Purchasing articles from October 2008

Purchasing archives from October 2008

Commodity Buying All Stars.(management of sourcing executives)
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza In the trenches, commodity buyers have demonstrated excellence at managing relationships with suppliers of products as wide ranging as chemicals, metals, other production materials and even marketing services. ...

How to make "one" bigger than "five".
October 16, 2008... Staff Purchasing's smartest negotiators move from conflict to collaboration fast. Match your wits against these pros. Guess their strategy. Then, read what they really did at purchasing.com/negotiations . Possible solutions: Try...

Air Product stake fresh look at sourcing.(Air Products and Chemicals Inc.)
October 16, 2008... By Rich Weissman Sourcing team's influence continues to expand across broad industrial gas producer. Ask Patricia (Pam) Mattimore how she gauges the success of her company's procurement and sourcing initiatives and she may quickly...

Pricier bulk packaging causes no shake-up in usage patterns.
October 16, 2008... By Gordon Graff The recent escalation in plastic resin prices has not caused any massive shifts in the types of bulk packaging used to ship manufactured goods. That's partly because the prices of competing bulk packaging materials,...

Business Intelligence.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff 46% Buyers expecting a 4Q price increase for plastic resins Source: www.purchasingdata.com WHAT IT MEANS: Buyers aren't expecting the massive hikes this quarter they did in past quarters, when as many as eight out of 10...

Supply.(Westlake Chemical planning to build a new $250-$300 million chlor-alkali plant)(Rise in prices expected to continue for caustic soda)(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Westlake to build new plant in La. Westlake Chemical announced plans to build a new $250-$300 million chlor-alkali plant at its vinyls manufacturing complex in Geismar, La. The new plant is expected to produce an estimated...

Economy, energy and uncertainty in the air at Chemical Purchasing Summit.
October 16, 2008... By Rich Weissman On a day where the stock market dropped more than 400 points, the ballroom of delegates to The Chemical Purchasing Summit remained reserved, yet seemingly optimistic. This Boston based-event, organized by Purchasing...

Deloitte economist links risk management and purchasing.
October 16, 2008... By Alan Earls John schimelpfenig, senior manager, energy and resource consulting at Deloitte & Touche, has been weighing business risks and commodity transactions for more than 20 years. So it's no surprise that the message in his...

Chemical suppliers declare force majeure after Hurricane Ike hits.(Texas Gulf Coast)(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Various chemical firms with plants on the Texas Gulf Coast declared force majeure on a host of chemicals in the days following Hurricane Ike's devastation to the region. While not damaged by the storm, Solvay Chemicals' hydrogen...

EMS requirements can be challenging.(electronics manufacturing services)
October 16, 2008... By James Carbone For many distributors, electronics manufacturing services (EMS) providers represent about 40% or more of their annual revenue, so many distributors are concerned when there is consolidation in the EMS industry because they...

More consolidation means fewer choices.(electronics outsourcing revenue growth statistics)(Financial report)
October 16, 2008... By James Carbone As electronics outsourcing revenue growth slows, EMS providers will compete harder for OEM business and focus on higher margin opportunities. OEM electronics buyers involved in outsourcing decisions should review...

NOR prices will keep falling.
October 16, 2008... By James Carbone Electronics buyers can expect NOR flash memory prices to drop for the rest of this year, although bit demand will grow about 17% in 2008. Falling prices mean that the global NOR flash memory market will drop about 10%...

Business Intelligence.
October 16, 2008... By James Carbone 59% Electronics buyers who say semiconductor prices will be stable over the next 90 days Source: www.purchasingdata.com WHAT IT MEANS: Buyers believe that there is plenty of chip capacity and supply to go...

The integrated circuit turns 50.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... By James Carbone Texas Instruments marked the 50th anniversary of the integrated circuit by launching Kilby Labs, a new center that will further develop semiconductor technology. The center was announced Sept. 12, the 50th anniversary...

Chip industry profits shrink.(Financial report)
October 16, 2008... By James Carbone Semiconductor profitability has eroded steadily since mid 2004, with net profits having fallen now in the single-digit range in 2008, according to researcher iSuppli. Profits had been in the 17-19% range in 2004, but...

