News

Office Furniture Contract Award Announcement

Published: 6 November 2017

This message is sent on behalf of Kathy Zendehbad, Associate Director, Procurement Services and Julie Fortier, Communications Manager, Office of the Associate Vice-Principal, Facilities Management and Ancillary Services

Dear colleagues,

We are pleased to announce that the University has awarded a contract to a Montreal-based company, Groupe Ameublement Focus (hereinafter referred to as Focus), for the procurement of multiple brands of office furniture products. McGill launched the office furniture call for tenders earlier this year to facilitate all future purchases of office furniture. The University is required to issue a call for tenders for all acquisitions over $100,000.

As we mentioned in our earlier message, this multi-year contract covers all office furniture needed by units and departments across the University – from chairs and desks to modular walls – for faculty and administrative staff. It does not cover classroom or laboratory furniture. All product options offered under this contract are aligned with the University’s furniture design standards.

The new contract for office furniture will benefit the McGill community in a number of ways:

  • It will provide high-quality furniture, with flexible components, designed for optimal ergonomics.
  • It will provide an increased access to replacement parts, maintenance and quality customer service.
  • The products will be of higher quality and more durable, thus generating greater cost efficiency over the lifecycle of the furniture.
  • Overall, the contract will allow the University to save money on its new office furniture purchases and replacements.

Sustainability considerations were also a top priority in the University’s procurement process:

  • The chosen supplier had to demonstrate environmental responsibility. For example, in most cases, a substantial portion of the chair or desk will be made of recycled and recyclable materials. 
  • The versatility of the various components will also allow for compact, reconfigurable layouts, as well as facilitate their reuse at the University or by the supplier.
  • Units will also be able to purchase used furniture through Focus.

Finally, this contract is expected to respond to most, if not all the University’s requirements for office furniture. Should you not find products that meet your needs through Focus, we invite you to contact infodesignservices [at] mcgill.ca (Design Services) to discuss further options.

We invite you to familiarize yourself with the Office Furniture Standards developed by Design Services and browse through the catalogue of products. If you need to purchase office furniture, you can direct your inquiry to our representatives at mcgill [at] groupefocus.com (Focus).

For general inquiries on the Office Furniture Program please contact infodesignservices [at] mcgill.ca (Design Services).

Facilities Management and Ancillary Services and Procurement Services

 

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