UK companies fail to keep track of e-procurement

NEWS UK manufacturers are risking following Rover to the wall if they continue to ignore the benefits of buying online. That's according to research from e-procurement firm MRO. Speaking in a silicon.com video interview, Rudie Roy, director of MRO, said companies which have to spend money maintaining out-dated systems are risking losing touch with the competition. Roy also claimed the closure of Rover's Longbridge manufacturing plant might have been avoided had the company streamlined its online procurement strategy. He said: "An up-to-date e-procurement strategy would have improved the company's position to compete abroad as the management would have been able to focus on the effectiveness of core business rather than the actual production environment." Duncan Brown, consultant at Ovum, said that in the long run, an efficient e-procurement system is one of the key strategies firms need to adopt to tackle competition. He said: "A poorly managed e-procurement project is just one factor of a company's demise. When a well-managed system is in place, it will contribute in improving the cost and thus leave the company better prepared for competition." According to MRO's research, 38 per cent of UK firms are using the Internet for purchasing of equipment or services. Adoption figures for Sweden, Italy and Germany stand at 36, 12 and 42 per cent respectively. The company questioned 300 European companies. You can watch the full interview in the Manufacturing Channel (http://www.silicon.com/37750 ).