STAYING IN TOUCH THE WAVE NEWSLETTER December 2021 - January 2022

RI Division of Purchases  Welcoming 2022

A few words from Nancy McIntyre   As calendar year 2021 comes to a close, the Division of Purchases stands ready to support agencies as they transition to procurements that will align with the State’s continued COVID-19-related initiatives under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). Until then, I wish everyone a happy and safe holiday season. Stay healthy and well, Nancy

Deputy Purchasing Agent Amanda Rivers' Planning and Preparation Suggestions for 2022 In response to the funding initiatives under ARPA, Purchases expects agency procurement requests to escalate in the coming months. To this end, our partnership will benefit greatly from planning and preparation.   Planning - The online agency BEACH is a good resource for agencies to access Templates & Forms, How-To Guides, Procurement Tools, and Procurement Regulations and Ethics. Note that the Tools are very helpful for RFP and strategic planning.   Preparation - Be prepared for possible supply chain and delivery instability. Allow for ample time for your requests to be processed. CFOs or their designees should coordinate with their designated Purchases IPM or designee for a monthly pipeline update to ensure that we are best prepared. Thank you for taking a moment to read about Planning and Preparation, and let's work together to put our best foot forward as we step into 2022.

About the Current State of Supply Chain Today’s supply chain is confronted with disruptions that are new to us. Shipping, manufacturing, and other issues due to the pandemic result in many manufacturers having to place their products on allocations to distributors, which results in suppliers fulfilling orders as allocations to their customers, and the use of new delivery strategies that may spread out an order across multiple deliveries. These new strategies help suppliers fairly distribute goods among their customers.   MPA #105 - General Office Supplies, School Supplies, Paper, Promotional Items and Toner Cartridges  WB Mason is among the suppliers impacted by supply chain issues, and as a result, distribution of paper orders to agencies has experienced some disruption and delays in delivery. We have issued a communication to RIFANS users with ordering instructions. WB Mason is committed to providing a workable solution to our state agencies and applicable political subdivisions, and we anticipate this temporary process will serve all of us equitably. To learn more and view the current ordering instructions click HERE. During this unprecedented time, please work closely with your vendors for shipping and other supply chain issues and resolutions.

New in 2022 - MPA #605 Purchases rings in the new year with a new MPA that provides Facilities Solutions for Uniforms, Facilities Services, First Aid and Safety and Fire Protection   MPA #605 will soon be available to us through a cooperative agreement with OMNIA Partners, a cooperative purchasing organization that partners with state government procurement agencies. All state procurement contracts from OMNIA Partners have been competitively solicited by a lead public agency and meet rigorous cooperative standards and supplier commitments. Each supplier pledges to deliver its best overall government pricing.   In addition to facilities management products and solutions, MPA #605 provides opportunities to procure first aid and safety products and solutions, uniform rentals and purchases, fire protection, restroom supplies and replenishment services, and total clean programs with related services, such as mat, mop and cleaning cloth services.

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