Marketplace is supported by the Improvement & Development Agency (IDeA) and was developed specifically for local government use. It is relatively low cost and is well supported in terms of ongoing development. Marketplace also enables us to achieve wider strategic goals and national drivers for collaborative working as 12 authorities in Essex are using the Marketplace software and accessing shared contracts and catalogues.
Marketplace was initially chosen by consultants on behalf of ECC about 5 years ago and Marketplace was the market leader at the time. PAE members are able to subscribe without tendering because the contract with EGS/MP/IdeA is an EU compliant contract, tendered on behalf of all local government by I&DeA.
Marketplace is a procurement platform that allows organisations to achieve contract realisation and to gather useful management information. It also drives compliance and provides control over the whole procurement process.
Marketplace is a web-browser based system that is structured as a hierarchy of organisations. It contains a supplier database, ordering facility, receipting function, various reporting options, catalogue search facility, free text ordering and invoicing capabilities. There are over 60 catalogues currently available across Essex Marketplace with the additional capability to access CBC and OGC catalogues, which reflect best procurement practice and best value.