User blogs
Bubble Wrap is deflating — and so is the American consumer
The maker of Bubble Wrap is seeing shares tumble Thursday after a brutal earnings announcement — and the implications go beyond the packaging industry. Get more news about Best Price Bubble Wrap,you can vist our website!
Sealed Air, which specializes in packaging supplies for e-commerce, meat, industrial goods and others, expected to see volume grow by 3% in 2022 but instead saw it drop by 6%.
Such declines were particularly pronounced in Sealed Air’s “protective” sector, which omits food. Volumes in protective were down a whopping 20% in the last quarter of 2022. Food packaging volumes dropped by 3%.
Meanwhile, the cardboard industry reported in Q4 that it saw box shipments decline by 8.4% compared to the last three months of 2021. That’s the largest downturn since the Great Recession.
The end of 2022 was pretty weak for trucking, too. In December, the Logistics Managers’ Index fell into contraction mode for the first time since April 2020. That was particularly spooky considering the fourth quarter of the year is when the trucking industry heats up in preparation for the holiday shopping season.
Inflation has forced many to spend less. That includes decreased spending on discretionary e-commerce goods and even grocery goods that Sealed Air specializes in packaging. Executives noted on Thursday’s earnings call that consumers were buying less “premium” protein, like red meat.
What’s more, Sealed Air executives said “destocking” is preventing more demand for their products. Retailers accrued more and more inventory through 2021 and ’22, but consumers suddenly cut back their spending last spring. That left big-box stores like Target and Walmart with “inventory bloat” — too much stuff and not enough sales.
There’s less demand for packaging products like Bubble Wrap (and Bubble Wrap-lined envelopes) even right now because of how overstocked some retail inventories have become. The U.S. Department of Commerce said Wednesday that American wholesale inventories saw their smallest decrease in 2.5 years in December.
Sealed Air CEO Ted Doheney said on the investor call that decreased consumer spending is clear “especially in things like electronics and e-commerce.”
Indicators outside transportation or packaging suggest a struggling consumer, even amid record-low unemployment. The rising cost of food, fuel and housing appears to be forcing consumers to put more on their credit cards and save less cash.
Credit card balances saw their biggest increase in 20 years from the second to third quarter of 2022, according to the latest available data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Americans saved just 3% of their monthly income in ’22, down from highs in ’20 around 30% and even the pre-COVID rate of around 8.8% in ’19, The Wall Street Journal reported in January.
An uptick this summer — or sooner?
Despite that, trucking may be showing some early indicators of a recovery in the goods economy — or at least that it has hit the bottom. FreightWaves SONAR truckload data suggests the market is firming up. And mega-carriers like Knight-Swift believe the market will rebound by this summer. Sealed Air’s Doheny believes the second half of 2023 will be cheerier. “The outlook for these markets is to stay challenged in the first half with a rebound in the second half of 2023,” he said.
Europe’s largest battery energy storage system launched in the UK
The revolutionary battery energy storage system is located at Pillswood near Cottingham, East Yorkshire, and is the largest energy storage system of its kind by megawatt-hour (MWh).Get more news about Battery Energy Storage,you can vist our website!
The £75m facility utilises Tesla Megapack technology and will provide a pivotal storage solution that will be vital for the country’s transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy.
Peter Kavanagh, Harmony Energy Limited’s CEO, said: “We are delighted that our Pillswood Project, Europe’s biggest battery energy storage system, has been officially opened.
“Funded by Harmony Energy Income Trust, this is the first of six similar projects the Trust intends to deliver in the coming year. It is also a significant achievement for Harmony: this project is the third and largest battery energy storage project which we have developed and delivered. “
How does the battery energy storage system work?
Harmony Energy Income Trust’s battery energy storage system allows the national grid to optimise the efficiency of renewable energy sources, such as wind farms.
Renewables such as solar and wind are not constantly produced; when it is not sunny or windy, no power is generated. This means that effective energy storage systems are essential for banking energy from renewables that can be distributed when required.
The company’s energy storage facility maximises the efficiency of wind farms by reducing the time it needs to be switched off (curtailed) because of supply and demand imbalances or network limitations.
The system will enable essential balancing services to the UK’s electricity grid and help to accelerate replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy.
How much energy can be stored?
The Pillswood project is located next to the National Grid’s Creyke Beck substation, which is also the connection point proposed for phases A and B of Dogger Bank – the largest offshore wind farm in the world – set to go live this summer.
