The Innovation and Technology Commission and the Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC) recently launched an open and transparent procurement platform called “TVP ePROQ”. It will serve as a “one-stop shop” wherein applicants can conduct and manage procurement exercises as well as submit relevant documents. The platform was launched at the HKPC-co-organised TVP Tactic Day which also featured talks on the latest trends in digital transformation and tactics for TVP application with SMEs.
TVP is an Innovation and Technology Fund programme administered by the ITC of the HKSAR Government. It aims to subsidise local enterprises and organisations in adopting technological services and solutions to upgrade and transform their business processes. To optimise the funding application process and to resolve the pain points of SMEs in obtaining quotations from service providers, HKPC launched the TVP ePROQ platform, enabling applicants to conduct the request for quotation (RFQ) exercise more rapidly and efficiently. This allows them to manage procurement procedures and submit relevant documents on a single platform thereby saving time in searching for suitable service providers and speeding up the entire TVP application process.
Through the platform, service providers can also submit relevant proposals and quotations for projects they are interested in. This can help service providers discover more business opportunities and increase their opportunities in participating in TVP projects. As of October 2022, over 200 service providers have already registered on the platform, all set to experience the brand-new procurement process with the applicants.
The Commissioner for Innovation and Technology stated that for the first nine months in 2022, over 8,000 TVP applications were received. This reflects the growing demand of local enterprises and organisations for the application of technology to promote business development. In the wake of the COVID-19 epidemic, enterprises have realised the importance of applying digital technology to their daily operation and future development. It is hoped that the industry can make good use of the TVP to improve productivity, or upgrade or transform their business processes to enhance long-term competitiveness.
The Chairman of HKPC stated that HKPC has been appointed by ITC to serve as the secretariat of TVP since June 2021, providing professional secretarial and administrative services with our expertise. The Council is committed to continuously improving the efficiency of application handling and supporting local enterprises and organisations to enhance productivity with government funding.
He added that TVP has been widely welcomed by the local industries as a support on their digital transformation journey. To further enhance applicants’ experience in the application process, the new TVP ePROQ platform was rolled out as an alternative to allow a wider selection of service providers and to streamline procurement-related processes and submissions. It will also enable more service providers to have easy access to TVP projects for which they could potentially offer their services.
HKPC will continue to support local enterprises and organisations, especially SMEs, to better utilise the government funding for engaging technological services and solutions to upgrade and transform their business processes, to boost their long-term competitiveness, the Chairman said.
The event was attended by successful applicants as well as industry representatives and guest speakers at the panel discussion who shared their success stories and experiences on TVP and explored new trends in digital transformation accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. A sharing on TVP application tactics was also held at the event to provide applicants and enterprises interested in applying the TVP with practical tips, facilitating their application process.
To assist applicants and service providers in better understanding and utilising the platform, HKPC published a user manual on the platform website, listing out the key functions and operation procedures of the system. Relevant guidance and samples are also available for applicants to facilitate their preparation of specifications under the new platform.
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