UNSPSC 12142000: Noble gases

UNSPSC 12142000 Noble gases, a Class code, encompasses the procurement of pure, specialty, and industrial noble gases—including helium, argon, neon, krypton, and xenon—and related industrial gases such as nitrogen, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and acetylene supplied in cylinders, dewars, or bulk form to support laboratory operations, water treatment, welding, medical services, and municipal utility functions. State and local buyers under this code include community colleges, county and city utilities departments, transit authorities, fire departments, water districts, and school districts; the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Collin College, Orange County Public Works, Jackson County Missouri, the City of Wichita, Sarasota County, Detroit Fire Department, the City of Orlando, the City of Austin, the State of Texas Comptroller's office, Alameda County Water District, the Dallas Area Rapid Transit Authority (DART), and Northside Independent School District represent recent buyers. The solicitations reflect a diverse mix of end uses: welding gas and supplies contracts (Collin College, Collin County Community College District, Jackson County, Dallas DART, Northside ISD); calibration and audit gases for emissions monitoring (Orange County); liquid carbon dioxide and oxygen for water treatment (City of Wichita, Alameda County Water District) and mosquito control (Sarasota County); medical-grade oxygen (Detroit Fire Department); and comprehensive industrial gas suites for multi-departmental municipal operations (City of Austin, City of Dallas, State of Texas).

Activity concentrates in Texas, California, Florida, Missouri, and Kansas. Representative recent solicitations include Collin College's Invitation to Bid FY2024-ITB-020 for welding materials and supplies (response deadline March 19, 2024, estimated annual volume $400,000 on a three-year term), Orange County Public Works' competitive bid for EPA Protocol Calibration and Audit Gases (response deadline August 10, 2026, 13 line items of specialty mixtures for continuous emissions monitoring), the City of Wichita's Request for Bid for liquid carbon dioxide delivery to two water treatment facilities (due May 1, 2026, NSF-certified product), the Dallas Area Rapid Transit Authority's blanket purchase order for welding and inert gases across nine operating facilities (due June 2, 2026, with mandatory site visit and minimum three-year vendor experience requirement), the City of Austin's Invitation for Bid 5000 RBB1011 for industrial gases and cylinders across multiple municipal departments (due April 30, 2026, 24-month base term with three optional renewals, delivery to Austin Energy, Fire Department, Water, Police, Transportation, and Fleet facilities), and the State of Texas Comptroller's Request for Information 304T-26-430M2 for a statewide delivery term contract covering 129–137 line items of laboratory, medical, welding, and industrial gases plus dewar rental (RFI meeting March 25, 2026, mandatory for all state agencies and 25 TxDOT Highway Districts, five-year initial term). Evaluation criteria across solicitations emphasize competitive pricing (typically 35–50 percent weight), vendor experience and references, technical compliance with regulatory standards (NSF 60, ASME, CGA, EPA, OSHA), delivery speed and responsiveness, and local or state vendor preferences where applicable.