Glossary

In computer systems, ‘cache’ is short for ‘cache memory’, which acts as a buffer for transfers to and from memory systems. By building cache from very fast memory, performance is improved, especially when data or instructions are repeatedly required.

Capacity Utlilization is usually expressed as a percentage which measures how much of a total manufacturing output capacity is being used at a given point in time. It can be used to measure a machine, production line, factory, company, industry or sometimes country.

Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) is money spent by a company to acquire or upgrade physical assets, from trucks, to machinery, to whole factory facilities.

Capex is recorded separately from day-to-day costs, because tax authorities often encourage this investment with special allowances; and also because it is helpful to view the cost of a capital item as if it is spread over the useful life of the item. See also Capital Purchase.

Capital Purchases are investments in production plants, equipment, buildings, and other fixed assets. These assets are intended to raise the revenue-earning capacity of a company. A capital purchase can be paid for from cash reserves and/or by borrowing money. Either way, accountancy procedures will help show the value of the asset, and its annual cost to the business, spread over its useful life. See also Capital Expenditure.

CCS refers to several technologies and techniques which allow companies to ‘catch’ carbon dioxide gas which would otherwise be emitted into the atmosphere by industrial facilities and power plants.

A carbon footprint is the total set of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused directly and indirectly by an individual, organization, event, or product (UK Carbon Trust 2008). An individual, organisation, or national carbon footprint is measured by undertaking a GHG emissions assessment.

Carbon sequestration is achieved when carbon is removed from the atmosphere (as CO₂) and stored, or separated from fuels or flue gases and stored. Carbon sequestration is either technological (usually called carbon capture and storage) or biological (biological carbon sequestration). The viability of carbon sequestration depends on the cost of the process and the policy context that determines the value of sequestered carbon.

Carrier is the company that physically moves freight (the shipper is the carrier’s customer).

Cash-to-cash cycle time measures the time from when a manufacturer pays its suppliers for material to the time it is paid by customers for the products that used those supplies or materials. This cash flow measure can range from many months in complex long lead-time industries to negative numbers for companies such as Dell Computers, which collects money from its customers before it pays suppliers for the parts in those products.

A category in the retail environment is a group of similar products that may require in-depth knowledge and understanding. Management of the retail environment as a series of categories enables retailers to treat the business as a series of strategic business units which can be assigned a set of resources and managed on the basis of profit. Category managers may compete internally for additional resources such as floor area or marketing support for example.

CAx is a generic term for Computer Aided technologies including CAD – Computer Aided Design, CAM – Computer Aided Manufacturing, and CAE – Computer Aided Engineering. In many cases, CAx technology makes use of interactive computer graphics.