Electronics Briefs.(Cree and Digi-Key entering in a distribution agreement of Cree's high-performance light emitting diodes)(Mouser Electronics signing a global distribution agreement with SiTime)(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... By James Carbone Samsung ships flash drives Samsung Electronics says its 1.8-inch solid state drive (SSD) is available in the recently launched ThinkPad X301 ultra-portable notebook in 64GB and 128GB densities. Samsung's 64GB SSD...

Expect price increases for some integrated passive devices in '09.
October 16, 2008... By Gina Roos Pricing for standard passive arrays have been stable over the past year, but that may change in 2009 as contracts expire at the end of this year. No longer able to absorb rising materials and freight costs, passive component...

Prices.
October 16, 2008... Staff Buyers are paying more now but that may cha- nge (National, recent price trends) -------------------------------------------- UP DOWN SAME INDEX Corrugated 63% 1% 36% 80.5...

Silver Prices Under Study.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff The commodity futures Trading Commission confirms that there's an investigation into the silver marketplace after silver prices saw a near-50% drop this year and remain down 9.5%, despite an undersupplied market. That trend prompted...

Box Makers Oppose Hike.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Independent box makers oppose the $60/ton linerboard price increase scheduled for early October that would bring list prices to $665 in the East and Midwest. Purchasingdata.com reports that the linerboard sales price lately has...

Lead To Stay Under 90cents.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Lead prices are likely to fall further in the short term from the recent five-month average of 87Ao/lb (June through September), suggests CRU International analyst Neil Hawkes, due to global oversupply. He predicts an 84Ao/lb average...

Goldman Cuts Oil.(Goldman sachs reducing its oil price forecast )(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Goldman sachs dramatically reduced its oil price forecast in mid-September while many other experts adjusted their oil price scenarios in the wake of financial crisis. Goldman equities analyst Arjun Murti lowered his 2009 average oil...

Commodity Prices Down.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff "The world really is going into quite a sharp cyclical slowdown here and I think it's going to run probably right the way through well into the fourth quarter," Giles Keating, head of global research at Credit Suisse, said on CNBC...

China Cuts Steel.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff With no post-Olympic bounce and steel orders falling China's Boasteel plans to cut prices for steel sheet products for November, according to China Steel Briefing . Prices will be cut by around $117/ton to $488 (hot-rolled) and $525...

Natgas may be Down.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Goldman sachs group cut its U.S. natural gas price forecast for the Northern Hemisphere winter by 23% because of higher-than-expected output and lower demand from power plants. "The strong U.S. natural gas supply growth suggests that...

Economy + Supply.
October 16, 2008... Staff No signs of autumn pickup in purchasing (N- ational, buying plans, 30-days) -------------------------------------------- UP DOWN SAME INDEX Energy 20% 19% 61% 50.4...

Durable Goods Down.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff According to data released from the Commerce Department, factory orders were down 4.5% in August, a much steeper drop than most economists predicted. Demand was weak across industrial categories, with only strong demand for...

Exports to Slide.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff The volume of exports looks to decline in 2009 after increasing 8% this year. Economists say weaker global economic growth in European economies, Japan and Canada will reduce demand growth for U.S.-made goods in the coming year by...

Steel Price Slide Continues.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff The hot-rolled sheet steel price slide that began in early August in a softening market has gained momentum with the benchmark grade selling in late September for less than $1,000/ton, the first time it has been that low since May....

Credit Woes Could Hit Supply.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Analysts at goldman Sachs JBWere said tight credit conditions could restrict the expansion of commodity supply in the future. "Credit restrictions and volatile equity markets have implications for the supply side," the firm recently...

Trucking Market Softens.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff As the U.S. economy continues to struggle, so do trucking volumes, which means more competition and better pricing. Baird analyst Jon Langenfeld said recently "Domestic freight trends have weakened throughout the third quarter as the...

Auto Drives MCU Need.(automotive microcontroller units)(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff The trend toward more fuel-efficient vehicles will drive demand for automotive microcontroller (MCU) units from about $5.3 billion in 2008 to $6.3 billion in 2012, says Amy Leong, research director for Gartner. "MCUs play an...

Polyethylene Stays Strong.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff "Steady, strong growth in purchasing of polyethylene (PE) by global markets will make quick work of the large increase in new capacity in the Middle East and China," said John Hotz, vice president of polyethylene at Nova Chemicals in...

