Sole Source/Proprietary Procurements

Sole Source Procurement:

A sole source justification must be provided to and approved by the Director of Purchasing before any sole source procurement can occur. A sole source justification represents a request from the end user to waive the bid process in accordance with La. R.S.39: 1597 and L.A.C. 34:I. 901-907. In order to be considered for a sole source justification, the particular item or service is available from only one supplier (usually the manufacturer) and is unique in that no other will be suitable or acceptable to meet the need. This must be substantiated by a letter from the vendor or some other means that is approved by the Director of Purchasing.

For more information on the requirements for proprietary and sole source justification and tips on writing them, click here.

Click on each link below to view an example of a sole source justification:

Proprietary Purchase:

A proprietary specification justification represents a request from the end user to limit the specification to describe a product proprietary to one supplier in accordance with La. R.S. 39:1655 and meets the definition and use described in L.A.C. 34:I. 309. A proprietary purchase is similar to a sole source when no other is suitable or acceptable to meet the need, but there is more than one potential bidder because the manufacturer has chosen to sell his product through multiple distributors. A proprietary purchase is considered competitive and the solicitation shall include language indicating the purchase has been approved as proprietary and not invite bids for equal products. A justification clearly stating this must be provided to and approved by the Asst. Director of Purchasing before any purchase take place. An example of a justification for a propriety purchase would be that a change in brand or model would impact the continuity of ongoing research and potentially affect results.