LAKELAND, Fla., Dec. 1 — The City of Lakeland, FL recently leveraged new technology and strategy for the bid process on its one-year waste hauling contract. The deliverable: hauling 19.25 million gallons of fertilizer and class AA residuals from two wastewater reclamation plants over a one-year period. The platform: eBridge, a proven e-procurement services provider for the public and private sectors. The result: a 40 percent savings for Lakeland against the previous year's contract.
eBridge creates a dynamic purchasing environment by offering a secure, real-time electronic sealed bid platform that allows suppliers to place multiple bids, giving suppliers the opportunity to actively compete in the marketplace. The ensuing bid process provides entities with an alternative to the public sector's traditional process of a one price per supplier response, while maintaining the integrity of the competitive, sealed bid process.
In the past, eBridge and Lakeland had teamed for several successful events, including calcium carbonate transportation (one-year contract), tennis court resurfacing and floor resurfacing bids. For Mark Raiford, Lakeland's Director of Purchasing, continuing the city's success with eBridge was simply the best option.
Seven hauling service providers competed over the one hour and 41 minute event, logging a total of 250 bids and 86 clock extensions. First place changed hands a total of 57 times. In the end, the incumbent supplier was awarded the bid.
Founded in 2002, Louisville-based eBridge provides fully managed e-auction services to both the public and private sectors. Through its competitive sourcing and online procurement system and services, eBridge assists its buyers in achieving true-market value for the goods and services needed for ongoing business operations. Significant cost reductions and procurement efficiencies have allowed eBridge's buyers to save millions of taxpayer, corporate and investor dollars, ultimately producing a positive effect on compressed budgets.