LP Gas, December 2009
S T A T E O F T H E I N D U S T R Y 2 0 0 9 2008 09 and current YTD heating seasons The average low and high for the 2008 09 heating season were 222 and 266 respectively YTD this year 206 and 216 While much of overhead in running a business is a collection of costs over which you generally have control like hourly wage and benefi ts you choose to pay staff these days overhead is being driven by uncontrollable mandates of government banks and insurance About 63 percent of retailers responding to this years State of the Industry survey have watched their overhead stretch skyward And a note for this heating seasons residential propane sales nearly 60 of retailers report customers trying to conserve energy Thats not surprising amid the current economic worries and consumer job losses and its an uncontrollable propane sales factor in an environment that may last many months to come Certain uncertainty Every year we ask our State of the Industry survey respondents to tell us what they think will happen to the industry during the next year As long as most have been in the business like you theyve seen it all before Of course asking retailers to be crystal ball gazers is especially unfair these days considering all of the factors signifi cantly infl uencing their businesses that are out of any retailers control Impact on business of the 9 11 World Trade Center terrorist attack was inescapable for propane retailing as well as long lasting and deep cutting Arguably however the presidential election as an event of this decade may prove to be just as enormous for the industry in decades Continued on page 28 2009 Technology applications retailers are currently using Percent of retailers using technology in 2009 Computerized accounting systems 789 Online supply price monitoring 539 Fleet routing software 360 E mail customer communications 246 Online personnel training 235 Online hedging 222 Remote tank monitoring 128 Figure I 2008 50 rated their fl eet routing software as Very Effective in reducing delivery expense Figure H www LPGasmagazine com December 2009 LPGas 27
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