Cover Story
| Date | 01 November 1981 |
| Published date | 01 November 1981 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/eb057224 |
| Pages | 27-31 |
| Subject Matter | Economics,Information & knowledge management,Management science & operations |
Cover Story
A new range of desk-top microcomputers with both hard-
ware and software specifically designed for a full range of
small business applications is announced by Olympia
Business Machines Co Ltd. Main features of the new
microcomputers are their 64K central RAM memory and
their external disk storage capacity — ranging to over 5
megabytes. Standard software programs are fully in-
tegrated and can be "personalised"; and there is the facili-
ty to communicate with main frame computers and other
computer systems. All systems have been designed so that
they are simple to understand and operate, especially for
first time users.
Called BOSS the new microcomputers have fully in-
tegrated software packages incorporating many of the
features and capabilities normally associated with
minicomputer systems. Although the Olympia microcom-
News Briefs
Business Failures Still Increasing but at a Slower Rate
Total company liquidations in England and Wales in the
first nine months of 1981 were 31 per cent higher than the
same period last year, according to the latest comprehen-
sive survey from Dun & Bradstreet Ltd, the business infor-
mation company. A total of 6,223 companies went into li-
quidation in the period January to September 1981, com-
pared to 4,746 at the same point in 1980. Textiles, building
and construction, retail services and engineering were the
worst hit sectors. Despite the upward trend, company li-
quidations showed a marked drop in the third quarter of
1981.
Total liquidations were
1,664,
compared to 2,296 in
the previous three months. Bankruptcies among
self-
employed individuals, firms and partnerships showed no
sign of falling off. In the first nine months of 1981, Dun &
Bradstreet recorded 3,724 bankruptcies, an increase of 34
per cent on 1980. The overall forecast for 1981 is not en-
couraging. High interest rates are again creating pressures
on liquidity, forcing many businesses to withhold
payments to suppliers. It is precisely this pressure on cash
flow, resulting in a business being unable to meet its cur-
rent obligations, which leads to insolvency. Stringent
credit checking and cash management disciplines are
therefore vital.
Unemployment Still Rising but Less Steeply
According to the Manpower Services Commission, the low
point of the recession may have been reached during the
first half of 1981, although the evidence for this is still in-
conclusive and the level of output is likely to remain almost
flat for the rest of the year. Unemployment was rising at
the rate of about
8,000
a week during July and August
puters have been designed with the small business and first-
time users in mind, the range will also find wide acceptance
among experienced, larger companies needing data pro-
cessing facilities at the user point. The range of four
systems is competitively priced, starting at less then £3,000
for a 280K byte computer with printer.
Launch packages cope with all normal accounting
needs:
sales ledger, purchase ledger, stock control, payroll,
invoicing, order processing, up-dating general ledger ac-
counts, VAT returns, indicating the best time to pay in
order to obtain maximum discounts, and advising on cash
flow situations.
There are four microcomputers in the Olympia range all
using the Z80A processor chip. Three of the systems use
twin, high-density mini-floppy disk drives with a storage
capacity ranging from 140K bytes per disk to 600K per
disk. The larger capacity 5 megabyte system uses 1 mini-
Winchester hard disk drive and 1 600K mini-floppy disk.
BOSS is equipped with alternative operating systems in-
cluding the CP/M System. Packages are written in BAL
(Business BASIC) with BASIC, PASCAL, COBOL, FOR-
TRAN, and Assemblers available on request. Three
printers are already available — 80 and 132 column dot
matrix printers plus Olympia's "Whisperdisc" daisywheel
for word processing.
compared with 25,000 a week at the end of 1980. There is,
however, increasing evidence that firms are beginning to
expect improvement over the next few months, though
there is still no sign of an end to the decline in employment
in the manufacturing sector, with the largest falls occurr-
ing in the engineering, metal manufacture, vehicles and
textiles industries, and in the distributive trades. At the
same time, some parts of the service sector, notably finan-
cial, professional and scientific services have been little af-
fected. This helps to explain the regional variations in the
rate of decline of employment. These are some of the facts
appearing in MSC's Labour Market Quarterly Report,
copies of which may be obtained from Mr A. M. Oliver,
MIPD/STATS 2 MSC, Selkirk House, 166 High Holborn,
London WC1V 6BF.
The Case of the Phantom Employees
A senior member of the Accounts Department of a com-
pany invented some extra employees and paid them over
£5,000. His ruse was discovered because, having used real
names and addresses, he was unable to intercept a P45 sent
to a very surprised member of the public. This is one of
several cautionary tales in a new booklet about fidelity in-
surance issued by the Sun Alliance Group. Employers, say
Sun Alliance, still tend to under-estimate the need for this
type of insurance, although in general they are more at risk
than ever before. Internal fraud is now more widespread
and the amounts involved are getting larger. To obtain a
copy of the booklet, contact any Sun Alliance office or
Tom Taylor, Commercial Accident Dept, 1 Bartholomew
Lane, London EC2N 2AB (tel: 01-588 2345 ext 2274).
Flexible Working Hours in Britain
The concept of flexible working hours was introduced to
the UK a mere ten years ago. Today 1.2 million people are
benefitting from it. The idea was introduced by Hengstler
Flextime, who are celebrating the anniversary with a new
micro-electronic recording system, the Flextimer 4080.
Flexible working hours began in Germany in the 1960s,
when there was a severe shortage of qualified labour. The
first major company to introduce a system was
Messerschmit, the aircraft manufacturer, after discovering
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1981 27
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