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Ministers are taking the first steps towards selling the UK’s largest online construction supplier database, Constructionline. 

Ministers are taking the first steps towards selling the UK’s largest online construction supplier database, Constructionline.

Commercial ownership will allow Constructionline to grow and achieve its full potential, including offering new additional services for the benefit of businesses.

Investors are being invited to submit their interest for purchasing the service that brings together buyers and suppliers in the construction industry.

A Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) spokesperson said:

Constructionline offers valuable services to the construction industry, particularly small and medium sized businesses. It has grown significantly under government ownership, and now is the time to enable it to expand further to meet the needs of a changing industry.

Gaining access to private capital will enable Constructionline to become even more competitive and branch out into new markets.

Bids will be welcomed from buyers who plan to grow the services provided by Constructionline.

Launched by government in 1998 to meet demand for a cost-effective and easy to use service for suppliers in the construction industry, Constructionline removes the administrative burden of finding quality suppliers for thousands of public and private sector clients every year.

Through its database of over 22,000 suppliers, Constructionline links buyers with suitable contractors, ensuring supplier data such as health and safety, technical ability and financial information is kept up to date. Suppliers also benefit from access to over 8,000 buyers.

Notes to editors:

1. Constructionline was established by the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions, the Departmental predecessor of BIS for relationship with the construction sector in 1998 to relieve the pre-qualification burden on the construction industry by providing a single point for collection of all standard pre-qualification data by construction suppliers that can then be used by a range of clients.
2. Constructionline is owned by BIS but is currently operated by Capita under a concession agreement.
3. The details of the sale will be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.
4. Constructionline collects supplier firms’ data on an annual basis and independently validates it. It levies annual fees on the supplier firms for the pre-qualification service it provides. These fees represent the main revenue stream for Constructionline. The level of the fee depends on the size of the firm’s turnover. At present, Constructionline has over 22,000 suppliers.