Category Archives: manufacturing

Why Quality is important and why we need more of it

January 5, 2010 – 3:04 pm

A bunch of people out there believe that doing things better is the answer to our economic woes. I can’t argue with that, so I’ve recently joined the Chartered Quality Institute as its External Affairs spokesman, because I firmly believe that until and unless we get to grips with the wholly unnecessary and avoidable malaise which has [...]

By John Kelly | Also posted in British identity, Business, Development, Economics, Education, Finance, Welfare State, consumers, management strategy, public sector reform | Tagged , , , | Comments (2)

Britain's Japanese train contract will create 200-500 new jobs, not 15,000. Why are we not surprised?

February 16, 2009 – 12:21 pm

The UK Department of Transport (DOT) may have seen last week as another ‘good time to bury bad news’. Gordon Brown announced that the government had awarded the contract to upgrade our antiquated 125 Intercity trains to a consortium led by Hitachi of Japan. It is almost 7 years to the day since Stephen Byers was [...]

By John Kelly | Also posted in Business, Economics, Finance, Technology, transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

A raga of Tata, Land Rover and Jaguar, as British as Tetley's Tea

December 18, 2008 – 1:55 pm

  Margaret Thatcher privatised Jaguar in 1984 to howls of protest from people who liked big rusty cars that broke down a lot. Ford bought the brand for $2.5 billion in 1990, to more howls from Bufton Tufton (67) stalwart of the Enoch Powell Golf Club, Jaguar’s only customer. Sales fell to around 15,000 units [...]

By John Kelly | Also posted in Asia, Autos, Business, Economics, Finance, India, Technology, UK politics, Welfare State, transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off