§ Mr. Marplesasked the Postmaster-General of the products procured by his Department regularly for three years or more, what proportion has, within the last three years, been specifically reviewed to evaluate product design against present need and potential cost reduction.
§ Mr. StonehouseIn the procurement of major plant and equipment, Post Office policy is moving towards the use of performance specifications, which will enable suppliers to meet requirements in their own way and to seek cost reductions in a competitive environment. Cost reduction is an essential part of the duties of engineers responsible for the design of tens of thousands of products used by the Post Office, and this is a constant process as new ideas are developed. A team of engineers trained in value analysis, was set up in 1968; their efforts are being directed to projects where savings are most readily realisable and continuing annual savings of £800,000 have already been identified. A clause is being included in all invitations to tender for stores, giving tenderers the opportunity of offering alternative articles which they consider will meet requirements, and a clause insisting on the use of value engineering techniques is being included in all suitable development contracts.
§ Mr. Marplesasked the Postmaster-General what committee exists within his Department to co-ordinate procurement policies; what is its composition and terms of reference; and how often it meets.
§ Mr. StonehouseAll aspects of procurement in the Post Office were brought together in 1968 into a new department under an under secretary. One of his main responsibilities is the co-ordination of policies, which he does by a wide variety of formal and informal means.
§ Mr. Marplesasked the Postmaster-General whether manuals of procurement instructions and regulations are provided for procurement officers in his Department; and what arrangements are made to ensure compliance.
§ Mr. StonehouseYes. Compliance is a matter of normal departmental supervision and discipline.
§ Mr. Marplesasked the Postmaster-General what proportion of procurement 302W staff in his Department are late entrants into the Civil Service with more than one year's previous commercial experience of procurement.
§ Mr. StonehouseOur records do not show the information so far as executive and clerical staff are concerned. As regards the professional staff, about 40 per cent. of technical cost officers and 9 per cent. of the engineers and scientists who are associated with procurement are late entrants with experience in industry having a direct bearing on the function they now perform. However, this experience was not necessarily related to procurement.
§ Mr. Marplesasked the Postmaster-General what are the salaries of the most senior officer with full-time responsibility for procurement, and of those reporting directly to him.
§ Mr. StonehouseThe most senior officer, the Director of Purchasing and Supply, is an under-secretary with a salary of £5,500 (plus £125 p.a. London weighting) before the recent review. His immediate subordinates have salaries of £5,080 (2), £4,950, £4,815 and £4,334 (plus London weighting).
§ Mr. Marplesasked the Postmaster-General what staff, by number and grades, is allocated full-time to standardisation and variety reduction within his Department.
§ Mr. StonehouseOne assistant staff engineer, one senior executive engineer and one draughtsman are employed full-time on general questions relating to standards and metrication. The engineers responsible for the design and development of equipment and stores are organised broadly on a functional product basis. Part of their duties is to strive to adopt national or international standards and reduce the number of varieties of items to the greatest extent that is practicable and economic. The Post Office attaches great importance to this, as is evidenced by its membership of over 300 B.S.I. committees and sub-committees and its full participation in all C.C.I.T.T. and C.C.I.R. standardisation work.
§ Mr. Marplesasked the Postmaster-General to which professional institutes and institutions procurement staff belong; and how many of the staff belong to each of these professional bodies.
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§ Mr. StonehouseStaff in the purchasing and supply department belong to the following professional bodies:
Institution of Electrical Engineers 41 Institute of Chartered Accountants 19 Royal Institute of Chemistry 15 Institution of Metallurgists 7 Institute of Purchasing and Supply 5 Institution of Electronic and Radio Engineers 4 Institution of Engineering Inspection 3 Association of Certified and Corporate Accountants 3 Institution of Mechanical Engineers 2 Institute of Physics and the Physical Society 2 Institute of Cost and Works Accountants 1 British Computer Society 1 Chemical Society 1 Horological Institute 1 Institute of Materials Handling 1 Institution of Production Engineers 1 Institute of Public Supplies 1 Royal Statistical Society 1 Institute of Work Study Practitioners 1 110
§ Mr. Marplesasked the Postmaster-General what is the average length of service in the procurement function of staff currently allotted to it.
§ Mr. StonehouseExcluding clerical and ancillary staff, about 15 years.
Grade Contracts Supplies Factories Control General Controlling … 6 10 6 4 3 Executive … 169 355 39 12 5 Clerical and machine … 225 1,123 190 87 2 Secretarial … 34 94 18 4 2 Engineering and Drawing Office … 14 21 24 769 — Scientific and Experimental … —. — — 165 7 Accountancy and Technical Cost 63 — — — — Operative … — 2,344 2,732 5 — Miscellaneous … 9 406 91 31 — Total … 520 4,353 3,100 1,077 19 The total staff in post at 31st March in the three preceding years was:
1968 … … … … 494 4,356 3,044 1,009 17 1967 … … … … 462 4,212 3,101 — — 1966 … … … … 456 4,193 3,091 — — The Control and General Divisions, combining functions which were previously located in other Departments, were set up in 1968.