The battery energy storage system can store up to 196 MWh of electricity in a single cycle, which is enough to fuel around 300,000 homes in Yorkshire for two hours.
Kavanagh added: “Battery energy storage systems are essential to unlocking the full potential of renewable energy in the UK, and we hope this particular one highlights Yorkshire as a leader in green energy solutions.”
The company plans to develop an array of battery energy storage systems across the UK, already boasting nine projects with a total capacity of 500MW/1GWh.
Fiber optic cable market in times of global crisis.
Recently, as a result of wide range of factors, including geopolitical ones, we can observe plummeting prices of raw materials, fuel, transport, and consequently final products. Needless to say, fiber optic sector has also been affected by this erratic situation.Get more news about Optical Cable Filling,you can vist our website!
Interestingly, even Financial Times published an article presenting the current situation on the fiber optic market. It clearly states that the noticeable growth of prices in mainly affected by the higher prices of semi-finished products, plastics, and most of all optical fibers. The shortage and increase of key components (e.g. helium and silicon tetrachloride) triggered prices for fiber rising up to 70% from March 2021.
Another reason for the higher prices is caused by the cable demand that increased by 8.1 % in the first half of the year compared with the same time last year. Although the pandemic prompted some of the biggest telecoms groups to reduce their capital expenditure, there has been a soaring demand for internet and data services. This has led to significant increases in lead times for orders, stretching out from 20 weeks to even 12 months!
Consequently, it is so important to plan the capex and all necessary purchases in advance.
At the same time, FIBRAIN is actively working on reducing the pressure of increasing costs, and thanks to a long-term strategy as well as investments in our production, including optical fiber, we are a stable partner providing the highest quality products and guaranteeing the continuity of supply while maintaing the market level of prices.
The lottery: Which states’ residents spend the most on tickets and scratch-offs?
The people of Massachusetts, more so than any other state, are really itching to spend their cash on scratch-offs and lottery tickets.Get more news about custom lottery tickets,you can vist our website!
That’s one of the major takeaways from a new study conducted by LendingTree, which sought to determine which states’ residents spend — and lose — the most cash on lottery games per capita.
The study, based on lottery data from the U.S. Census Bureau 2020 Annual Survey of State Government Finance, found that residents of Massachusetts spent a whopping $805.30 cents per capita on lottery and scratch-off tickets that year. For perspective, New York —where residents spent the second-most on lottery tickets in the country — had a per capita average of $455.93, according to the study.
Rhode Islanders, Georgians and Michiganders rounded out the top five, spending an average of $429.88, $429.51, and $408.51, respectively, per capita in 2020.
In addition to buying spending the most on lottery tickets, Massachusetts residents also spent the largest percentage of their income on these games when compared with the rest of the country: For every $1,000 of personal income, Bay Staters spent an average of $10.26 per capita trying to hit the lottery jackpots in 2020, the study suggests.
Somewhat surprisingly, the residents of Massachusetts weren’t the biggest lottery losers in the country. When comparing sales to payouts, lottery players in Rhode Island won back only $148.25 after spending an average of $429.88, for a net loss of 281.63 per capita. West Virginians lost about $249.81 per capita, while folks in Massachusetts lost around $244.49.
“If you only play the lottery occasionally and only spend a few dollars a time, no real harm is done,” said Matt Schultz, the chief credit analyst for LendingTree, in a statement that probably comes as no surprise to the people of Rhode Island or Massachusetts. “However, if you’re consistently playing $10 or $20 or more each week, that adds up over time. You’re dropping more than $1,000 a year on lottery tickets if you play just $20 per week. That’s real money that could be earning interest and growing your wealth or bulking up your emergency fund instead.”
On the other end of the spectrum, the states where residents spent the least on lottery games in 2020 (aside from Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah, where there currently are no state lottery programs) included North Dakota ($32.24 per capita), Wyoming ($40.97), Montana ($58.62), New Mexico ($63.83) Oklahoma ($71.23), according to LendingTree’s analysis.
Across all states, U.S. residents considered among the “baby boomer” generation were also found least likely to play the lottery at all, with only 51% saying they buy some sort of lottery ticket, according to a LendingTree survey of over 2,000 U.S. adults. Gen Zers were somewhat more likely at 55%, while millennials and Gen Xers were found to be the most likely to play, at 64% and 66%.
