BIRMINGHAM, AL (WBRC) – Mayor Randall Woodfin has pledged to “never” do business with Metron Marketing and Distribution after he said it “swindled” the City of Birmingham.

“I think people are holding themselves out as, ‘I can provide you this,’ and then they don’t provide or give you the wrong thing and I think the City of Birmingham, using a street term, got gypped. I think we got swindled, period,” said Mayor Woodfin.

In March, the City of Birmingham purchased 75,000 surgical masks and 100,000 N-95 respirator masks from Metron Marketing and Distribution Inc., based in Yorba Linda, California.

The surgical masks were intended for city employees and the N-95 masks were ordered for first responders.

According to the purchase order, the “key detailed description” of the N-95 masks “shall be NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) N95 approved with exhalation valve 10 or 20/BX or fully equal.” The price for each mask was $3.65 for a total of $365,000. The total cost for the surgical masks were $56,250.

The surgical masks were delivered to the city on April 18 and are as ordered, according to Carmen Jones, Purchasing Agent, City of Birmingham. The second shipment came 10 days later but instead of providing N95 masks, Jones said Metron Marketing and Distribution sent KN95 masks.

KN95 masks are manufactured in China and in March,

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Mayor Randall Woodfin said communications with Metron Marketing and Distribution have deteriorated and the company owes the city $161,825.

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“We are a victim of a situation that doesn’t feel right. And if a vendor wants to make good on their character and their name, make your customer whole period,” said Mayor Woodfin.

https://www.wbrc.com/2020/05/19/mayor-woodfin-company-sent-wrong-masks-swindled-city-birmingham/



“I will be talking to legal and the finance department on what should we be exercising to make sure we make the taxpayer whole,” said Mayor Woodfin.