OVERLAND PARK, Kansas (August 18, 2017) – Black & Veatch has partnered with the Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) on its nationwide cooperative purchasing program, HGACBuy. The program streamlines procurement by establishing competitively bid and priced contracts for goods and services, relieving government entities of the time and administrative burden of conducting their own request for proposal (RFP) process. Black & Veatch will offer public safety and local government communication systems planning, development, procurement and implementation consulting services through the HGACBuy program.

“As an approved HGACBuy vendor, it will be easier for cities, counties, states, school districts and some utilities to obtain the consulting and engineering services that fit their agencies’ specific needs and requirements,” said Chris Krafft, Vice President of Public Safety for Black & Veatch’s Telecommunications Business. “Utilizing the HGACBuy program will ultimately allow our clients to implement needed community solutions quickly and more cost-efficiently.”

Black & Veatch services offered through HGACBuy will be provided through a contract that has already been competitively bid and awarded as a result of a full and open competitive process. Agencies will have access to vendor pricing information, volume purchasing and discounts through the HGACBuy website.

“When agencies need consulting or engineering support to upgrade or acquire new public safety radio communications systems, they often conduct a costly and time consuming consultant selection process that includes developing an RFP to narrow down consulting firms,” said Greg Munchrath, Regional Director, Black & Veatch Telecommunications. “Through HGACBuy, we significantly compress the project timeline so that government agencies receive the most value from their investments.”

To participate in HGACBuy, eligible governmental entities execute an interlocal contract, which details the conditions, requirements and processes of the program. HGACBuy professionals manage the procurement process and review purchase orders to confirm that the requested services are in alignment with contract provisions. The HGACBuy program has 6,000 members throughout the U.S. who purchase a wide range of products and professional services.  Membership is available at no cost for governmental and non-profit organizations.