SERVING MARYLAND GOVERNMENT & EDUCATION AGENCIES
THE EPROCUREMENT PLATFORM MARYLAND AGENCIES CHOOSE TO MODERNIZE PROCUREMENT
Built for Maryland's 23 counties and the independent Baltimore City, its charter, code home-rule, and commissioner-form county structures, bi-county authorities, and 24 countywide school systems. Compliant with MDOT Office of Minority Business Enterprise MBE certification tracking and USDOT DBE requirements for federally funded work. Available on the Interlocal Purchasing System as a cooperative contract, with no new bid required.
Maryland agencies. Cooperative purchasing options are available to allow your agency to purchase PlanetBids without a new competitive solicitation. Ask our team about options for your agency type.
TRUSTED BY AGENCIES ACROSS MARYLAND AND THE EASTERN US
From the Capital and the Eastern Shore to New York, New Jersey, Virginia, and the Carolinas, PlanetBids helps public agencies on the East Coast run compliant, transparent, modern procurement.
CUSTOMER SPOTLIGHT
HOW HOWARD COUNTY INCREASED EFFICIENCY & VENDOR PARTICIPATION
- Clear solicitation templates and automated workflows eliminated scheduling conflicts and improved accuracy while making bid submissions easier, eliminating logistical issues from manual procurement and paper-based documentation.
- Automated registration and onboarding processes reduced the workload on staff while offering vendors a simple, intuitive user experience. Procurement staff could easily access vendor data, verify qualifications, and send real-time updates or clarifications while accepting digital submissions.
- Evaluators can securely review and score bids without manual calculation or in-person coordination – weighted and rubric-based scoring and multiple-round digital evaluation enables accurate, impartial assessments and multiple-round evaluations without the need to coordinate schedules.
- A user-friendly vendor portal and simple bid submission workflows offer a more intuitive vendor experience, which has increased participation and reduced confusion.
- Digital data tracking, certification management, and evaluations provide greater transparency, ensuring impartiality and efficient use of public funds.
"When we first began, occasionally a vendor would call and say, ‘That was too easy… I must have done something wrong,’” said Rittenhouse. “Our team has been very pleased with the ability to increase vendor participation, which results in greater competition and transparency within our bid processes."
Jennifer Rittenhouse
Senior Contract Analyst, Howard County
MARYLAND PROCUREMENT COMPLIANCE
BUILT FOR HOW MARYLAND AGENCIES ARE REQUIRED TO BUY
Maryland's procurement landscape is defined by its home-rule structure: 23 counties plus Baltimore City make up 24 major jurisdictions, with no townships and only 157 incorporated municipalities – most of which have no dedicated procurement staff. County procurement authority itself varies by constitutional structure, so a one-size-fits-all approach doesn't work here. PlanetBids is designed to streamline and simplify workflows for small teams, no matter the particulars that may change from county to county.
Home Rule Support
PlanetBids supports charter home rule, code home rule, and traditional commissioner-form counties without assuming a single uniform procurement code.
MBE/DBE Compliance
Built to support Maryland's MBE certification and reporting requirements, including alignment with MDOT's Office of Minority Business Enterprise as the state's centralized MBE certification authority.
Federal DBE Support
USDOT Disadvantaged Business Enterprise tracking for federally funded transportation and infrastructure work, alongside MTA's own MBE/DBE program requirements.
Bi-County & Multi-Jurisdictional Authorities
Built to support special purpose agencies governed jointly across multiple counties, such as bi-county water and planning authorities.
Audit-Ready Documentation
Full audit trails and centralized, easily accessible documentation designed to hold up under state-level procurement review.
School System Support
Structured for Maryland's 24 countywide school systems, each of which procures independently with no separate school district layer.
NO NEW BID REQUIRED
COOPERATIVE CONTRACTS
PlanetBids is available on the Interlocal Purchasing System (TIPS) as a cooperative contract. Maryland agencies can piggyback off an existing contract without pursuing a new bid, where permitted.
PROCUREMENT EXPERTISE
NPI-CERTIFIED
PlanetBids is certified as an Achievement in Excellence® (AEP) eProcurement Certified platform by the National Procurement Institute, meeting critical standards for Electronic Sourcing (AEP Criteria 7b) and Electronic Evaluations and Automatic Scorecarding (7c).
