How to Conduct Business with the City of Coppell

It is the responsibility of Procurement Services to conduct purchasing for the City of Coppell in accordance with all applicable laws and city charter, to foster sound purchasing policies and procedures throughout all departments of the city, and to stimulate competitive bidding in order to provide materials and services at the lowest price and highest quality possible.

Procurement Services is also responsible for the disposal of city surplus property and police confiscated property at public auction.

The following information is provided in an effort to enable suppliers to become familiar with the City of Coppell’s policies and procedures for procurements. 

Procurement Services Address & Office Hours

Coppell Town Center
Procurement Services 
255 Parkway Blvd. 
Coppell, Texas 75019 

Hours of Operation: Monday – Friday, 8 am – 5 pm 

Suppliers are encouraged to visit with the city departmental users; however, in exercising professional courtesy, it is suggested to first visit with Procurement Services. Procurement Services staff can direct the supplier to the department(s) who utilizes their specific products and/or services. Staff may be visited during normal business hours. Due to heavy workloads, an appointment is advisable. 

How To Receive Invitations To Bid/Requests For Proposals

The city does not maintain its own "vendor list". Vendors interested in doing business with the city should register themselves with internet based BidSync, also known as Periscope S2G, for notification and receipt of electronic bids. There is no cost to the supplier to register with BidSync to receive City of Coppell bids and proposals. All purchases are made through the competitive bid process and are awarded to the lowest responsible bidder or to the bidder who provides the goods or services at the best value to the city.

BidSync

For electronic sealed bids, electronic informal solicitations, and electronic bid notifications. To register, go to the BidSync registration page.

Local Newspaper

The Rambler 

Contact

Procurement Services
255 E. Parkway Blvd.
Coppell, TX 75019
972-304-3698
Procurement Services website

Submission Of Sealed Bids / Proposals

All bids/proposals must be submitted by the date and time noted in the bid documents to the following address: 

Office of the Chief Procurement Officer
255 E. Parkway Blvd.
Coppell, TX 75019

Late bids/proposals will not be accepted for any reason and are returned unopened. Sealed bids are publicly opened at a date, time, and location specified in the bid documents. Tabulations of sealed bids are available on this website. Only the names of the suppliers submitting requests for proposals are announced at the public proposal opening. Contents of the RFP are not disclosed to keep the RFP secret during negotiations. 

Acquisition Methods

The city basically makes three types of purchases: 

  1. Small dollar/minor purchases – This type of purchase is normally accomplished by the city user departments utilizing a Purchase Order (PO) or procurement card. Small dollar purchases may be awarded by an authorized departmental representative. 
  2. Open market purchases – This type of purchase is initiated by the receipt of a requisition by Procurement Services from another city department. Procurement Services or the requesting department solicits firm prices on fixed quantities for a specified delivery. The award for the successful firm is made by means of a purchase order. 
  3. Term purchases – This type of purchase is called an “annual contract” or “annual estimated requirements contract” and is initiated by the city department(s) and Purchasing buyers for commonly used supplies and services. Individual orders against annual contracts are placed by the user department(s) or Procurement Services and may be awarded to multiple suppliers. The award of this type of contract is made by Procurement Services by means of an annual contract purchase order.

Bidding Parameters

Bidding parameters are established to ensure that sizable purchases are subject to fair competition among available, responsible vendors. The following parameters have been established by the City of Coppell to assist Procurement Services employees, as well as other city employees, in obtaining competitive quotes:

  1. Purchases between $1 - $3,000 – No quotes are required, but are recommended when possible. Orders may be placed by Procurement Services or the user department directly with vendors by telephone, by a mailed copy of the purchase order, or procurement card transaction.
  2. Purchases between $3,001 – up to $50,000 – On purchases of this magnitude, the Purchasing Manager will determine the method of procurement by using either formal written quotes, telephone quotes followed up in a written format, or Internet/fax quotes, which shall be retained in Procurement Services. Written quotes shall be obtained from a minimum of three vendors on purchases in this category either by the using department or by the Procurement Services staff. At least two contacts from certified disadvantaged business enterprises (DBE’s) must be included.
  3. Purchases $50,000 and over – Formal sealed invitation for bids/requests for proposals/competitive sealed proposals are required. Notice to bidders must be publicly advertised in the newspaper for two (2) consecutive weeks, with the first date of publication being at least fourteen (14) days prior to the opening of the bids or proposals. All sealed bids and proposals must be submitted to Procurement Services by mail or electronically submitted through the city’s internet bid provider. Competitive bids are awarded by the City Council. Requests for proposals or competitive sealed proposals are opened so as to avoid disclosure of the contents of proposals to competing bidders until after the award of the bid and are also awarded by City Council.  

