Enquiries are sent electronically to suppliers who match the geographical area and product requirement. Suppliers can then choose to bid against each other and the customer should get the lowest price available on the day.
Ainscough is clear to point out that onestophire.com is a totally separate business from his crane hire company, although Ainscough Crane Hire will certainly bid for work on the onestophire.com web site.
“I believe this web site allows large companies such as ours to get enquiries that we might not otherwise be considered for, and it also gives the smaller hire companies a platform to compete with the big companies for certain products and areas,” Ainscough said.
“I do not believe this web site will affect national contracts where large customers want a guaranteed supply at a fixed price. We are not just targeting the plant hire industry but also the labour and car and tool hire industries. In fact, eventually we hope to include virtually anything that it is possible to hire.“
Suppliers can use the web site free of charge for a trial period without obligation to supply, although there are plans to charge them per transaction in the future.