Nand, Dram Production Cut.
October 16, 2008... Staff Powerchip said it plans to cut DRAM capacity 10-15% in the fourth quarter while falling NAND prices have producers cutting back production. Hynix, IM Flash, Samsung, Toshiba and SanDisk all are considering slowing down their...

Canal Volume Flat.(Panama Canal Authority )(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Panama Canal Authority CEO Alberto Aleman told Bloomberg that for the first time since 2002, freight shipped through the canal will be flat in 2008, totaling 312 million tons, the same amount transported last year. The canal is...

Midwest Refinery Being Built.(ConocoPhillips and EnCana building refinery)(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Conocophillips and canadian partner EnCana are building a 356,000 barrel/day petroleum products refinery in Roxana, Ill. The $3.6 billion joint venture Wood River refinery will take three years to build before it can start converting...

New Homes Sales are Low.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Sales of new homes in August tumbled by 11.5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 460,000 from 520,000 in July, according to Census Bureau data. That's down 24.5% from a year earlier and hitting their lowest pace since January...

Gulf Output Still Down.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Weeks after hurricanes Gustav and Ike struck the Gulf Coast, production remained suppressed. The U.S. Minerals Management Service says 62.5% of oil production in the Gulf of Mexico and 57.1% of the region's natural gas remained shut...

Exports Boost Controls.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Purchases of industrial control equipment rebounded in the second quarter to 2.4% growth after falling 5.1% in the first quarter, according to NEMA, the electrical manufacturing industry association. Exports produced the biggest...

Fedex to Boost Rates.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Fedex will increase its Express rates 6.9% in January in an effort to offset its sluggish volumes and higher fuel costs but will reduce its fuel surcharge by 2%. FedEx also said that it has cut its capital expenditure plan to $2.6...

Less Nickel in Asia.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Asia's biggest nickel producer, Jinchuan Group, may lower its 2008 production by 4% as nickel prices have plunged. According to Macquarie Group, Jinchuan's output is expected to be cut by 5,000 metric tons to 115,000 tons for 2008...

HPC Server Demand Up.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Demand for high performance computing (HPC) technical servers grew 10% in the second quarter according to researcher IDC. Sales reached $2.5 billion in the second quarter.

Copper Price is An Enigma.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff While the initial 2008 copper price forecast was $3.73, the monthly price averages for global copper cathode have ranged from $3.94 in early summer to $3.19 in early autumn. By the time the dust settles, the latest consensus outlook...

Hotel Rates Uncertain.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Rates at premium-priced hotels in many cities will come down in 2009 as airline capacity cuts reduce the number of flights and business people traveling into them. However, the American Express Business Travel Group also says...

Kraton Boosts Elastomers.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Kraton polymers of Houston is boosting prices by 10Ao/lb on October deliveries of its line of thermoplastic elastomers to offset "continuous raw material and energy related cost increases."

Dram Prices Drop.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Both the DRAM spot and contract prices dropped sharply in early September, says researcher DRAMeXchange. The DDR2 1 Gb spot prices have dropped to $1.30-$1.50, DRAMeXchange estimates, while the spot price for DDR2 512Mb dropped even...

Iron Ore Surge Over?(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff The six-year surge in iron ore prices may come to a dramatic end in 2009 if steelmakers continue to reduce output in a slowing world economy with its attendant credit mess. Most analysts say world iron ore suppliers Vale, BHP...

Wood Products Splinter.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... Staff Production shutdowns at lumber yards and structural panel mills have been unable to prop up prices of wood products, which are 10% lower than last year. Reason: While production is down by an estimated 11-20% so far this year,...

W.R. Grace overhauls procure-to-pay.(process of obtaining and managing all raw materials needed for manufacturing)
October 16, 2008... By Maria Varmazis Before it could centralize its global procurement operations, W.R. Grace had to take a good look at how it managed procure-to-pay. It's a problem familiar to many a procurement organization, large or small:...

Stiefel Labs leverages 3PL to fuel major growth.
October 16, 2008... By David Hannon As stiefel laboratories nearly tripled its size through two major acquisitions in the past two years, it became clear the logistics demands of the emerging company would far outpace the capabilities within Stiefel's...

