product or service offered by your company be in need we can seek more information.

Prospective Vendors

The County of Rensselaer utilizes a regional bid notification system, known as the Empire State Purchasing Group. In conjunction with BidNet, this system is being used by over 50 agencies within the Capital Region, as well as agencies throughout New York State, to post all bids, quotes, request for proposals, construction notices, addenda, and award notices. Other municipal purchasing agencies are able to join this regional system at any time (i.e. County, City, Town, School Districts, Villages, etc.).

By establishing a regional bidding and registration system, vendors will now have a single point of contact offering a broader access to new business opportunities throughout the Capital Region, not just those within Rensselaer County.

Empire State Purchasing Group

All vendors that wish to continue receiving bid information from us must register on this new system. Vendors who have internet access may register online.

If you do not have Internet access or if you have questions when registering, you may call BidNet at 800-835-4603 and press option Number 2 for their Vendor Support Department. They will be happy to register you over the telephone.

If you are currently a vendor with Rensselaer County you will need to register on this new system. However, you will not have to register separately for the other members of the group. Once registered, you will have access to all current and future participating municipalities of the Empire State Purchasing Group.

Benefits

By working together in using this system, the County of Rensselaer expects to improve service to vendors by providing instant access to bids, proposals, quotes and amendments online; not only from the County of Rensselaer, but also from all the other public entities in the Hudson Valley that will be utilizing the system.

Besides an expanded base for business opportunities, registration also offers your company numerous other benefits, including:

• Vendors may register for free in order to obtain bidding documents. Vendors must visit the website to search for new opportunities. There are no charges for any registered vendor to view, download or order documents posted on the website. A notice of bid opportunity will be posted on any occasion when actual specifications are unable to be uploaded.
• Vendors may choose to pay a fee to register for automatic email notification. Those vendors will be notified instantly of new bids, proposals, quotes and amendments issued by any member of the Empire State Purchasing Group that match their product or service line.
• Vendors registered for email services are given the additional ability to respond to quote requests (RFQs) by email.
• The fee for automatic email notification service is $108 a year. All fees will be paid directly to BidNet, as per instructions on the website. This fee includes quote and bid notices from all members of the Empire State Purchasing Group.

We look forward to providing you with more bid information, less paperwork and being able to simplify the entire bid, proposal, and quote process for everyone involved. We appreciate your cooperation and welcome your participation.

Physical Bid Packages

We understand that there may be vendors who wish to continue to receive bid packages via mail or by pick up from our office. These options are still available, however, over time they will be phased out. No time table has been set for this change in service.

More Information

Should you have any questions regarding this new system or registration, please call BidNet at 800-835-4603, ext. 2, or the County of Rensselaer Bureau of Central Services at 518-270-2641.