24 July 2006 | Paul Snell

Technology firm Valueworks will oversee £500 million of construction spend on a housing refurbishment project in the north-west.

The company was awarded the contract by GM Procure, a consortium representing nine housing associations in the Greater Manchester area. Valueworks will manage the supply of construction materials and contractors as part of a project to bring council homes in the area up to the government's "decent homes" standard by 2010.

Valueworks is providing a web-based e-procurement system which allows landlords to buy materials and services through a central portal. It will also monitor commodities markets to ensure that landlords get the best price.

It is hoped it will provide better budgetary controls and prevent the common practice of buying "off contract".

David Bowes, consultancy director at Valueworks, told supplymanagement.com: "The supply management systems can bring landlords' construction budgets within 2 per cent of estimate. They are used to budget overruns of 30 per cent in the construction sector."

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