Business Intelligence.
October 16, 2008... By David Hannon 1.2% Increase in DOT's Freight Transportation Services Indexin July Source: U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics WHAT IT MEANS: The freight TSI measures the month-to-month changes in the output of services...

Lack of investment could shrink trucking capacity.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... By David Hannon A new report on the trucking industry says that capital investment in the U.S. trucking sector is expected to fall in 2008, which will create an overall decline in trucking capacity heading into 2009. According to a new...

Shredded scrap prices plummet.
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Steadily declining prices and more than enough inventories at domestic steel mills are dragging prices down as much as $200/gross ton. However, this may be the bottom, with renewed elevated prices this winter. Steel...

Precious metals prices in for a fall.(Suki Cooper)(Interview)
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Prices of gold, silver and palladium will deflate in coming months while platinum will remain elevated from probable supply disruptions. In a recent Barclays Capital report, London-based precious metals analyst Suki...

Vale wants higher Asian prices; impact in North America unclear.
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Brazilian Mining Company Vale is holding negotiations with its Chinese and Japanese iron ore customers on revised higher prices for fiscal 2008 contracts that were settled in February. The goal is to bring Asian prices into...

Despite strong demand from China, lead and zinc surplus persists.
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza World refined zinc supply registered a surplus of 77,000 metric tons in the first seven months of this year, according data from the International Lead and Zinc Study Group (ILZSG), which also says refined lead's surplus was...

Whirlpool links layoffs to "unrelenting" sheet prices.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Major appliance producer Whirlpool plans to lay off 820 employees at its Fort Smith, Ark., and Evansville, Ind., plants this autumn, blaming "unrelenting" costs for sheet steel. The Benton Harbor, Mich. Whirlpool sources...

Analysts think metals demand may slow from a "confidence crunch".(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Demand for metals commodities will slow as global growth cools in a bear market triggered by "confidence crunch" caused by the world "credit crunch," according to commodity researchers at London bank Standard Chartered....

Platinum prices sliding and may bottom at $1,075/oz.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Platinum prices dropped by almost 40% at the end of the third quarter from their peak at the end of the first quarter. They may decline further in the October-December quarter, suggests the CPM Group's latest Precious Metals...

Economist believes demand will improve as year ends.
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Flagging nickel demand should pick up slightly by the end of 2008, senior economist David Wilson of producer Norilsk Nickel tells a recent metals conference in London sponsored by consultancy GFMS Ltd. But, he admits this...

Business Intelligence.
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza 21% August drop-off in steel import permits Source: Commerce Department WHAT IT MEANS: Steel Import Monitoring and Analysis data shows traders seeking permits to ship 2.36 million tons in August, down from...

Chips.(service center of Atlas Steel Products)(Beta Steel of Portage, Indiana purchases Novolipetsk Iron and Steel Works)(AZCO Steel plans to open distribution center )
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza More than 80 managers and workers at Atlas Steel Products have bought the Twinsburg, Ohio-based service center that specializes in heat- and corrosion-resistant steels through an employee stock ownership plan, or ESOP. The...

Long-term supply will stay tight, keeping buyers on edge.
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Purchasing and delivery of aerospace metals may be disrupted somewhat by the current labor strife at Boeing but overall buying will remain strong--and supply will remain tight--well into the next decade due to record order...

Vedanta to spend $9.8 billion to expand capacity.
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Vedanta resources of London will invest $9.8 billion to boost its aluminum-smelting capacity in India enough to become one of the world's biggest producers of the light metal. Vedanta aims to increase capacity to 2.6 million...

Nucor to restart Arizona rebar mill.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Nucor will spend necessary capital improvements of $30 million and then restart steel rebar production at an idled rolling mill in Kingman, Ariz. With Kingman's rolling operations expected to begin by the second quarter of...

Correction.(Correction notice)
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Previously, it was reported that North American Hoeganaes of Cinnaminson, N.J. purchased Kobelco Metal Powder of America in Seymour, Ind. Actually, the buying firm was competitor North American Hoganas of Hollsopple, Pa....

Allegheny Technologies plans to consolidate sheet units.
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza Allegheny Technologies Plans to spend $1.16 billion over the next four years to consolidate melt shops at its Brackenridge, Pa., facility and install advanced new specialty metals hot-rolling and processing operations as...

