EDF is trying to attract contractors for the Britain’s largest construction project

EDF Energy, a British subsidiary of Électricité de France, intents to build four new EPR reactors in the UK by 2025. EPR reactor is a new generation of nuclear plants, developed by Areva NP, Electricité de France (EDF), and Siemens AG. The arrangements for plants in Hinkley Point and Sizewell have already been made and hundreds of contractors will be involved. This project is going to be one of Britain’s largest construction projects. More...

Much attention has been focussed on improving the efficiency of public spending. The new government has stressed its intention to target spending rather than taxation and to avoid cutting spending on front line services. More...

In January, I commented on the supplier to buyer relationship and the changes brought about by market swings. Now, events in the wake of the global economic downturn have occasioned a further interesting perspective to the buyer/supplier dynamic. More...

How do you assess the financial standing of a company fairly given that annual accounts are historic in nature? In the wake of a devastating recession, this is a major concern for suppliers and buyers alike.  Many experienced, reliable and sound suppliers are failing to make the tender list because their turnover in the last two years falls short of required thresholds. More...

Just when does a Social Responsibility initiative become material? In my view, it’s when it can be measured. If real performance on social issues is to become the norm for all mainstream corporations, then we need to fill out our success stories with clear measures of success. More...

In many respects, the global recession has helped raise the profile of Procurement. Corporate bodies have spent the last twelve months focused on cost reduction and, over that period, have paid particular attention to the way a more structured and strategic approach to procurement practice can bring rewards to the organisation. And there is evidence to suggest this approach is paying off. More...

A source of supply chain risk that threatens to play a significant role in the near future is a supplier’s commitment to reducing carbon emissions. Only last month Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, announced that it would cut 20 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions from its supply chain by the end of 2015 – the equivalent of removing more than 3.8 million cars from the road for a year. More...

Despite the recent recovery in global trading conditions, a significant risk from supplier failure still exists. Indeed, the experience from past recessions is that the most dangerous times for widespread bankruptcies is in the first stages of recovery. Although credit availability may be a little better than it was a year ago, the financial security of many suppliers remains an open question. More...

The trend over recent years to outsource ever more sensitive functions has significantly increased a company’s exposure to risk. Over the same period, reputation and the value of the brand have grown in importance too, a combination that has placed a heavy emphasis on the impact suppliers have on the reputation and performance of the enterprise. More...

Do you know how many sub-contract workers you have working on site? How many contractors are working for tier -two, three or four suppliers? Just what visibility and control do you have of your supply chain and what risks are you exposed to in regards Health & Safety compliance of second or third-tier suppliers who may be visiting your sites on a daily basis? What would be the consequences and liabilities of a fatal accident caused by, say, a tier-three sub-contract worker? More...

The collapse in the price of oil, from $147 a barrel in July 2008 to a low of $40 last March, turned the tide for the buyer/supplier dynamic as spending on projects and exploration activity hit the buffers. Before the dramatic fall in the market, suppliers had been in the comfortable position of generally being able More...

No company ever truly got hurt by a supply chain scandal, or so says conventional wisdom.  And there is evidence that may appear to support this: Mattel came under the spotlight in 2007 when their toys were subject to a series of product recalls in a toy safety story that simply refused to go away. The events escalated and reverberated around the business and political sphere culminating in the tragic suicide of the manager of a supplier company in China. More...

In just about every organisation the focus is on the largest suppliers, the most critical. And with regards to gathering data on suppliers it may make perfect sense for a purchasing department to allocate resources to where the greatest proportion of activity occurs. But when it comes to risk, dangers are equally likely at any point in the supplier base, whether the supplier be large or small. More...

Welcome to the first Achilles Blog – a new regular two-weekly updated commentary and forum for debate on issues challenging the procurement and supply chain space. With such a wealth of cross-industry knowledge and in-house expertise at Achilles we felt we should be more active in expressing our opinion and views on issues affecting procurement and risk management in the supply chain. More...