Purchasing articles from March 2006

Purchasing archives from March 2006

Services cut buyers' costs.(chemical distributors)
March 2, 2006... Susan Avery Chemicals distributors are doing their part to rid the supply chain of costly inefficiencies by offering services that help customers concentrate on what they do best. A review of Purchasing's Top 100 Chemical Distributors...

Enzyme demand increases, supply remains balanced.
March 2, 2006... David Hannon Buyers at detergent makers, animal feed makers, pharmaceutical firms and cosmetics companies will increase buying of various enzymes by 6.5% globally through 2009, as new applications abound. According to Freedonia Group,...

Elements.(Buyout Talks)(Brief Article)
March 2, 2006... Staff Buyout talks between Huntsman Corp . and potential suitors like Lyondell Chemicals and Bassell have cooled, according to news reports. In early February Huntsman terminated talks because "none of the proposals were in the best...

Energy-cost hikes hit plastics, industry says.(Plastics Industry)
March 2, 2006... Staff Those high energy prices brought to you in part by Hurricane Katrina are driving up the costs plastics companies are incurring to make the polymers that are the basis of everything from automotive dashboards to data-storage devices....

Buyers face higher rates, less domestic supplies.(Rates of Ammonia and Natural Gases)
March 2, 2006... Gordon Graff Ammonia prices reached dizzying heights in the past year, driven by increases for natural gas, its main feedstock. Ammonia reserves in North America are adequate, but production of the chemical in the region is on the wane as...

Are you responsible enough?
March 2, 2006... By Roger A. Whittier No, I am not referring to the standard measures of procurement effectiveness or fiduciary responsibility, like overhead competitiveness, spends effectiveness, quality, delivery, audit worthiness or any of those...

Citizens Banking seizes spend.
March 2, 2006... By Karen Prema Strategic sourcing successfully turns around procurement strategies and increases cost controls in many spend areas. It's a bank's job to help customers save their money. So it only makes sense that a strategic sourcing...

Sourcing expands its footprint.
March 2, 2006... By David Hannon New strategic sourcing group is at the center of BlackHawk's product development strategy. Eldon griggs has helped create some of the most cutting-edge products the U.S. military is using today: High-tech night vision...

Blaze a new trail.(Bombardier Recreational Products)
March 2, 2006... By David Hannon Only two years post-spinoff, Canadian off-road vehicle maker Bombardier Recreational Products has taken its own path to strategic sourcing success. Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP) of Valcourt, Quebec has been...

Regulations focus sourcing.(Hologic Inc.)
March 2, 2006... By Wayne Forrest Medical imaging companies balance global sourcing and regulatory compliance. Procurement professionals at medical imaging equipment makers are faced with some interesting challenges these days. Demand for their...

Buyers break the mold.
March 2, 2006... By Susan Avery As daily challenges build, MRO buyers are changing the way they work. Many are starting to rely more on their suppliers for help--with cost, service and inventory. Talk to an MRO buyer. Never in the history of the...

Buyers' 90-day price expectations.
March 2, 2006... Staff Commodities voted most likely to rise in price through April COATED PAPERS HIKED Staff Coated paper producers Sappi Fine Paper North America of Boston and NewPage of Dayton, Ohio, have announced a $50/ton increase on...

30-day buying plans.
March 2, 2006... Staff Commodities voted most likely to be bought in the next 30-days DOLLAR MAY WEAKEN Staff The expected slowdown in U.S. consumption of all kinds of products (homemade and imported) could deflate the U.S. dollar this year,...

PLM boosts buyers' product development role.
March 2, 2006... By Paul E. Teague From helping to control costs early in a project to ensuring suppliers know of product-design changes, PLM is helping purchasing make product development profitable as well as innovative. In the team sport of product...

On-demand brings spend control to the masses.(Software Industry)
March 2, 2006... By David Hannon New delivery model lets midsize companies get in the game. The customer lists of most procurement software companies have always been a good place to benchmark for best practices. The drawback is that typically only...

Leadtime Report.(Metal Industries)
March 2, 2006... Staff Copper is hard to find Staff Copper tube is in high demand from the plumbing, heating and industrial markets. In addition to higher prices, Purchasingdata.com says copper tube leadtimes have expanded from five weeks in 2004...

Bad news for buyers: Rates to remain high, capacity low.(Bear Stearns Companies Inc.)
March 2, 2006... David Hannon It's bad news for buyers of truckload services, but the current market looks to continue for much of 2006. Tight capacity, more frequent rate increases and higher fuel surcharges will continue to plague truckload buyers for...

Detours.(CNF Inc.)(Air freight services)(Brief Article)
March 2, 2006... Staff CNF promotes Plaat to VP of procurement David Hannon CNF Inc. announced today that Mitchell E. Plaat has been promoted to vice president, procurement. In his new position, he becomes the company's chief procurement officer,...

