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Technology Stocks : Discuss Year 2000 Issues -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Fred Ragan who wrote (5700)	5/12/1999 2:49:00 PM
From: C.K. Houston	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 9818

<"It's truly wonderful "said Alice. Or was it Kafka> *DuPont, which employs 93,000 people at 135 sites worldwide, won't be stockpiling supplies, even though it suspects 15% of its suppliers won't be Y2K-capable.* Instead, the maker of such popular products as Lycra, Teflon and Stainmaster carpets is holding face-to-face meetings with vendors and auditing their operations to impress upon them the potential hazards involved and the risk of losing its business. U.S. Sen. Robert R. Bennett, R-Utah, chair of the Senate Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem, agreed with that approach. "If you stockpile anything you should stockpile information," he said. interactive.wsj.com HUH????? More from Bennett ... "... let me talk briefly about the importance of the chemical industry. The crude oil refining industry keeps American transportation running. Our health -- and sometimes our lives -- are dependent on pharmaceuticals produced by the chemical industries. And, the manufacture of virtually every consumer product is in some way dependent on vital chemical ingredients. Chemical products are present in everything from shampoo to floor polish. On the economic side, the $392 billion chemical industry is the largest in the manufacturing sector and employs over one million workers. It is also our largest exporter accounting for $69.5 billion or 10% of the total exports in 1997, easily outdistancing the second leading industry—agriculture—and generating a trade surplus on average of more than $16 billion annually over the last ten years ..." senate.gov <DuPont ... suspects 15% of its suppliers won't be Y2K-capable.> HUH????? Didn't their 10-K (filed March 30) say that only 45% of their key suppliers responded to a survey on Y2K readiness, and that they believe 65% of those that did respond have a high risk of missing the Y2K deadline? THIS IS FROM ACTUAL 10-K: As of December 1998, approximately 45 percent of key supplier recipients have responded to the survey. The company assessed approximately 65 percent of the total number of survey recipients as having a high risk of not being Year 2000-capable on a timely basis. Based on what the company believes to be an unacceptably high percentage of key suppliers who are either not willing to disclose specific information about their Year 2000 readiness, or who do not indicate sufficient progress toward readiness, the company is including in its plans training sessions, telephone interviews and face to face discussions to understand state of readiness of key suppliers and to assist them with becoming Year 2000-capable. In addition, the company is conducting an assessment of its major customers, focusing on their Year 2000 capability as it affects ordering procedures, and delivery of and payment for company products. As of December 1998, the company had contacted approximately 40 percent of these customers and currently anticipates completing this assessment by March 1999. The company has assessed 28 percent of contacted customers as being in the high risk category. The company has invited certain of these customers to a series of Year 2000 forums to communicate the processes and status of DuPont's Year 2000 efforts. The company's plant and business operations are highly dependent on a continuous supply of key services from raw material suppliers and utility providers. If the Year 2000 problem causes suppliers and utility providers to fail to deliver such essential materials and services, multiple disruptions in the company's plant operations, computer infrastructure or telecommunications systems could result. Because of the inherent uncertainties associated with the Year 2000 problem,including understanding the Year 2000 readiness of these key third parties, it is not possible to quantify the potential impact at this time. However, failure of key suppliers, utility providers, major customers or the company to properly and timely address the Year 2000 problem could have a material adverse effect on the company's financial condition, results of operations or liquidity. Furthermore, there can be no guarantee that any contingency plans developed by the company will prevent such failures from having a material adverse effect. The company believes that there is a low probability that these multiple failures are likely to occur. To view actual SEC disclosure - enter "DD" as stock symbol: 209.208.199.147 Can't believe "contingency planning" doesn't include stockpiling additional materials. Cheryl