“Top companies are creating score cards for going green and stewarding the environment,” says Ed Rucels, a specialist in packaging at a conference on fuel and transportation with Jacoline Loewen and DTA. “Today, green awareness means winning and keeping clients is no longer just
about saving money. If you can demonstrate how you are can help be part of
reducing the carbon footprint, you will have a loyal and grateful client.”
Packaging seems to be an obvious place to start but in large companies, it is a major part of the supply chain. The package does not belong to one department and can be a complex process to change. Wal-Mart reduced packaging and achieved a $3.4B savings in the first year that they introduced the program.
Case Level Optimization
Currently, many companies are shipping a great deal of air. A few quick checks to see how to reduce carbon imprint are:
- Know Your Fill Rate: When asked in surveys, managers will say they are shopping with a 80% fill rate, often it is more around 60%. That is a great deal of money to ship 40% with a zero value.
- Check your Packaging: To mitigate damage, the thick corrugated box is used to save the product. You do not need a big, fat box to protect the product. Instead, you can rework your SKUs and there are experts who can help with this process.
- Reduce Pallets in Play: There are more pallets out in the system than required which allows for easy decisions rather than a smarter approach to reducing costs. If you bring down the pallets, you can force savings.
- Spacing on Each Pallet: There are underutilized spaces on the pallets. This is valuable real estate, with every centimetre worth money. By watching for underutilized pallet real estate, employees can look for ways to stop shipping empty air.
With these programs, you will develop a good strategy for shipping. You will ratchet up the density of shipping, reduce your damage and find savings for yourself and clients. As a result of focus on case level optimization, Ed Rucel says his clients have achieved up to 40% savings on transport, storage and handling. This adds up to a great deal of carbon reduction and a greener happier customer.
Edmund Rucels, Regional VP Supply Chain Optimizers. Edmund’s management experience during the startup and rapid growth of Northern Telecom and Sears Canada has made him the expert on delivering real time solutions for the logistics professionals wanting to drive down costs through better shipping practices.
Jacoline Loewen raises capital for growth companies with Loewen & Partners and she is the author of Money Magnet: How to Attract Investors to Your Business.
http://www.loewenpartners.com/
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