[url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/conservative/9176237/Even-Im-starting-to-wonder-what-do-this-lot-know-about-anything.htmlTories believe the tanker drivers' strike was their "Thatcher moment"[/url

If that really is the message they're sending out to the constituencies, they'll be lucky to have any support left come 2015

[url=http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news-in-pictures/news-briefly/reader-offer-201203315080/DIY[/url

Meme of the week.

You are a luddite - do you honestly think this process of filling tankers and transporting them and emptying them at filling station has reached its zenith!! There isn't a process out there that cannot be improved upon.

You need to stick to fishing or whatever you do now - no wonder you decided working was a bit too much for you.

I'd prefer that to being a tory-supporting, union-hating imbecile any day of the week.

You still have absolutely no idea of the logistics involved in hazardous cargo distribution but you "know" it can be improved, all at the expense of the workers performing the function.

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Oh BTW, I work to fish. Once all the expenses have been covered, I spend the rest on catching fish so that I can cook and eat them.

Plaice and turbot fishing tomorrow, I'll let you know how I get on

With the benefit of your knowledge, what would you do then?

Now I think you're being unfair on Sal, he knows what things are like and how to improve things in the real world. I'm sure with his in-depth knowledge of the petrol haulage industry he can provide numerous examples of how the processes and functions involved can be improved. In the same way that carers could be made more efficient by restricting their expense accounts. In the real world of course.

Actually there are quite a few. No physical process can be improved upon infinitely, and then there's the law of diminishing returns to consider. For someone who likes to bang on about the 'real world' you seem to have a remarkably superficial grip on how things actually operate there.

Perhaps the way the fuel is transported could be re-thought - does it need to be transported in vehicles? you speak as if you are an expert in this field - I doubt very much you have the slightest idea of what is involved?

What do you actually know above moving hazardous materials in today's world? I know you think you are an expert in every single area of discussion on here - some of us are not that simple we fall for your diatribe. How long is it since you retired to the river bank?

I said no one should put in a position where they need to break the WTD or put themselves in danger. The fact the company is expecting workers to be in the position is simply laziness on their part.

I would look for the bottlenecks in the process and apply some simple Kaisan techniques to improve matters - could I suggest the following reading - The Goal by Eliyahu Goldratt - this might change you view about process improvement and their benefits.

Show me where I said carers expense accounts should be restricted - you are just a sheep tagging onto Mintball's flock - sad individual really incapable of actually constructing and argument that involves his own thought processes.

Not that long ago I worked for Wincanton guess what they do?

No, buckets and donkeys is the way to go.

One thing that has come out of this Government inspired seven day petrol panic is the fact that delivering petrol to the consumer these days is done strictly in accordance with the best Japanese "Just in Time" techniques in that the stocks often held on the forecourts represent in "normal" circumstances only 24 hours worth of fuel - some busy outlets revealing last week that they have two scheduled deliveries per day.

A comment from the petrol retailers spokesperson last week revealed that the main cause of such understocking was cash flow, he quoted a figure of £50,000 for a tankful and for most retail operators its much better to spread the cost of that over several days and several deliveries especially in these days of tightened or no overdrafts and no relenting from the banks.

Now personally I'd expect a minister of government to know that before suggesting a run on the petrol stations but maybe I'm being too naive to expect him to check first ?

Well they certainly know now how much stock is available to the rest of the country should a strike emerge from the talks next week and they know now the enormity of expecting a few hundred soldiers to keep up with the demand.

Frankly, there is no answer.

Stop talking Sal you're just embarrassing yourself. You happily pretend to be the font of all knowledge on various subjects mostly employment related and then are found wanting when challenged.
No you didn't say carers expense accounts should be restricted. What you were doing though was being a patronising pillock at the time by suggesting you and only you knew what things were like "in the real world". You were then shown up by your assertion that carers should use their expense accounts to get from one job to another. Displaying a clear lack of knowledge of what kind of pay and conditions the majority of carers are on.
You've done the same again here. Whilst attempting to be patronising and belittle other people you dug yourself into a hole again with pretending you knew all about this issue.

I note that your response to Chris 28's question basically boils down "I'd look at whats wrong and improve it". Thanks for that insight.

You would imagine that when someone changes ID on. Site like this, they'd try to improve how they were viewed, wouldn't you ...?

As you're so knowledgeable on the subject of Kaisan, then I'm sure you'll appreciate that there comes a point where all bottlenecks are removed and the system runs as smoothly and profitably as possible. This, after all, is the object of Kaisan.
Perhaps this:



shows the effect that Kaisan has had on this industry - minimal stock is carried, it is transported from A to B with the minimal need for storage for any length of time.

Kaisan is a wonderful system but if you were as aware of how it works, other than the two day course you seem to have gone on, then you would appreciate that there is only the possibility to remove all AVOIDABLE obstacles to smoothflowing throughput using it. The important word has been highlighted for you there, even the best laid out system will have potential problems inherent in it.
The transport system for fuel is one such inherent obstacle, but is the best available method there is - if it was possible to pump it safely along underground pipes with no risk or explosion or theft, then I'm sure Shell would have started using it before now.

All I know is that last week every petrol station in town was full of idiots (and the odd person who actually had to put petrol in their car) and the price went up by 12p a litre (it went up 4p from Saturday morning to Saturday afternoon). Maybe a reduction in fuel duty would be appropriate here seing as they are responsible for the chaos that allowed oil companies to shove the price up.

On the plus side there are now millions of pounds worth petrol sitting in peoples garages waiting to explode (sorry Bluesky

- "combust rapidly"icon_wink.gif. Insurance companies must be feverishly modifying home insurance policies as we speak to remove cover for fire as a result of following government advised petrol hoarding (it's not the 80's, it's not coal and we aren't power stations).

What did you do there?

Wander around with a sack over your head?

Because you sure seem to have a very poor grasp of just how logistics work

What you seem to be saying there is that you don't know what you would do exactly beyond applying some management techniques to that are useful tools for considering and implementing process improvement. We could all say that after a management course. I was being specific. What would you do [iprecisely[/i to improve the process of transporting fuel?

As a layman I don't know.

You really think that such an obvious idea hasn't been considered before and rejected? Off the top of my head I'd suggest that the up-front cost of installing a dedicated pipeline network that reaches to remote locations, coupled with the inherent risks involved with pumping an extremely volatile liquid and exposure to risk of theft makes it a non-starter.


I speak as someone who actually has real-life experience of engineering issues rather than a few days of theoretical training. And someone with some basic common sense and understand of the underlying principles.

I'm loving the idea of a network of underground fuel pipelines. For comparison, water pipelines cost around 1M per 100m and that's not in particularly urban areas. Now think of how frequently they leak and of the costs involved in putting in a suitable specification pipe to supply petrol to a dozen or so outlets in every town and city across the UK. Based on that I think tanker drivers are safe in their jobs for now.

Coming soon to a town near you, courtesy of Sal Paradise Civil & Pipeline Engineering

We had a burst water pipe up our street two weeks ago and it ran for hours before Yorkshire Water turned up.

I'd have been straight down to B&Q for their entire stock of buckets if it had been petrol that was leaking out - problem is, would it have been diesel, unleaded or premium unleaded that I was scooping up out of the gutter ?

Just my luck it would have been bloody diesel and no use to me at all.