2310023297_bidinquiries.pdf

Group 23100 – School & Art Supplies (Statewide)

Solicitation 23297 Inquiry Responses Page 1 of 5

Inquiry Number

Solicitation Document

Section Number Inquiry Response

SOLICITATION 23297

Solicitation 23297 1.2 Scope

Are Elementary General Music classroom instruments, books, curriculum, and supplies accepted in this solicitation?

Music instruments and supplies are not within the Scope of the Contract.

Books for Pre-K and K-12 school environments may be offered.

Are coloring/activity books and picture books acceptable submissions for bidding to fulfill this contract?

Yes, presuming they are for Pre-K and K-12 school environments.

However, pursuant to Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 1.2, Scope, “books not specifically for Pre-K and K-12 school environments, audiobooks, e-books, and textbooks…are excluded from this contract.”

The Office of General Services (OGS) has a separate contract under Group 20070, Award 23260 for Books, Serials, Databases, and Library Resource Management Products, which provides for periodic recruitment. The contracts may be viewed on the OGS website at:

https://online.ogs.ny.gov/purchase/spg/awards/2007023260CAN.HTM.

Is there a limit to products submitted on an individual bid? No. There is no limit, provided the Products are within scope, as defined by Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 1.2, Scope.

Are magazines/periodicals permitted in this Solicitation? No. Subscription based Products such as magazines and periodicals are not within the scope of Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023).

1.3

Estimated Quantities

(1) I wanted to inquire whether NYC DOE would be able to purchase through the OGS School and Art Supply Bid once we are awarded the bid.

(2) Secondly, would they be able to spend over 25k per site with the Bid award (the current max amount for non-contracted spend per year per site) or is OGS only for NYS schools?

(1) Pursuant to Appendix B, Section 2.a, “Authorized User shall have the meaning set forth in State Finance Law Section 163(1)(k) and includes, but is not limited to, New York State Agencies, political subdivisions, local governments, public authorities, public school and fire districts, public and nonprofit libraries, and certain other nonpublic/nonprofit organizations.”

(2) Pursuant to Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 4.3, Procurement Instructions for Authorized Users, “the Authorized User is accountable and responsible for compliance with the requirements of public procurement processes.”

https://online.ogs.ny.gov/purchase/spg/awards/2007023260CAN.HTM

Solicitation 23297 Inquiry Responses Page 2 of 5

Solicitation Document

Section Number Inquiry Response

Solicitation 23297 1.9 Definitions

Document States: "List Price" shall refer to the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price. Concern: Not all items have an MSRP. Some manufacturers simply don't provide one. Further, most discount offer contracts with entities nationwide, including other state contracts and cooperative contracts, are based upon discount from the seller's fixed price and not from MSRP. Request "List Price" definition be changed to: Published base price which may be Manufacturer's Suggested List Price (MSLP), Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP), Governmental Pricelist, Manufacturer's Commercial Pricelist, or Contractor's Commercial Pricelist. Source of List Price will be defined by the respondent at the time of bid.

The definition of List Price has been revised in Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023) Section 1.9, Definitions to account for a broader range of prices suggested by manufacturers and suppliers of Products in this marketspace. Also, the Contractor’s Commercial Pricelist has been added as an acceptable type of published pricelist in Section 4.1, Method of Award.

Solicitation 23297 Section 2 Bidder Qualifications

I know sometimes there is a minimum employee headcount requirement. I didn’t see anything on this bid, so I’m curious if there is just a general headcount requirement across all bids, or since it doesn’t specify, it’s irrelevant

No. There is no minimum employee headcount requirement. Please refer to Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 2, Bidder Qualifications.

Solicitation 23297 Sections 2 and 3 How to become an approved bidder? Please refer to Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Sections 2, Bidder Qualifications and 3, Bid Submission for instructions on how to qualify for and submit a complete Bid.

Solicitation 23297 3.10 Bid Opening Results

Is the Bid Opening a public bid opening? Yes, it is. Please refer to Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 3.7, Important Building Access Procedures, for information regarding building access on the day of the bid opening.

