Steel stockholders sign up

Citation

(2001), "Steel stockholders sign up", Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials, Vol. 48 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/acmm.2001.12848aaf.003

Steel stockholders sign up

Steel stockholders sign up

Keywords: sellbuysteel.com, Steel, Steel industry, Internet

It is reported that, less than four weeks after its launch, seven of the UK's top 20 steel stockholders signed up to sellbuysteel.com, the independent, interactive information database of steel producers, stockists, traders and users.

The stockholders – who have a combined turnover of £560 million and operate from over 70 UK locations – have, according to its founders, cited the simplicity of the business tool as one of the most impressive points of sellbuysteel.com

Designed following close consultation with both the steel buying and selling communities, sellbuysteel.com allows such sellers of steel to regularly update buyers with the latest prices and availability of their products, to flag up special offers and to identify new buyers in the national and international markets. It will also allow them to factor hard-to-find items for their customers, thus enhancing their service levels.This could prove to be a major bonus for the anti-corrosion industry.

Although the focus for the first month has been on recruiting steel sellers, its creators have started to receive unsolicited subscriptions from a cross-section of major steel users. These users, who buy a large tonnage of steel annually, will be able to use sellbuysteel.com to search for steel suppliers on a local, national or international basis – entering their specific requirements, finding all sellers who match those criteria and seeking formal quotes.

By being a matchmaking service rather than a transactional site sellbuysteel.com avoids many of the security concerns that may inhibit the use of other e-commerce solutions. It also means, it is not a technologically invasive tool. Any company, no matter what current IT system they have, can start interacting with it immediately – with no technology changes or delays. All that is required is a PC with an Internet connection.

John West, CEO of sellbuysteel.com, believes that such features are influencing its success: "Steel buyers and sellers who see the system are quickly converted. I think the defining factor is that our e-commerce solution involves no IT pain and can deliver practical benefits from day one. Given that we are not the first in the market, it also helps that sellbuysteel.com can run alongside and support any other e-commerce strategy being adopted or can be a stand-alone solution in its own right".

Sellbuysteel.com is a subscription-based service and is completely independent – no steel producers hold any equity in the business. The company predicts that 9,000 national and international steel buyers and sellers will be using the service in 2001.

Details available from: sellbuysteel.com Tel: +44 (0)20 7841 2787; E-mail: sales@sellbuysteel.com; Web site: www.sellbuysteel.com