International Tender Opportunities for Furniture Companies on AKTRIN's Web-Site

Furniture World Magazine

The AKTRIN Furniture Information Center has concluded an agreement with CustomerSelekt B.V., enabling AKTRIN to post on its Web-site all major furniture procurement contracts which are put out for tender by Governments in the European Union. The concept of "Governments" is very broadly interpreted and includes state and municipal governments, hospitals, police and fire departments, prisons, public utilities, schools and universities, and much more. The tender postings can be found on the Internet at the following address (URL) ( http://www.aktrin.com/712.htm According to rules by the World Trade Organization (WTO), many of the tenders are open to non-European bidders, including North American suppliers. Each year some 2000 furniture contracts are put out to tender, and a further 2000 contracts refer to other secondary wood products – except furniture. The leads – which are supplied to AKTRIN by CustomerSelekt B.V. - are up-dated on a weekly basis. They contain core information about the tenders, and an order form for more complete information (specifications), including the name and address of the awarding procurement office. The complete information package can be obtained at a modest fee of US$ 25.00. Dr. Stefan Wille – president of AKTRIN – says that any tender announcement offers great opportunities to enterprising suppliers of furniture and other secondary wood products. Each announcement signals that a governmental authority is likely to award a major procurement contract to one of the bidding companies in the near future. CustomerSelekt B.V. is a Dutch information and consulting firm. It is one of the largest organizations that provide support and information on cross-border public procurement to international suppliers. Since 1989, CustomerSelekt has been selecting for its clients contract opportunities by scanning the European tender registry at the Official Publications Office in Luxembourg. The firm may assist with the tender applications as to their formal requirements, thus eliminating the risk of being disqualified for not meeting certain submission procedures. CustomerSelekt may also help in finding potential co-operation partners for joint contracting. The AKTRIN Furniture Information Center is a full service consulting firm with offices in the United States and Canada. The addition of international procurement opportunities to our assortment of services is only the latest step in our ongoing quest to become the ultimate one-stop information source for all furniture related matters. AKTRIN already offers to its clients the largest selection of reports on furniture manufacturing and distribution, as well as mailing lists, and statistical data. Other popular services embrace the provision of all furniture related standards and governmental (CPSC) regulations, including flammability standards, ergonomic standards, tagging requirements and more. E-mail AKTRIN aktrin@aktrin.com for more information.