THE EPROCUREMENT PLATFORM PENNSYLVANIA AGENCIES CHOOSE TO MODERNIZE PROCUREMENT

Yes, PlanetBids is available through the TIPS cooperative contract (Interlocal Purchasing System, administered by Region 8 ESC), which has pre-competed PlanetBids on behalf of public agencies nationwide. Pennsylvania counties, municipalities, authorities, and school districts can execute a contract directly through TIPS, no new competitive solicitation required.

If your agency prefers a direct procurement path, our team can provide support materials addressing common solicitor concerns about PA 62 compliance and formal advertising requirements.

PlanetBids provides public notice through the vendor portal, email notifications, and optional newspaper publication tracking. The system timestamps all notices, maintains bid advertisement records, and archives the complete procurement file, satisfying Auditor General documentation standards for cities, counties, and authorities regardless of which procurement code governs your agency.

Pennsylvania Auditor General municipal audits routinely cite procurement documentation failures, requiring corrective action plans and follow-up audits. PlanetBids reduces that risk by automatically generating the complete, timestamped procurement record the Auditor General expects.

PlanetBids automates outreach to Pennsylvania UCP-certified DBE contractors, tracks which firms were notified and when, documents response rates, and generates good-faith effort reports required by PennDOT for federal highway funding compliance under USDOT 49 CFR Part 26.

For school districts, the same system tracks Section 3 vendor participation for HUD-funded construction. For water authorities, it documents DBE outreach for EPA IIJA grant compliance, one platform satisfying multiple federal diversity and outreach requirements across agency types.

Yes, municipal authorities use PlanetBids to document competitive procurement for State Revolving Fund projects, generating the procurement packages that satisfy PENNVEST application requirements. Pre-built templates reduce reliance on costly grant consultants and accelerate SRF application timelines.

Pennsylvania's 2,400+ municipal authorities managing water, wastewater, and infrastructure capital programs under the Municipality Authorities Act need documented lowest responsible bidder selection for each project. PlanetBids creates that documentation automatically as part of the normal procurement workflow.

Implementation typically takes as little as two days to four weeks after contract execution, depending on how quickly your agency is ready to move forward. PlanetBids can begin implementation within a week of receiving an executed contract. Each agency is assigned a dedicated account manager with extensive procurement experience who handles configuration and conducts live online training.

Howard County, Maryland, a county managing approximately 800 contracts annually with a 15-person procurement team comparable to many Pennsylvania county offices, saw vendor responses per bid jump from 3–4 to 10–12 after switching to PlanetBids. More competition on every solicitation means better pricing across your contract portfolio.

PlanetBids is priced as an annual SaaS subscription, no per-bid fees, no vendor fees, no transaction costs. Vendors register and bid for free, keeping your vendor pool wide and competitive.

Pricing is based on a base hosting fee plus per-user licensing depending on your agency size and the modules you need. There is a one-time implementation fee; ongoing support is always included at no additional cost. Because PlanetBids is modular, you're not paying for features you don't use.

Book a demo and our team will walk you through options specific to your agency size and procurement volume.

Yes, PlanetBids provides an API integration with your ERP or financial system, including Tyler Technologies' platforms like Munis and Tyler ERP. The integration passes awarded contract data, vendor information, and requisition details between systems, eliminating duplicate entry while Tyler remains your financial system of record.

Yes, PlanetBids supports COSTARS contract administration. You can reference DGS contract numbers, limit bidder pools to COSTARS-approved vendors, and track cooperative purchasing usage for Controller reporting while maintaining full procurement documentation.

PlanetBids supports multi-entity purchasing where your COG can run solicitations on behalf of member municipalities, with individual entities opting into awarded contracts while maintaining separate procurement records for local audit purposes.