What’s new in low emission lighting towers?
It’s summer in the northern hemisphere and headlines warning of heatwaves are another reminder of climate change. The construction equipment sector is rising to this occasion across all categories – and light towers, which lend themselves relatively easily to innovation, are no exception.Get more news about light tower,you can vist our website!
Sustainable rental lighting towers
According to Generac, the light tower can be “placed in the middle of the public in total safety, thanks to the absence of protruding parts and the fact that no electrical, mechanical or hydraulic components can be reached by unauthorised people.”
The Hydro Power Box PRO joins the CUBE PRO - launched in 2021 - offering “hybrid power supply” that allows the operator to choose between integrated generator (with low-consumption Stage V diesel engine), rechargeable battery, hybrid system (generator + battery), or Plug-in external power supply.
The PRO range also includes the trailer mounted V20 PRO and accessories including the Solar Panel Kit - enabling the PRO unit’s internal battery to be charged via solar energy - and the stand-alone I-Extender battery pack, designed as an external power source for the PRO unit, either in Plug-In, Battery or Hybrid mode.
The I-Extender is a stand-alone product equipped with power sockets, that can also be used on its own to power other types of electrical equipment, “in the same way as a small portable generator but without any fuel consumption.”
PRO light towers and the I-Extender are now also available with a lithium-ion battery pack, in addition to the standard AGM battery pack, in a move designed to give customers a wider choice of battery technologies, Generac Mobile confirmed.
Italy-headquartered Trime has stated that its aim is to only offer emission-free lighting towers by 2025, in effect becoming ‘net-zero’ in just two and half years’ time. Its T-Zero Pro brand is a key part of that objective, says Sales Director Matteo Tagliani.
“With environmental issues prominent in the global construction rental markets, and in particular the use of fossil fuels to power construction machinery, Trime has pressed forward in producing a wide range of lighting towers that operate from renewable energy,” Tagliani tells IRN.At the same time, meeting rental sector demand for more tailor-made solutions is another driver.
“Through its close links with the rental markets, Trime is aware that individual rental organisations have separate requirements. To meet these demands, Trime has a dedicated design team that can produce bespoke lighting towers that satisfy case-by-case requirements.
“With the T-Zero Pro brand, Trime offers a complete line of solar, solar hybrid, battery hybrid, plug-in, and battery-only lighting towers all equipped to deliver safe, bright illumination for a wide range of applications. All Trime lighting towers feature energy-saving, long-lasting LED lamps.
Rental companies also benefit from services including training for maintenance and repair – on-site or via video link; product training and advanced marketing programmes; extensive stocks of quality spare parts ready for immediate despatch; online up-to-date data sheets detailing product specifications and access to the Trime design teams for product customisation.
The recently released X-Eco Lithium Hybrid has attracted interest from rental organisations; powered by advanced lithium battery technology, it can be fully recharged in less than two hours, which means that in a ten-hour cycle, for 80% of the operation it is powered primarily by its batteries, delivering ultra-low noise with virtually zero carbon emissions.
For rental firms that require solar-powered lighting, Trime has also developed a solar-only lighting tower, the X-Solar. The unit is described as a robust, rental-quality, lighting tower that is powered by a combination of 335w self-sufficient solar panels and Absorbent Glass Mat (AGM) batteries.
Operator of Triangle Markets and 3 Angle FX Settles with CySEC
Triangleview Investments paid €50,000 as a part of the settlement.To get more news about 3anglefx review, you can visit wikifx.com official website.
“CySEC, under article 37(4) of the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission Law of 2009, may reach a settlement agreement regarding any violation or possible violation, act, or omission for which there is reasonable ground to believe that is in breach of the provisions of legislation under the regulatory remit of CySEC,” the regulatory announcement on Monday stated.
The settlement came as a part of the regulatory investigation into the retail trading platform operator. It involves possible compliance lapses around client fund protection between December 2021 and February 2022.Triangleview Investments received its CySEC license in early 2020 with which it is offering services within the European Economic Area (EEA).
It operates trading services under two brands, Triangle Markets and 3 Angle FX. Both are offering retail trading
Tightening Supervisory Rules
Cyprus is home to dozens of retail trading platforms that are targeting the European markets by passporting their CIF license. However, many of them have a bad reputation which was even pointed out by other European financial market regulators.
