Press Releases

Assessment trials are underway to find the most effective way to allow computers running different purchasing software packages to 'talk to each other'. This is a joint initiative from Office of Government Commerce (OGC) and the Business Applications Software Developers Association (BASDA).

The Proof of Concept trials of the common vocabulary (known as XML) are another example of a growing 'joined up' approach between OGC and the IT Industry to establish common IT standards for eProcurement. These standards will enable suppliers and public sector buyers to conduct business online more easily.

The objective is to make it easier for government departments to run IT purchasing systems, whilst at the same time ensuring suppliers are able to do business with government online, regardless of which software system they use.

Importantly, the move will enable easier access to the government marketplace for smaller suppliers (SMEs)

OGC's Executive Director for Supplier and Government Marketplace Development, Martin Sykes, welcomed the collaboration saying:

"OGC has been working closely with BASDA to drive the interoperability agenda forward. OGC is committed to providing better value for money for taxpayers through offering better access for suppliers to the Government marketplace. These trials represent a major step in the right direction".

Commenting on the trial, Dennis Keeling, CEO of BASDA, said:

"We are very pleased to co-operate with OGC on this project which employs a development of eBIS-XML, our eBusiness XML communications standard. Most of our members support the standard, which has already been proved commercially across Europe. It enables their software to generate and read the standard XML based documents which cuts costs and eliminates re-keying. We believe that this will not only help Government departments, but will also encourage more businesses to adopt eBusiness with all the benefits it can bring."

Notes to Editors

XML Schemas define the exchange of information, via a common vocabulary, between different computer systems.

The approach is in line with OGC's view that eProcurement can generate substantial value for money improvements across government departments and agencies, as well as offering significant process-cost reductions for suppliers.

HM Government is committed to using IT products that support open standards and specifications in all future IT developments and to avoid lock-in to proprietary IT products and services for both suppliers and the public sector.

The objective of the Proof of Concept trials is for a version of eBIS-XML 'Order and Invoice' schemas to become compliant with the eGovernment Interoperability Framework (e-GIF). This sets out the policy and standards for interoperability across the public sector and is effectively the Government's standard system requirement, to which any 'cross government' system would need to comply.

The Office of the eEnvoy (OeE) leads on the eGovernment Interoperability Framework (e-GIF) which is an essential component of eGovernment Strategy.

The IT industry is represented within the Proof of Concept trials by BASDA (Business Applications Software Developers Association), whose membership comprises more than 350 international applications software developers and is recognised by the United Nations, the European Commission and the UK Government

BASDA and OGC, together with a number of Government bodies and suppliers, are currently testing eBIS-XML schemas. If successful, the aim is for suitable XML schemas to eventually be built into COTS (Commercial off the Shelf) eProcurement IT applications. This will ensure that whichever purchasing system a supplier chooses to use, they will not be precluded from doing business with the Government through system incompatibility.

Benefits from using eProcurement include contractual savings, 'real time' financial information on what is being spent with each supplier, lower levels of 'maverick' or 'off-contract' purchasing and improved commercial relationships with suppliers.

On 18th February 2002 OeE and OGC established the Interoperability Working Group with members drawn from the public sector. The first stage was to formally model the Public Sector procurement process, which was done using UML (Unified Modelling Language) as mandated by e-GIF. The result of this work was the OGC eProcurement Functional Requirements Specification. The Proof of Concept Trials are being carried out this year to test messages back and forth between various IT applications and to define Order and Invoice XML Schemas using the BASDA eBIS-XML Data Suite. The schemas must comply with OGC's eProcurement Functional Requirements Specification. The specification was published on OeE's consultation website http://www.govtalk.gov.uk last year for public discussion.

About OGC:

Established in April 2000, the OGC was set up to act as a catalyst in procurement issues and to work with central civil government departments to achieve best value for money in their commercial activities. Responsible for civil central government Procurement Policy and Best Practice including Construction, Property Management, IT, Supplier Relations including opening up access to government contracts to SMEs, eCommerce including the Government Procurement Card, the Gateway Review Process and OGCbuying.solutions, which is responsible for the Government buying catalogues such as G-Cat and S-Cat and developing strategic procurement partnerships, including Framework Agreements, with the private sector.

About BASDA:

Since Dennis Keeling founded BASDA in 1993, the organisation has grown in terms of achievement and membership. The Association was formed from a core group of developers, who realised that the software industry needed a representative body. BASDA's governing body is its General Council - a group of 12 elected representatives from member companies, who are drawn from all sectors of the business & accounting software market. Each BASDA member, whether large or small, has an equal voice in determining the future direction and development of the Association.

BASDA Members Taking Part in the Trial: