Tenders Direct and myTenders allow public sector organisations to publish tenders and private sector companies to bid for new business, of which the health sector accounts for a large amount of contracts.
NHS trusts, like other public sector organisations, are bound by strict rules on procurement, which affect every purchasing decision made in the public sector.
A total of 4,156 health-related contracts were published by Millstream in 2013, in sectors including hospital services, pharmaceuticals, cardiology, nursing services, surgical instruments and mental health services.
It has also reported a recent rise in contracts for weight management programmes, smoking cessation products, community healthcare and fitness services.
Millstream’s managing director Tim Williams said: “Healthcare is a major area for procurement and many NHS Trusts now publish notices electronically to give themselves the best chance of attracting a good number of quality bids from private suppliers.
“This opens up opportunities for private sector companies who are looking for NHS contracts, as well as offering buyers a wide range of options to chose from when they are awarding a tender for a specific piece of work.”
Major changes to the EU Procurement Directive are set to come into force in the UK next year. These have been designed to modernise and simplify the system, with an anticipated shift to an entirely electronic tendering process in the UK within two years.
mytenders is used by more than 700 UK public sector organisations to submit fully compliant UK and EU tenders from just one source, while private companies who subscribe to Tenders Direct receive bespoke alerts about new public sector tenders.
For more information, visit www.millstream.eu
Article featured in the Health Sector Journal - www.hsj.co.uk