Mayor announces plans for purchasing partnership summit
Mayor Tom Henry announced plans for a purchasing partnership summit he will host June 25. In continuing a campaign promise, Mayor Henry is inviting representatives from other taxing entities to bring forward ideas or best practices on how to stretch taxpayer dollars through collaborative purchasing efforts.
A public-sector membership group would bid for commonly used products and services as a group creating economies of scale and a greater return on public expenditures.
“I've used a three-pronged test for decision making in former positions where purchasing was one of my duties:” said Mayor Henry, “ higher value, better services, lower costs. Taxpayers in Fort Wayne and in other districts deserve to get the best deal for their tax dollars as possible.”
The Mayor and City Purchasing Director James Howard made their announcement today near the city's salt dome, an example of one commodity currently purchased in collaboration with other entities, such as municipalities and school districts, to ensure a better price for all involved.
“It doesn't stop at salt,” said Howard. “These efforts can look at fuel, office supplies, paper products, and many other necessities we all use in bulk. I look forward to the ideas we'll generate at the meeting in June.”
Mayor Henry said he is still proud of his work with a purchasing cooperative he founded and oversaw through his 20 years as President/CEO of Midwest Health Net. That idea came to him while he served as Director of Shared Services with Parkview Hospital in the early 1980s and realized hospitals could save money if they combined their purchasing power. When he left Parkview, Henry put the concept into practice and eventually built a purchasing consortium of 48 hospitals in three states, generating savings for all the members.
The June 25 event will take place at the Public Safety Academy.