Last year ICAO’s Procurement Section, with the support of the Enterprise Technology Services department, improved the look, feel and functionality of the ICAO Procurement Portal. The web page has several new features:
A categorized list of ICAO commodity codes that are easy to use and understand.
The list is expandable. Users can browse through the categories of goods and services that ICAO procures, as well as consult a list of the codes in any of the categories.
This translates into a user-friendly experience for ICAO suppliers. A supplier clicking ‘ICAO Procurement Categories’ will now be able to view the Services categories separately from the Goods categories. The Goods, in turn, are broken down into Goods for Aviation Purposes and Goods for General Purposes.
Sub-categories
These large categories include multiple sub-categories, which, if clicked, expand to show all relevant codes. Instead of trying to figure out all the keywords that could be related to a supplier’s activities/expertise in order to select codes to register under, suppliers are able to narrow down his search to relevant categories, and will be able to find all the correct commodity codes, regardless of terminology used in their naming.
The old search mechanism is still available for those who choose to search by keyword.
Frequently asked questions
Another welcome addition to the Procurement Portal is the FAQ – a new link in the menu. It is designed to answer common suppliers’ questions on the registration in and usage of the ICAO Procurement Portal.
In the FAQ, suppliers will find very specific (short) answers to all questions. But for those who want to learn more, links to detailed answers/instructions are also available for more complex questions. There are guidelines for companies and vendors that register with ICAO to participate in procurement opportunities. These can be found here.
A clean, crisp user-friendly look
Last, but not least, the new Procurement Portal is not cluttered with text. Unlike the previous one, this portal has a fresh and attractive appearance. It is easy to use, clear, and functional.
