GSA Global Supply FAQs

GSA Global Supply is a federal program administered by the General Services Administration. It is a requisition-based supply program for customers worldwide, including the DoD. Customers can use a variety of ordering mechanisms to submit requisitions to GSA for delivery globally.

We make it easy for our military and civilian customers to find and buy products. Customers benefit from leveraged pricing and administrative savings because GSA has already completed a competitive procurement process for each item. GSA also ensures compliance with FAR, AbilityOne mandates and other relevant purchasing regulations.

While Global Supply does work with commercial suppliers to develop its product line, customers purchase from GSA. Each transaction is government-to-government (G2G). It is a priority source when federal agencies and military users are purchasing supplies, per FAR section 8.002.

GSA Global Supply offers easy access to common-use items, including:

• Maintenance, repair and operations (MRO);
• Janitorial and sanitation (JanSan); and
• Office supplies.

In FAR 8.002, Priorities for Use of Mandatory Government Sources, GSA Global Supply is identified as a wholesale supply source (v) and should be referenced as a priority when federal and military agencies are purchasing supplies. FAR 8.002 indicates:

Except as required by FAR 8.003, or as otherwise provided by law, agencies shall satisfy requirements for supplies and services from or through the sources and publications listed below in descending order of priority.

• Agency inventories.
• Excess from other agencies (see Subpart 8.1).
• Federal Prison Industries, Inc. (see Subpart8.6).
• Supplies that are on the Procurement List maintained by the Committee for Purchase from People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled (see Subpart 8.7).
• Wholesale supply sources such as stock programs of the General Services Administration (GSA) (see 41 CFR 101-26.3), the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) (see 41 CFR 101-26.6), the Department of Veterans Affairs (see 41 CFR 101-26.704), and military inventory control points.

Under a 1971 Agreement, GSA and DLA agreed to divide responsibilities for a wide range of products in the National Supply System. DLA assumed primary responsibility for items that were deemed "military" in nature and GSA assumed responsibility for "civilian" items like office supplies and hand tools."

Finally, note that FAR Subpart 8.4 "is not applicable to orders placed through the GSA Global Supply System." FAR Subpart 8.4 deals with use of GSA Multiple Award Schedules, not GSA Global Supply.

GSA Global Supply conducts competitive procurements to ensure compliance with the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) and other relevant mandates before offering products to its customers. Customers can confidently place simple requisitions with GSA Global Supply for desired items without having to solicit comparison prices from multiple sources since procurement is completed and compliance guaranteed.

There are several options for ordering from GSA Global Supply:

• Use automated systems for submitting MILSTRIP or FEDSTRIP requisitions. MILSTRIP/FEDSTRIP order are routed electronically to GSA via the Defense Automatic Addressing System (DAAS).
• Order online at GSA Global Supply™ or GSA Advantage!®. Both sites function 24/7, enable users to place orders from anywhere in the world, and offer electronic equivalents of traditional requisition forms DD 1348 or SF 344.
• Phone in orders 800-488-3111 between 7:30 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. ET, Monday to Friday.
• Fax orders to 800-856-7057 at any time (there are blank fax order forms in all GSA Global Supply catalogs and in most brochures).

GSA Global Supply accepts the government purchase card and processes thousands of orders daily.

GSA Global Supply can arrange for direct billing for customers who use an Activity Address Code (AAC) or a military equivalent (DoDAAC, RUC, etc.)

To ensure adequate management control of new DoDAACs, first-time users of a DoDAAC must provide contact information for a supervisor. GSA will email the supervisor to verify the validity of the code and its user. This six-month approval can be renewed for extended use. Holders of a valid DoDAAC and password can order online or via phone, fax, or email.

Designated points of contact at military and civilian agencies work closely with GSA to coordinate the management of Activity Address Codes. To begin, send an email to ordermgmt@gsa.gov and we can help you identify your agency’s POC.

AAC stands for Activity Address Code and DoDAAC stands for Department of Defense Activity Address Code. All Military agencies have a DoDAAC and civilian agencies use an AAC. It is a six-character, alphanumeric identifier. You can get these codes from your Finance office or your Contracting Officer. You can also contact ordermgmt@gsa.gov for assistance.

