GSA Advantages for Energy Management Software Procurement

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) provides centralized procurement for the federal government, offering billions of dollars’ worth of products, services, and facilities that federal agencies need to serve the public.

The mission of GSA is to deliver the best value in real estate, acquisition, and technology services to government and the American people. In today’s blog, we will look at GSA options and advantages for utility bill/energy management software procurement for a range of public institutions, including federal, state, municipal, and higher education.

GSA History

According to the GSA website, GSA was established by President Harry Truman on July 1, 1949, to streamline the administrative work of the federal government.

GSA’s original mission was to dispose of war surplus goods, manage and store government records, handle emergency preparedness, and stockpile strategic supplies for wartime. GSA also regulated the sale of various office supplies to federal agencies and managed some unusual operations, such as hemp plantations in South America.

Today, through its two largest offices – the Public Buildings Service and the Federal Acquisition Service – and various staff offices, GSA provides workspace to more than 1 million federal civilian workers, oversees the preservation of more than 480 historic buildings, and facilitates the federal government’s purchase of high-quality, low-cost goods and services from quality commercial vendors.

GSA Eligibility

GSA was designed for federal government procurement, so any federal department or agency can use GSA to access GSA-vetted products and services from across the country.

However, a variety of state and local government entities are also eligible to use GSA Advantage, including: states, counties, municipalities, cities, towns, townships, tribal governments, public authorities, school districts, colleges and other institutions of higher education, council of governments, regional or interstate government entities, or any agency or instrumentality of the preceding entities, and including legislative and judicial departments. The term does not include contractors of, or grantees of, state or local governments.

The GSA Advantage

The GSA portal for acquiring utility bill management software is www.gsaadvantage.gov. GSA Advantage is the government’s central online shopping superstore. GSA Advantage provides online access to millions of products and services from thousands of federal contractors. Members enjoy all the benefits that GSA Advantage has to offer including full purchasing privileges, e-mail updates, the ability to store order history and more.

There are three primary advantages of GSA for software acquisition:

Confidence: If you purchase from a GSA vendor, you can be confident that the vendor has successfully completed the stringent GSA application procedures.
Cost: The software pricing available through GSA is the lowest available pricing for the product. Vendors who sell for less than their GSA-advertised pricing can be subject to penalties, so you are assured of best pricing.
Acquisition: Customers using GSA can avoid time-consuming RFP processes, which can consume six months or more. Our experience suggests that with GSA, the procurement process can be reduced to 30 days or less.

In summary, using or referencing GSA Advantage ensures that, as a government-related organization, you are getting GSA-negotiated prices and dealing with GSA-approved sources. The system is designed to facilitate shopping, as well as market research. GSA Advantage contains millions of GSA schedule, stock and special order products, and services from thousands of schedule contractors.

Locating EnergyCAP on the GSA Advantage Website

To find EnergyCAP energy management software and services at the GSA Advantage web portal, go to www.gsaadvantage.gov and input EnergyCAP or our contract # (GS-35F-231CA) into the search box. A list of EnergyCAP products and services will be displayed.

Ordering Options

There are two ways to purchase EnergyCAP energy management software – through the GSA website or direct from EnergyCAP as a qualifying GSA institution. The pricing will be the same for each. Regardless of your preferred procurement method, we recommend consultation with our sales staff.

Ordering through GSA

You can order a la carte directly through the GSA Advantage website superstore. This can be confusing, since the EnergyCAP products and services are listed individually and not packaged in a formal proposal tailored to the customer’s specific needs. For this reason, we recommend working closely with a member of our sales staff when preparing your order.

State and local organizations that wish to order through the GSA superstore must use a state or local government issued credit card. No other form of payment is accepted at this time. The state or local government ordering entity is responsible for ensuring that only authorized representatives of their governments place orders and that the supplies or services purchased will be used for governmental purposes only.

Ordering through EnergyCAP, Inc.

State, regional or municipal government organizations interested in acquiring EnergyCAP energy management software do not have to purchase directly from the GSA Advantage superstore. They are free to use the GSA pricing information as a reference but will obtain their price quote directly from EnergyCAP.

There are multiple payment options. We have GSA experience working with higher education, state, and county government organizations, and are ready to assist you in navigating procurement procedures, regardless of your preferred path.

‘Adds’ and Ends

As with any government service, there is a tax. Regardless of the GSA purchase procedure, clients must pay an Industrial Funding Fee (.75% of total GSA purchase price). This amount is paid directly to the vendor (EnergyCAP in this case) and passed on to the GSA. Fortunately, the discounted GSA purchase price, as well as the streamlined procurement, will more than compensate the purchaser for the IFF.

EnergyCAP’s GSA Contract Number is GS-35F-231CA. This number can be helpful in completing procurement documentation, locating EnergyCAP products and services at GSA Advantage, and researching pricing and purchase options.