UK Business Utility Buyers Are Crying Out For Help

MORI survey reveals that 73% of utility procurement managers who spend between 16310k and 163150k annually on electricity, find it difficult to work out the best utility prices on offer and 92% believe a neutral intermediary would be helpful.

Utilyx, the UK's first e-market for utilities, today announced the launch of a major survey into the buying preferences of utility procurers within both large and medium sized businesses. Conducted by MORI, the survey is the first of its kind to look at the issues facing utilities procurers and examines their attitudes towards taking the whole process online.

The survey revealed that more than half of UK procurement managers believe an e-market would make the process of procurement cheaper and easier. The survey primarily focused on utility buyers with a maximum demand of between 100kW and 1MW, equivalent to an annual electricity budget in the range of 16310-163150k. Of this group, a staggering 92% made it clear that the most useful intermediary in utility purchasing would be one that was neutral and not linked to any particular supplier.

Survey highlights:

• 90% of utility buyers want to go to one place for advice on utilities
• 64% of utility buyers have responsibility for purchasing electricity and telecoms
• Three quarters (75%) would consider using a neutral intermediary with the ability to aggregate purchasing power

Chris Bowden, CEO and co-founder of Utilyx comments, "We wanted to understand the needs and frustrations of utility buyers within UK businesses. This is a market that has changed dramatically over the past few years with deregulation leading to a tremendous amount of choice and complexity. What Utilyx does is allow buyers to get the most from the competitive markets whilst being able to simplify the whole process of procurement and management of utilities."

Almost 9 in 10 of (89%) agree that it would make sense if there was a trustworthy intermediary through which they could secure the best deals in the market, yet still be able to deal with a one-stop-shop for all utility services. A further 9 out of 10 respondents want a single source for advice on utility purchasing. A number of reasons were cited for this:

• More than half (57%) feel they waste too much time talking to prospective suppliers
• 84% wish they could obtain free unbiased advice
• Almost three quarters (73%) believe it's currently difficult to identify the best price

Bowden adds, "It's worth noting that buyers also highlighted a number of concerns about buying utilities from more than one supplier, a practice which can often lead to savings. These include the fact that it's time consuming (77%) to deal with multiple suppliers; it's difficult to keep in touch with the latest information (61%) and lastly unease about billing accuracy (53%). This was endorsed by the fact that almost half (46%) would want a cost saving of over 10% before using more than one supplier for each utility. The Internet is the most obvious channel for bringing together, in one place, the necessary information, expertise and vendors to make the whole process easier. Utilyx offers companies the opportunity to reap the benefits of using multiple suppliers, whilst reducing the headaches associated with dealing with more than one."

Definition of respondents:

For the survey the respondents (all procurement managers) were split into two core groups:

• (191 people) - Companies using between 100kW and 1MW electricity per year or roughly 16310k to 163150K
• (151 people) - Companies using 1MW+ electricity per year or more than 163150k

Research Method

• MORI conducted telephone research of 342 utility procurement managers during June 2000. The 342 people interviewed break down into the following categories:
• Utility procurement managers at companies with a maximum electricity demand of 100KW up to 1MW (191 interviewees)
• Utility procurement managers at companies with a maximum electricity demand of 1MW or more (151 interviewees)

About Utilyx

Utilyx was established in 2000 by Chris Bowden (CEO) and Scott Bradley (COO). It is the first UK-based business-to-business e-market. It is designed exclusively to assist UK businesses in the procurement and management of the four main utilities: electricity, gas, water and telecom services.

Utilyx streamlines the procurement and management of utilities, by assisting through the four phases of the utilities lifecycle: sourcing information, negotiation and procurement, monitoring and management of utility usage, and billing. All of these processes are initiated online through the site, thus resulting in greater efficiencies for both buyers and suppliers. In addition to streamlining the procurement process, Utilyx offers an expert team of independent consultants to assist companies in making informed decisions about their suppliers and energy requirements, as well as providing tools for the easier monitoring and management of their ongoing utility usage.

To register for the service or to obtain more information visit Utilyx at: www.utilyx.com