The Manager shall designate a Purchasing Agent who shall have the power, and it shall be his duty to:
A. 
Procure for the Township the highest quality in supplies, materials, equipment and contractual services meeting specifications, at the least expense to the Township.
B. 
Discourage collusive bidding and endeavor to obtain as full and open competition by suppliers of goods and services as possible.
C. 
Sell, trade or dispose of all obsolete or unusable public property in accordance with the provisions of the applicable statutes and of the Lower Merion Code.
D. 
Establish such regulations, procedures and files as necessary to provide for an efficiently administered purchasing system.
The Manager shall cause to be published in the Township Document System or make available to the public at a reasonable reproduction cost, such bid procedures and purchasing regulations as are applicable to vendors and suppliers. However, failure to publish said provisions shall not invalidate any purchase order or contract.
A. 
A Bid Opening Committee is hereby established, which shall be comprised of three members who shall be appointed biannually by the Board of Commissioners and who shall serve until their successors are confirmed.
B. 
At least one member of the Committee shall be a member of the Board of Commissioners, and members may be appointed from the administrative service. The general purpose of the Committee shall be to receive and open the various bids for services, materials, equipment and supplies.
C. 
The Committee shall promulgate such rules as are necessary to conduct its own affairs.
A. 
Contracts or purchases exceeding $10,000 but not exceeding $18,500 (or such adjusted amounts as shall be determined pursuant to the provisions of §1802 of the First Class Township Code[1]) and contracts or purchases for maintenance, replacements or repairs to public works that are exempt from the competitive bidding provisions of the First Class Township Code and which do not exceed $50,000 may be awarded by competitive quotation to the best responsible supplier. When a contract or purchase is awarded by competitive quotation, written or telephonic price quotations shall be requested from at least three qualified and responsible contractors, or, in lieu of price quotations, a memorandum shall be kept on file showing that fewer than three qualified contractors exist in the market area within which it is practicable to obtain quotations.
[Amended 11-21-1990 by Ord. No. 3210; 4-18-2000 by Ord. No. 3567; 3-21-2012 by Ord. No. 3966]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. 56802.
B. 
The Purchasing Agent shall keep a written record of all open market orders and quotations submitted thereon. Such records shall contain at least the date of the quotation, the name of the contractor and the contractors' representative, the construction, reconstruction, repair, maintenance or work which was the subject of the quotation and the price, and they shall be open to public inspection. These records may be disposed of by the Purchasing Agent following three years from the date of purchase.
[Amended 11-21-1990 by Ord. No. 3210]
C. 
The Township Manager shall promulgate rules, regulations and procedures for the various classes of open market or exempt forms of purchases and contracts.
In the case of an actual emergency or other unforeseen occurrence or condition whereby extreme circumstances affecting the life, health or safety of inhabitants of the Township require immediate action which cannot await otherwise required competitive bidding, the Township Manager or his authorized agents may suspend the customary purchasing regulations, subject to subsequent ratification by the Board, to make such purchases as necessary to meet the emergency condition. All emergency purchases shall be clearly stated on the purchasing and accounting records so as to be easily identified on the public records inspected by the Township auditors.
The Purchasing Agent shall have authority to join with other units of local government in cooperative purchasing, when authorized by statute and ordinance and when the best interests of the Township would be served by cooperative purchasing.
The Purchasing Agent or his designee shall have the authority to require tests of bid and delivery samples to determine their quality and conformance with specifications. In the performance of those tests, the Purchasing Agent shall have the authority to make use of laboratory facilities.
Except for emergency purchases made pursuant to § 5-72 of this chapter, the Purchasing Agent shall not issue any purchase order or contract until he has submitted the proposed expenditure to the Director of Finance to determine the availability of unencumbered funds to defray the amount of the order or contract. The Director of Finance or his authorized agent shall certify the availability of funds to the Purchasing Agent.
Any contract, purchase order or commitment covering the procurement or use of services, supplies or property for the Township, or for the providing of such services, supplies or property by the Township, shall remove or transfer from the Township, insofar as practicable, all risk of loss, liability and cost of defense. The Township may purchase, at the contractor's expense, insurance during the course of construction of public works where superior coverage, lower premium, consent of the contractor or other factors justify such purchase.
The Manager may authorize the abandonment, destruction or donation to public bodies or to charitable, civic or nonprofit organizations of Township property which has previously been offered for sale pursuant to the provisions of the First Class Township Code and for which no required bid or offer was deceived.
The Township shall not be bound by any contract, purchase order or similar purchase commitment unless the same shall be in writing and executed by duly authorized personnel acting on behalf of the Township and as otherwise required by law, except for petty cash or emergency purchases made in conformance with the Lower Merion Code and with control procedures established by the Township Manager and as otherwise allowed by law.