The state of logistics in South Africa - perspectives from research

Paper presented at the 28th Annual Southern African Transport Conference 6 - 9 July 2009 "Sustainable Transport", CSIR International Convention Centre, Pretoria, South Africa.The purpose of this research was to measure the cost of Logistics In South Africa, determine the major cost drivers and assist both the country to manage those drivers and logist clans to manage logistics in this context. The measurement is on an industry and national level and can therefore relate logistics Input with GDP as well as with industry-level turnover. A quantitative approach, based on a gravity-orientated freight flow model, road transport cost model, real transport costs for other modes, warehousing cost survey and inventory delay calculation for the economy, is followed.The overarching outcome is logistics cost measurement in an extended and detailed model, backdated for five years to establish trends and cost drivers. This leads to specific items that can be considered by industry and managed by government. In the recent past the sensitivity of logistics costs to fuel and interest rates is disconcerting as both items are "administered costs on an industry level and even on a national level for economies relying on imported fuel to move freight over long transport distances.Logisticians manage inventory delay downward relentlessly, but the "Tragedy of the Commons"-effect is overlooked and trade-offs on a national and even industry level often not managed effectively. In contrast, collaboration does not only contribute to micro improvements, but could counter negative trends on a macro level. Eventually the tradeoffs between specialisation, growth and sustainability come into play. The relationship between energy optimisation and environmental consciousness is also illustrated and solutions suggested.This paper was transferred from the original CD ROM created for this conference. The material was published using Adobe Acrobat 8.0 Technology. The original CD ROM was produced by Document Transformation Technologies Postal Address: PO Box 560 Irene 0062 South Africa. Tel.: +27 12 667 2074 Fax: +27 12 667 2766 E-mail: nigel@doctech URL: http://www.doctech.co.z

LIP Woordfeeskoerant 2010

The LIP Woordfeeskoerant is an independent Woordfees festival newspaper produced by the BPhil (Journalism) class of that specific year in the Department of Journalism, Stellenbosch University.The LIP Woordfeeskoerant is an independent Woordfees festival newspaper produced by the BPhil (Journalism) class of that specific year in the Department of Journalism, Stellenbosch University

Chronic coronary syndromes without standard modifiable cardiovascular risk factors and outcomes: the CLARIFY registry

Background and Aims: It has been reported that patients without standard modifiable cardiovascular (CV) risk factors (SMuRFs—diabetes, dyslipidaemia, hypertension, and smoking) presenting with first myocardial infarction (MI), especially women, have a higher in-hospital mortality than patients with risk factors, and possibly a lower long-term risk provided they survive the post-infarct period. This study aims to explore the long-term outcomes of SMuRF-less patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD). Methods: CLARIFY is an observational cohort of 32 703 outpatients with stable CAD enrolled between 2009 and 2010 in 45 countries. The baseline characteristics and clinical outcomes of patients with and without SMuRFs were compared. The primary outcome was a composite of 5-year CV death or non-fatal MI. Secondary outcomes were 5-year all-cause mortality and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE—CV death, non-fatal MI, or non-fatal stroke). Results: Among 22 132 patients with complete risk factor and outcome information, 977 (4.4%) were SMuRF-less. Age, sex, and time since CAD diagnosis were similar across groups. SMuRF-less patients had a lower 5-year rate of CV death or non-fatal MI (5.43% [95% CI 4.08–7.19] vs. 7.68% [95% CI 7.30–8.08], P = 0.012), all-cause mortality, and MACE. Similar results were found after adjustments. Clinical event rates increased steadily with the number of SMuRFs. The benefit of SMuRF-less status was particularly pronounced in women. Conclusions: SMuRF-less patients with stable CAD have a substantial but significantly lower 5-year rate of CV death or non-fatal MI than patients with risk factors. The risk of CV outcomes increases steadily with the number of risk factors