Snack and Beverage Vending Service

Durham Technical Community College, a North Carolina community college serving Durham and Orange counties, is issuing Request for Proposal #94-26-1001 seeking qualified vendors to provide and service beverage and snack vending machines at four campus locations: Main Campus (1637 E. Lawson St, Durham, NC), Duke Street North Campus (3414 N. Duke St, Durham, NC), Northern Durham Center (2401 Snow Hill Rd, Durham, NC), and Orange County Campus (525 College Rd, Hillsborough, NC). The College currently operates 14 combo vending machines and 1 beverage vending machine and requires the selected vendor to stock machines with nationally recognized brands including healthy options, service machines at minimum weekly or more frequently based on demand and product expiration, and maintain 50% inventory levels. All vending machines must be UL approved, ENERGY STAR rated, equipped with GFCI protection, accept coins, bills, and electronic payment, and comply with ADA requirements; the vendor is responsible for all equipment procurement, installation, maintenance, repairs, replacement, supplies, trained labor, PCI-compliant credit/debit card readers, and refunds for malfunctioning machines. Required vendor qualifications include registration with the North Carolina Secretary of State, financial stability certification, three customer references, a designated contract manager, and a customer service contact. The RFP was issued February 4, 2026, with a non-mandatory site visit scheduled for February 17, 2026 at 10:30 AM ET, written questions due February 19, 2026 with responses provided February 24, 2026, and proposals due electronically by March 9, 2026 at 2:00 PM ET with contract award anticipated March 30, 2026. Evaluation criteria are ranked as follows: Vendor Technical Approach, Vendor Qualifications, Vendor Experience and References, and Pricing.

The RFP does not specify any set-aside designations or restrictions limiting the types of organizations that can respond. No incumbent vendor or current contractor is identified in the documentation. The vendor compensation structure consists of a straight commission on gross sales minus North Carolina sales tax, with the specific commission percentage to be negotiated and specified in Attachment A; commissions are due by the 15th of the following month, with late filings subject to a 5% penalty and grounds for contract termination if late for two consecutive months or three months within any 12-month period. The initial contract term is three years from the effective date (or July 1, 2026, whichever is later), with options for two additional one-year renewal terms at Durham Tech's discretion. The College anticipates possible expansion with estimated new machine placements including six machines in Building 12 (December 2027), two machines in Building 13 (April 2027), and one machine at Orange County Campus expansion (December 2026), though specific budget ranges or award values are not provided in the available documentation.