EVENT PRESENCE
INDUSTRY EVENT SPONSOR
PlanetBids is a proud member of NIGP and a regular attendee and sponsor of the NIGP Annual Forum, as well as attending annual American Public Works Association and Government Finance Officers Association events nationwide.
THE PLATFORM
EVERYTHING YOUR PROCUREMENT TEAM NEEDS, NOTHING YOU DON'T.
PlanetBids is a modular, end-to-end procurement lifecycle platform. Start with what you need and add modules as your agency grows.
Requests & Solicitations
Create, publish, and manage IFBs, RFPs, RFQs, and RFIs from guided templates. Get live countdowns, drag-and-drop documents, and real-time status tracking.
Vendor Management
Create a centralized vendor registry with real-time Empire State Development MWBE and SDVOB certification verification. Automated outreach by commodity code generates good-faith effort documentation for State Comptroller pre-audit packages and Empire State Development utilization reports.
Compliance & Audit Trails
Every action is timestamped and logged, with automatic bid tabulation, sealed bid verification, and complete documentation trails that hold up to protests – $50B+ processed, zero valid protests.
Contract Management
Centralize awarded contracts with automated expiration alerts, amendment tracking, and insurance certificate management so you ever miss a renewal or compliance deadline.
Project Evaluation
Multi-round scoring with unlimited evaluators, consensus or individual scoring modes, and exportable matrices supports complex RFP evaluations for capital projects and bond programs.
AI with Guardrails
AI tools are built specifically for public procurement, with the compliance controls government agencies require. Get faster drafting and smarter vendor matching, within the boundaries your policies demand.
Requests & Solicitations
Create, publish, and manage IFBs, RFPs, RFQs, and RFIs from guided templates. Get live countdowns, drag-and-drop documents, and real-time status tracking.
Vendor Management
Create a centralized vendor registry with real-time Empire State Development MWBE and SDVOB certification verification. Automated outreach by commodity code generates good-faith effort documentation for State Comptroller pre-audit packages and Empire State Development utilization reports.
Compliance & Audit Trails
Every action is timestamped and logged, with automatic bid tabulation, sealed bid verification, and complete documentation trails that hold up to protests – $50B+ processed, zero valid protests.
Contract Management
Centralize awarded contracts with automated expiration alerts, amendment tracking, and insurance certificate management so you ever miss a renewal or compliance deadline.
Project Evaluation
Multi-round scoring with unlimited evaluators, consensus or individual scoring modes, and exportable matrices supports complex RFP evaluations for capital projects and bond programs.
AI with Guardrails
AI tools are built specifically for public procurement, with the compliance controls government agencies require. Get faster drafting and smarter vendor matching, within the boundaries your policies demand.
THE VENDOR ADVANTAGE
MORE QUALIFIED BIDDERS, ZERO VENDOR PHONE CALLS TO YOUR TEAM.
A deep, pre-qualified vendor network and a dedicated support team handles vendors for you, so your purchasing office can focus on procurement, not vendor phone calls.
VENDOR
NETWORK
40K+ qualified vendors ready to bid on your solicitations
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Vendors are matched to your bids by commodity code, no manual outreach lists required
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Agencies typically jump from 3-4 responses to 10-12 submittals per bid after switching to PlanetBids
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Empire State Development MWBE and SDVOB classifications are built in to meet Maryland's 30% MWBE utilization goals for state-funded projects
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Vendors can register and bid for free, removing the friction that keeps small businesses out
EXCLUSIVE
DEDICATED
VENDOR SUPPORT
We help your vendors so you don't have to
When a vendor has a question about your solicitation, how to upload documents, or how to register, they call us, not your purchasing office. Our dedicated vendor support team handles it directly so your team stays focused on procurement. For you, this means no more:
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Vendor registration help calls
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Document upload questions
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Bid submission troubleshooting
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Addenda & notification questions
Results: Fewer incomplete bids, more competitive responses, and hours back in your team's week, every single procurement cycle.
