What is the difference between a single source, a sole source and a proprietary source procurement?
A Single Source procurement is one in which two or more vendors can supply the goods/services but the department selects one vendor over the others for reason such as expertise or previous experience. A Sole Source procurement is where only one source is practicably available for the goods or services required. A Proprietary Source procurement is where the desired goods/services must be restricted to one manufacturer. Proprietary items may be available from several distributors through competitive bidding, however, competition has been restricted to this group of suppliers.
