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The Strategic Purchasing Division is the primary organization within the City of Houston authorized to issue invitations to bid and request for proposal (RFP), process and release purchase orders and administer term contracts through our 40+ staff members and an operating budget of $4.0+ million annually. The City Purchasing Agent can delegate authority to department staff to release purchase orders against contracts and to issue non-contract purchases under $50,000.
Our mission is to manage, facilitate and provide the highest quality, value-added procurement services that exceed the needs and expectations of our customers.
The Strategic Purchasing Division makes available online and at no charge to the public a complete listing of all formal bid documents and proposals. We update the Online Bids & RFPs page daily. However, you will not be able to download any bid/RFP documents until you register. If you wish to register for a web site account to view and download Bid/RFP documents and to place online bids, please take a moment to enter and submit the mandatory Online Bid Registration Form . Make sure your cookies on your system are enabled and the privacy settings on your browser is set to low to avoid the re-registration process every time you need to download bids or RFPs. Refer to our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for specific instructions on how to register and download Bids & RFPs.
To find more information about a specific bid document or RFP, you need to attend the Pre-Bid or Pre-Proposal Conference and ask questions about specifications and general terms and conditions. This conference also allows for your guidance to find out who is interested in bidding or proposing on a particular contract, or you can contact the assigned buyer. Refer to our Employee Directory for a complete listing of phone numbers and email addresses.
All suppliers and contractors interested in registering with the City of Houston and/or submitting a bid online for products and services procured by the City, MUST FIRST register for a Web Account. However, before you register, please Search for Your Supplier Registration Record to validate if your company already registered with the Strategic Purchasing Division. Each supplier needs a unique email address and a unique password for each web account created per company. The system does not allow creating multiple accounts for the same email address and password.
Once you establish your own web account, you may then proceed to complete and submit a Supplier Registration Form in order to establish a vendor number. If you need any assistance, please view the Supplier Registration PowerPoint, or contact the Supplier's Assistance Desk at 832.393.8800. You must fax the IRS W-9 Form or IRS W-8 for companies outside of the United States to 832.393.8761. The information on the IRS W-9 form must match the information listed on the Supplier Registration Form as required by the Internal Revenue Service. Refer to our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for specific instructions on how to register and download Bids & RFPs. MWDBE vendors contact the City's Affirmative Action Division at 713-837-9000.
The Strategic Purchasing Division Online Purchasing Catalog contains various categories of commodities, which have been competitively bid and awarded by the City of Houston.
City Purchasing Agent
Calvin D. Wells was appointed by Mayor Lee P. Brown in 1998 to oversee the Strategic Purchasing Division of the City of Houston's Administration and Regulatory Affairs Department. Prior to serving as the City Purchasing Agent, Calvin retired from Texaco, Inc. with over 20 years of corporate purchasing experience as manager of foreign procurement. At Texaco he had oversight of domestic and international acquisitions, vendor selection and negotiations, financial controls, contract development and coordination, problem resolution and service relations. As City Purchasing Agent for the City of Houston, he recently implemented a cost avoidance procedure that saved the City of Houston 19 million dollars in supply and service contracts. During his career, he has developed several alliances leveraging viable businesses with the consolidation of 1,250 contracts into 583 within a 5-year period.
Calvin holds a B.S. degree in Accounting/Business Management (double major) from Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He received a certificate from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) in Executive Purchasing Development and an Executive Development certificate from the University of Houston. He is a member of the National Association of Purchasing Management and the Petroleum Accounting Society of Houston. He is married with two children.
Contacts
- Strategic Purchasing Employee Directory
- Departmental Purchasing Unit Directory
- SPD Purchasing Groups by Procurement Type
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