Searchable Multi-Supplier Steel Inventory Overview

The Multi-Supplier Inventory is a searchable inventory of steel available for sale by multiple sellers. The inventory functions like a search engine for steel.

Search for Steel

A buyer can search the Multi-Supplier Inventory by steel form, type, physical dimensions, weight, location and other criteria. The inventory includes steel in bar, coil, irregular blanks, plate, sheet, pipe, tube, structural, wire and rod form.

Go to Search for Steel under Inventory. If the steel you are looking for is not coil, select the steel form in the blue box at the top of the page. Select the type of steel you are interested in and fill out the form by describing what you are looking for. Pressing the "Find Steel" button will produce a listing of available steel that matches your requirements. Click on the company name for any item of interest and you will see any additional information about the item as well as the identity of the seller and his contact information. Use this information to contact the supplier directly for more information about an item or to place an order.

Spider Bites

If you have registered, Steel Spider can send a Spider Bite (message) to the supplier for you. Spider Bites are messages sent through Steel Spider where a buyer is responding to a specific item in the Inventory. There is no charge to send or receive a Spider Bite.The Spider Bite is sent by Steel Spider to the supplier by email with a copy to the buyer. It will contain th buyer's question about the items as well as the contact information of the supplier of the item and a detailed description of the item. Sellers who receive a Spider Bite can also view them on Steel Spider in Spider Bites You Received.

Inventory Alert

If you have registered, you can Receive Inventory Alert by email advising you when steel is first added to the Multi-Supplier Inventory that matches your requirements. Go to Receive Inventory Alert under Inventory to describe the steel you are interested in using a form similar to that used to Search for Steel. Each hour a software agent named Boris checks new postings to the inventory and notifies a buyer, by email, if steel of the desired type and attributes was posted.

Advertise your steel

Sellers advertise the availability of steel by adding their steel to the searchable Multi-Supplier Inventory. Buyers and other suppliers can easily find your steel when their own inventory does not contain the steel the need.

Manual Data Entry

Sellers can manually add steel to the Multi-Supplier Inventory by using the forms in Add Steel to Inventory under Inventory without charge. Items are added immediately. Once your steel is in the Inventory you can refresh, edit or delete it in Change/Remove Your Steel under Inventory. Steel that has not been refreshed within 30 days to confirm that the steel is still available will be removed from the Inventory. Sellers can manually add steel to the Multi-Supplier Inventory using these forms without charge.

Automatic Data Entry

An easier method of adding steel to the Multi-Supplier Inventory is to use our Automatic Data Entry process. This is especially useful when a seller has a large quantity of steel to advertise. The seller provides us with a file containing descriptions of their steel. The seller uploads or attaches the file to an email. We process the file and add the steel to the Inventory. We can handle nearly all file formats including as text, Excel XML, and CSV files. Since every supplier handles their inventory data differently we do not specify a particular layout for the file. Instead we tailor the Automatic Data Entry process to the layout preferred by the seller. Normally our Automatic Data Entry process lets sellers provide their data without data format conversion. There is no limit to the number of steel items that can be added using the Automatic Data Entry process and, if helpful, we can handle the submittal of multiple files.

Sellers using the Automatic Data Entry process can manage their steel by providing an updated file. The steel from the previous file is deleted and the steel in the new file is added to the Multi-Supplier Inventory. Sellers can also use Change/Remove Your Steel to edit and delete their steel in the Inventory. We charge $100 US per month to use the Automatic Data Entry process and this also includes the ability of the seller to display his company's logo randomly on each page.

It may be possible for us to download a file containing descriptions of your steel from your website or scrape the steel information from your website. If the seller has his available steel on a website, we can often capture the descriptions of the steel and add it to the Inventory automatically. We can set up a Web Service that a seller can use to add his steel to the Inventory.

Manage Your Steel

We require that a seller periodically confirm that their steel being advertised is still available. When steel is added it is marked for removal in 30 days. By going to Change/Remove Your Steel under Inventory a seller can push a single button and extend the removal date by 30 days. We may send a reminder to a seller to confirm his steel's availability. If no confirmation is received, we will remove the seller's steel after the removal date. Sellers can send offerings without charge.