@Directory

@Directory gets feed by both the @UK PLC Marketplace and the E2class database of products and suppliers from SpendInsight.

The result is a comprehensive supplier directory with over 300,000 suppliers and over 3 million products for sourcing.

The objective is to make it easy for suppliers to pre qualify for tenders, and to source potential suppliers for any project so that all relevant suppliers are informed that they can bid for the work.

One of the significant problems with OJEC process is that often key suppliers miss OJEC notices and so do not bid for projects.  The @Directory aims to ensure that suppliers are aware of projects by allowing buyers to search through all the potential products on the market, and find the relevant suppliers.

e2class helps the process and is designed to allow the discovery of multiple goods and services that are functionally equivalent but with different qualities and prices.

e.g. A replacement printer cartridge has a large number of things that can do the same task.

• Printer manufacturers cartridge
• Alternative new cartridges
• Re-manufactured
• Refiled
• Different capacities

Without considering alternative printers.

These all need to be compared on quality of output and other factors before a best value judgement can be made, along with factors regarding the supplier of the cartridge.

e2class aims to capture this information for each item and help provide the information required to automate the process.