Leading names debate logistics

Danny Morgan
Posted: Tuesday, July 13, 2010 10:09 am

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Leading names debated how collaboration could improve on-shelf availability
Some of the leading names in UK supply chain and logistics gathered last week (8 July) at the SCALA Annual Logistics Debate at Wroxall Abbey, Warwick with the agenda to discuss “Can Supply Chain Collaboration Improve On Shelf Availability?


The debate, hosted by supply chain consultants SCALA, was chaired by David Grahamslaw, vice chair for CILT West Midlands, with an expert panel comprising: Dunc Lowe, supply chain director for Pepsi Co; Keith Newton, customer logistics director for Cadbury; Neil Ashworth, supply chain director for Tesco.com and John Potter, senior partner at SCALA.

Peter Surtees, European supply chain director for Kimberly Clark had initiated debate earlier in the day revealing that on shelf availability plays a critical role in the organisation as it is the ultimate KPI used. He indicated that just 1% improvement in on shelf availability could be potentially worth up to £5million depending on the product mix. 

The news follows research conducted by SCALA this month revealing that 15% of leading FMCG brands do not know their current levels of on shelf availability achieved.  

Further to building relationships and partnerships, Neil Ashworth from Tesco.com said that without visibility across their extended supply chain networks, organisations would be unable to progress down the collaborative agenda, heightened by a lack of specificity regarding the definition of ‘shelf-edge’. With increased internationalisation, technological advancements and multi-channel offerings, supply chain teams must be aware that the “shelf edge is everywhere, in store, on the web, on the phone, even at the water cooler.

Neil continued: “The challenges are greater than ever in this new virtual world and we have to embrace these new relationships. We see collaboration as an overwhelming priority and we all must be ready for the cross-channel consumer and be prepared to collaborate to win their business.”

During the debate Duncan Lowe explained how PepsiCo has simplified its strategy for achieving successful customer collaboration. Duncan Lowe emphasised that despite technological advances, the value of human interaction cannot be understated in building sustainable long term relationships with customers: “We do some of our best collaborative work by simply just going and talking to people. It is about creating the right agenda in which you can participate.” 

Throughout this year SCALA has overseen the Fresh Connection competition with the winner to be announced in the next few months.
  
The SCALA Annual Logistics Debate was attended by over 150 delegates.