More disruptors chosen for SHED framework

The SHED framework helps put small tech companies together with social housing providers to fix building maintenance problems

The social housing emerging disruptors (SHED) framework was first set up in 2022 by purchasing agency Procurement for Housing to enable fledgling tech companies clear the hurdles of public procurement to work with social housing companies.

A second list of firms was prequalified in January 2023 and now, one year on, PfH has unveiled a third generation of SHED.

The SHED3 framework is worth up to £100m over three years.

Many of the suppliers appointed to SHED3 offer solutions that support with asset monitoring, damp and mould treatment and energy efficiency.

They include: Help me Fix, which connects residents with tradespeople by video calls to address property maintenance issues (pictured below); Vericon Systems, a damp and mould risk management kit that can be installed in minutes to gain room-by-room temperature and humidity information; and Warmscore, a portable Internet of Things (IoT) toolset that combines environmental and energy data to benchmark heat loss, ventilation rates and mould risks.

Jenny Danson, director of the Proptech Innovation Network, said: “I regularly see brilliant, imaginative young firms leave the social housing sector because it’s just too difficult for them to get onto public procurement frameworks. If we want innovation in this sector, we need initiatives like SHED which reduce the risks and costs for both suppliers and housing providers and help talented start-ups to get heard amongst all the noise.”

the Help me Fix service

Neil Butters, head of procurement at PfH, said: “When we first set up this disruptors’ framework, we thought long and hard about how to create an uncomplicated and flexible contracting process that would open opportunities up to small suppliers but ensure housing providers are still compliant. We saw our highest ever number of SMEs and micro-businesses bidding for SHED3 which is great news and very much in line with the ambitions of the new Procurement Act which is all about boosting SME participation and encouraging innovative procurement.”

The 21 suppliers chosen this year are:

Adey Innovation (Adey Sense and Adey ProCheck)
Airex Technologies (Airex Floorvent and Airex Roomvent)
Ambisense
Building Passport
City Plumbing Supplies Holding (FaultFinder)
Dress for the Weather (the Net Zero Handbook)
EVO Digital Technologies
IoT Solutions Group
Just Checking (Just Roaming)
Kuppa
Magnum Opus Repairs
Nine1three
Nolijwork
Placechangers
Plentific
Purrmetrix (Warmscore)
Sureserve Asset Services
Tallarna
Trade Innovations Enterprise (Help Me Fix)
Uplyfted Services
Vericon Systems