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The present packaging materials purchasing procedures of a wine and spirits manufacturing company are analysed and reviewed with respect to updating its information gathering and procurement techniques. Established practices can be improved by performance audits and strategic procurement scenarios. Purchasing teams are better able to obtain favourable terms from suppliers without loss of quality or service.

The packaging materials purchasing procedures of a wine and spirits manufacturing company are analysed and reviewed with respect to updating its information gathering and procurement techniques. Established practices can be greatly enhanced with meaningful performance audits and strategic procurement scenarios. These all add up to make the purchasing team better equipped to negotiate more favourable terms from suppliers without loss of quality and service levels.

HERALDED by a leading article in The Times which appeared on the morning of its publication, the Report on the Public Libraries System of Great Britain by Mr. Lionel R. McColvin is now available. It will, without doubt, be the most carefully read current work in its own field, and its suggestions will be subjected to the closest scrutiny. Our correspondent in “Letters on Our Affairs” makes the first step in our pages in this direction, although, as he indicates, his views are merely preliminary. Last month we suggested that if such a report were issued by the Library Association, it should be made quite clear that it is the pronouncement of an individual and not an official document in the strict sense. Already, of course, as The Times leader seems to suggest, the distinction between Mr. McColvin's work and the views of the Library Association have been confused in the public mind. That was inevitable. But we understand that the Association at a later time will issue its own considered statement of what it thinks to be necessary and practicable in the re‐construction of the library service—if, indeed, it is reconstructed—to meet after‐war needs. On the whole, the book is quite readable and betrays very little of the hurry in which it must have been written: its facts seem to be sound and marshalled with considerable skill; its general outlook is generous. With much of it there will not only be agreement; there will be enthusiastic agreement. In so far as it is a proposed system for post‐war organization, it follows the lines already suggested by the Regional Systems created for Civil Defence, involving larger library areas administered from what Mr. McColvin believes to be the central town or other focus of each area. The counties as such disappear, the smaller towns and villages merge into the central town, and so we get in one way or another a cohesive, self‐sufficient and mutually supporting set of libraries in each area. It is around the choice of area and all its implications that discussion will rage and upon which it will be most difficult to obtain general consent. These units, however, while essential to Mr. McColvin's scheme, cannot be regarded other than as proposals to be discussed. Librarians will be quick to see that many of them will become branch librarians if the scheme matures, but in every one of the many schemes we have seen for post‐war re‐construction, larger units than the present ones are invariably implied, and this of necessity means the disappearance as chief officers of many now holding office. This is only one item in a whole series of discussable proposals. We hope that every one or our readers will study the Report and will bring to the common discussions that must be forthcoming a complete and, we hope, impartial understanding of what is involved.

In a previous monograph a discussion took place on stages one and part of stage two of the three stage process in an unfair dismissal action, namely the employee having to show that he has been dismissed (stage one), and some of the reasons for dismissal which fall within the statutory categories, namely the employee's capability and qualifications; misconduct and redundancy (part of stage two). In this monograph an analysis is proposed on the two remaining reasons, these being the contravention of a duty imposed by an enactment and some other substantial reason. There will then follow a discussion on the test of fairness as constituting the third of the three stage process and on the remedies available when the tribunal finds that the employee has been unfairly dismissed.

IT is evident from the numerous press cuttings which are reaching us, that we are once more afflicted with one of those periodical visitations of antagonism to Public Libraries, which occasionally assume epidemic form as the result of a succession of library opening ceremonies, or a rush of Carnegie gifts. Let a new library building be opened, or an old one celebrate its jubilee, or let Lord Avebury regale us with his statistics of crime‐diminution and Public Libraries, and immediately we have the same old, never‐ending flood of articles, papers and speeches to prove that Public Libraries are not what their original promoters intended, and that they simply exist for the purpose of circulating American “Penny Bloods.” We have had this same chorus, with variations, at regular intervals during the past twenty years, and it is amazing to find old‐established newspapers, and gentlemen of wide reading and knowledge, treating the theme as a novelty. One of the latest gladiators to enter the arena against Public Libraries, is Mr. J. Churton Collins, who contributes a forcible and able article, on “Free Libraries, their Functions and Opportunities,” to the Nineteenth Century for June, 1903. Were we not assured by its benevolent tone that Mr. Collins seeks only the betterment of Public Libraries, we should be very much disposed to resent some of the conclusions at which he has arrived, by accepting erroneous and misleading information. As a matter of fact, we heartily endorse most of Mr. Collins' ideas, though on very different grounds, and feel delighted to find in him an able exponent of what we have striven for five years to establish, namely, that Public Libraries will never be improved till they are better financed and better staffed.