Yes.

Both sites display more than 400,000 items available from GSA Global Supply, with identical pricing and terms (They even accept the same user name and password). GSA Advantage!® also displays more than 20 million products and services available from more than 18,000 Multiple Award Schedule contractors. Comparison shopping is quick and easy on GSA Advantage!®.

For those who know they want to buy from GSA Global Supply™, selecting and purchasing desired items is simple and safe. For those who wish to maximize comparison shopping, GSA Advantage!® Is a powerful tool. See the table below for more details on the two sites:

* "GSA Global Supply items" refers to products managed and billed by GSA Global Supply. "Schedule items" refers to products offered by commercial vendors holding a GSA Schedule contract. These vendors generally bill a customer's purchase card and cannot bill a customer via DoDAAC.

Yes. Online orders at the GSA Global Supply or GSA Advantage!® sites conclude with an “Order Confirmation” screen that customers can print or save for reference. Fax orders are confirmed with a fax reply. Phone orders can ask for email or fax confirmation.

Yes. Normally, GSA vendors ship to a DLA containerization and consolidation point (CCP) in the US and from there DLA will ship the item overseas.

The simplest way is to visit the AskGSA website and enter a requisition number for instant status. You can also contact GSA’s National Customer Service Center (NCSC) at 800-488-3111 or NCSCcustomer.service@gsa.gov with your request. There is also a requisition status link on both the GSA Global Supply and GSA Advantage websites.

Visit AskGSA, a self-service tool, to find status of a pending order. GSA’s National Customer Service Center (NCSC) is available at 800-488-3111 or by email at NCSCcustomer.service@gsa.gov.

GSA Global Supply conducts procurements and prices competitively. Typically, the quoted price includes shipping costs.

In a competitive and volatile marketplace, prices are subject to change. GSA makes every effort to maintain consistency between the two websites and the printed catalogs and brochures. The websites are updated overnight, every night, to incorporate changes. Customers should use websites for the most up-to-the-minute pricing. Customers pay the price that is in effect on the day that they place the order.

GSA has negotiated Blanket Purchase Agreements (BPA’s) to provide extra savings on office supplies and other products. This gives users an easy way to purchase products while assuring that agencies leverage the government’s buying power on the most commonly purchased items. GSA Global Supply is also incorporating strategic sourcing into its operations. Items available through strategic sourcing are identified online with an "FSSI" icon. Some agencies have polices for mandatory or preferred use of the FSSI Office Supplies BPAs. To learn more about this program visit Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative (FSSI).

GSA Global Supply offers more than 50,000 items identified with a National Stock Number. This is a 13-digit identifier where the first four digits indicate its Federal Supply Class (e.g. 5110 = tools) and the remaining digits identify the specific item. NSNs are a fundamental part of the National Supply System and facilitate transfer of requisitions among GSA, DoD, the Postal Service, and other federal entities.

GSA has partnered with leading commercial vendors to offer hundreds of thousands of additional items. Since it would be impractical and costly to assign NSNs to each product—some of which are short-lived—GSA relies on commercial part numbers.

Customers can order NSNs or part-numbered items via phone, fax, or online. MILSTRIP users can order part-numbered items by using the identifier AOB for domestic shipment and AO2 for overseas destinations.

Once GSA Global Supply’s vendor partner ships an order, the vendor bills GSA. GSA then bills the customer. If the customer paid with a government purchase card, the transaction will appear on the monthly statement, with GSA Global Supply noted as the supplier. If the customer paid with an AAC/DoDAAC, those transactions are processed with the Treasury twice a month, around the 1st and the 15th.

No. GSA is only authorized to charge your credit card once. By the time the vendor invoices for the freight, GSA has already charged your GPC for the item. Therefore, GSA absorbs the cost of the freight on all GPC orders.

GSA’s Retail Operations program supports a few dozen stores, both in the United States and OCONUS. Visit GSA Retail Operations site to learn more.