eProcurement – Accepting Purchasing Cards
Introduction

One solution to eProcurement that is being promoted by the public sector in Wales is the Welsh Purchasing Card (WPC). Its underlying concept is to reduce the costs of the complete acquisition of products and services for both public sector organizations and their suppliers. This method of procurement eliminates from the buyer the need to initially request a purchase order or the seller the need to issue an invoice. The supplier will also receive settlement of the transaction within four days of it taking place.

The WPC has already been introduced to a number of public sector organizations across Wales and is at present being promoted by the Welsh Procurement Initiative Team (WPIT) that has been established by the Welsh Assembly.

The WPC is the subject of a research project being undertaken by the eCommerce Innovation Centre (eCIC) and the purpose of this article is to provide Welsh SMEs (who already supply or intend to supply to the public sector) and Opportunity Wales Advance advisers with an introduction to the Purchasing Card.