Bidbusiness.co.uk

Citation

(2000), "Bidbusiness.co.uk", Facilities, Vol. 18 No. 13/14. https://doi.org/10.1108/f.2000.06918mab.027

Bidbusiness.co.uk

Keywords Internet, Construction industry

Bidbusiness.co.uk which went live at the end of last year, plans to bring the price-cutting power of online bidding to the staid world of building supplies. The Web site enables businesses to participate in auctions across a number of different branded auction sites, covering products and services within specific areas of industry. These sites include construction, waste disposal, haulage, property, industrial mineral, machinery, sales equipment hire and many more.

The UK construction industry alone is valued, in total, at £57.1 billion, with industrial supplies and raw materials forming a large part of this market value. One of the Bidbusiness.co.uk sites that will be featured at Interbuild 2000, is "constr-auction.co.uk" which has been developed specifically for this vast market. Where commodity products such as ready-mixed concrete, engineering bricks, sand and gravel, etc., are sold on specification and price, they are ideal candidates for this type of Internet trading.

The auction, by definition, creates a dynamic "sales" event and the Bidbusiness.co.uk site operates on both a "bid up" and "bid down" basis. The "bid down" technology enables buyers to obtain goods at the lowest possible price. For example, it will allow tenders for construction contracts to be posted on the site, against which suppliers can bid; or for a contractor to get the best deal on the one million bricks needed for a housing development. The "bid up" auction is ideal for suppliers selling on the site and will allow the best price to be achieved on products or services.

The auction software includes many novel features which will prove invaluable, including "category watch", which enables suppliers to be notified by e-mail as soon as a product or service tender is posted on the site by a contractor.

Bidbusiness.co.uk already has achieved considerable success. The first customer, a relatively small minerals trading company, offered £750,000-worth of stock over the system. A haulage contract was recently put out to tender, using the "bid down" technology, to move clay from one site to another. The final agreed price was £177,000. Andy Biggs, managing director of Bidbusiness.co.uk believes that:

Bidbusiness.co.uk is opening up new channels of distribution, and will allow buyers and suppliers, big or small, the opportunity to trade over the Internet, bringing the dynamic world of e-commerce within immediate reach.

For further information visit the Web site or contact Nikki Proctor, Limpet Marketing Ltd, Golden Gate Lodge, Weston Road, Crewe. Cheshire CW2 5XN, UK. Tel: +44 (0)1270 259650; Fax: +44 (0)1270 259659; E-mail: nikki@limpetmarketing.com