The new figures published today show that small businesses continue to win the bulk of work and that the supply chains are spread across the UK. For example a Scottish company has designed the electrical substation, a Welsh company is providing the steel for the Aquatics Centre roof and a company from Bolton is providing the steel for the Olympic Stadium.
Delivering the London 2012 Games requires a huge range of goods, works and services from an enormous variety of firms, from construction, engineering and manufacturing to creative, merchandising and retail.
Of the 1,036 suppliers that have won £5bn worth of work with the ODA:
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The construction of the venues and infrastructure of the London 2012 Games is funded by the National Lottery through the Olympic Lottery Distributor, The Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the Mayor of London and the London Development Agency.
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- 98 per cent are UK based
- 68 per cent are small and medium sized (where company size is known)
- 46 per cent are based outside London
- One in ten are based in one of the five Host London Boroughs.
'There are still golden opportunities up for grabs through the UK-wide supply chains, so companies should sign up to CompeteFor to be part of a unique opportunity to showcase UK plc to the world.'
London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) Chair Seb Coe said: 'With three years to go until the summer of 2012, LOCOG is beginning its procurement journey in earnest. The challenge of staging a Games requires the support and expertise of hundreds of thousands of people – including UK businesses both large and small. As we prepare to give the athletes the best possible chance of performing at their best come Games-time, we are also offering UK plc a unique opportunity to be part of our journey and create a lasting legacy of skilled businesses fit and ready to compete on the global stage.'
Olympics Minister Tessa Jowell said: 'Today's figures show that the UK is already reaping the benefits of London 2012 three years before the Games kick-off. Over a thousand suppliers, large and small, have won contracts with the ODA worth more than £5billion. These businesses stretch the length and breadth of the UK - the steel for the Aquatics Centre was rolled in Gateshead whilst a Scottish firm is working on the cycle track in the Velodrome.
'These suppliers are in turn creating thousands more supply chain contracts providing companies with work in a time of economic uncertainty and boosting the economy across the UK at a time when it is needed the most.'
The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: 'We're past the halfway mark to the London 2012 Games and this £5billion milestone shows the benefits they are already bringing, not just to London but the whole of the country. There are many more opportunities and I encourage businesses of all sizes to bid for contracts, including through the CompeteFor programme. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for companies who will be able to say that they were involved in the creation of the London 2012 Games.'
Charles Allen, Chairman Nations and Regions Group, said: 'The Games in London in 2012 offer social, sporting and economic opportunities across the whole of the UK. Spreading the economic benefits of the Games is a key area of our work, and UK businesses being better able to compete for domestic and international business opportunities will be a valuable legacy.'
LOCOG has started its procurement for Games-time goods and services, which will reach its peak in the next two years. One of the key areas LOCOG will be active in is the procurement of over 1.1 million pieces of sporting equipment for both Games including over 1,000 shuttlecocks, 1,200 hockey balls and 44 Paralympic table tennis tables. LOCOG’s licensing programme has also gathered pace in 2009 with regular opportunities being advertised on CompeteFor.
Notes to editors:
The ‘London 2012 Business Network’, which can be accessed at www.london2012.com/business, provides information business and events and also links to the ‘CompeteFor’ service, a business ‘dating agency’ that matches companies to opportunities. Up to a fifth of London 2012 supply chain opportunities are expected to go through the CompeteFor system.
How CompeteFor works:
- ODA and LOCOG are advertising their direct contract opportunities online through CompeteFor, which is co-funded by Regional Development Agencies.
- Companies at every level of the London 2012 supply chain will be encouraged to advertise their supplier opportunities through CompeteFor.
- After registering basic company information any interested business can view the opportunities advertised. Companies can then complete a business profile, which involves answering a series of simple questions, to be able to compete for opportunities.
- A company’s business profile is automatically tested against a small number of minimum standards in areas such as health and safety. If these requirements are not met the company is automatically referred to tailored business support to help improve their performance. This service is provided by Business Link in England and the support services in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland.
- Once a company’s profile is successfully published on CompeteFor they are automatically matched to opportunities which suit their business and invited, by email, to apply for them by filling out a short, tailored application form. The buyer advertising the contract then selects a shortlist of companies and invites them to formally tender through the buyer’s own procurement system.
- Details of the winning bidder(s) are published on CompeteFor and unsuccessful bidders receive feedback from the buyer. Throughout the process local business support agencies are on hand to help companies maximise their chances of success