White House hopes to cut costs by buying in bulk (Wa Post) [View All]

[pinto]

A drop in the bucket overall, but a good message, symbolically and functionally, especially to federal agencies, imo. ~ pinto

White House hopes to cut costs by buying in bulk
By Ed O'Keefe

The White House, eager to demonstrate it’s serious about curtailing federal spending, is adopting a tactic frequently used by penny-pinching shoppers: It’s planning to buy in bulk.

Starting this week, several federal agencies and departments will start pooling their purchases of office printers, copiers and scanners in hopes of collectively saving $600 million in the next four years, administration officials said late Friday.

The move, known as “strategic sourcing” in government contracting circles, is also forcing agencies to take a serious inventory of some popular office supplies.

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Government contracting more than doubled during George W. Bush’s presidency, in part because of the wider use of multimillion-dollar no-bid deals.

more detail at -

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/federal-eye/post/white-house-hopes-to-cut-costs-by-buying-in-bulk/2011/09/17/gIQAFkY9cK_blog.html