Solicitation 23297 4.1, Paragraph 1 Method of Award

Document States: Products and services offered by the Bidder shall be from any of the following types of published pricelists: 1…..2…..3......4. Request add:

Contractor's Commercial Pricelist

Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 4.1 Method of Award, has been revised to add Contractor’s Commercial Pricelist as an acceptable published pricelist to be used by the Bidder within the scope of this Solicitation.

What is the definition of "published" as used in this section? In print? On seller's website?

Pursuant to Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 4.1, Method of Award, “Products and services offered by the Bidder shall be from any of the following types of published pricelists:

1. Manufacturer’s Suggested List Price (MSLP)

2. Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP)

3. Governmental Pricelist

4. Manufacturer’s Commercial Pricelist.

5. Contractor’s Commercial Pricelist”

These pricelists may be published electronically or in print.

Solicitation 23297 Inquiry Responses Page 3 of 5

Solicitation Document

Section

(1) Document States: It is the expectation of the State that Bidders shall offer discounts for all Products offered.

Exception/Clarification needed: Our printed catalog contains approximately 35,000 SKUs that are core for most contract users. Those items do have a set published price to which a discount can be applied.

However, in total we offer over 110,000 products on our website. Items on the website but not in the catalog do not have a set published price. Website prices are based on market conditions and can change daily. We can offer discounts for most items in our printed catalog. But we are not able to offer discounts on the balance of our website-only items. We would like to make these available to contract users at a fixed price. But, that price would not be discount eligible.

(2) The price list for the additional items would be provided annually in an Excel format.

(1) Pursuant to Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 4.1, Method of Award, “Contracts will be awarded only to responsive and responsible Bidders whose prices indicate that will be delivered at a reasonable price as determined by OGS Procurement Services.

“Reasonable prices” may be determined by reviewing percentage discounts and Net Prices offered to the General Services Administration (GSA), National Association of State Procurement Officials (NASPO), OMNIA, prices on any previously awarded NYS Contract, pricing offered by other Bidders for this Solicitation, contracts with other state or government entities, etc.”

(2) Please see Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 5.4, Pricelist Updates, which provides guidance on how and when pricelists may be updated during the life of the Contract.

Solicitation 23297 5.3 Paragraph 2 Price

Document States: All prices are Freight on Board (FOB) destination. Exception/Clarification needed: Most prices will be FOB destination. Certain oversized and heavy weight items, and all drop-shipped items have associated shipping fees that are disproportionate to the unit price of the item. Handling fees will be applied for those items.

Understanding some Authorized Users will require inside delivery, such as to an upper floor, and/or the delivery certain of oversized and heavy items, Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 5.3, Price, has been revised accordingly to accommodate these scenarios.

Under such circumstances, additional fees may be charged; however, Authorized User shall agree to such charges prior to delivery and such costs shall be prepaid by the Contractor and added to the invoice. Drop-shipped Products must meet these criteria in order for any additional fees to be charged; otherwise, Bidders should account for delivery of these Products in their discount structure if they’d like to offer them under the Contract.

Solicitation 23297 5.4 Pricelist Updates

Given current market conditions and supply chain challenges, will there be consideration taken to raise the current 3% regarding annual price increases?

There is no such provision in this Contract.

15 Solicitation 23297 5.4.2, Paragraph 1 Subsequent Contract

Years

Document States: Pricelist update requests shall be submitted within 30 calendar days of the anniversary date of the Contract and annually thereafter. Question: Do the 30 calendar days begin 30 days before, or after, the anniversary date?

Contractors will have a 60-day window beginning 30 days before and ending 30 days after the anniversary date of the Contract to submit pricelist updates.

Solicitation 23297 Inquiry Responses Page 4 of 5

Solicitation Document

Section

Solicitation 23297 5.4.4 Contractor's

Submission of Contract Price

Document States: In connection with any Contract pricelist, OGS reserves the right to….Reject Contract pricelist updates…Question: Under what circumstances would OGS reject a pricelist update?

Should a Contractor fail to provide acceptable supporting documentation demonstrating reasonableness of price or they have outstanding Sales Reports, Proof of Insurance, or any other documentation that is required under the resulting Contract, pursuant to Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 5.4.5, Supporting Documentation, OGS may reject a Contract pricelist update.

Solicitation 23297 5.9 Minimum Order

Question: Would the State entertain, or give advantage to an offer where the minimum order is less than $125

OGS respectfully declines this request.