Shippers see tighter capacity, higher rates continuing.(Canadian Pacific Express and Transport Ltd.)
March 2, 2006... David Hannon Rail carriers reported strong financial results for 2005, citing rate increases and fuel surcharges as major contributors to earnings growth. Rail freight buyers saw nothing but decreased capacity and continued price...

China isn't a great source for primary metals.
March 2, 2006... Tom Stundza Despite the sometimes irrational fears expressed by North American steel producers, it's unlikely that primary metal imports from China will glut U.S. and Canadian markets and depress market prices anytime soon. Last year,...

Prices remain high from supply disruptions.(copper)
March 2, 2006... Tom Stundza Copper prices have more than tripled over the past four years and aren't showing any signs of backing off--even though supply growth has stalled--which is making life miserable for commodity metals buyers. "Business, in...

Metal Chips.(Acquisitions of Metal Industries)(Brief Article)
March 2, 2006... Staff ThyssenKrupp Materials NA in Southfield, Mich., is buying VPK Metal of Toronto, which operates Canadian metals service centers under the names Peckover's, Vimetal Peckover, Roy Metals Sales, Vifab and O.M.I. The firms will retain...

Grainger announces biggest product expansion in its history.(W.W. Grainger Inc.)
March 2, 2006... Susan Avery With the publication of the latest edition of its catalog on April 1, Grainger is launching the biggest product expansion in its 78-year history. On that day, MRO buyers will find that the distributor has increased nine-fold...

From 'green' to greenbacks.(Interface Inc. )
March 2, 2006... Paul Teague, Editor in Chief Note to anyone who thinks that environmentally friendly purchasing is just a feel-good exercise: Check out the track record of carpet manufacturer Interface Inc. The company is actually making money on its...

Global anti-pest mandate is changing the buy.(eInternational Standards for Phytosanitory Measures No. 15 for packaging materialE.)
March 2, 2006... Staff After five years of international debate, packaging buyers are operating under new world trade rules that are changing the marketplace for wood-based pallets. The International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures No. 15 or ISPM No....

MeadWestvaco opens Packaging Innovation Center.(MeadWestvaco Corp.)(Brief Article)
March 2, 2006... Staff MeadWestvaco opened a new Packaging Innovation Center in Richmond, Va. recently. The new facility features demonstrations of innovative packaging technologies and capabilities. "Packaging has traditionally conveyed the product...

New top-sheet dispenser provides water-tight protection.(Lantech Inc.)(Brief Article)
March 2, 2006... Staff A new midcycle top-sheet dispenser from Lantech brings tight five-sided protection to stretch wrappings. The dispenser permits high-throughput wrapping of 30 to 35 loads per hour--and is suitable to bag fertilizer, concrete, mulch,...

Players.(Leslie Campbell of Dell Inc.)(Brief Article)
March 2, 2006... Staff Player: Leslie Campbell, vice president of worldwide procurement, Dell Biggest challenge: Getting internal customers to support centralization of procurement Promoting professional diversity: Campbell has led an effort to...

Focus is on total cost of ownership.(Myers Container Corp.)
March 2, 2006... Tom Stundza A bit more than a year ago, the management team that owns and operates Myers Container decided to stop buying materials and supplies solely on price and start looking at the total cost of ownership. Management also launched an...

National Aquarium reels in savings with online buying.
March 2, 2006... Karen Prema Did you ever wonder how aquariums buy exotic fish and frogs, or build the beautiful and extreme exhibits that attract you to visit? Or wonder how a purchasing professional picks the right supplier to transport an endangered...

Getting noticed for the right reasons.(Leon Shivamber of Harris Corp.)(supply chain management)
March 2, 2006... Wayne Forrest There are usually two instances when a company's supply chain comes to the attention of the CEO. It either has achieved a noticeable, positive influence on the firm's bottom line and product line or it has driven the company...

Revenue stream flows from recycling efforts.(Interface Inc. green products market)(Brief Article)
March 2, 2006... Dan Gottlieb About 11 years ago, Chairman, Ray Anderson, of Interface Inc., the world's largest carpet manufacturer of commercial and modular carpet, decided to put his company on a path toward zero environmental footprint. Among the...

OEMs leverage supplier fairs in China.(original equipment manufacturers)
March 2, 2006... David Hannon Buyers looking to find suppliers overseas are trying anything and everything to connect with suppliers. While the Internet has certainly made identifying global suppliers easier, in many countries face-to-face meetings are...

Mills fret imports, despite 2005 dip.(steel imports)(Brief Article)
March 2, 2006... Tom Stundza U.S. Steelmakers continue their obsessive gripe about imports even though foreign mills reduced shipments by 11% in 2005 imports. The Census Bureau reports a total of 31.9 million net tons of steel were imported in 2005-6.9...

