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Cooperative purchasing

The Municipal Association of South Carolina entered into a partnership in 2021 with HGACBuy to give South Carolina cities and towns priority access to the benefits of their cooperative purchasing program. 

How does cooperative purchasing work?

  • Centralized staff receives bids and coordinates purchases for local governments across the country. This group effort results in better pricing as a result of volume discounts.
  • Cities experience improved efficiency by eliminating the need to prepare detailed specifications and satisfy requirements of competitive bidding in-house.
  • Cooperative purchasing satisfies legal requirements for competitive bidding.

Who is HGACBuy?

  • HGACBuy is operated by the Houston-Galveston Area Council and began in 1975. The cooperative purchasing group serves 8,200 members with 41 major categories of products and services and works with more than 800 qualified contractors.

How can a city or town participate?

  • Municipal officials and staff can search the available contract through HGACBuy or contact the Association with a specific request. The Association will work with the product vendor to ensure that the city gets a quote using the HGACBuy pricing guidelines.
  • Once the quote is approved by the city, the Association will work directly with HGACBuy to place the order. The Association will serve as a liaison to assist the municipality throughout the purchasing process.

 

Contract CategoriesProducts and Services
Communications Equipment and Services
  • 9-1-1 Equipment & Emergency Notification Software & Services
  • ​Radio Communication, Emergency Response, & Mobile Interoperability Equipment
  • ​Radio Communication, Emergency Response, & Mobile Interoperability Equipment
  • ​Record & Playback Systems
  • ​Wireless, VOIP Telecomm Equipment & Services
Consulting and Staffing Services
  • Community Planning Services
  • ​​Marketing, Public Relations, & Event Planning Services
  • ​Office Management Software Solutions
  • Temporary Staffing, Direct-Hire and Other Employer Services
​​Emergency Equipment and Supplies
  • Auxiliary Power & Backup Generators
  • ​Emergency Medical & Rescue Equipment
  • ​Emergency Preparedness & Safety Equipment
  • ​Law Enforcement Speed Detection & Video Equipment
Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Recovery
  • ​All Hazards Preparedness, Planning, Consulting & Recovery Services
  • ​All Hazards Preparedness, Planning, Consulting & Recovery Services
  • ​Debris Removal & Clearance Services
General Purpose, Emergency and Autonomous Vehicles
  • Ambulances, EMS, and Other Special Service Vehicles
  • Automated Vehicles and Services
  • ​Automotive Parts & Accessories for Light, Medium & Heavy Duty Vehicles, Fire Apparatus & Related Services
  • ​Buses - Shuttles, Transits, Trams, & Other Specialty Buses
  • ​Current Model Cars & Light Trucks
  • ​​Current Model Cars & Light Trucks
  • ​Fire Service Apparatus (All Types)
  • ​​Fire Service Apparatus (All Types)
  • ​Fleet Services Equipment
  • ​Medium and Heavy Trucks & Truck BodiesSchool Buses
  • ​Trailers - Equipment, Cargo, & Specialty
Grounds Facilities and Parks Equipment ​
  • Grounds & Turf Equipment
  • ​Job Order Contracting Services
  • ​New/Leased Modular Buildings and Shelters
  • ​Parks & Recreation Equipment
  • ​Video Surveillance, Access Control & Security Fencing Systems
Infrastructure Equipment and Services
  • Solar Panels and Associated Equipment
Public Works Equipment
  • Earth Moving & Construction Equipment
  • ​Portable Construction and Maintenance Equipment
  • ​Refuse & Recycling Containers and Lifters
  • ​Refuse Handling Equipment
  • ​Rentals - Equipment & Portable Facilities
  • ​Sewer Cleaning, Hydro-Evacuating, Inspection Equipment, & Miscellaneous Services
  • ​Sewer Cleaning, Hydro-Evacuating, Inspection Equipment, & Miscellaneous Services
  • ​Street Maintenance Equipment
  • ​Sweeping Equipment
  • ​Traffic Control, Enforcement & Signal Preemption Equipment
  • ​Water, Gas, And Electric Meters And Associated Equipment