Category Archives: 2013

Construction activity continues to decline

Output fell for the third month in a row in January, with contraction in all three sub-sectors – commercial, housing and civil engineering – for the first time since summer 2012.

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Royal Mail plans roll-out of SRM system

The postal operator has enrolled its 50 largest vendors in its supplier relationship management system and now plans to increase that number.

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Small business managers lack procurement skills

Business owners believe senior managers should take responsibility for procurement strategy, but one in three do not feel ready for this.

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H&M buyers to get water efficiency training

The retailer has collaborated with the World Wide Fund for Nature to develop a water strategy, which will include training purchasers on how water is used in production processes.

Posted in 2013, cat-news, Ed's choice sustainability, International, News, Purchasing, Supply chain, Sustainability | Comments Off on H&M buyers to get water efficiency training

Government launches commissioning academy

“Sharing new approaches needs to be done consistently, quickly, and effectively,” said Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude, as he announced a new academy to train commissioners.

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Procurement breaches over upgrades to president Zuma’s house

An investigation found no public money was used to build the private home of the South African president Jacob Zuma, but procurement irregularities for security upgrades have been found, which are paid for out of the public purse.

Posted in 2013, cat-news, News, Public sector, Purchasing, Southern Africa | Comments Off on Procurement breaches over upgrades to president Zuma’s house

MoD allocates £4.8 billion to deal with cost rises

For the first time, the Ministry of Defence has budgeted for cost increases in equipment requirements in its 10-year plan for the UK military.

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Manufacturing sector expansion continues in 2013

The industry experienced growth for the second month in a row, according to the latest Purchasing Managers’ Index, with production reaching a 16-month high in January.

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Tesco terminates deal with supplier over ‘horse burgers’

The retailer said the “breach of trust” with its supplier had been too great for it to continue to be supplied by the company after horse meat was discovered in burgers.

Posted in 2013, cat-news, News, Purchasing, Risk & continuity, Supply chain | Comments Off on Tesco terminates deal with supplier over ‘horse burgers’

Five tips to create an award-winning procurement team

Previous winners of the CIPS Supply Management Awards shared advice with close to 100 buyers yesterday, explaining how investment, innovation and taking risks supported their entries.

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