E-auctions could depress pallet prices further, reduce personal contact and increase competition, according to Stephen Shaw, managing director of www.palletauction.com.
Speaking to delegates at the TIMCON annual conference in London, Mr Shaw said that, despite the risks associated with such technology, the pallet sector needed to embrace it. The internet now consisted of 4.5 million sites and 2 billion web pages and e-commerce would be worth US$5.7 trillion a year by 2004.
‘By 2005, companies will be spending US$8bn on the infrastructure for business-to-business e-commerce, up from US$2.1bn last year. Businesses will be using the internet for an ever-increasing volume of commerce,’ said Mr Shaw.
He told delegates that e-auctions presented more opportunities than threats but advised TIMCON members to plan their involvement carefully.