Nymex launches Midwest U.S. contract for hot-rolled sheet in coil.(New York Mercantile Exchange Inc.)
October 16, 2008... By Tom Stundza After an ownership change and months of uncertainty and indecision, the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) now plans to introduce a futures contract based on prevailing market prices for hot-rolled steel coil in the...

Distributors follow purchasing's lead, do more business globally.
October 16, 2008... By Susan Avery Industrial distributors are extending their reach. Results of Industrial Distribution magazine's 62nd Annual Survey of Distributor Operations show 72% of responding distributors now are doing business globally or plan to...

Business Intelligence.
October 16, 2008... By Susan Avery 6.6 Weeks leadtime for special fasteners Source: www.purchasingdata.com WHAT IT MEANS: Deliveries are beginning to stretch,after hovering at around four weeks for three months. 80% Industrial...

MRO Briefs.(Applied Industrial Technologies acquiring the assets of Fluid Power Resource)(Kaman Industrial Technologies entering into distribution agreement with four manufacturers)(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... By Susan Avery Applied Industrial Technologies has acquired the assets of Fluid Power Resource and these seven fluid power distribution businesses: Bay Advanced Technologies , Carolina Fluid Components , DTS Fluid Power , FluidTech ,...

John Paterson, Supply Chain Manager of the Year.
October 16, 2008... By Paul Teague, Editor in Chief In a world where "globalization" is the word that everyone uses to describe the transformation of business, IBM's John Paterson is the ultimate international man. He has held management positions on three...

New faces join the procurement crowd.(List)
October 16, 2008... By David Hannon Companies large and small are recruiting executives with diverse backgrounds to lead their procurement organizations today. Purchasing examines the benefits and challenges of such a move. What you think is the...

Staples enters the world of small-business IT support.
October 16, 2008... By Maria Varmazis Framingham, mass.-based staples recently announced that it is launching a new service aimed at helping small businesses manage their IT systems. Staples Network Services by Thrive is the result of the 2006 acquisition of...

Business Intelligence.
October 16, 2008... By Maria Varmazis 41% Increase in wireless security investments in 2008 Source: Gartner WHAT IT MEANS: As wireless networks become more prevalent in businesses, IT departments are ramping up wireless security to keep...

Paterson spearheads change at Big Blue.(John Paterson)(Company overview)
October 16, 2008... By James Carbone In his distinguished career at IBM, CPO John Paterson has made purchasing more global and strategic to the company, and he has turned it into a profit generator. John Paterson is not afraid of change. In fact, in...

Supplier innovation is at the heart of new managed travel program at Duff & Phelps.
October 16, 2008... By Susan Avery Recognizing the importance of travel to a successful corporate strategy, Duff & Phelps is taking a new, more strategic approach to the buy. Already, the move is paying dividends for the New York-based financial services...

Expense reporting tools help travel buyers manage costs.(Brief article)
October 16, 2008... By Susan Avery One way travel buyers can better control costs is through technology tools that automate such processes as managing expense reports. According to new research by Aberdeen, a Harte-Hanks Company based in Boston, 43% of...

Lockheed Martin builds forecasting tool for F-35.
October 16, 2008... By William Atkinson When Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company (LMAC) was awarded the contract to build the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the challenge for its supply chain team was to make sure that not only did its primary suppliers have...

Business Intelligence.
October 16, 2008... Staff 82% Supply chain executives that consider demand planning skills a priority in hiring Source: AMR Research WHAT IT MEANS: In a survey earlier this year, supply chain execs said they would like new college grads in SCM...

Miller takes the top buyer slot at Whirlpool.(John Miller)
October 16, 2008... Staff Whirlpool Corp. has announced that former Nissan North America CPO John Miller will replace the retiring Mark Brown as the head of Whirlpool's global strategic sourcing organization. According to a statement released by...

FMC branches out for improved forecasting.(FMC Technologies Inc.)
October 16, 2008... By William Atkinson When milton young was brought in as global sourcing director by Houston-based FMC Technologies, one of his first goals was to improve the flexibility and responsiveness of the firm's supply chain. While that may sound...

Former Dell CPO Garvin provides insights on procurement success.(Martin Garvin)
October 16, 2008... Staff Martin Garvin spent a career in the high-tech industry, the last 10 years working in the procurement organization at Dell, a high-tech company known for its cutting-edge supply chain practices. Earlier this year, he retired from his...