Briefs.(MicroVision Corp.'s restructuring)(Tyco International Ltd. promoted Shelley Stewart, Jr.)(Accuride Corp. appointed Ben Laaper)(Brief Article)
March 2, 2006... Staff Strategic sourcing news Light scanning technologies developer Microvision is launching a major restructuring that includes the introduction of a "strategic sourcing discipline aimed at insuring that we identify and qualify all...

Women's salaries hung out to dry.(Letter to the Editor)
March 2, 2006... Staff COMPENSATION DISPARITY Regarding the 2005 compensation survey (Purchasing , December 8, 2005; p. 29), as a female chemicals buyer I review this report every year and continue to be frustrated with the disparity between women's...

Buyers link hands with designers.(Product development and design for future networking products)(Company overview)
March 16, 2006... By James Carbone At networking equipment manufacturer Cisco Systems, buyers get in on product development early, determining what technology the company will use in future products. It's not uncommon for electronics OEMs to involve...

Delphi builds bridges to designers & suppliers.(Delphi Electronics and Safety)
March 16, 2006... By James Carbone Buyers make sure Delphi gets the leading-edge technology it needs from suppliers. "Bridge builder" are the words that Tom Miklik of Delphi Electronics and Safety (DES) uses to describe his job at DES' global supply...

Memory leadtimes spike.(consumer goods)(Brief article)
March 16, 2006... Staff Leadtimes for 31 of 41 components tracked monthly by Purchasing stretched in February as component demand by OEMs and electronics manufacturing services providers increased. Leadtimes for flash memory products expanded the most....

Switch tags to rise slightly.(trends of electronic components)
March 16, 2006... Gina Roos Buyers can expect switch prices to increase 1-3% through the rest of the year because of rising materials costs for oil, copper and precious metals. Average selling prices are rising 1-1.5% for certain product categories...

The rush to RoHS compliance.(Restriction on the Use of Hazardous Substances)
March 16, 2006... Staff Switch manufacturers and analysts agree that the European Union's Restriction on the Use of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) is a big issue for the switch industry. The law, which goes into effect July 1, bans the use of lead and...

Most Asian companies will be RoHS compliant.(Restriction of the Use of Hazardous Substances)(Brief article)
March 16, 2006... Staff Ninety-three percent of electronics manufacturers expect to comply with the European Union's Restriction of the Use of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive by the July deadline, according to a new survey. The survey, conducted...

PM chip market rises; tags steady.(power management)
March 16, 2006... Staff Demand for power management (pm) semiconductors will rise, but prices overall will be steady in 2006 as the market grows about 9.3% to $22.4 billion. The market is rising because of growing use of power management chips in...

Celestica purchases Powerwave facility.(Brief article)
March 16, 2006... Staff Electronics manufacturing services provider Celestica will acquire wireless communications equipment manufacturer Powerwave's Philippines manufacturing facility and will become the company's preferred outsourcing partner. Under...

Electronics Briefs.(Elpida Memory Inc. forms Edison Semiconductor Pvt. Ltd. in India)(AVX Corp. to increase product distribution length)(Mouser Electronics Inc.'s distribution contract with SimpleTech Inc.)
March 16, 2006... Staff Design center established Staff Elpida Memory Inc., a leading DRAM supplier, says it has formed a new company that will serve as a design center in India. Elpida says that Edison Semiconductor Pvt. Ltd. was established...

What capabilities Cisco suppliers need.
March 16, 2006... Staff While Cisco Systems has reduced its number of suppliers by 50% over the last five years, the company, in fact, adds a small number of suppliers each year, often for new technology reasons. "We look at new suppliers because we are...

Buyers, distributors both report longer part leadtimes.(electronic components)(Brief article)
March 16, 2006... Staff Respondents to Purchasing 's monthly business survey say electronic components are becoming more difficult to find lately and it appears like the distributors are getting caught in the middle. "We're seeing more supplier delivery...

RoHS catalog released.(Restriction of Hazardous Substances)(Brief article)
March 16, 2006... Staff Catalog distributor Newark InOne recently released the first catalog devoted strictly to electronic products that are compliant with the European Union's Restriction on the use of certain Hazardous Substances (RoHS) legislation. ...

Buyers' report on early 2006 pricing.(pricing trends of consumer products)
March 16, 2006... Staff The latest commodities-pricing trends PERIOD UP DOWN SAME INDEX* Copper & brass FEB 75% 2% 23% 86.9 Aluminum FEB 62% 1% 37% 80.1 Energy FEB ...

Business Outlook.(scanner usage forecasts)(Intel produces random access memory chip)(semiconductor industry trends)(labor market sees improvement)
March 16, 2006... Staff LEADING INDICATORS RISE... Staff Buyers should consider expanding their purchases now before the rush. That's one possible take-away from the latest increase in the index of leading economic indicators. The index jumped to a...

