Purchasing Process Project

For the Purchasing Project I spoke to Jeff Hurst from the Hillsborough County School Board. Jeff was extremely knowledgeable about what he did. He was willing to give more than what I needed to know. He explained in detail, step by step the process of purchasing and choosing a school bus for Hillsborough County Schools.

Jeff started out by mentioning that there is a committee that gets together to decide what features will be included on the particular buses that are being purchased. Jeff stated that the features today are very different from what they were in 1994, so there are more details to cover in these meetings. They also take into consideration what has occurred in previous years. These incidents play a huge role on how the committee decides on what kind of bus they will choose. When it comes time to choosing the bus the committee must go through a bidding process; this bidding process is called a state contract bid. He mentioned how years back the process was easier and did not involve so many aspects and concerns. Jeff mentioned that the bidding process was the best way because that is how they got the best price.

            There are three manufacturers in Florida that distribute these buses and they are: Freight Liner, International Bus, and Blue Bird. The one that they use most often to purchase the buses is International Bus. These manufactures make all different kinds, from sixteen passengers to 90 passenger buses. Most of the buses in Hillsborough County are their standard, which carries sixty five to seventy passengers. The features on these buses also vary. Air Conditioning adds $10,000 to the cost of the bus, now they are adding video surveillance, they are installing cameras on the outside of the bus to see how many cars do not obey the stop signs, there is also a feature of GPS to track where the buses are at all times, some also have wheel chair capabilities. These are only a few of the features that are now available for school buses.

            The prices of these buses have also increased through the years; in 1994 a standard bus cost $30,000, now they cost around $110,000. The features have a lot to do with the price increase along with inflation.  Jeff stated that every year the county purchases 90 school buses. They are buying to replace the buses that have already met their sixteen-year mark. They do not keep any buses for more than that. As of right now there are 1425 school buses. Of the 1425 only 1000 of them are used daily. The remainders are used as back ups, are almost at their sixteen-year mark, or are brand new and have not been assigned. Over all, Jeff was extremely informative and willing to talk, he also stated that he knew what students go through, he had a daughter a USF.