Largest Arizona County Produces Cost & Environmental Savings for Agency & Residents

An ongoing battle in Maricopa County, Arizona involves the air. Throughout the year in the nation’s second largest county, lawn mowers and garden equipment powered by gasoline can create poor air quality. Just one hour spent using a leaf blower is equal to the emissions of driving your car 1,100 miles. During winter, a combination of wood burning and stagnant weather adds to the problem.    

These pollutants–combined with emissions from vehicles, other gas and diesel equipment and industrial or chemical processes–form ground-level or “bad” ozone that stays near the surface. Breathing ozone pollution can trigger or worsen a variety of health problems.    

This threat is a priority of the Maricopa County Air Quality Department (MCAQD), the agency dedicated to improving the air its citizens breathe. The Air Quality team is transforming the way pollution is reduced by empowering people living and working in the vibrant county to take control of how their environment is treated.  

By leveraging the strategic best practice of cooperative purchasing, Maricopa County’s Procurement and Air Quality teams are taking proactive steps to solve the problem and better the health of community members.  

Maricopa County’s Deputy Chief Procurement Officer James Foley assists in overseeing $750 million in annual expenditures for 55 county departments. The Office of Procurement Services serves as the main contracting department for the county sourcing all supplies, services and construction requirements.  

“Cooperative purchasing has been one resource that has allowed us to meet the demands of residents in the fastest growing county in the country,” says Foley. “We must be able to move rapidly in a smart, cost-effective, and transparent manner in the acquisition of supplies and services.”

Through the use of a cooperative purchasing organization, the Maricopa County procurement team has developed great relationships working with vendors on the successful solutions that fulfill the needs of the county’s internal departments, and in this case, advancing the unique mission of the Air Quality Department.  

The Maricopa County Air Quality Department set out to identify the most efficient and cost-effective way to reduce the negative impacts of ground-level ozone and the number of days their region exceeds the federal health standard for air pollution.  

They worked toward providing residents with the tools they need to take action, specifically with lawn/garden equipment and fire pits. The idea was to launch a new resident voucher program offering eco-friendly versions of these types of outdoor equipment at a lower price through the buying power of their cooperative and industry-leading supplier partner Home Depot Pro.  

Maricopa County Air Quality Department Communications Officer Ari Halpert leads campaigns promoting programs and incentives like these and initiates creative ways to build connections and partnerships between their department, businesses, and residents. Working closely with supplier partner Home Depot Pro, they developed a voucher redemption process.  

“The behind-the-scenes logistics of this program were quite complex,” says Halpert. “We had to collaborate and exchange ideas to simplify the process. Through successful collaboration that included many team meetings, phone calls, e-mail exchanges, and hours of work, we were able to create a process that did not exist before.”  

The new process involved a streamlined system in which residents can redeem a program voucher to receive discounts. Home Depot Pro’s cooperative contracts enabled the Air Quality team to explore options and develop the best possible process to provide services to Maricopa County residents.  

“Our goal was to make it easier for residents to participate in the program and be part of the solution to improve air quality,” says Halpert.

Through the partnership with OMNIA Partners and Home Depot Pro, the Air Quality Department facilitates two programs working to reduce air pollution and improve the conditions for residents and visitors: Maricopa County Propane Fire Pit Program and Maricopa County Mowing Down Pollution Program.

“Partnering with Home Depot was crucial to the success of the programs,” says Halpert. “We worked to improve the voucher process and increase the efficiency in which residents could participate. Together we developed a paperless, hassle-free transaction where residents could use digital or cell phone access to the product discount voucher, eliminating the need for a printer.”

Participating Home Depot locations display program posters with QR codes that residents can scan with their phone while in the store and receive a voucher for the product discount within minutes. Allowing customers to leave the store with their new fire pit in one trip has increased customer satisfaction with the program, while also reducing driving, gasoline usage, and vehicle emissions.

As organizations deal with national challenges affecting prices, labor and the supply chain, cooperative purchasing allows them to transform and streamline their procurement process while meeting stakeholders’ needs faster and more efficiently.  

“We need to embrace technology and work with agile policies and procedures to allow us to reach the widest possible supplier audience of local and national providers so that we can build resilient and sustainable relationships that permit us to pivot when necessary,” says Foley. “Technology improvements will need to guide the transparent development of new systems to provide continuous improvement in public purchasing.”

The Air Quality Department’s success in leveraging cooperative purchasing can serve as an inspiration to other agencies exploring strategic opportunities for significant cost and time savings. 

“By gaining and sharing knowledge with other thought leaders across the purchasing community, we are positioned to develop the best possible solutions,” says Foley. “Having the cooperative in place allows us to respond to the needs of our residents in a more timely and cost-effective manner.” 

OMNIA Partners is the largest and most experienced organization in procurement and supply chain management. Covering both the private and public sectors, OMNIA Partners unites industry-leading buying power and world-class suppliers to offer an extensive portfolio of sourcing solutions and partnerships.