Three major building contractors and NTT Data Corp. have agreed in principle to set up, possibly by the end of the year, an Internet market for the procurement of construction materials and machinery, officials close to the talks said Wednesday.
NTT Data, along with Kajima Corp., Shimizu Corp. and Taisei Corp., could establish a joint venture as early as July to operate the Web market, which will allow them to cut back on materials procurement costs by inducing greater competition among suppliers, the officials said.
In the operation's initial phase, online submissions of offers will be limited to suppliers of machinery and primary materials for makeshift structures, they said.