VENDOR NETWORK
40K+ qualified vendors ready to bid on your solicitations
-
Vendors are matched to your bids by commodity code, no manual outreach lists required
-
Agencies typically jump from 3-4 responses to 10-12 submittals per bid after switching to PlanetBids
-
Empire State Development MWBE and SDVOB classifications are built in to meet Maryland's 30% MWBE utilization goals for state-funded projects
-
Vendors can register and bid for free, removing the friction that keeps small businesses out
DEDICATED VENDOR SUPPORT
We help your vendors so you don't have to
When a vendor has a question about your solicitation, how to upload documents, or how to register, they call us, not your purchasing office. Our dedicated vendor support team handles it directly so your team stays focused on procurement. For you, this means no more:
-
Vendor registration help calls
-
Document upload questions
-
Bid submission troubleshooting
-
Addenda & notification questions
Results: Fewer incomplete bids, more competitive responses, and hours back in your team's week, every single procurement cycle.
WHO WE ARE
Built by procurement professionals, for procurement professionals
PlanetBids was founded specifically for the public procurement industry, and we understand the needs of procurement professionals. That origin matters, as every feature, every workflow, and every support interaction are designed to reflect how actual purchasing teams manage work under budget pressure, public scrutiny, and legal compliance requirements.
Designed for public procurement since 2000
We're not an ERP company that added a procurement module. We're not a startup that pivoted into GovTech. We're not a big conglomerate chasing a new market. We are a 25-year-old company whose entire business is built around making procurement professionals more effective.
100% US-based support staff with procurement backgrounds
Our in-house support team includes people with real public procurement backgrounds. When you call with a question about sealed bid procedures or vendor protest prevention, you're talking to someone who has managed that process themselves and understands your issues.
A solid foundation of PlanetBids agencies
550+ agencies. 1,000+ users. 99% retention. Zero valid bid protests across $50B+ in contracts processed. Our company has stayed focused on one thing for 25 years, and we have the track record to prove it.
WHAT MARYLAND PROCUREMENT TEAMS ASK US MOST
How does PlanetBids handle Maryland's mix of charter, code home rule, and commissioner-form counties?
PlanetBids doesn't assume a single procurement structure. Instead, the platform is configured to match each agency's own procurement authority and workflow, whether that's a charter county, a home rule county, or a traditional commissioner-form county. You configure and customize PlanetBids to fit your operations and processes, not the other way around.
Can PlanetBids support bi-county or multi-jurisdictional agencies?
Yes, PlanetBids is built to support special purpose agencies governed jointly by more than one county, including bi-county water, sanitary, and planning authorities.
How does PlanetBids support MBE/DBE compliance?
PlanetBids is built to accept, document, and maintain MBE/DBE certifications and participation to support alignment with MDOT's Office of Minority Business Enterprise certification framework, as well as USDOT DBE requirements for federally-funded transportation projects.
Can Maryland agencies purchase PlanetBids through a cooperative?
Potentially, yes. Depending on your agency type and purchasing thresholds, cooperative purchasing options may be available that allow your agency to execute a contract without issuing a new competitive solicitation. PlanetBids is currently available on the Interlocal Purchasing System as a cooperative contract.
Contact our team to discuss the procurement paths available for your specific agency. If a direct procurement path is preferred, we can provide pre-approved legal resolution language addressing common concerns.
Does PlanetBids work for Maryland's school systems?
Yes, school systems are a primary use case for PlanetBids because of the decentralized purchasing and high administrative workload inherent in these agencies' programs. In the case of Maryland schools, PlanetBids can be used by each school system independently, without a separate school district procurement layer.
How long does implementation and training take?
Implementation timelines depend heavily on agency requirements, but most agencies are up and running in just a few weeks, including implementation, training, customization, ERP integration, and vendor list import. In some cases, agencies with tight deadlines for federal work or other urgent solicitations can be live and posting their first bid in just a few days.
How much does PlanetBids cost?
PlanetBids is a SaaS subscription-based service, with no per-bid, transaction, or vendor fees. Pricing is tiered based on an agency's required features and functionality as well as the number of full user licenses needed and solicitations posted per year. With options for all agency sizes and budgets, we recommend speaking to your regional sales manager to get a customized bid tailored to your organization.
READY TO MODERNIZE PROCUREMENT FOR YOUR MARYLAND AGENCY?
Book a 30-minute demo with a member of our dedicated public sector sales team. We'll show you the platform, walk through the TIPS contract process, and answer questions specific to your agency type.
Available on TIPS cooperative with no new RFP required
Built in compliance and certification tracking with easy-access reporting capabilities
US-based, in-house support with extensive procurement expertise
Pricing is tier-based to fit any agency size and budget
99% client retention means our agencies love us