Bid Evaluation and Award

It is the policy of the city to purchase from suppliers who have adequate financial strength, management and service capabilities, high ethical standards and integrity, the ability to provide materials which consistently meet the city's requirements and are otherwise qualified and eligible to receive an award under applicable laws and regulations. 

Texas Resident Bidders

Except for a contract involving federal funds, a contract may not be awarded to a non-resident bidder unless a non-resident bidder's bid is lower than the lowest bid submitted by a responsible Texas resident bidder by the same amount that the Texas resident bidder would be required to underbid a non-resident bidder to obtain a comparable contract in the state in which the non-resident's principle place of business is located. This does not apply in circumstances where a non-resident bidder is owned by a majority owner or a parent company with its principal place of business in Texas (Article 601G, V.A.C.S. An Act relating to bids by non-resident bidders.) 

Identical Bids

When two or more responsible bidders submit the lowest responsible bids, and these bids are identical in both amount and nature, the City will enter into a contract with only one of the responsible bidders as selected in a legal manner. It should be noted that this does not prohibit multiple and progressive awards if specified in the bid request. 

Specifications

By law, the city can accept the "lowest responsible bid" or "best value bid" in any given bid situation: 

  • LOWEST RESPONSIBLE BID: To accomplish this the city uses a two-step approach when evaluating bid responses. The first, and primary, step is to determine which responses "mirror" our specifications. It is incumbent upon the city to develop specifications that promote competition while at the same time ensure our operating needs are met. To promote fair competition, it is paramount vendors are competing on a level playing field. City policy, coupled with recent law interpretation, states that before a bid passes through to the next stage of the evaluation process, the vendor must "mirror" our specifications, which is it must take no exceptions. After we have established which bids were responsive to our specifications, then we go to the lowest bid and ask ourselves "Is this a responsible vendor?" (Have we ever had documented problems with failure to deliver promised, lost orders, receipt of equipment not adhering to spec, etc? Does the bidder have the necessary manpower, experience, equipment, and economic stability to perform the contract?) If we determine that the lowest bid to meet spec was from a "responsible" vendor, that is the bid we are required by law to accept. 
  • BEST VALUE BID: In determining the best value for the city, the following may be considered: purchase price, reputation of bidder and their goods/services, quality of goods/services, extent to which good/service meets our needs, bidders past relationship, impact on ability to comply with certain laws and rules, total long-term cost, any other relevant criteria specifically listed in the bid. 

BIDS THAT TAKE ANY EXCEPTIONS TO OUR SPECIFICATIONS WILL NOT BE FURTHER CONSIDERED. 

BIDS FOR THE CITY OF COPPELL WILL BE CONSIDERED "LOWEST RESPONSIBLE BID" UNLESS THE BID DOCUMENT CLEARLY STATES IT IS A "BEST VALUE BID." 

Insurance/Bonding Requirements

Many bids the City of Coppell is involved in have insurance and bonding requirements as part of the specifications, or sample contract, mailed with the bid. THE BONDING AND INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS IN A BID CAN NOT BE WAIVED. You are expected, if awarded the contract, to furnish us with an insurance certificate satisfying ALL requirements. Please consult your insurance agent prior to submitting a bid to determine whether or not you will be able to secure the necessary insurance. If you determine you will not be able to meet our requirements, please save yourself a considerable amount of time by no-bidding the project. 

Partial Awards

Unless the bid document specifies otherwise, Procurement Services may award a contract for any item or group of items shown on the bid request. 