CySEC is now tightening its supervisory rules and recently issued a warning to CFDs brokers, ordering them to improve practices. In case of any violations, the regulator will take enforcement action that might come as monetary penalties or even suspension or withdrawal of CIF license in extreme cases.
Most recently, CySEC withdrew the license of FXVC-operator, Finteractive, upon the request of the firm. Though the reason behind the decision was not revealed, the brokerage operator was fined before for possible non-compliance.
Här är två saker som jag skulle vilja lyfta fram, (1) det första som är viktigt att veta är om dess reglering och (2) det andra är företagets placering. Detta är två data av avgörande betydelse för att kunna mäta ett företags seriositet och tillförlitlighet.
Har företaget ingen reglering eller regleras det av ett oseriöst land? Är företaget beläget på en opålitlig plats eller nämner det inte var det finns? Det här är frågor som varje investerare bör ställa om företagets tillförlitlighet.
När vi analyserar 3angleFX-webbplatsen kan vi märka att de erbjuder utbildningsresurser, information om de olika typerna av konton, en förklaring av produkterna där kapitalet är investerat, var företaget finns och kontaktsätt.
Eftersom det är en mäklare utan tjänstgöringstid har jag inte riktigt hittat så mycket om företaget, detta är en poäng emot det. Utöver detta kan du hitta fler kommentarer och åsikter från användare och kunder i företaget i slutet av denna recension.
FMA censures CTRL Investments for derivatives issuer licence breaches
Te Mana Tātai Hokohoko has censured CTRL Investments Limited for contravening the conditions of its derivatives issuer (DI) licence.To get more news about ctrl investments review, you can visit wikifx.com official website.
Through its ongoing monitoring of the DI sector, the FMA was satisfied that CTRL had materially contravened two standard conditions of its licence by failing to comply with requirements for certain outsourcing arrangements and allowing clients who did not understand derivatives and associated risks, to trade.
Client suitability checks
Licensed DI’s must ask retail investors to provide information about their knowledge, experience and level of understanding of the relevant type of derivative to enable the DI to assess whether the derivative is suitable for the individual. If an investor does not have the ability to understand, the DI must not enter into the derivative with the client.
James Greig, FMA Director of Supervision, said: “CTRL was screening retail investors for their understanding of derivatives, however in some circumstances if a client could not demonstrate the necessary skills and knowledge, CTRL merely provided a warning statement and suggested the client not continue. The warning statement itself confirmed CTRL’s view that the client did not understand the derivative.
“Insufficient client suitability checks continue to be a problem we are seeing among the derivatives sector, and we will continue to press the industry to improve. We have little tolerance for non-compliance, as derivatives are high-risk financial products and trading them isn’t suitable for most retail investors.”
Outsourcing
A licensed DI that chooses to outsource essential processes or systems must be satisfied the third-party provider can perform the service to the standard required to enable the DI to meet its licence obligations. The DI must also have a legally binding agreement with the provider.
Mr Greig said: “CTRL had outsourced its account management, sales and onboarding functions to a third-party provider, but could not demonstrate why it was satisfied the provider was capable of providing the services, or that there was a legally binding agreement relating to CTRL’s New Zealand operations.
“Outsourcing is an area we have previously expressed concern about – we found it was a medium-high risk area in our 2020 derivatives sector risk assessment. DI’s must have proper legal arrangements with third-party providers, including provisions that enable effective performance monitoring. This a fundamental obligation.”
To remedy the issues relating to client suitability checks and avoid future contraventions, the FMA has required CTRL to develop and carry out an action plan, which must be approved by the FMA.
Snaptivism: A collective biography of feminist snap as affective activism
I am one with the chair and the chair becomes one with me. It compliments my body; supports my lower back and so I find myself sitting – and very comfortably seated.To get more news about snap-zed futures review, you can visit wikifx.com official website.
The choice to sit in the chair was not mine to begin with. My choice was to show up to the event itself. But on the table in front of me, there is a small card with my name written on it. The card tells me that the chair is my designated seat for the wedding banquet that I’m attending. Around the table sit another five guests. Together, we form one of several small islands of tables in the room – each populated with family and friends of the newlywed couple.
Love songs play over the speakers. Their lyrics express heterosexual desires. The atmosphere is, perhaps not surprisingly for a wedding dinner, thick with joyfulness. I can’t help but get affected a little. Even though the music – the love that is in the air – does not bear any resemblance to the love that I feel, know of, and can identify with in my own marriage.
