Mulch, Hardwood and Pine Needle

North Carolina State University's Procurement & Business Services Department is issuing a Request for Quotation (RFQ) for a blanket order of hardwood and pine needle mulch to support ongoing landscaping and grounds maintenance operations across multiple job sites in Raleigh. The procurement seeks firm pricing for triple-shredded hardwood mulch and long leaf pine straw bales in multiple quantity tiers: 20, 60, and 100 cubic yards of hardwood mulch, and 1, 100, and 1,000 bales of long leaf pine straw. All hardwood mulch must be randomly sized, well-composted, averaging 2 to 3 inches in length, and at least 95 percent free of wood media, tree roots, trash, and weed seeds, with physical samples required by the May 21, 2026 deadline at 5:00 PM. Quotations must be submitted via the Bonfire portal at https://ncsu.bonfirehub.com/opportunities/235491, with pricing to include all freight and miscellaneous charges on a FOB Destination, Freight Prepaid basis and a $50 minimum order requirement. The resulting contract will be a one-year blanket order with options to renew for four additional one-year periods, and vendors must provide three references from work completed within the past three years. Interested bidders must submit written questions by May 14, 2026 at 12:00 PM to dmpantel@ncsu.edu. Delivery will occur to job sites between 7:30 AM and 3:30 PM, Monday through Friday, within one to two business days of placement, with no Saturday deliveries permitted.

Vendors must demonstrate adequate insurance coverage, including Worker's Compensation with minimum employer's liability of $500,000, General Liability of $1,000,000 Combined Single Limit, and Automobile Liability with $1,000,000 combined single limits, with current commercial insurance certificates required. Price increases for contract periods two through five are permitted only with written submission at least thirty days prior to the effective date and are capped at no more than three percent or current CPI annually. No specific set-aside designations for disadvantaged enterprises or restrictions on organization types are identified in the solicitation. No incumbent vendors or current contractors are listed, and no specific budget or award value is disclosed. North Carolina State University reserves the right to award contracts to multiple vendors and to cancel any resulting contracts and re-issue the RFQ at its sole discretion, and quantities to be ordered are unknown with no guaranteed dollar amounts or ordering volumes specified.