Purchasing

With material costs at all-time highs, manufacturers are under serious pressure to rein in costs and improve profitability. Smart purchasing decisions, innovative strategies and better relationships with suppliers can all work to mitigate those cost increases while reducing the impact of cost fluctuations.

Dealing With Contract Risks
Negotiating a good deal is an essential aspect of procurement, but it's easy to oversimplify negotiations as only a matter of getting the best price from a supplier.

While the primary objective of a negotiation may be to purchase a quantity of a certain part at a particular price, other issues should be examined carefully. For example, you might find a supplier who offers a very low price but, on further investigation, turns out to be employing illegal labor or using potentially harmful materials in its product. Those unintended consequences of a seemingly simple transaction can be extremely damaging to a company's reputation and its bottom line.

According to Dave Zechnich, a partner with Deloitte, it's important to enter a negotiation understanding two things -- what is your business objective and what are the risks that could prevent you from achieving those objectives.

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Purchasing Articles & News

Supply Chain Risk Becomes Strategic Imperative as Need for Cost Cutting Continues

Cost-cutting measures continue to supersede longer-term investment-driven directives.

11/19/2009

Saving on Paper Really is Greener

e-Lynxx promises their print procurement process will save customers 25%, or the service is free.

11/18/2009

Supply Chain Risks

Material costs, supplier stability cited by manufacturers.

11/18/2009

Green Shoots for U.S. Manufacturing Technology Consumption?

September's purchase of manufacturing technology and equipment was up 17.8% from August.

11/18/2009

North American Robot Orders Slide

Orders are down 30% in the first nine months of 2009, industry trade group reports.

11/11/2009

Dealing With Contract Risks

Negotiating a good deal is an essential aspect of procurement, but it's easy to oversimplify negotiations as only a matter of getting the best price from a supplier.

10/21/2009

Are You Cued in to Cultural Intelligence?

Understanding the culture of the parties you are negotiating with is vital in order to establish a successful business relationship.

10/21/2009

GM Daewoo Files Action Over Car 'Copying' by Russia Firm

Filed to prevent TagAZ Korea from breaching GM Daewoo's intellectual property rights and trade secrets

9/22/2009

5 Best Practices Toward Contract Compliance

Companies lose nearly 3-5% of savings opportunities because of auto-renewing evergreen contracts.

9/21/2009

Managing Supplier Information in a Dynamic Environment

Sophisticated software systems offer help to companies facing more complex supply chains and new information needs.