Events

CEIA and IDA April Business Briefing

April 14th, Maryborough House Hotel           

Speakers and CEIA members at the Cork Electronics Industry Association and IDA April business briefing.		From L/R: Ray O'Connor IDA, Neil O'Brien Quantum Business Solutions and Paul Deasey chairman of the CEIA.

Rosarie Quinlan and Lynda O'Connell attending the April business briefing		Audience at the Cork Electronics Industry Association  and IDA April business briefing. Pics John Lotty

Presentations:

Neil O’Brien

Quantum Business Solutions

 

Exploring the ways of addressing the costs in services are such as Canteen, Security & Cleaning, in addition to review the implementation of Zero Based Budgets. Neil O’Brien spent over 15 years working as a Management Accountant in the U.S. the U.K. and Ireland. During that period he worked for companies such as Smithkline Beecham, Pfizer and EMC. In 2003 Neil bought started his own business ‘Quantum Business Solutions’ specialising in cost diminution.

Jonathan Fitzpatrick

Exemplar Energy Solutions
 
Energy management has been undervalued and poorly co-ordinated and
given its ever increasing costs organisations that adopt a proactive approach will benefit from significant cost reductions. Exemplar Energy provides clients with affordable and economicsolutions to reduce energy consumption costs, detailing specific products and processes which will help achieve reductions of up to 30% in energy costs. Jonathan Fitzpatrick is a power analyst with Exemplar Energy. Prior to his appointment, he served as Energy procurement officer for EllenConstruction, with responsibility for all commercial sites within Ireland/UK and the United Arab Emirates. Jonathan advises Retail Excellence Ireland member companies as the approved Energy adviser.

Con Cronin  

GVA Donal O Buachalla
Rates represent an onerous overhead for any business (one which has grown well ahead of inflation) and stem from a complex system which provides that only 8% of property occupiers pay the entire rates bill within the State. The core objective of this presentation is to review ways of keeping rates liability to an absolute minimum.


John Finn
Treasury Solutions

The high level of volatility of the Euro against its major trading currencies requires that companies deal with FX Risk Management on a much more formal and integrated basis. Treasury Solutions explores ways of: Devise FX Hedging strategy as a pre-cursor to investment and/or acquisition activity. Devise FX Risk Management strategy where borrowings are in a currency other that EUR.  Assess the impact of foreign exchange rate movements on EUR dominated prices where goods are supplied from outside the Eurozone but invoiced in EUR to Irish Companies Undertake accounting and foreign exchange projects (especially for both multi-nationals and high-tech export oriented companies) Devise foreign exchange risk management strategies where companies have material exposure on either their purchases or sales to movements in foreign exchange rates in order to assist in the achievement of profit targets, margin attainment or financial covenant compliance.

 

Clodagh McGrath

Green Business.ie

Resource efficiency can be explained using some of these catch phrases: "Doing more with less"; "Being Cleaner and Leaner" – i.e. improving/optimising manufacturing and other commercial processes to reduce wastage of materials, components, water, energy and labour, where possible at source, and the use of hazardous substances in general. Resource efficiency work has many things in common with Lean Manufacturing and compliments product Eco-Design.It is far more cost-effective to apply a systematic approach to reducing wastage - improving equipment and practices – rather than just dealing with waste and emissions after they have been produced. It is, however, difficult to control waste and resource efficiency if it is not measured and tracked. "Measuring to Manage" is fundamental to improving efficiency and productivity and Greenbusiness.ie provide this.