The UK government was forced to pay out £24mn to Atos in an out-of-court settlement after the French IT group challenged the award of an £850mn contract to develop a supercomputer for forecasting weather and climate change to US rival Microsoft.

The French company, which was the only other shortlisted bidder, filed a lawsuit in May last year alleging breaches in the government’s obligations under the public procurement regulations but it was settled before it went to court.

The new supercomputer, which will be managed by the Met Office, is expected to be one of the most advanced in the world for weather prediction and climate change analysis. The cost of the overall project is put at £1.2bn.

The terms of the settlement were not disclosed at the time but the latest annual report of the Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy reveals there was a payout of £24mn to Atos without an admission of liability.

The opposition Labour party accused the government of wasting taxpayers’ money. “This is yet another example of the Conservatives failing to take care of public money. While families are counting every penny, the Tories are shelling out taxpayers’ cash to pay for their own mistakes,” said Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader.

The government said: “The proceedings regarding supercomputer procurement have been resolved with no admission of liability from any party. This settlement is in the best interest of taxpayers.” 

It added that an “independent review has assured that all procurement processes were followed and there were no failures associated with governance or lack of controls”.

In its lawsuit, Atos alleged the procurement process was not managed properly after its tender was non-compliant with technical specifications. The dispute centred on requirements to supply two test supercomputers and a development supercomputer in addition to the main supercomputer system, where the systems were all required to be “architecturally equivalent”.

Atos alleged that the government rejected its bid as “non compliant” on the basis that its proposal for a smaller development computer system used different processors in the main supercomputer, according to court documents.

The company claimed that the government made “obvious errors in the evaluation” of the bid and that the “Met Office has chosen a final tender which scored lower in quality, transferred more commercial risk to the Met Office and is more expensive”.

The Met Office and BEIS denied the allegations, and alleged that Atos proposed a non-compliant solution and that its offer was not “the most economically advantageous”.

Atos said in a statement that it was “pleased to have resolved this matter”.

The new computer is expected to be in the top 25 supercomputers in the world and will be used to more accurately predict storms as well as help select the most suitable locations for flood defences and predict changes to the global climate.

The new supercomputer will also provide detailed information for the energy sector to help it take action against potential blackouts and power surges.

Mumbai: Pandemic preparedness and supply chain alignment will be the priorities in 2023 for the domestic pharma sector as the threat of a new variant of coronavirus looms large for several countries, including India. Medicines, boosters and diagnostics — key ammo for fighting Covid — are in the spotlight once again.
Additionally, a focus on quality will dominate the agenda for pharma companies in the wake of recent deaths of children in Gambia and Uzbekistan, potentially due to adulterated cough syrups, industry experts told TOI.
The year 2022 had started with the country rolling out booster shots as the Omicron variant became dominant. Pharma companies prepared for the surge, built up huge stocks of key medicines, and launched oral antiviral pills. Thereafter, once the caseload reduced, they got back to boosting non-Covid portfolios and brand-building.
“Pandemic planning is back in the spotlight in the wake of global concerns around the spread of Covid in certain countries. Also, the China-plus-one strategy has become important with frequent disruptions, geopolitical issues and emphasis on self-reliance,” said Sujay Shetty, global health industries advisory leader at PwC India.
Zydus Lifesciences chairman Pankaj Patel told TOI, “The industry’s capabilities as a reliable supplier of drugs, resilience to deal with challenging healthcare situations and making breakthroughs with innovation were the highlights of 2022. Despite supply chain challenges due to the surge in demand of certain drugs multiple times in a short period, the industry was able to ensure consistent supplies. Also, vaccine development and supply for the mass vaccination programme proved India is ‘Atma Nirbhar’.”
Regarding the year ahead, Patel said, “In 2023, the industry is confident of tackling healthcare challenges, if the situation occurs again. It is by no means a small achievement that India today is the only country which has therapies approved for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which are unmet healthcare needs. Also, there is work being done on rare and orphan diseases, which have no treatment as of today, globally. So, in 2023 and beyond, we should be seeing Indian innovation coming into its own.”
Quality and innovation will be a core topic for the industry. Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance’s secretary general Sudarshan Jain summed up the main themes as innovation, quality, expanding global reach to Japan, China & Latin America, and self-reliance. “A focus on quality and in particular USFDA requirements will also dominate the agenda for 2023,” Shetty added.
Additionally, acceleration in digital transformation, e-pharmacies, telemedicine and a focus on preventive care will also be important. Further, deal activity will be lively in the sector, with a spate of mergers & acquisitions expected in active pharmaceutical ingredients (raw materials), formulations and health-tech.

