Construction procurement firm Cephren Inc. Tuesday debuted its online
bidding service.
Cephren MarketNet allows general contractors, subcontractors,
distributors and
manufacturers to solicit and submit bids for materials and services to
online members of its network.
The service has been in testing since January. A select group of charter
customers have been using the bidding service, providing feedback to enhance
the its features and functionality.
Current e-commerce
customers are reported to represent more than $1.5 billion in purchases
annually and include
Mass Electric Construction Company, E-J Electric
Co., J. A. Penney Co., Liberty-Wesco, Fischbach & Moore Electric LLC,
DualStar Technologies, Forest Electric (EMCOR), Midwest Mechanical of New
Jersey and Watsco.
“Our initial test of the bidding service has been extremely
positive,” said Bob Knudsen, director of marketing for Midwest Mechanical, a
specialty subcontractor. “The service has made it possible to streamline
our procurement process, get better pricing, reduce time and waste, and
increase our margins as a result.”
All project participants benefit from the bidding service, according to
Timothy S.
Perini, vice president of business development and marketing at Cephren.
“Contractors can get quicker responses on bid requests, while suppliers can
bid on more projects in less time, potentially adding to their revenues and
expanding their market reach.”
Cephren was formed in January by the merger of eBricks.com Inc. and Blueline Online.