Solicitation 23297 5.10 Purchasing Card

Orders

Document States: If the Contractor accepts orders using the State's Purchasing Card, also referred to as the Procurement Card, the Contractor shall not charge or bill the Authorized User for any additional charges related to the use of the Purchasing Card, including but not limited to processing charges, surcharges, or other fees.

Exception/Clarification: If the Purchasing Card is presented at the time of order, no fees will apply.

However, if the card is presented as payment for an invoice after the order has shipped, a 3% fee will apply.

Solicitation 23297 5.11, Paragraph 2 Invoicing and

Payment

Exception/Clarification: The following fields are not supported by our invoicing system: NYS Contract Number (our internal NYS code QD20NYS is supported);

NYS Agency Unit ID. Edited manual invoices including these details can be provided upon request after receipt of the initial invoice.

Pursuant to Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 5.11, Invoicing and Payment, the listed fields “must be included on each invoice.”

Solicitation 23297 5.13, Paragraph 2 Product Returns and

Exchanges

Document States: Contractor can change only a restocking fee for Product returned or exchanged due to Authorized User error that is determined not to be suitable for resale. Requested text change: Contract can charge a responding fee for Product returned or exchanged due to Authorized User error when one of the following conditions is met: the returned product is not in a condition suitable for resale; the contractor will incur restocking fees from the product supplier of Factory-Direct items.

Solicitation 23297 Inquiry Responses Page 5 of 5

Solicitation Document

Section Number Inquiry Response

ATTACHMENT 1 - PRICING

Solicitation 23297 Attachment 1 –

Pricing, see Instructions tab

As our product assortment is very large (over 100,000 items), are percentage discount catalog bids (i.e. xx% off entire catalog or category reviewable through a URL) acceptable or must all items be submitted on a price list?

As indicated on the Instructions tab of Solicitation 23297, Attachment 1 – Pricing, “each Bidder must submit their proposed product offerings on Attachment 1 – Pricing, detailing SKU/Product Number, Manufacturer, Item Description, List Pricing, Discount Percentage, and Net Pricing for each Product on the pricelist the Bidder is proposing.”

ATTACHMENT 4 – INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS

Solicitation 23297 B3 3. Workers’

Compensation Insurance and

Disability Benefits Requirements

The disability insurance and worker's compensation insurance for AKJ WHOLESALE are carried by our parent company MSI and all documents list MSI as the covered entity. How do we address this with the insurance requirements? Should we include a letter explaining the relationship between AKJ WHOLESALE LLC and MSI INC? What information is needed to show proof of insurance due to the corporate structure?

If Bidder's employees will be performing the work to fulfill this contract, the Worker's Comp policy should list that company as an insured, which will be confirmed on the Worker's Comp website. For Disability Benefits, please provide a copy of the declarations page showing the Bidder is a named insured. If all of the employees performing the work to fulfill this contract work for the parent company, a CE-200, Certificate of Attestation for New York Entities With No Employees and Certain Out of State Entities, That New York State Workers’ Compensation and/or Disability Benefits Insurance Coverage is Not Required, may be submitted with the NY State Worker's Comp Board online at: www.businessexpress.ny.gov.

ATTACHMENT 10 – RESELLER INFORMATION

Solicitation 23297 Attachment 10 –

Reseller Information Please explain this document more. Is this for if the bidder is an authorized reseller of any other company or if the bidding company has any resellers that they allow to resell our product? Please provide an example or more information on this form.

Attachment 10 – Reseller Information should be completed and submitted by the Bidder only if they intend to utilize Resellers.

Pursuant to Solicitation 23297 (Revised November 21, 2023), Section 5.36, Resellers, a Reseller “shall refer to an alternate distribution source under any model for distribution of Contractor’s Product other than direct from the Contractor. Resellers include, but are not limited to, approved Value Added Resellers (VARs), dealers, sales agents, and alternate channel partners.” Bidder should complete Attachment 10 – Reseller Information with Bidder’s information first followed by any Resellers authorized to resell Bidder’s product.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Solicitation 23297 General How to become an approved vendor for non-bid purposes?

OGS does not maintain an approved vendor list. Every Solicitation is evaluated on a case-by-case basis for Bidder responsiveness.