Student planners for u-46 secondary schools

School District U-46, located in Elgin, Illinois and serving 11 communities across 90 square miles in Chicago's northwest suburbs, is soliciting competitive bids for student planners to be supplied to its secondary schools. The district seeks 18,700 units of 7x9 custom planners featuring full custom color front and back outside covers, full color inside front cover, clear poly-protective covers, spiral binding, 108 black ink interior pages, and 2 color ink pages, with in-house design, digital proofing, and dedicated customer support included. All pricing must be all-inclusive of delivery, freight, packaging, and handling with no taxes charged due to the district's tax-exempt status. The successful vendor must acknowledge receipt of all purchase orders within 48 business hours, provide itemized packing lists with U-46 purchase order numbers, submit separate invoices for each purchase order, and assume full responsibility for products until delivery is completed, including providing free returns for damaged or non-compliant items with expedited replacements. Evaluation criteria include financial responsibility, past performance, experience, equipment adequacy, ability to meet timelines, reliability, reputation, competence, and location relative to service needs. The invitation to bid was posted on February 17, 2026, with vendor questions due by February 23, 2026 at 11:00 AM CST and district responses issued by February 26, 2026 at 11:00 AM CST. Bid submissions and samples must be submitted exclusively through the Euna Procurement electronic bidding system by March 3, 2026 at 10:30 AM CST, with a virtual bid opening conducted via Zoom on March 3, 2026 at 10:30 AM Central Time. The Board of Education will review submissions on April 13, 2026, with anticipated approval on April 27, 2026, and shipments are to begin on June 1, 2026, with complete delivery required by June 12, 2026 to the Distribution Center at 1474 Sheldon Dr., Elgin, IL 60120.

The district welcomes participation from minority-owned and women-owned businesses and reserves the right to award the contract to one sole provider or multiple providers based on the lowest responsive and responsible bid. No incumbent vendors or current contractors are identified in the solicitation materials. Bidders must carry comprehensive general liability insurance of $1,000,000 per occurrence with Workers' Compensation coverage of $500,000 per occurrence, Commercial General Liability of $2,000,000 in aggregate, and Umbrella/Excess Liability of $5,000,000 per occurrence. Additionally, vendors must furnish three references with similar projects, disclose any past or pending litigation, conduct criminal background checks on all employees accessing school property, and comply with all applicable federal, state, and local laws including prevailing wage requirements. The contract term commences upon Board approval or notice of award and continues for three years, with the option for up to two additional one-year extensions by mutual agreement, and the district reserves the right to terminate the contract with thirty days written notice. No specific budget or award value range is disclosed in the solicitation documents.