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sellng to the feds

Everything you need to know about landing government video contracts.

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  1. Introduction
  2. Marketing to the Government
    1. Know the Rules!
    2. Selling to the Feds
      1. Calendar Concerns
      2. Procurement Vehicles
      3. Getting to Know You
    3. Congratulations! It's an e-Buy!
    4. Why Companies Need a Core Government Sales Group
  3. GSA Schedule Contracts
    1. Today GSA, Tomorrow the World
    2. Placing GSA Schedule Orders
    3. What GAO is Saying About Schedule Orders
    4. Incidentally Yours
    5. Leasing Nuts and Bolts
    6. Industrial Funding Fee Update
    7. Industrial Funding Fee in Legal Practice
    8. Mod Squad
    9. Back Door Schedules
  4. GSA Initiatives
    1. Evergreen, Everblue?
    2. Consolidated Contracting
    3. E-GSA
    4. GSA Is Getting It Right -- Are You?
  5. BPAs and Getting Paid
    1. BPAs 101
      1. An Introduction to Blanket Purchase Agreements
      2. GSA Schedule BPAs
      3. BPAs and the Law
    2. Ordering from BPAs
    3. Getting Paid
  6. Formal Competition
    1. GAO Bid Protest and Debriefing Procedures
    2. Filing a Timely Protest
    3. Bid Protests: What Happens After Filing
    4. Bid Protest Update
  7. Small Business Contracting
    1. Certifiably Small
    2. Small Business Contracting With the Government
    3. Small Business Subcontracting
    4. HUBba HUBba
  8. Special Requirements
    1. Are You a Sub?
    2. Federal Acquisition of Foreign Products
    3. Record Retention
    4. Procurement Integrity
    5. A Necessary Distance
    6. Suspension and Debarment
    7. The Freedom of Information Act
    8. Section 508: What You Need to Know
    9. Section 508: Now In Effect
    10. Federal Isn't the Only Avenue for Government Spending
  9. Federal Links

    Consolidated Contracting

    GSA has negotiated, awarded, and now administers more than 10,000 GSA Schedule contracts through its eight nationwide acquisition centers. Those GSA Schedule contracts offer more than 6.8 million commercial products and services to federal agency customers. That's a lot of GSA Schedules, a lot of contractors, and a whole lot of work both for GSA's contracting officers and the vendors' contract administration departments.

    What if your company makes a line of products that fits under several different GSA Schedule contracts, such as specified functions for IT, video, and television equipment? Or what if your company makes several different types of product lines or offers several different kinds of services? Do you have to apply for several different GSA Schedule contracts, each with its own, but slightly different, pricing, terms, and conditions?

    Until recently, you would have to get multiple GSA Schedule contracts depending on which GSA Schedule contract programs your multi-various goods and services best fit. With GSA's Consolidated Contracting program, however, vendors who hold multiple contracts can consolidate their GSA Schedule contracts into one corporate-wide contract vehicle. Similarly, vendors applying for a GSA Schedule for the first time may consider obtaining a Consolidated Contract if their product line crosses over one or more Schedules.

    "Consolidated Contracting" is the GSA term for a company-wide contract that consolidates a variety of goods and services into one GSA Schedule that would otherwise have to be placed on several different GSA Schedule contract programs. First coined Corporate Contracting, it's still relatively new.

    There are approximately 60 separate GSA Schedule contract programs, such as the Group 58 Professional Communications and Audio-Video Security Equipment (PCE) Schedule for audio-video products and the Group 70 Information Technology (IT) Schedule for computer and telecommunications equipment and services, to name just two. Those contract programs contain hundreds more separate Special Item Numbers (SIN), each one identifying a particular type of good or service or a specific way of buying goods and services.

    Goods available on GSA Schedule range from fire trucks to mainframe computers, from paper shredders to telemetry devices. Services span from the design of editing suites to relocation services for employees on the move. Many, but not all, of these products are listed under the Consolidated Contract. When the Consolidated Contract program was first introduced, the solicitation contained every SIN. GSA found, however, that including every SIN created more problems than it was worth, and has scaled back the scope of the Consolidated Contract program to make it more manageable.

    Participation in the Consolidated Contracting program is voluntary. A contractor with two or more GSA Schedules isn't required to switch to a Consolidated Contract. However, contractors with existing GSA Schedule contracts who are awarded a Consolidated Contract must transition all the goods and services to the Consolidated Contract.

    That is, contractors may not have awards for both the Consolidated Contract and the individual Federal Supply Schedule for the same items simultaneously. Accordingly, GSA will cancel existing individual GSA Schedule contracts simultaneous with the award of the Consolidated Contract on the first day of the first month of the next established standard sales quarter after award of the Consolidated Contract.

    From an industry perspective, Consolidated Contracting allows a vendor to offer its entire business lines on just one GSA Schedule contract, which eliminates redundancy in preparing bids, publishing pricelists and reporting sales. From the perspective of agency customers, Consolidated Contracting reduces the need to search through various GSA Schedules to find needed items, and provides a single contract vehicle from which to buy those items.

    Consolidated Contracting in practice has gotten mixed reviews. For contractors offering the same type of goods that would otherwise extend across several GSA Schedule contracts, Consolidated Contracting can make a lot of sense for all concerned. For large companies with many different product and service lines, each with its own commercial business practices, Consolidated Contracting may be forcing a square peg into a round hole.

    Then again, Consolidated Contracting is a relatively new program, so it will, as with any new program, take some time to work out the kinks. At the very least, it's a program that needs to be considered by all vendors with multiple GSA Schedule contracts.





Copyright Andrew Mohr 2000-05. All Rights Reserved Disclaimer:
This information in this site is for informational purposes only. It is not legal advice and may not be relied upon. For legal advice about any of the topics discussed in this book, please seek the advice of legal counsel.