It may be that the current mood is gay. But it is gay as in happy and not as in queer.
I scan the room to find my husband located across the sea-floor that divides the party into separate parties – one at each table. I notice that him and I, and the only other non-heterosexual couple, have been split by the seating arrangement. Everybody else is paired with their opposite-sex partner. A friend of the bride, single and female, is positioned next to my husband. I feel an ache in my chest – the kind that makes you aware of the discomfort of your own body being misplaced, of belonging; but not quite.
Suddenly, the chair feels less comfortable. I’m trapped in that chair, and no matter how I reposition my body, I can’t let go of a sensation of uneasiness and restlessness. The chair has turned me into a passive bystander to a setting. A setting that in that moment emerges to me as the very materialisation of a differentiating societal institution. Marriage. An institution that I, and others like me, have been excluded from historically. In most countries, we still are.
The seating plan seems to keep my husband and I – as well as the lesbian couple that are also legally married – from enjoying the recognition of our marriages on equal terms with all the other married couples that happen to be heterosexual.
My thoughts revolve around this idea(l) of marriage. I now remember why I find it problematic. As a society, we reward and honour marriage; legally and grant economic benefits. Marriage becomes a socially desirable way of living your life. And at the same time, society excludes (some groups) of people from enjoying the same privileges. This seems both unfair and absurd to me.
Am I naïve to believe that equal access – in the form of the right to same-sex marriage – would also mean equal treatment? Are queer lives simply being co-opted?
As the merry-gay music continues, I depart with my line of thought. I notice and become attuned to the dinner set-up that renders my love invisible. In this physical setting, my affection for my partner is apparently deemed less legitimate, or even irrelevant. We are unequal to that of all the heterosexual couples. Couples whose romantic feelings are omnipresent – and so readily accepted as ‘right’ and proper. Couples whose love every-body strives for.
I feel this physically. It is as if these couples have sucked out all air in the room and taken up all space. There’s room for no deviation from that norm.
With a simple seating arrangement at a social event, I’m momentarily confined to that infamous closet. The same closet that I was expected by family, friends, and society to come out of. I am made to pass as part of the collective One rather than the Other that I am.
My Otherness, however, becomes visible time and again, as conditions force me to come out the closet again. And again. And again.
The two other couples at the table assume that I’m coupled with the woman next to me. I’m assumed heterosexual until otherwise proven. Oh, the irony! She and I are in this together, and more than they can possibly imagine. She has also been temporarily torn from her same-sex spouse. Sitting next to each other, we cannot help but constantly act as a mutual reminder of our circumstances. Our mis-matching makes us appear ‘same’ to the other guests. But two wrongs don’t make a right.A photographer asks us to scoot together. We are to have our picture taken so as to capture – and immortalise – the loving moment. A moment we are forced to spend away, detached, and disentangled from our own spouses. The woman and I pose. Reluctantly. We try to shake off our conflicted feelings. So the make-believe can seem true. For the happy couple.
What else can we do? Make a scene? I keep reminding myself that it is all about the newlyweds and not me. The purpose of my attendance is to witness their love. By witnessing, I attest their social status as the quintessence of what it means to be a family.
Fx Trading Pro Review 2023
Fx Trading Pro is an independent forex brokerage offering top-level trading conditions in the foreign exchange market. Its customers have access to unparalleled trading solutions. Traders can access over 70 currency pairs using the company's cutting edge trading platforms for PC and mobile devices.To get more news about trading pro review, you can visit wikifx.com official website.
Trading Pro has the full name Trading Pro International LTD, previously known as XSocio Markets, and renamed now Trading Pro, is one of the online forex trading brokers that has developed quite rapidly, it doesn't take long for Trading Pro brokers to be able to dominate the global market.
Trading Pro broker, armed with regulations from the FSA, can be said to be the best forex broker because this broker is able to meet the needs of clients around the world, therefore this broker is able to quickly develop in several countries in the world.
Trading Pro Broker was founded in 2016, this company has the full name Trading Pro International LTD. This broker, which is very quickly recognized by traders around the world, has a variety of features and services that are certainly beneficial for its clients. One of them has fair, transparent trading conditions, and has good service technology in its class.
