Tuesday
21Mar2006
Procurement and the Principle of Subsidiarity
Tuesday, March 21, 2006 at 09:23PM Interesting editorial in the opinion section in the Minnesota Daily. Concerns about oil scarcity of energy are discussed along with the eventual scenario of gas prices reaching $7.00 per gallon.
The editorial theorizes that the material affluence of the U. S. middle-class has become an Achilles’ heel that is leading our nation headlong toward its final demise. The United States has become dependent on our ability to transport huge volumes of goods across vast distances. Eight billion barrels of oil the United States consumed in 2005 with more than two-thirds used to fuel our transportation needs.
A solution is offered by applying the principle of subsidiarity...
Besides efforts to increase the fuel efficiency of mechanized transportation, the idea that whatever decisions and activities can be done locally should be done locally is bound to gain traction in the age of oil scarcity. This is known as the principle of subsidiarity — that is, attempts to satisfy local needs should begin with local production before moving on to more geographically expansive levels of regional, national and world scales.
Sourcing materials and supplies locally would be an intriguing challenge to the procurement profession. Developing suppliers and manufacturing capability to minimize the impact of high transportation costs would be like returning to the 1800's.
Here is the link to the editorial:
View Printer Friendly Version
Email Article to Friend
Reader Comments (1)
Since you mention "scarcity" of oil, my question is. No matter what has happened with oil prices and political turmoil in the last two years, have any of your readers (except those whose local gas stations may physically have been destroyed due to the hurricanes) actually seen a lack of gasoline at the local pump. I doubt it. The pumps have consistently been filled to the top with gasoline costing a significant percentage more than it did the week or day before. Where indeed is the oil shortage?
Thinking about it now, the same questions apply to paper and cardboard. Though we are always told price is dependent on the mills and their production, have any of your readers ever not been able to purchase copy paper or cardboard for their packaging? Though the prices have sometimes jumped sharply, not one time in the past 8 years have I not been able to purchase copy paper.
Apparently, someone in the supply chain (regardless of commodity), must define "scarcity" different than the rest of us.
Matthew W. Grant
www.PurchaseRealm.com