Reservations

The City expressly reserves the right to: 

  • Waive any informality
  • Waive any defect, irregularity, or informality in any offer of solicitation procedures
  • Reject any and all bids, or portions of bids
  • Reissue a bid request
  • Extend the bid opening date and time
  • Procure any item by other means
  • Increase or decrease the quantity specified in the bid invitation unless the bid specifies otherwise

Award Notification

Official notification of a purchase award can only be made by Procurement Services. Notice of award given by any other agency of the city may be premature and inaccurate. Award of an open market purchase is made by issuing a City of Coppell Purchase Order. The successful bidder(s) of an annual contract is notified of award by letter from the City's Procurement Services Division. Included will be a summary of prices and commitments made in the bid. 

Tax Exemption

The city is exempt from payment of federal excise and transportation taxes, as well as Texas State or local sales and use taxes. If it is determined that the price quoted and recorded on any order or invoice rendered include any such taxes, the amount of the taxes will be deducted from the total of the invoice. 

Purchase Order

An official numbered purchase order is the primary method for purchasing goods, services, or equipment obligating the City of Coppell for payment. Transactions may not be valid and binding unless it has an official purchase order number. Many orders are placed by telephone and all vendors should ask the buyer for a purchase order number or their city issued credit card number. Only at your request will a confirming copy of the purchase order be mailed, emailed, or faxed. 

Delivery

All shipments must be externally identified with a packing list indicating contents and referencing the city purchase order number and department name. It is preferred that the name of the person making the transaction also be listed on the packing list for additional identification purposes. Deliveries must be made “F.O.B. Destination” unless other arrangements have been made at the time of the order. Collect shipments will not be accepted. 

Invoices

Itemized invoices must be submitted to: 

City of Coppell
 Accounts Payable
 255 Parkway Blvd. 
 Coppell, Texas 75019
 972-304-3687 

OR

City of Coppell
 Requesting dept.: ______________ 
 255 Parkway Blvd.
 Coppell, TX 75019 
 972-462-0022 

To ensure prompt payment, invoices must reference the City of Coppell Purchase Order number and be priced in accordance with the purchase order. All invoices are matched against the purchase order and the receiving report to initiate payment. Care in preparing and submitting invoices will help eliminate problems in processing payments on a timely basis. The city attempts to discount and pay all invoices in accordance with quoted terms. Checks are mailed once a week. Questions regarding billings or payments should be directed to the Accounts Payable Department at 972-304-3687. Please make sure the Accounts Payable Department has the correct “remit to” address for your company. 

Payment Terms

Normal city payment terms are Net 30 days. Any discount available to the city for prompt payment should be noted on invoice. Unless otherwise noted, discounts will be calculated from the date of delivery, or the date of the invoice, whichever is more recent. 

Invoice with terms "Payment upon receipt" or "Payment upon completion" are paid same as net 30 days. 

The City of Coppell pays vendors ONCE each week. All checks are MAILED on Fridays of each week. 

Bid Security - Bonding

In order to protect the interests of Coppell taxpayers, the city may require bonding security on bids and contracts, depending on the dollar amount involved. 

Bid Security

Bid security, in the form of a cashier's check, certified check, or bid bond is mandatory for bid submission for all bids of $100,000 or greater in value. Although usually five percent (5%) of the bid value, the amount of the security may vary depending on the specifics of the bid. Bids for the amount less than $100,000 may require security, depending on the specifics of the bid. 

Performance and Payment Bonds

(in connection with a contract for construction, alteration, or repair of any public building or completion of any public work) In accordance with State statutes covering governmental purchases, Performance Bonds are required on any contract exceeding $100,000. Payment Bonds are required on any contract exceeding $50,000. The City may also elect to require performance and payment bonds for contracts other than Public Works contracts. 

Insurance Requirements

Contractors performing work on city property or public right-of-way for the City of Coppell shall provide the city a Certificate of Insurance outlining the coverage and provisions identified by the city. 

Contractors shall provide the city evidence that all subcontractors performing work on the project have the same types and amounts of coverage as required or that the subcontractors are included in contract documents. 

All insurance companies and coverage must be authorized by the Texas Department of Insurance to transact business in the State of Texas and must be acceptable to the City of Coppell.