P2P tech ‘can provide competitive edge in procurement’

David Doyle, CEO and co-founder of the AI-powered Forestreet platform, discusses procure-to-pay technology and what it means for the future of procurement.

Coupa & Ivalua issue advice on new German ESG law

Coupa, Ivalua & Inverto say new law demanding strict ESG auditing in supply chains forces global business to comply if they want to keep German customers.

Nearshoring happening ‘faster than expected’, says Gartner

A Gartner report suggests that small-to-medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are shifting to nearby suppliers in the face of ongoing economic and operational problems. 

Interos predicts five ‘new normal’ trends for supply chain

Andrea Little-Limbago of Interos is an operational resilience specialist. These are her five predictions for what ‘new normal’ will look like in 2023.

McKinsey 5-point plan on supply chain digital transformation

McKinsey publishes digital transformation guidance for organisations seeking to mitigate disruption from ongoing supply chain shocks.

Open source ‘a threat to software supply chains’ – report

New research shows that open-source code is an increasing problem in the security of the software supply chain, and that most software “ages like milk, not wine”.

Linear supply chains prone to disruption says SAP

SAP survey shows how post-pandemic perceptions of supply chains have changed, and concludes that supply networks are more robust than linear supply chains.

Protesters in Victoria gathered as part of a nationwide rally to oppose the federal purchase of 88 Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets.

The procurement, announced in a statement in March of last year, was planned after Lockheed Martin’s proposal was chosen from what the Canadian government called a “multi-step assessment process.”

With the aircraft slated to change hands as early as 2025, protesters are hoping to sway the minds of legislators with petitions, open letters and rallies.

Cory Greenless, who works with the Victoria Peace Coalition said the goals of the rally, which was held Jan. 7, were to raise awareness and educate the public about the planes, plans and possible consequences of buying the F-35 jets.

“These are aggressive war planes, they really can’t be considered defensive weapons,” Greenless said. “They have the capability of carrying nuclear bombs and the emissions are enormous, so at this time in the climate emergency, it seems so fool-hardy to be spending what has been estimated to be $77 billion for these new jets over their lifetime.”

Despite the $19 billion the Canadian government has earmarked for the planes, Greenless and the Victoria Peace Coalition believe costs associated with their upkeep will be much higher – to the tune of $77 billion. They cited repair and maintenance as “lifetime costs” for the planes, which Greenless said will beef up the overall price.

The cost, carbon emissions and capabilities of the aircraft are among her top concerns but she also said there are a number of humanitarian issues that would benefit from the funding allocated for the fighter jets and emphasized that carbon emissions from their use won’t help in the climate emergency or aid in the transition from a carbon-based economy.

“The drug crisis has taken an enormous toll, the pandemic itself, the whole housing issue, there are so many other things this money could be used for – to help refugees, to help students, to help artists, I mean all of the human needs that we have that deserve being taken care of,” Greenless said.

With concurrent protests organized as far as Halifax, this movement is far-reaching across Canada, all in the hope that voicing concerns could stall or end the purchase of the Lockheed Martin F-35 jets.

“I feel very strongly that this is a wrong decision by the government, a very dangerous decision and such a poor use of public money,” she said. “From a money point-of-view, from a weapons point-of-view, from a climate point-of-view, this is just the wrong path for Canada to go down.”

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Protesters from the Victoria Peace Coalition gathered Saturday (Jan. 7) on the corner of Government Street and Humboldt Street to protest against the federal purchase of 88 fighter jets. (Hollie Ferguson/News Staff)

TRUCKEE, Calif. — Are you interested in transportation and mobility within the Truckee and North Lake Tahoe Region? Would you like to get more involved and help the community move mobility in the right direction? Don’t miss an opportunity to join the Truckee North Tahoe Transportation Management Association Board of Directors. 

The association’s Tahoe City/West Shore seat is up for special election and is accepting letters of interest with the seat vacant with no incumbent running. Applicants must be residents of the prospective area or represent a business located in the area. 

This is a special election, with the term ending in November 2026. All candidates running are eligible for subsequent four-year terms. Preferred qualifications include current employment or involvement in the transportation field, knowledge of regional and local transportation issues, and commitment to the association’s goal of improving air and water quality and economic stability through the development of transportation resources.

