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| Local Buy Pty Ltd is a company that was established by the Local Government Association of Queensland inc. to (LGAQ) provide value adding procurement services to councils and government entities and to aggregate the purchasing power of local government. |
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2. What is a Local Buy Contract? |
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A contract established by Local Buy enables councils, or any other government purchaser, to purchase goods and services from Local Buy contracted suppliers without having to seek tenders or quotes. Local Buy is required by the Local Government Act 2009 to conduct an open tender process to establish these contracts.
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3. How is Local Buy funded?
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Local Buy’s contracts are established as a free service to councils and government purchasers. Local Buy does not receive any external funding and operates by applying a contract management fee. This fee is charged to suppliers every quarter as a percentage of their revenue generated from local government business through the relevant Local Buy contract.
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4. How do I become a supplier through a Local Buy contract? |
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To become a Local Buy supplier, you must successfully respond to a tender advertised by Local Buy.
Local Buy advertises all of their tenders in the Courier Mail and on www.lgtenderbox.com.au. Suppliers may register free to receive email notification regarding any tenders that will be advertised. |
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When you reply to a Local Buy tender, your response will be evaluated by a panel of Local Buy staff and local government subject matter experts prior to tenders being awarded and contracts signed. Local Buy’s contracts are typically established for 2-3 years, and there is no opportunity to become a Local Buy contractor during this period.
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5. What is LG tender box? |
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LG tender box is a Local Buy initiative that has been established to provide a comprehensive online tendering system for councils and government entities. This system allows councils and government entities to publish and manage their tender process through an efficient online portal, while gaining maximum exposure to the supply market. You can view the site at www.lgtenderbox.com.au
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6. Should I register with LG tender box or Local Buy as a potential supplier? |
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These two systems are very different. You must register on LG tender box to receive notification regarding any tenders advertised by local government users in Queensland.
To register for notification of new tenders, login to www.lgtenderbox.com.au and register your company's details.
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LGOnline is a portal developed and maintained by the Local Government Association of Queensland for councils, government entities and elected representatives. Local Buy maintains an extensive directory of information about our goods and services contracts on LGOnline. Council and government officers can access Local Buy’s information via a login and password - login to www.lgaq.asn.au for further information.
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8. What are the differences between a RFT, RFQ and a contract? |
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- A request for tender (RFT) is when an organisation seeks to request pricing and terms for particular goods and or services prior to a contract being established.
- A Request for Quote (RFQ) is when an organisation seeks a quote for products and/or services with stated terms and conditions. A RFQ is generally used for more complexed procurement activities.
- A contract is a signed agreement between two organisations for the delivery of products and/or services at agreed terms and conditions. A contract can be formed through a request for tender, a request for quotation or through some other form of negotiation.
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9. What is an expression of interest? |
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An expression of interest (EOI) is when an organisation wishes to identify companies that can deliver particular services, products or a particular project.
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10. What are the different types of purchasing arrangements? |
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There are three different types of purchasing arrangements that local government are able to tender and establish a contract for. These are:-
"Approved Contractor List (ACL)" is a list of persons who the local government considers to be appropriately qualified to provide the required services and which is established pursuant to the requirements of s.180 of the Local Government (Finance, Plans and Reporting) Regulation 2010.
“Preferred Supplier Arrangement (PSA)” is a contractual arrangement set up when the requirements of s.182(1) of the Local Government (Finance, Plans and Reporting) Regulation 2010 are met. PSAs are generally used when goods and/or services will be supplied under agreed pricing conditions for a stated period meaning that Council can purchase directly from a supplier without the need for a further Request for Quotation process.
“Register of Pre-Qualified Suppliers (RPQS)” is a contractual arrangement set up when the requirements of s.181(3) of the Local Government (Finance, Plans and Reporting) Regulation 2010 are met which consists of suppliers who have been assessed as having the technical, financial and managerial capability necessary to perform contracts on time and in accordance with agreed requirements. An RPQS does not generally include fixed pricing and therefore requires that Council undertake a further Request for Quotation process.
"Standing Offer Arrangement (SOA)" was a type of arrangement available under the previous Local Government Act. SOAs can no longer be established under the current Local Government (Finance, Plans and Reporting) Regulation 2010.
Alternatively, Local Buy has the legislative enablement (s.183 of the Local Government (Finance, Plans and Reporting) Regulation 2010) to establish an LGA Arrangement on behalf of Local Government Authorities who benefit from reduced procurement costs and shorter timeframes as there is no need to tender or seek multiple quotes.
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11. Where can I view current tenders from Local Buy? |
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You can view current tenders by logging into www.lgtenderbox.com.au click Tenders > Current.
You must be REGISTERED and SIGN IN to download tender documents or to participate in the tender forum. |
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12. What are the contract periods for Local Buy’s tendered arrangements? |
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The majority of Local Buy arrangements have a contract period of 24 months, with an option to extend for a period of up to 12 months. However this will depend on the nature of the individual contract. There may be some instances where the contract period will be anywhere from 12 months to a 5 year period. This will be identified in the contract terms and conditions in the tender documents issued by Local Buy.
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13. How does Local Buy evaluate a tender? |
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Local Buy evaluates tenders using the combined expertise of our Category Managers and local government subject matter experts. We utilise a tender evaluation software product called APET to assist in this process.
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14. I am a small company in a country town. Am I able to reply to a tender that Local Buy advertises? |
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| Local Buy does not discriminate from any organization replying to a Local Buy tender, in fact we encourage small businesses to participate in our contracts, who would like to supply their goods or services to councils and government entities in their area. |
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15. Where does Local Buy advertise for their tenders? |
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Local Buy advertises their tenders on www.lgtenderbox.com.au and through the Courier Mail in the Saturday edition under the tenders and quotes section.
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16. What are the advantages of being a supplier under a Local Buy contract? |
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| As a successful tenderer to one of Local Buys contracts, you will endeavour to identify the following advantages, these are:- |
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- A significant reduction in the number of tenders to respond to, thus savings in time and cost
- Greater time to concentrate on performance and relationship management
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17. Are councils and government entities required to use Local Buy contracts? |
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Councils and government entities that use Local Buy’s contracts eliminate the need to either go through a full tender process or to obtain quotes, and enjoy pricing benefits and savings that aggregated purchasing brings.
While councils and government entities are not legally bound to use Local Buy’s services, purchasers using Local Buy save significant time and money and are fully compliant with the Local Government Act 2009 as ammended in their purchasing activities.
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