Unfortunately, this Bid/RFP opportunity will only be available to reprographics companies who are “certified” as Minority and/or Women Owned Businesses.
To Reprographers out in the Denver, CO area, you need to lobby your elected representatives to open up reprographics services Bid/RFP opportunities to “all” qualified vendors!
In this day and age, when government agencies ARE SUPPOSED TO BE dedicated to finding ways to save taxpayer dollars, it is, to me unconscionable for government agencies, who spend taxpayer dollars, to limit competition on Bid/RFP opportunities (of any kind) to “only” M/WBE certified vendors.
Suggest to your elected representatives – and to the agency purchasing goods and services – that, if they have to offer an advantage to M/WBE vendors, that advantage should be a “bid preference” rather than a total lockout of non-certified vendors.
For example, the City of Orlando (FL), in its prior procurements of reprographics services, provided for a “bid preference” for MBE certified vendors. That bid preference was equal to 5% of the total bid. If a non-certified vendor bid, say, $100,000, then a certified vendor’s bid, to win the bid, would have to come in at or under $104,999. Although I don’t like the “bid preference” method, at least it does not unfairly “lock out” all from competing for the work.
Upcoming RFP/Bid Opportunity, posted on Jan 6, 2012:
Denver International Airport – Business Services
Project: STRP (Parsons); Printing, Binding & Reprographics Services
Description: Provide Printing, Binding and Reprographics Services for the STRP Project (this will be a Direct Solicitation to only M/WBE firms.)
Anticipated Date: April 12, 2012
Projected Value: $20,000.
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I once lost a major bid to an individual who achieved his minority status as an Alaskan Eskimo, this individual had a distant ancestor but was no more a native Alaskan then the man in the moon. I have a friend who happens to be white but was born in south Africa. He applied for a minority status as an African American but was told his skin was the wrong color. I was once asked to place my business solely in my wives name so that my company could be used to achieve a quota for minority sub contractors. I can't make this stuff up this is true. How about we respect tax payer money buy awarding contracts based not on the color of ones skin but by the content of their character and if I might add the quality of their product and the value of their service ! I know I would be insulted if I was awarded a contract based on my Italian ancestry . I would want to compete with the best and earn my pay. Anything less would show my children that I was somehow inferior and needed sympathy of others to earn my living.
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