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Board members are required to attend monthly meetings, generally held the first Thursday of each month, typically 8-10 a.m. at the Town of Truckee Offices, and they are encouraged to become involved in transportation-related issues. There is also a hybrid option to attend the board meetings via Zoom.

Founded in 1990, the TNT-TMA is a public-private, nonprofit dedicated to developing innovative transportation solutions in the North Lake Tahoe-Truckee Resort Triangle. Its board consists of business and citizen representatives from North Lake Tahoe, Truckee, and Incline Village-Crystal Bay, and government representatives from counties and regional transportation planning agencies with responsibilities in the North Lake Tahoe-Truckee “Resort Triangle.”  

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Mail a letter of interest no later than Feb. 28, to: 

TNT-TMA Board, Attention: Sara Van Siclen, Executive Director, 10183 Truckee Airport Rd., Truckee, CA. 96161 or email to sara@tnttma.com.

The Board of Directors will evaluate interested candidate eligibility based on criteria included in the TNT-TMA Manual of Policies and Procedures. All eligible candidates will be placed on a ballot and sent to the TNT-TMA membership for final voting in March. The elected board member will be confirmed at the April 6, 2023 board meeting.

For more information, contact Sara Van Siclen at 530-582-4931 or sara@tnttma.com.

Maybe it happens in some cases but logic suggests there’s more to it than that. And there’s evidence that putting the addicted and the mentally ill together in large apartment buildings makes it harder, not easier, to get well.

A study I’ll refer to below found that 80 per cent of those experiencing homelessness, mental illness and addiction in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side have moved there from elsewhere.

But first, a friend alerted me this week to the writing of Michael Shellenberger, the author of San Fransicko: Why Progressives Ruin Cities. I’ll reserve judgment on some of his opinions on other matters, especially on things like climate change and nuclear energy, but he has some interesting things to say about homelessness.

He has his detractors — he’s been described by one advocate for the homeless as being “like an Internet troll that’s written a book.”

One of Shellenberger’s fundamental messages, based on interviews with hundreds of homeless in San Francisco, is that there isn’t a straight line from poverty to homelessness and addictions. It’s addiction that causes poverty and homelessness, not the other way around.

And he connects homelessness and crime via the theory of “victimology” in which society is reluctant to impose rules and consequences on the downtrodden. This fits with our own concerns about prolific offenders.

It reminds me of comments by Rick Eldridge, the security officer I’ve written about a couple of times. He believes most of the street people on Victoria Street West are engaged in criminal activity to support their habit, and is critical of what he considers inadequate response from the police and courts.

Packing the homeless into dedicated facilities exposes them all to each other’s issues. Which brings up the case of Dr. Julian Somers, a clinical psychologist and Simon Fraser University professor. Earlier this week, a National Post column told of his claim that the B.C. government is, in effect, censoring him for promoting the view that the province’s approach to homelessness is ineffective.

It’s actually an old story in that Somers has been making his point in the media for a couple of years. It involves the issue of a large database created over several years of the experiences of street-entrenched people, and a government order that the database be destroyed.

A key ingredient of his findings is that what is called ‘congregate housing’ should be replaced with a concept called ‘recovery oriented’ housing.

According to this model, congregate housing works for low income and seniors but not for those with addictions and mental illnesses because it places them in an environment of erratic behaviour and drug use.

The difference between congregate housing and recovery oriented housing is straight forward. Congregate housing would be what we see all around Kamloops — downtown, on the North Shore, in Valleyview and on Columbia Street West, where the homeless are warehoused in second-hand motels, construction trailers and a few purpose-built facilities.

Recovery oriented housing would see about five per cent of units in market housing occupied by those needing supportive housing. It’s a matter of putting them in scattered settings instead of single buildings. The reasoning is that social reintegration is key to recovery.

It’s more than a theory. Pilot projects, according to those who support the concept, have proven that it costs no more than congregate housing, reduces crime by 70 per cent, reduces medical emergencies by 50 per cent and is more effective at getting people back on their feet.

The statistics showed that 84 per cent of homeless people experiencing mental illness and addiction preferred independent housing to the alternative.

Somers, in a Vancouver Sun column two years ago, pointed out that a vaunted national strategy in Portugal emphasizes that overcoming addiction requires ending social exclusion. “Strictly speaking, there is no such thing as treatment without social reintegration.”

A Call for Action white paper presented by the SFU Centre for Applied Research in Mental Health and Addiction to the B.C. government in July 2021 called for a new program that would take referrals from four regions of the province using the recovery oriented approach. But the commitment to building single-purpose homelessness towers remains.