Wanted: Suppliers who think like you.
March 16, 2006... By Susan Avery The best suppliers are the ones with business and technology goals that match yours. Strategic sourcing, score cards and trade fairs help you find them. It really couldn't be more simple. Communicating openly and often...

Logistics Technology.(Third-party logistics provider to improve logistics by technological innovations)
March 16, 2006... David Hannon Pay no attention to that software behind the curtain For a midsize company, the idea of buying and implementing a standalone software tool to better manage or leverage its logistics operations might seem like a...

Detours.(Oracle acquires Global Logistics Technologies Inc. and names it Oracle Transportation Management)(DHL Airways Inc. introduces EasyShip Professional software shipping solution)
March 16, 2006... Staff Oracle recently unveiled its Oracle Transportation Management, a new brand based on Oracle's acquisition of TMS provider G-Log. Evan Armstrong of market analyst firm Armstrong & Associates, says: "G-Log's success in the logistics...

Globalization, on-demand model push TMS adoption.(transportation management systems)(Brief article)
March 16, 2006... Staff The market for transportation management systems (TMS) continues to grow as more companies leverage the systems for sourcing transportation services and tracking shipments. AMR Research says 30% of manufacturers and distributors are...

Price-fixing probe launched.(airline cargo businesses face ivestigations for price fixing)(Brief article)
March 16, 2006... Staff An investigation was launched in February by U.S. and European officials into alleged price-fixing by airline cargo businesses in the U.S., Europe and Asia. In mid-February, European and U.S. justice officials raided a host of air...

How to survive procurement outsourcing.(Editorial)
March 16, 2006... Paul Teague, Editor in Chief Mention the word "outsourcing" to most purchasing professionals and their eyes light up as they analyze all the possibilities for operational breakthroughs in their companies. Add the word "procurement" to...

Faxes are evolving.(trends in the usage of fax machines)
March 16, 2006... Karen Prema The market for fax machines is dropping due to increased use of both multifunctional products (MFPs) and e-mail attachments in place of faxes. But there are still strong arguments for use of stand-alone fax machines in many...

Outsourcing lands in procurement.(trends)
March 16, 2006... By William Atkinson Fighting the urge to keep everything in house, an increasing number of companies are sending their indirect-purchasing chores outside. And guess what: They think they're better off, as the case studies beginning on page...

Outsourcing since day one.(Avaya Inc.)
March 16, 2006... William Atkinson Five-year old telecom company avaya in Basking Ridge, N.J. made a conscious decision from the start--outsource whatever can be outsourced. And from day one, that has included the procurement function. Joe Siciliano,...

Blending services and technology.(Lucent Technologies Inc.'s outsourcing contracts with Ariba Inc.)
March 16, 2006... Staff Telecom giant lucent technologies of Murray Hill, N.J. came to procurement outsourcing in a roundabout way. The company began its relationship with its current outsourcing partner, Ariba, in 2000 when it began using Ariba's...

The sweet smell of outsourcing success comes to fragrance maker.(Coty Inc. outsources)(Georgia Center for Non-Profits)
March 16, 2006... William Atkinson In late November 2005, fragrance maker Coty of New York signed a five-year contract with IBM for procurement services across 14 countries in North America and Europe. The move came as part of a Coty efficiency initiative...

Jerry Jones, CPO and director of supply chain management, Synetics Solutions.(Interview)(Brief article)
March 16, 2006... Interview by Karen Prema Player: Jerry Jones, CPO and director of supply chain management, Synetics Solutions, Portland, Ore. Biggest challenge: "Many of our products are highly configurable and/or subject to rapid engineering change....

Products.(NKK Switches Inc. releases keylock switches)(Inphi Corp. introduces broadband multiplexer)(Oil-Rite Corp. introduces a complete line of sight feed valves)
March 16, 2006... Staff Industrial PC Staff Parker Automaton-CTC announces the release of its new open-platform EPX PowerStation. This CTC-designed and -manufactured PowerStation is an Industrial PC with an 8-in. TFT display and analog resistive...

Timken transforms sourcing.(Timken Co.)
March 16, 2006... Susan Avery The purchasing operation at The Timken Co. in Canton, Ohio, is taking steps towards becoming more strategic and the goal of the transformation is to better link internal and external customer requirements with supplier...

Purchasing pumps up basketball design.(Spalding's basketball supplied to National Basketball Association)
March 16, 2006... Paul E. Teague March Madness--that annual matchup of the best college basketball teams in the country for the NCAA title--stirs the sports fantasies of the most committed couch potatoes. But, anyone who has ever played basketball at any...

End users have opinions too.
March 16, 2006... Staff Get the voice of the customer Regarding "How to master the medical buy" (Purchasing , February 16, 2006; p. 45), I know this article is about supply chain, but nowhere in this article is the customer mentioned. It would have...