Doing Business with EBMUD
EBMUD buys a wide range of goods and services each year. EBMUD's Contract Equity Program enhances equal opportunities for business owners of all races, ethnicity, and genders who are interested in doing business with EBMUD. For more purchasing information, please choose from the topics below.
EBMUD needs the helpful cooperation of present and potential suppliers in order to get the maximum value for the money we spend in serving our public. We appreciate your interest in serving us by offering your materials, products, or services.
This section should help you become better acquainted with EBMUD, our services, and our needs. It is intended to give you the highlights of the EBMUD procurement operation. It describes the basic procedures, rules, and policies affecting purchasing practices at EBMUD so that you will have the information required to transact business smoothly with us from the start.
Our Buying Obligations
EBMUD has an obligation to the rate-paying customers of the District to obtain the maximum value for the money we spend. As required by the Municipal Utility District Act, EBMUD bases its selection criteria for materials and supplies on low bid. Issues like comparative product quality, required related services, product performance, maintenance, warranty, ease of use, etc. will normally be addressed in the proposal specification to insure bid price comparisons are made for only those items that are responsive to stated District objectives for price, quality, and service.
Qualification-based criteria are utilized to contract for professional services. Price is obviously an issue for the District in these procurements; however, supplier skill, experience, and reputation for delivering accurate and timely results are primary considerations.
The Buyer, or the department originating the purchase order, consults the District's Commodity Listing of goods and services to locate vendors who can provide the product or service they seek. Companies are listed in categories based on the type of product or service they provide. (You may wish to have your company listed under several categories.)
Our Buyers
The Purchasing Division Manager is responsible for buying goods and services for EBMUD. The Manager is also responsible for the disposal of surplus equipment, centralized storage and inventory control, as well as handling vendor complaints and negotiating claim settlements. Large engineering construction projects, real property and insurance are handled by other departments.
Under the Manager's direction, a Purchasing Contract Supervisor or one of the purchasing staff does the actual buying, discusses items with sales people, arranges for specifications, negotiates purchases, and places orders.
Other concerned District personnel may be asked to make recommendations to our buyers and sometimes a sales person is invited to explain features of the product to them.
A seller is not encouraged to provide expensive pre-purchase service in hopes of making a sale.
Purchasing staff is located at 375 Eleventh Street, First Floor, Oakland, California 94607. Office hours are from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM, Monday through Friday. Should you wish to meet with a member of the buying staff, please call the Purchasing Office at (510) 287-0454 for an appointment.
Depending on the expected price including taxes, an EBMUD order is placed in one of three ways:
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Direct call--Orders of less than $7,500 usually are placed with vendors who can supply the items at the lowest price commensurate with our quality and delivery requirements.
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Informal Bid--For orders over $7,500, three or more suppliers' price quotations are obtained when possible. These quotations need not be detailed. A general description of the item and the unit price usually are enough. Freight charges or other data need to be listed only when specifically requested.
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Formal Bid--For purchases of materials and supplies over $60,000, and for some services, EBMUD advertises in local newspapers and the Internet for formal bids. Specifications are distributed and sealed bids are required.
Bids are opened at formal bid openings, normally held on Wednesdays of each week. Bidders are welcome to attend. At a subsequent meeting of the Board of Directors (on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month) the contract is awarded to the lowest responsible, responsive bidder who has met the terms of the formal bid.
A successful bidder may be required to furnish a security performance (i.e., performance bond, CD, etc.) at the time the contract is executed.
Your PlantWe encourage our buyers to visit your plant. Such visits can give our buyers helpful information about your products. We may ask you to arrange such a visit or you may suggest it whenever you believe it would be worthwhile.
Inventory Policy
EBMUD carries the minimum inventory of supplies and materials consistent with continuous operation of facilities and prompt service to customers.
Standard EBMUD specifications for materials and supplies can be obtained from the Purchasing Division. On small orders, we may refer to Standard Specification numbers. In formal sealed bids, specifications are detailed in full. All orders, as delivered, must meet the specifications.
Suppliers should follow carefully any shipping instructions appearing on EBMUD purchase orders. When the method of delivery is not specified, the least expensive delivery method should be used unless the nature of the shipment calls for special service.
Delivery dates are specified on every purchase order. Failure to comply with the specified date may cause cancellation of the order.
Deliveries under formal contracts should follow as closely as possible the requirements in the formal bid. Delays not specifically excused by the contract terms may result in our purchasing items in the open market and charging to the vendor any cost in excess of the contract price.
EBMUD specifications define the quality and performance required of each purchase. Variations from the specifications make a shipment subject to rejection.
In addition to quantity and condition checks at delivery, purchases are subject to inspection for conformity with specifications. Such inspections may be made at the supplier's plant, upon delivery, or when the item is applied to its intended use.
Invoices should be mailed in duplicate to:
East Bay Municipal Utility District
Accounts Payable
P.O. Box 24055
Oakland, CA 94623
Each shipment should be billed separately and reference the EBMUD purchase order number. Each invoice must include the following information: description of item, quantity ordered, and unit price of each item.
The EBMUD purchase order number should appear on each bill of lading, on each package or bundle in each shipment, and on any correspondence pertaining to the order.
Generally, EBMUD purchases are made f.o.b. to a specified District service center or warehouse. Freight and insurance charges are included in the total price. However, these charges sometimes are an unusually large portion of the price. In such cases, we may buy the item f.o.b. supplier's plant, and ask that freight and insurance be prepaid and billed separately to the District by the supplier.
EBMUD will pay applicable California sales or use tax to a vendor only if the vendor is licensed to collect it. If not, the tax will be paid by EBMUD directly to the State. The District is exempt from Federal excise taxes.
EBMUD's policy is to pay all invoices promptly in order to take advantage of all available discounts.
Checks in payment of invoices are issued weekly.
EBMUD
created an Engineering Consultant Roster, which will be used to select firms to
submit proposals, to provide engineering services when special expertise is
required or when District staff is unavailable. The roster also will typically
be used for contracts under $750,000. The roster is provided as
a PDF file, which can be viewed and printed through Adobe Acrobat Reader, a free
software. 
Consultant Roster (2MB)