SEED Quarterly Spring 2020

SMUD’s response to Coronavirus (COVID-19)

SMUD’s top priority is the safety of our customers and employees. As an essential service provider, we’re taking precautions to reduce risk to our employees, the public and our operations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Over the last few weeks, we’ve been monitoring the evolving situation and taking proactive steps to minimize risk. Considering advice and recommendations from public health officials, here’s a snapshot of some recent business changes we’ve made to help reduce the risk of exposure to COVID-19. See all our latest COVID-19 updates.

Customer Service Center and Headquarters closure

All SMUD buildings were closed to the public on Wednesday, March 18 to minimize the risk of exposure to COVID-19 for our employees and customers. Payments can be made in My Account at SMUD.org or by calling 1-888-742-7683. Customers wishing to pay at a pay station are encouraged to contact the pay station ahead of time, as their hours of operation may have changed.

Suspend power shutoffs for non-payment

Through March 31, we will no longer disconnect power due to non-payment for all customers. We will also reconnect customers whose service was disconnected due to non-payment as long as the meter or equipment is not damaged and conditions are safe. We want all of our customers to have power at this time. Read the news release.

Upcoming events - UPDATE

RESCHEDULED: SMUD Meet the Buyers & Small Business Expo

New Date: August 19, 2020

Time: 7:30 am - Noon

Register here: Smud.org/bizexpo

With the recent developments related to COVID-19, our Meet the Buyers & Small Business Expo event, originally set for March 26, will be rescheduled.

The new date is scheduled for August 19 – at SMUD’s Customer Service Center from 7:30 a.m. – noon. We look forward to seeing you in August and to providing valuable information and networking opportunities to support your business and contracting opportunities with SMUD. 

New procurement platform

We’re pleased to inform you that we’re improving our procure-to-pay process by implementing SAP Ariba®, which will replace our current solicitation tool, EBSS, at the end of March. Ariba is a cloud-based procurement, spend management and supply chain services platform that makes it easier for suppliers and buyers to connect, collaborate and do business.

We expect our transition to the Ariba Network will be complete in the second quarter of 2020. The Ariba platform will help us digitize and simplify all our sourcing processes from end-to-end, in a single integrated platform. In addition to submitting solicitations, once our suppliers begin using the Ariba Network, they’ll be able to:

• receive electronic PO’s,
• create and send electronic invoices,take advantage of new payment and discount terms, and
• expand your business opportunities with other potential customers. 

In the coming weeks, SMUD and our SAP Ariba partners will be reaching out to our suppliers with more information on how to enroll in the Ariba Network, take advantage of some new discount payment terms and conditions and get connected to future bidding opportunities with SMUD through Ariba.
Please share this information with anyone interested in doing business with SMUD. If you have any questions, please email Procurement@smud.org.

T&R Communications, Inc.

Ever wonder why your cell phone service doesn’t fail inside the SMUD headquarters building? You can thank local small business and SEED vendor, T&R Communications, Inc. They provided the Distributed Antenna System (DAS) which helps extend the strength of wireless signals within the concrete walls of the building – something hundreds of SMUD employees are thankful for. Perhaps more importantly though, is the shining example T&R provides as a successful participant in SMUD’s SEED program, embodying the mission of the program to power the local economy by supporting small business. 

T&R first learned of the SEED program through email outreach from the SMUD team. Following their registration in EBSS (Electronic Bid Solicitation System), they leveraged the opportunity to attend the Meet the Primes event where subcontractors were invited to network with the pre-qualified prime contractors for the SMUD headquarters rehabilitation project. As a result of their attendance at Meet the Primes, T&R was able to connect with one of the primes to build the best proposal, including innovation and best practices for saving SMUD time and money, earning $1.4 million in business as part of the winning proposal.

In addition to the DAS, T&R provided sound masking and distributed cable systems for the headquarters building. They worked closely with the prime contractor, Roebbelen, as well as fellow subcontractors, manufacturers and distributors. Pat McMurray, President of T&R says collaboration was key, recognizing that “the people we partnered with at NECA/IBEW, Rosendin Electric, Panduit and Graybar did an awesome job making the work flow easily.”

Following the sub-contracting experience with Roebbelen, T&R was able to build upon their success as a SEED vendor and secure involvement in other large regional construction projects such as the Centene campus in Natomas and the 10th and O project downtown. This steady flow of work helps the company manage the highs and lows of contractor demand, something T&R is familiar with, having been in business since the 1980s.

T&R reports that they’ve been able to double their manpower and buying power, an essential factor in their ability to now bid on higher dollar projects. “I am so incredibly grateful for SMUD’s SEED program and the state of California Office of Small Business,” said Pat. “These programs allowed us to grow our business to the next level.” Pat praised SMUD for making it easy for small businesses to earn contracts and for valuing the contribution of SEED vendors to regional prosperity.

Studying our region to better understand our business community

SMUD’s SEED program works to connect with every small business in our community that is available to offer goods and services to our buyers. To make sure we’re accurately and thoroughly identifying all of the businesses in our service area, we’ve commissioned an “Availability Study” that surveys our current business landscape to help us understand it fully and communicate SMUD contracting opportunities more effectively. 

The Availability Study will update information from an initial study conducted 15 years ago to understand our region’s business make-up. The current study will provide a view of the number of local businesses from which we may procure goods and services. This information can be used by the SEED team, as well as other business groups within SMUD, to build targeted outreach plans and allocate resources to ensure we are reaching every small business in our community to help them register with SMUD and learn how to potentially successfully bid on SMUD contracts.

MGT Consulting is leading this effort as a prime contractor and is working with two of our SEED vendors, Mission Consulting and Wilson Group. Wilson Group will complete the outreach to businesses in March, and SMUD will work with MGT Consulting this Spring to aggregate the findings and develop outreach and action plans. We plan to share findings with our strategic community partners later in the year.

Upcoming projects

For more information visit: bids.smud.org

Recently awarded SEED contracts

Follow us on Facebook or LinkedIn to learn about upcoming events and solicitations.