What’s New: In brief (October 11, 2006)

Defective door latches are at fault for the recall of approximately 145,000 Ford Motor vehicles, including 13,683 in Canada. The Company plans to repair the defective parts which are found on vehicles including the 2005 Five Hundred, 2005 Mercury Montego sedans and 2005-06 Freestyle. Representatives of Ford explain that it is possible water could seep into the side-door latch and in cold conditions this could cause freezing, which could in turn cause the door to swing open in traffic. In addition to this recall, Ford is recalling 6,164 front-wheel drive Escape hybrid SUVs, including 194 vehicles in Canada. It was discovered that a fracture could occur in the shaft could fracture, which would prevent the powertrain from sending power to the wheels. As a result, the vehicle could move even when in park. Currently, Ford says no related injuries or accidents have been reported in association to either of these issues.

A survey conducted by the Fdration Europen de Risk Management Associations (FERMA) indicates that most risk managers are reporting to their company’s chief financial officer, its board or its chief executive officer. In fact risk management in general is receiving increased board-level sponsorship, according to the survey. Specifically, the survey reports that 44% of risk managers say their company board sponsors risk management, while 34% say it is the CEO at the head of sponsorship. The survey, published by Ernst & Young and AXA Corporate Solutions, also shows that 46% of risk managers are reporting directly to the CFO of their company, while 24% say they report to both the CFO and the board and 27% say they report to both the CFO and the CEO. Approximately 50% of Half managers surveyed claim to currently map risks at a global corporate level. In addition, 48% of respondents say the risks covered by the risk management department is the “widest possible,” while 34% say their department covers operational risk only and 16% insurable risk only.

The official “welcome home reception” for the restored Peterborough Centennial Museum & Archives (PCMA) flood-damaged photographic collection is set to take place on October 18. The collection was compromised during the severe flooding that hit Peterborough in July 2004. After two years of work by Rosco Document Restoration, 10 500 flood-damaged negatives of the Balsillie Collection of Roy Studio Images have been restored and are being returned home to Peterborough.