News Stop: 22 May 2006

SMEs to pay lower fees for project tenders by By Grace Ng, Straits Times Online (need subscription), dated 22 May 2006

I thought that this might be useful for the SMEs who are interested in registering for government tenders. After all, the government is the biggest client and venture capitalist in town. I extracted some excerpts from the article, and if you are a owner of a SME, you might want to consult DP Bureau for information.

“WINNING government business – worth an eye-popping $7.5 billion a year in total – is now easier than ever for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

They will enjoy lower fees when registering for government tenders to supply goods and services, as the Ministry of Finance has appointed private information provider DP Bureau to handle the online registration process.

They will enjoy lower fees when registering for government tenders to supply goods and services, as the Ministry of Finance has appointed private information provider DP Bureau to handle the online registration process.

DP Bureau announced last week that it had been named the Government’s outsourcing partner for the Expenditure and Procurement Policies Unit.

DP Bureau is part of DP Information Group, a credit and business information bureau for SMEs.

It will assess the online applications of businesses that wish to tender for the supply of goods and services in 45 different categories to the public sector.

These categories range from food and beverage to audio-visual equipment and computer hardware.

This will lower the fees for registering government tenders by $5 to $50.

The cost of making applications for two or more categories of service will be capped at just $90, compared to $500 for 10 or more applications previously……

DP Bureau is also rolling out some new services to help companies win government contracts.

This includes a service providing step-by-step registration assistance for people who are unsure about how to apply to become a government supplier.

Also, to help SMEs learn more about new opportunities available for government projects, DP Bureau organised a seminar last Thursday called Opening New Doors For Government Projects.”

About DP Bureau (From their website):