Data Yard marks first anniversary with shareholder announcement

Data Yard, the industry-owned data pool established by BMF and NMBS, has marked its first anniversary with the announcement of its 11th shareholder, MKM Building Supplies.

Data Yard’s mission is to streamline the sharing of product information between suppliers and merchants by providing a centralised, secure platform that improves data quality and reduces duplication.

Managing director of Data Yard, Gareth Thomas, commented: “We have made strong progress. The infrastructure is fully in place, with both suppliers and merchants actively engaging.

“We currently have 70 suppliers signed up to Data Yard, and on the merchant side, mapping exercises are underway so that, once supplier data is ready, it can be seamlessly ingested into ERP and PIM systems. We’ve been working closely with ERP and PIM providers to remove any barriers ahead of going live later this year.

“We are also keen to broaden representation, particularly by bringing in plumbing and heating merchants to ensure a more balanced reflection of the industry.

“Looking ahead, the next 12 months will focus on scaling adoption, increasing supplier data coverage, and driving deeper integration into merchant systems, ultimately embedding Data Yard into business-as-usual processes across the industry.”