The goods and services provided by New Hampshire businesses are ones state and local government purchasing officers need and at Thursday’s State and Local Government Vendor Fair, more than 200 people turned out to learn who is buying and what they need.
Hosted by the state’s Procurement Technical Assistance Program and the Department of Administrative Services, the fair featured representatives from more than 30 state agencies and municipalities, which buy everything from bundles of camp wood to dormitories.
The state and local government purchasing market in New Hampshire is a $1 billion industry.
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“Bringing businesses and government agencies together fosters competition that assures our tax dollars buy the best products and services at the fairest prices,” said Department of Resources and Economic Development Commissioner Jeffrey Rose. “For our agencies, this is an opportunity to learn about products and services that can help us be more productive, efficient and cost effective.”
Hudson Town Planner John Cashell said his community is undertaking several projects and he talked with a steady stream of business people at his table.
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“I’m real excited,” he said. “I’m getting introduced to potential vendors I have not met before and it’s happening all in one place.”
Mike Dacey of GeoInsight Inc. in Manchester, an environmental engineering company, was one of nearly 200 business representatives attending the event.
“We have a service and this gives us place to meet people who may need it down the road,” he said, after speaking with Samantha Piatt and Mindy Salomone-Abood from the city of Manchester’s purchasing office.
The New Hampshire Procurement Technical Assistance Program (NH-PTAP), a part of the Division of Economic Development, works with over 900 companies around the state to secure government contracts. For more information, visit www.nhEconomy.com/sell-to-the-government.
For more information about bidding opportunities with the state of New Hampshire and to register to become a state vendor, visit www.admin.state.nh.us/purchasing.