The purpose of this article is to provide a critical analysis of court decisions on what amounts to a dispute that may be referred to adjudication under the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996.

Legal research methods were followed. The first stage entailed a review of relevant literature. Reports of court decisions were then studied to identify cases involving litigation on what amounts to a dispute. A total of 26 cases, going back to 1965, were identified. Each case was then analysed to extract the applicable legal principles, particular attention being paid to clarity and consistency with not only other cases but also the policy underlying the relevant legislation.

Until only recently, first instance judges adopted the one or the other of two opposing approaches to the question, thereby causing considerable litigation. The Court of Appeal has twice approved a flexible approach based on the principle that a dispute arises only after a party has been given reasonable opportunity to consider the other party's claim and has rejected it expressly or by implication.

The novelty and global spread of adjudication lends the article considerable originality and value. Its main value is in the guidance it provides as to the principles that the court is likely to apply in answering the question whether a dispute capable of being referred to arbitration or adjudication exists. It is hoped that knowledge of these principles will reduce litigation on this issue.

PUBLIC librarians have had some experience of economy in this last month at the considering of annual estimates. In many towns, unfortunately, an increase in the general rates is reported, and in all such times libraries are likely to suffer. The note we make below on Yarmouth does not show that one of the causes of the curious municipal hysteria it reveals was the burning desire to reduce the rates. That desire is in itself wholly laudable, and librarians can acquiesce in economies that do not discriminate against libraries. Our trouble is that libraries have nowhere yet been adequately financed, and reductions are more serious for them than for many departments which have never suffered from utter lack of means.

Examines the situation in the UK in some detail with regard to three aspects of the Charter of Fundamental Human Rights of the European Union. Looks at the aims, together with an analysis and appraisal. Considers, first, information and consultation rights with regards to the transfer of undertakings and redundancies, followd by the right to collective action and, lastly, protection in the event of unjustifiable dismissal. Presents case law throughout as examples. Concludes that the UK has attempted to prevent social and economic rights for workers from being included in the final charter despite fierce opposition. Compares this view together with the UK suspicion of Europe against the views of the other member states.

As we stand on threshold of 3E crisis of economics, ecology and emotions, organizations need innovative approach to replace the business model of last era. The business model has reduced humans to either consumers or resources to produce. My research is based on startling employee survey results of non-engagement, lack of “heart” and “values” at work, observing employees and management in different organizations as human resources head in mindless chasing of profits and devaluing human potential. My personal journey of practicing Yoga and research of Patanjali Yoga Sutras have revealed insights, shown the Pathway and given practices of how human beings can participate in personal evolution creating shift in organizations’ mindset. Inner compass of ethics through self-governance, truth, non-violence, non-stealing and self- learning as organization development interventions can create culture of the organization.

A reliability analysis of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) system is presented for applications with strict constant power supply requirements, such as data centers. The purpose is to demonstrate the effect when moving from a module-level to a system-level in terms of reliability, also considering effects during start-up and degradation.

In-house experimental data on a system-level are used to capture the behavior during start-up and normal operation, including drifts of the operation point due to degradation. The system is assumed to allow replacement of stacks during operation, but a minimum number of stacks in operation is needed to avoid complete shutdown. Experimental data are used in conjunction with a physics-based performance model to construct the failure probability function. A dynamic program then solves the optimization problem in terms of time and replacement requirements to minimize the total negative deviation from a given target reliability.

Results show that multi-stack SOFC systems face challenges which are only revealed on a system- and not on a module-level. The main finding is that the reliability of multi-stack SOFC systems is not sufficient to serve as sole power source for critical applications such as data center.

The principal methodology may be applicable to other modular systems which include multiple critical components (of the same kind). These systems comprise other electrochemical systems such as further fuel cell types.

The novelty of this work is the combination of mathematical modeling to solve a real-world problem, rather than assuming idealized input which lead to more benign system conditions. Furthermore, the necessity to use a mathematical model, which captures sufficient physics of the SOFC system as well as stochasticity elements of its environment, is of critical importance. Some simplifications are, however, necessary because the use of a detailed model directly in the dynamic program would have led to a combinatorial explosion of the numerical solution space.