LASER’s new NHS energy specialist launches a new NHS Procurement framework

Oonagh Piner recently joined LASER Energy Buying Group as a healthcare energy specialist focused on offering NHS trusts alternative, integrated energy solutions to reduce costs, increase efficiency and ensure compliance in an increasingly volatile market. Oonagh has spent much of her career advising NHS trusts and is a known figure in the field of energy reduction and cost control.

Energy use levels are high in healthcare facilities due to the requirements of heating, cooling, lighting, IT equipment and specialist medical equipment. With energy costs predicted to rise by as much as 80 percent over the next decade, reducing energy spend within constrained budgets will be a major challenge for NHS management teams.

LASER procures in excess of £350 million of energy on behalf of 120 public sector customers with fully OJEU compliant baskets.  Our new NHS framework, launched this month, offers managers the same benefits as our local authority customers, including lower energy prices and invoice validation services.

Oonagh commented “LASER’s services provide total energy cost control, from close market monitoring and elimination of erroneous supplier billing through to implementation of energy efficiency initiatives and associated reporting. Another great benefit of using LASER is that we act as a Central Purchasing Body, removing the requirement of our customers to run time consuming OJEU tenders.”

She continued “It’s an exciting time to join LASER, the NHS has undergone many changes recently and I strongly believe that the emphasis on controlling costs represents an opportunity to offer NHS trusts an alternative choice of procurement. Our new framework provides budget certainty, low risk and full price transparency and I am looking forward to developing this new portfolio further.”