27 October 2010 | Angeline
Albert
The Scottish Government
has launched what it claims is the world’s first app for contract opportunities
in the public sector.
The application for Public Contract Scotland (PCS),
the Scottish government’s purchasing portal, will enable businesses to access
contract notices as they are posted and will work with Apple iPhones
and iPads.
Firms can tap into a £9 billion-a-year
public sector market and search by commodity, category and date.
The app was launched in Glasgow
yesterday at national procurement conferenceProcurex Scotland.
The government said the launch
reflects the importance of SMEs to the public sector. SMEs often don’t have
specific teams to look at tender submissions so this application enables them
to browse for opportunities while on the move. SMEs make up 80 per cent of
suppliers and account for 50 per cent of spend to contracting organisations
across the country.
Between August 2009 and July 2010,
11,000 notices and awards were published on the PCS portal, which was introduced
two years ago. Some 48,000 suppliers and 300 public sector procurement teams are
registered on it. Estimated efficiency savings – in time, money and other
resources for buyers and suppliers using the portal - are more than £36 million
over three years.
Both the PCS portal and the app
are available free and are part of the government’s public procurement reform
programme.
A spokesman for the Scottish Government
said: “The launch of the app further demonstrates how Scotland is leading the
way internationally in harnessing technology to make public sector purchasing
more efficient.”