Trading Pro Markets broker is a regulated broker, Trading Pro broker is registered in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines with registration number 24611 IBC 2018. Quoted from the official website Trading Pro Markets has its head office registered at Suite 305, Griffith Corporate Centre, POBOX 1510 Beachmont, James Street, Kingstown St. Vincent and The Grenadines.
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For those of you who avoid trading commission fees, Trading Pro broker also provides a commission-free account, it's just that the spreads charged are quite large, but don't worry, this broker also provides a Free Swap feature where Traders will not be charged if there are overnight transactions.
If you are a user of a scalping trading strategy, then this broker provides a special trading account for scalpers, namely Scalpx, alim which has very low spreads, and high leverage so that it can help you to open more transactions.
Trading Pro markets always makes it easy for all its clients, including in terms of depositing and withdrawing funds. Trading Pro Forex Broker provides a variety of payment methods, ranging from local, international bank transfers to Exchanger methods where the deposit and withdrawal process can be faster than usual.
Trading Pro International Limited exchangers will always be monitored for their every activity, this will provide convenience for clients who are worried about the safety of their funds, Internal Transfer method between trading accounts is also available, so you can transfer funds between trading accounts at no cost.
This is more important than other trading conditions, namely about trading strategies, the Trading Pro broker is very friendly with its clients, you can use any type of trading method, anytime and anywhere, this forex broker does not limit your analysis and any method.
Including for those of you who use special indicators, scripts to trading robots, this broker is very reliable, because it doesn't limit it in terms of getting as much profit as possible, it's just that you have to pay attention to the type of indicator or robot that must match the chosen trading platform, whether MetaTrader 4 or MetaTrader 5.
The trading platform used by the Trading Pro forex broker is quite complete, you can use the MetaTrader 4 and MetaTrader 5 trading platforms which can be used on all devices, from desktop to mobile, you can download the application on the Trading Pro website or on smartphones such as PlayStore and AppStore for free.
MEDICAL KITS FOR UKRAINIAN MILITARY PERSONEL WILL ADHERE TO NEW
The Ukrainian MoD’s Medical Department invited NGOs and volunteer organizations to help develop new technical requirements for individual first-aid kits used at the frontline of military operations. Experts from the Independent Anti-Corruption Committee on Defense (NAKO), a joint initiative of TI Ukraine and TI Defence & Security, took part in their development, providing input on how to reduce corruption risk. The MOD granted final approval for the technical requirements last week, and Ukrainian servicemen should receive their new first-aid kits this autumn.To get more news about hemostat dressing, you can visit rusuntacmed.com official website.
The need to develop new technical requirements arose as military and volunteers repeatedly complained about the poor quality of individual first-aid kits (IFAKs) used at the front. Previous IFAK components had been approved in February 2015. However, the list of components for the first-aid kit was less comprehensive, and the standards lower, than those used in NATO countries. In addition, the IFAK technical requriments was often developed by the IFAK manufacturers themselves, meaning that they could shape the MOD’s procurement requirements to suit what they could provide. The new specifications allow the MoD to require manufacturers to ensure each component of the kit is of the highest standard of quality.
The MoD began work on creating new technical requrements for IFAKs in September 2016. Initially, the key stakeholders in the process were representatives of the Ministry of Defense and Ukrainian manufacturing companies, but this approach created significant corruption risks.
But in April 2017, the MOD changed its approach, creating a separate working group in order to minimise the influence of pharmaceutical companies and to avoid corruption risks. This new working group created by the Ministry of Defence included leading medical experts, NGO representatives and volunteer organisations, as well as NAKO experts. This group of experts have worked together alongside the MOD to improve the technical requirements of the first-aid kits to match the NATO standards.
“We insisted on minimising corruption risks. Previously, there was a risk that the specifications would match the preferences of a particular manufacturer, rather than respond to real frontline needs,” said Taras Yemchura, a NAKO researcher. “This could also lead to discrimination against particular participants in the procurement process. For example, we pushed for the abolition of unlawful requirements for special markings on the product packaging, which does not actually affect the quality of the goods, but significantly reduces the range of potential suppliers.”
In the future, NAKO intends to continue monitoring the process of IFAK purchasing, scrutinising the formation of lots, bidding, contracting, and quality control.
The committee is convinced that the active participation of independent experts and high-quality public monitoring of each procurement stage will help counteract corruption risks in the procurement of first-aid kits, decrease the risk of poor-quality goods being supplied, and will help save the lives of soldiers who fight in the Donbass.