90+ Years of Member-First Procurement

E&I was born during the Great Depression when schools desperately needed cost savings. That pressure forged our DNA: deliver measurable value when budgets are tight and stakes are high.

We’ve navigated every major economic disruption since. Post-WWII expansion drove our first national growth. The 1970s inflation crisis shaped our volume pricing strategies. The 2008 recession pushed us to formalize. COVID-19 forced rapid contract pivots for PPE and remote learning technology.

Each crisis reinforced a core truth: cooperative purchasing isn’t just smart in good times—it’s essential during bad ones. When individual institutions face budget cuts, collective buying power becomes even more valuable. When supply chains fracture, strong supplier relationships maintained over decades matter more than spot purchasing.

The current higher education financial landscape presents unprecedented challenges. Half of private universities generate operating deficits. Enrollment pressures continue to mount. Deferred maintenance backlogs now approach $1 trillion. Competition from for-profit procurement organizations has never been more intense.

Yet E&I is delivering stronger results than ever. Our members achieve 4-10% economic benefit  or more per contract by reducing RFP time and leveraging financial incentives. Total annual purchasing through E&I contracts now exceeds $3 billion. We maintain 260+ competitively solicited agreements across every major procurement category.

This performance isn’t accidental. It’s the compounding effect of 90+ years staying true to the same model: aggregate institutional demand, negotiate demonstrably better contract terms, and return maximum value to members.

History doesn’t guarantee future performance. But nine decades of consistent execution through every economic cycle proves our model works regardless of external challenges.