How Council Procures Goods & Services

The procurement process

Council procurement (purchasing) is guided by the Sound Contracting Principles outlined in the Local Government Act 2009 which are:

  • Value for money
  • Open and effective competition
  • Development of competitive local business and industry
  • Environmental protection
  • Ethical behaviour and fair dealing

How Council purchases goods and services 

Each Council department has buyers who are responsible for sourcing the goods and services they require in accordance with Council's Procurement Policy and procedures. Understanding how Council purchases can improve the chances of a business becoming a Council supplier.  

The general requirements can be summarised as:

Contract Type Threshold (GST Exclusive) Procurement Requirements
Large Sized Contract $200,000 and greater Open tender invitation
Medium Sized Contract $15,000 and less than $200,000 3 quotes required (minimum)
Small Sized Contract Less than $15,000 1 quote required (minimum)

Selling goods and services to Council

There are a number of ways for a  supplier to maximise its chances of doing business with Council.  Council buyers can source quotes through the following e-procurement portal, and a supplier is encouraged to be registered with this portal: 

By registering to this e-procurement portal for all the categories (and sub-categories) that best represent the goods and/or services that are being sold, the supplier is raising Council buyers' awareness of that supplier when they are seeking quotations.

Council advertises its open tenders in local newspapers, on Council's website and on the VendorPanel Public Tenders website.  A supplier must be registered with VendorPanel Public Tenders to receive notifications when a tender is advertised, and to submit their tender. 

Open tenders

For procurements worth $200,000 (excl. GST) and greater, suppliers can access VendorPanel Public Tenders to: 

  • View details of current tenders
  • View tender conditions, contracts, lodgement details and notifications
  • Register to receive email notifications of tenders advertised by Council
  • Submit and review forum questions and posts on active requests 

Supplier Arrangements

Council may release an open tender invitation to establish a new or refresh current Supplier Arrangements for those goods and services that are purchased in large quantities and/or on a regular basis across the whole organisation.

These Supplier Arrangements enable Council to maximise purchasing benefits and obtain better value for money.  

These invitations are advertised as open tenders in local newspapers, Council's website and on the VendorPanel Public Tenders website.

Council may use Supplier Arrangements established by Local Buy Pty Ltd for purchasing goods and services, which is the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) procurement services company responsible for establishing common-use procurement arrangements for Councils and Local Government authorities across Queensland.

Details of current Local Buy arrangements and how to become a Local Buy supplier is available on the Local Buy website. 

Enquiries

For general contract and tender enquiries please contact Procurement. 

For queries relating to a specific tender currently open, please contact the listed project officer or place a forum post on the relevant VendorPanel Public tenders forum. 

For all Accounts Payable enquiries please contact Council's Accounts Payable Team.

Current Tenders 

See our list of current tenders out for response.

Awarded Tenders 

See our list of tenders awarded in the last 12 months.

Council Policies

See our list of Council policies for your additional information.

Business