New Supply Chain Model Published

New Supply Chain Model Published

The Supply Chain Council has released the latest version of its Supply Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) model. The improvement in Version 10.0 is that it includes people skills requirements to help organizations build supply chain competency and career paths. The new functionality allows outlining training needs and individual performance measures for each of the core process elements.

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Service Sector Reaches Twenty Month Low

Service Sector Reaches Twenty Month Low

Yesterday I described how manufacturing industry in the UK was on the upswing, but today a report from the British Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) found that activity in the services economy fell to a 20-month low in December. Activity in the sector is identified by the purchasing managers' index (PMI). The report also showed that employment in the service sector fell for the third month in a row.

The decline in the service industry could be in part due to the unusual weather that disrupted transportation; however December saw the first of the public sector job losses announced by the government. Whatever the root causes the decline in the service sector; the fall in the PMI was believed to have caused a further decline in the British currency.

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Economy Affecting Packaging Design

Economy Affecting Packaging Design

A recent report has found that the depressed nature of many economies has influenced the way in which product packaging has developed. Canadean, the British beverage information specialist, recently published a report that noted that prior to the depression in the world economy beverage packaging included many value-added features, unusual shapes, and sophisticated packaging materials.

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British Logistics Firms See Another Fuel Hike

British Logistics Firms See Another Fuel Hike

US freight companies are always concerned about the price of fuel, but they should be lucky that they are not operating in the UK. The Conservative government has added a number of costs that are hitting British logistics companies. January 1st sees a rise in fuel duty, which will add to the costs of a previous fuel duty rises in 2010 and a 15 percent increase on the cost of new vehicles.

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UK Manufacturing Increases In December

UK Manufacturing Increases In December

More positive economic news was reported by Bloomberg today when they stated that manufacturing in the United Kingdom in December increased at its fastest pace in sixteen years. Although politicians will point to various policies it has enacted since the minority Conservative government took over in May 2010, Bloomberg points to cheaper British exports being the primary reason for the increase. The British pound has fallen 7.8 percent over the last year when compared with the currencies of the leading ten developed nations.

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