Boxes on a conveyer belt and supply chain logistics
Resource

Tribal supply chain and procurement support for delivery of essential goods and supplies

Delivering relief on time and on budget during a pandemic

While the battle against COVID-19 rages on, tribal governments have been provided additional tools to contend with the virus via the American Rescue Plan (ARP), with approximately $31.2 billion set aside for Indian Country of the $1.9 trillion in total funding. Many tribes are looking for ways to deploy immediate and much needed relief to members via this new funding they will be receiving. Baker Tilly’s dedicated tribal services team has the experience and expertise to oversee the procurement and distribution of essential goods and supplies for those tribes that require additional support to scale their purchasing power while maintaining compliance with relevant laws, regulations and compliance requirements.

During the height of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, Baker Tilly executed one of the largest essential supply procurement and distribution efforts that has been completed by any state, local or tribal government. Our client, located in rural parts of New Mexico, Arizona and Utah, needed assistance to carry out the procurement of a bulk purchase totaling approximately $28 million, containing a mix of essential goods and supplies from the global supply chain. Supplies procured included personal protective equipment, gloves, sanitizing products, essential food, water, and various other items. By using the purchasing power of the tribe, we were able to secure pricing on most items at 15-30% below retail price on top of securing highly sought after items during a time when the supply chain was stretched thin.

Some additional highlights of this effort included the following:

  • 10,200 pallets of goods managed and delivered
  • Construction of a 120,000 sq. ft. temporary warehouse for shipping and receiving
  • 650 semi-truck shipments of goods sourced and delivered to a temporary warehouse
  • 95 unique items procured
  • 40 days from order to delivery of $28 million of goods
  • Planned and executed to ensure no compliance or audit issues
  • 25% or more saved versus that of a retail order
  • 332,000 members qualified to receive supplies

How Baker Tilly can help

Using a process-based plan in conjunction with our existing supply chain team and partners, we strive to provide a seamless and auditable process to get goods into the hands of those that need it most as quickly as possible. Collaborating with our clients, we address the following:

Program build
  • Development of a “menu” of items for potential purchase based on stakeholder feedback
  • Build-out of community needs assessment and survey collection
  • Preliminary review of commodity availability and pricing
  • Assist with managing budget(s) for client and stakeholders, as applicable
Procurement
  • Solicitation of bids from qualified national suppliers
  • Execution of procurement contracts with several suppliers through a single purchase order, reducing the administrative burden for procurement
Temporary warehouse setup and operation
  • Identification of site(s) for supply distribution
  • Coordinate tribal and/or outsourced staffing to manage distribution point(s)
Item tracing and tracking
  • Set up of cloud based commodity check-in/check-out system to manage good receipt and delivery to final distribution point(s)
  • Real time reporting of status of distribution
Program closeout and audit preparation

For more information, contact one of our tribal specialists.

Joel M. Laubenstein
Principal
Tribal telecom tower infrastructure project
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Outsourced project management for tribal capital intensive infrastructure projects