Neckarsulm, 21 July 2017 – The Dutch Home Office has accepted the bids of Dutch Bechtle Group members Bechtle direct B.V. and Buyitdirect.com B.V. to supply desktop IT workstations and mobile end devices. More than a hundred government agencies and institution will benefit from the framework agreements to procure IT workstations under the government’s ICT Werkomgeving Rijk (IWR) programme.
The two framework agreements encompass user hardware such as desktop PCs, thin clients and all-in-one PCs to the sum of 48 million euros, in addition to laptops, accessories and mobile end devices amounting to some 200 million euros. The agreements are valid for a duration of four years. The Dutch government seek to strengthen collaboration between and standardisation across the various offices. The ministries are increasingly operating as one homogeneous organisation and are unifying their IT infrastructure throughout the country accordingly. This across-the-board standardisation will also facilitate a more efficient use of available office spaces and simplify future office relocations. In addition, unified agreements between the various authorities and suppliers will dramatically increase process efficiency.
A winning point for Bechtle direct and Buyitdirect was their sophisticated logistics concept and high level of service. Among the ministries’ priorities were fast repair services, efficient portfolio management and smooth processing of warranty claims. As is common in the Netherlands, the ministries concerned can either order directly from Bechtle or set out their technical requirements again in a closed tender process. In this case, Bechtle direct and Buyitdirect would be bidding against two local competitors.
“The fact that both bids have been accepted shows the strength of the Bechtle Group in the Netherlands. It also attests our excellent collaboration with our sister company, Buyitdirect. And we will, of course, continue working together closely when it comes to executing the contract,” says Jean-Paul Bierens, Managing Director of Bechtle direct Netherlands.
“Buiyitdirect is very pleased that our bid has been accepted. Our self-developed web portal and e-procurement technology come into their own here, and will provide the various authorities with exactly what they require for the years to come,” says Dik Graaff, Managing Director of Buyitdirect.