Local Buy and Unimarket deliver Phase Two of Nex Gen Procurement Ecosystem to QLD Councils & NFPs

Eighteen months after Local Buy selected the Unimarket (formerly VendorPanel) platform as the core of their fully funded Nex Gen Procurement Ecosystem for all Queensland Councils and eligible Not-for-Profits, the two organisations have announced the next phase — dubbed Nex Gen 2 — of the ecosystem's evolution. Nex Gen 2 includes an enhanced, fully funded Nex Gen Core Ecosystem, along with a Partner Solution Ecosystem of integrated and cost-effective client-funded upgrade options.

Nex Gen is a multi-year, multi-million-dollar investment in local government by the Local Government Association of Queensland and Local Buy. Its goal is to ensure that every council can access the most effective procurement systems and processes in an evolving technology landscape. Nex Gen represents Local Buy’s commitment to ensuring Queensland’s public procurement capability advances alongside modern technology.

Under Nex Gen 2, all Queensland councils will have free access to Policy Guide. Policy Guide helps council staff go to market using their preferred method depending on what they are purchasing, cost thresholds, risk levels, and other factors. This is in addition to the existing fully funded Nex Gen functionality such as supplier management, access to thousands of Local Buy pre-qualified suppliers (in accordance with the Local Government Act), the Local Supplier Marketplace for additional suppliers, and the ability to release public tenders. Ongoing enhancements to all features will be delivered as part of Unimarket’s regular product release program.

More significantly, in line with the commitment to enable councils to build the most innovative procurement ecosystem possible, Nex Gen Councils can now access additional council-funded, fully integrated Partner Solution modules based on current or future needs. These include:

• Procurement Planning
• Advanced Contract Management
• Purchase Order Creation
• Risk Registers & Management
• Incident Reporting & Management
• Project Management
• Grant Management
• A Procurement Home console that consolidates data from all modules

Announcing details of Nex Gen 2 and the expansion of the partnership, Local Buy CEO Peter Mifsud said:

“Local councils account for an average of $7.7 billion in goods and services each year and are a primary supporter of the local businesses and communities they serve. Local Buy developed and delivered the fully funded Nex Gen Procurement Ecosystem not only to support councils in their procurement processes, but to do so in a way that makes it easier for them to connect with their local suppliers and drive improved local economic outcomes.”

Local Buy Director Nex Gen, Glen Duff, added:

“With this enhanced partnership and the introduction of client-funded Nex Gen Partner Solutions, the Nex Gen ecosystem continues to evolve to ensure that any complementary technology requirements by our clients are available from within our Partner Solution model. These are Nex Gen-integrated, industry-leading and cost-effective products and services now available to purchase.”

(VendorPanel) CEO James Leathem said:

“At launch, Nex Gen was an Australian first—unique in how it would transform Local Government procurement. Queensland Councils overwhelmingly embraced the vision. With Nex Gen 2, we are delivering smart new tools to help those councils manage their sourcing and associated risk, as well as a future-proofed path to manage other areas of procurement, contract and risk management.”