There’s clearly a divide between the Somers-SFU methodology and the NGOs and government agencies that run our housing programs but it seems to me they agree on one thing, and it’s that supportive housing in any form requires access to therapy and the oft-quoted and elusive “wrap-around services” to work.

That’s certainly clear in the Call for Action paper: “To be maximally effective, recovery oriented housing must be integrated with other services including sources of referral.”

So why can’t all parties — including the housing Establishment — take a serious look at the housing model itself? The solution to the problem is likely a combination of approaches but the solution is, indeed, out there if we’re willing to talk about it rather than censor it.

Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops, former TNRD director and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a recipient of the Jack Webster Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.

LONDON – News surfaced this week that Aeroflot purchased 10 Boeing 777s from an Irish lessor. What is Aeroflot trying to achieve from this?

The 10 Boeing 777-300ERs already possessed Aeroflot but were under leasing agreements.

However, due to the way sanctions have operated in the wake of the Ukraine Crisis, the Russian carrier is purchasing the jets not to strand them anymore.

Aeroflot’s Take…

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In a statement submitted to outlet TASS, Aeroflot said the following on the purchase:

“Aeroflot has bought out and acquired ownership of 10 Boeing 777-300ER long-haul aircraft, which have been under financial lease from an Irish leasing company since 2013 and 2014”.

“Aeroflot will continue to work on further implementation of transactions for the purchase of aircraft in order to maintain the current fleet of foreign-made aircraft in its own operation and expand the possibility of their operation.”

“This approach also confirms the reliability of Aeroflot as a counterparty that responsibly fulfills its contractual obligations.”

Was This Purchase Legal?

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In short, yes. In April 2022, the European Union implemented an amendment to its list of Russian-based sanctions that allowed lessors to sell aircraft in Russia.

The amendments stated that such payments can be accepted as long as the financial leases were concluded before February 26, 2022.

As Aeroflot has had the aircraft since 2013-14, this means that it falls within the criteria set out by the amendment.

Aeroflot has done the same already. Back in May 2022, the carrier bought out eight Airbus A330 aircraft from foreign lessors.

What Is Aeroflot’s Thinking?

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Airspace bans implemented as a result of sanctions do offer a level of confusion into why Aeroflot made this purchase in the first place.

On the international stage, Aeroflot has already had some trouble operating such flights, with the most notable being the detained A330 aircraft in Colombo back in June.

Whilst the ban was later lifted, such a lift was probably due to the purchases being made by the Russian carrier.

With this in mind, it does make sense that Aeroflot is buying out the aircraft leases.

In the context of Sri Lanka, Aeroflot purchasing such aircraft means that no lessors can place court orders on the leased aircraft, enabling them to operate internationally with no problems.

However, Aeroflot’s international route network continues to be limited due to such airspace bans, which is why the following question is needed:

Why 10 777s?

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Now, there could very well be an ulterior motive behind this purchase. So, as a disclaimer, this is purely speculative at this point, but it is a topic that needs to be raised: Spare parts.

With sanctions and enforcement actions being taken out by the West, this immediately limits the number of spare parts that Aeroflot can get its hands on.

For the Russian carrier and others operating within the country, this is beginning to become a major problem, with the government having to intervene.

In June, it was announced that China was going to supply Russia with spare parts for aircraft that are already grounded due to heavy maintenance issues.

By July, the Iranian Government announced that they would also supply the country with aircraft parts.

However, as there are sanctions on the Iranians and some parts of Chinese trade by world powers, even this supply will still be limited.

It could very well be suggested that this is another reason for direct purchasing power. It enables access to spare parts.

What Will This All Mean?

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Aeroflot could be purchasing the aircraft outright so then they don’t have as much drama on the international routes they serve, or they could very well be using them for spare parts.

The statement from the airline doesn’t really give that much of an indicator of the reasoning for purchase, other than them being a responsible carrier that “fulfills its contractual obligations”.

One thing that could be interesting is whether these 777s will be used on domestic Russian routes, especially as the demand for travel in that area is on the rise.

In the meantime, all eyes will be on Aeroflot to see how they are going to utilize these aircraft and whether it is part of an overall plan to remain operational and profitable.

Guests attend a Shein event in 2019.

Chinese fast-fashion retailer Shein says the backlog issues that saw furious customers converge on its South African logistic partner’s premises in the days before Christmas have been resolved with delivery back to normal.