Ian Greenow has joined Epyx in the newly created role of product manager for the company’s e-procurement project.

The position will cover a multitude of responsibilities related to
e-procurement including client liaison, project management, system demonstrations, development and testing.

Greenow has an extensive background in IT and has held a variety of roles in the insurance and claims management industries as well as in the charities sector with the RNIB where he was development team leader.

He said: “E-procurement is a ground-breaking product and I am really pleased to be joining Epyx just as it is being taken to market for the first time.

“I have already been involved with demonstrating it to a number of potential customers and there has been a very enthusiastic response.”

E-procurement will allow the 18,000 service centres that use Epyx’s industry standard 1link Service Network to buy products through the e-commerce platform for the first time, starting with tyres.

Leading distributors and manufacturers have signed up to provide car and commercial vehicle tyres at highly competitive prices to the franchise dealers, independent garages and fast fits who use the platform to provide service and maintenance to fleets operating more than 2.6 million company cars and vans.

To buy tyres through the platform, all service centres have to do is click on the “e-procurement” button on the 1link Service Network home page to look at a detailed catalogue complete with pricing, delivery and other key information.

Products from different suppliers can be placed in one “basket” and there are discounts for volume.

A key point is that tyres can be ordered when the user is building an online job sheet for a fleet maintenance transaction in 1link Service Network, enabling a fast and efficient workflow process.

Greenow explained: “For a decade, service centres of all kinds have been using 1link Service Network to provide service and maintenance to fleets, and it has proven enormously successful.

“This new development represents the first time that we have also provided them with the means to procure through the platform and it is a significant development in that sense.

“It creates a new window of opportunity for both these service centres and the distributors and manufacturers who have signed up to supply them through e-procurement.

“The tyre programme that we have put together with these leading tyre distributors and manufacturers provides a very wide selection of products on excellent terms, and will allow those who currently have a limited footprint in their local tyre market to potentially increase their share of the available business substantially.”

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