10th January 2008 - Infoterra Ltd, a leader in the provision of geospatial products and services, has been awarded a framework agreement under OGCbuying.solutions' Catalist Geographical Information Services and Solutions framework (GISS), an arrangement that provides a streamlined procurement route for public sector bodies. Under the new Catalist GISS framework, Infoterra has been awarded framework agreements in the GI Mapping Services and GI data supply solutions categories.

The Catalist procurement service is managed by OGCbuying.solutions, an executive agency of the Treasury's Office of Government Commerce (OGC). Securing accreditation on a Catalist framework agreement confirms Infoterra as one of the leading suppliers of GIS data and services.

"Procurement under Catalist saves time and money for public sector bodies, allowing them to select a supplier without having to go through the process of pre-qualification. Selecting a service provider, such as Infoterra, means they will be working with a risk-free GIS partner that not only meets, but exceeds all the standards for professional GIS services and associated products," commented Dr Andy Wells, Director of Sales for Infoterra Ltd. "Over the last three years we've found that Catalist has been an important route for the Public Sector market to work with Infoterra. Since first being awarded framework agreements under Catalist, our clients have used the framework for almost £10 million worth of procurement."

About OGCbuying.solutions

OGCbuying.solutions is the trading arm of the Office of Government Commerce (OGC), which is itself an office of HM Treasury. The Office of Government Commerce is responsible for improving value for money by driving up standards and capability in procurement, from commodity buying to the delivery of major capital projects, maximising the effective use of 60% of Government spending and a £30 billion property estate.

A new Government strategy launched in January 2007, Transforming Government Procurement, highlighted the central importance of procurement in delivering high-quality public services and best value for money. OGC is tasked with delivering this transformation, and with driving up standards and procurement capability across central Government. The OGC will do this through:

- Setting the right procurement standards and ensuring they are met;
- Capitalising on the Government's collective buying power to achieve value for money;
- Developing a cadre of senior procurement professionals across government to drive forward best practice procurement solutions.

OGCbuying.solutions, launched in April 2001, provides public sector procurement professionals with a route to the products and services they need to maximise procurement efficiency and value for money. Its contracts and framework agreements offer substantial savings through significant buying power, economies of scale and strategic partnerships. These savings are counted towards the Efficiency Review target. Rigorous tendering and evaluation processes ensure that products and services are checked for quality, price competitiveness, fitness for purpose and compliance with statutory requirements. These products and services are available through OGCbuying.solutions Catalist framework agreements and Managed Services.

The Catalist brand is designed to unify the framework agreements under one identifiable and recognisable brand name. Catalist incorporates a series of framework agreements which have been developed to offer our customers a broad range of goods and services aligned to their particular needs. Managed Services are predominantly more sophisticated, requiring expertise and additional support from OGCbuying.solutions.

http://online.ogcbuyingsolutions.gov.uk/


About Infoterra Ltd

Infoterra Ltd is a leading provider of geographic information products and services. Its portfolio of geographic information solutions includes airborne and satellite data acquisition, geo-information creation, database management and outsourced hosting. Infoterra provides geospatial knowledge to companies worldwide to help them make informed decisions. The company has major customers in communications, utilities, engineering, agriculture, defence and oil, gas & mineral exploration.

Infoterra Ltd. is part of the Infoterra group, which comprises companies in France, Germany and the United Kingdom, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Astrium Ltd, an EADS company.

www.infoterra.co.uk


For more information contact

Sarah Haslam, Infoterra Ltd, +44 (0)116 273 2300,
Cheryl Billson, PR for Infoterra, +44 (0)7791 720460, cheryl.billson@commacomms.com