ICT and e-Business in the Pulp, Paper and Paper ... - empirica

Pulp, paper and paper products
Among ICT-related manufacturing sectors, however, even more companies placed orders
online: about 70% (by employment) in the ICT manufacturing and consumer electronics
industries
In previous surveys, the relatively high adoption rates of online purchasing/ordering
always had to be qualified in terms of the share of e-procurement as percentage of the
total procurement volume. 54 A significant percentage of firms that purchased online said
that these purchases account for less than 5% of their total procurement. Obviously,
many companies only occasionally ordered products or services from suppliers online
(e.g. for office supplies), rather than practising e-procurement in a regular and systematic
way.
In the P&P industry, as in other sectors, a majority of about 75-80% of those companies
that place orders online said that these orders account for up to 25% of their total
procurement (see Exhibit 3-22). Again, the relative share of goods procured online is
somewhat higher in ICT related sectors, including the telecommunications industry.
Main type of supply goods ordered online
Online sourcing and procurement can relate to different types of inputs. These include
MRO goods, 55 raw materials, intermediary products and services. As indicated in the
introduction to this section, the survey confirms that raw materials (such as recovered
paper and woodpulp) have the highest importance for pulp and paper manufacturers in
their e-procurement strategy. About 25% of firms that place orders online say that these
orders are mainly for raw materials (see Exhibit 3-23). In particular, SMEs buy mainly raw
materials online; this comes as a surprise, as previous studies by e-Business W@tch
indicated that smaller companies would typically start with buying MRO goods from the
website of suppliers, rather than focusing on the core inputs for their production.
Among large companies, procurement schemes are rather all-encompassing. A majority
of 50% say that their e-procurement activity is not directed towards a certain type of good
or service, but that it is "mixed" (i.e. including many different kinds of supplies). In
general, raw materials are of course mostly relevant for manufacturing companies and
industries such as construction. In service sectors, MRO goods and services are more
important types of supplies.
54
55
Companies are asked to estimate how large a share of their total purchases (2003, 2005) /
orders (2006) is conducted online.
MRO goods are maintenance, repair, and operating supplies. This category typically includes
office supplies and diverse other items which are not materials or components directly used for
the products or services which a company produces.
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