Effective ePerolehan

The online procurement system has been a boon for businesses dealing with government agencies.

Over 90% of the total 2,487 procurement centres of the Federal Government agencies in the country are now ePerolehan-enabled, transacting fully on the system.

The government’s official electronic procurement system is expected to offer the facility at all procurement centres nationwide over the next few months.

The move gives an enormous business potential to the government agencies with an average procurement budget of RM20bil to RM23bil annually for product and services.

Through the advantages of seamless electronic technology, all ePerolehan-enabled suppliers will inevitably benefit from an instant expansion of their market reach with less time, cost and effort.

The decentralised approach to procurement centres allows them to control their own budgets and be directly responsible in managing their own expenditure which includes finding suppliers, tendering, ensuring compliance with procedures, policies and orders.

Fifteen companies representing suppliers to the government agencies gave a thumbs-up to the service as it has provided ease in conducting business and encouraged business communities and entrepreneurs to participate in government procurements.

In the past, to participate a government procurement supplier had to register with the Ministry of Finance but different procedures and information given by various government agencies made it a more lengthy and tedious process.

This resulted in numerous errors and repeated visits for the suppliers to the Finance Ministry.

The introduction of the online supplier registration system in ePerolehan as a single point of entry dramatically standardised and simplified all the registration procedures.

Suppliers’ productivity levels improved significantly as all applications, renewals, payments and submission of supporting documents are conducted online.

The convenient and user-friendly online facility has influenced a larger pool of business communities to register as ePerolehan-enabled suppliers.

BRIS Manufacturer Sdn Bhd administration officer Hairul Azman said it is now much easier to register as a supplier with the Ministry of Finance through ePerolehan as the online tools and guidelines facilitated the application process.

He said the process is not complicated and takes a maximum of seven days for approval provided that one follows the checklist.

Hairul said ePerolehan ensures that all budget commitment codes have been recorded at the requisition stage.

He said this did away with the need for the invoice to be passed around the authority for approval before being registered.

“Also electronic invoices can be processed and matched automatically, again speeding up the process. All of this should lead to reduced time for payment.”

The majority of the suppliers interviewed have experienced faster payment cycles with ePerolehan. The electronic fund transfer (EFT) features for payment processing are greatly appreciated by the community for accurate and secure transactions.

Armvex Sdn Bhd sales and marketing manager Ariffin Sharif said that previously payment cycles took a few months after product delivery.

“We in fact incurred further cost as visiting the government offices was the norm to get our payment processed,” he said.

“Through ePerolehan, we have now expanded our business through investments in ICT technology.”

Alam Medik Sdn Bhd sales coordinator Hazmira Ishak said ePerolehan made the company become more ICT savvy.

“As it is a third party system, there is less worry for us on incurring cost towards maintenance and system upgrades,” she added.

She said ePerolehan provides an impetus, especially for SMIs, to participate in e-commerce.

Hazmira said through greater participation in ePerolehan, the Government is also catalysing the critical mass of widespread computer adoption that makes further provisions of online government services appealing.

Pharmaserv Alliances Sdn Bhd sales executive Fazly Hisham agrees with this.

“It is obvious that through the virtual market, we are now having better opportunities to exploit wider procurement offices,” said Fazly.

Sasawang Sdn Bhd director Mahmud Tajudin added that ePerolehan enables the company to eliminate high overheads in order to establish permanent resources and manpower in each region in order to tap existing and new markets within government agencies.

Without having their own websites, small enterprises as well as SMIs can experience an enormous scale of market expansion through ePerolehan.

This is sufficient enough for them to be on a level playing field with the rest of the big corporations, with geographical boundaries diminished.

Mahmud said while becoming ePerolehan-enabled does not guarantee business, it nevertheless gives suppliers Internet penetration.

“I am fully confident that the automated and tracking delivery features in ePerolehan have actually improved the accuracy and decision making processes in government agencies,” said Bekalan Jurusains Sdn Bhd administration officer Yap Chwee Min.

She said ePerolehan also paves the way in promoting fair competition among suppliers.

“ePerolehan is perhaps the most direct and effective way for a company to leverage the Internet to reduce costs, improve productivity and boost profits.”

Phamaserv Sdn Bhd says they are now able to plan inventory orders with manufacturers since they can now track their procurement progress through ePerolehan’s action bulletin board.

ePerolehan account manager Suryani Ismail said it has a vital role within this climate of economic uncertainty to intensify effective financial management, transparency and integrity in the public sector – all linked to competitiveness.

Under the fourth strategic thrust of the second budget stimulus package, the Government has made it a priority to expand ePerolehan usage.

Currently, all government agencies have been mandated to procure goods and services solely through ePerolehan.

Through greater participation by businesses in ePerolehan, Malaysians can look forward to a more efficient government, equitable development and greater national productivity.

> For further information, call (03) 7985 7777 / 7888 or e-mail pendaftaran@eperolehan.gov.my.

To learn more about ePerolehan and to register, visit www.eperolehan.gov.my.

Companies are invited to attend the free supplier registration workshop held every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at the ePerolehan Training Centre in Shah Alam, Selangor.

The Star Online