Sixteen companies that have gone the Extra Mile to improve their supply chain performance were recognized at a special ceremony in January at the SMC3 Jumpstart 2013 conference. The first-ever Alliance awards were jointly sponsored by World Trade 100 and SMC3.

In fact, some of the companies were recognized for not going the literal extra mile. Tyson Foods and Coca-Cola Refreshment eliminated empty miles through a transportation Alliance coordinated by Burns Logistics. Others, like retailer Tuesday Morning, worked with Averitt to reduce total supply chain costs by 19 percent in a network that was growing globally. Jo-Ann Stores drove their number of unaudited invoices to zero and incorrectly paid invoices to 0.1 percent after two if its suppliers, Acuitive Solutions and Century Distribution Systems, formed their own collaborative effort to address the retailer’s needs.

Safelite Group was able to reduce the effort and time to revise and upgrade its distribution center network while it simultaneously added and upgraded technologies while improving many processes. They brought together a variety of suppliers early in the planning so they could see ultimate goals and collaborate in the process of achieving them.

Another Safelite group, Safelite AutoGlass, eliminated tons of landfill waste through a multi-partner Alliance that will serve as a model for global divisions of the company. Safelite is doing its part to recycle much of the estimated 287,000 pounds of non-biodegradable waste that is generated from 8 million windshields and other autoglass that is replaced every year in the U.S. This provided a 20 percent year-over-year waste reduction in the markets where the program was instituted.

What Was Added

In addition to the millions of dollars in cost savings and cost avoidance these Alliances drove, they also added to the bottom lines of the companies and drove benefits — some of which are less easy to quantify.

Tuesday Morning was able to remove 152 tons of CO2 emissions through more efficient transportation. Tyson and Coca-Cola did not release the environmental impact of the efficiency improvements of Tyson’s fleet operations, but taken together with the reduced landfilling at Safelite and the various other positive impacts from the different improvements achieved by the various Alliances, we are all breathing a little easier.

Service was another area for significant gains. When Coca-Cola considered its Alliance with Tyson, it stipulated that service could not be negatively affected. In many cases, the different Alliances maintained or improved service to their organizations and to end-customers while achieving the other benefits.

For Tuesday Morning, increasing the number of DC bypass moves helped it keep the latest products in front of customers and provide them on a consistent basis. Safelite Group’s distribution improvements have provided better efficiency and service to its network of dealers and installers, and its previous efforts will provide the model for a close examination and improvement of its service parts delivery and field service network.

World Trade 100 and SMC3 are pleased to present The Alliance to these companies.

The entry process for the 2013 Alliance Awards is open now at theAlliance.worldtradeWT100.com. 

Check it out:

• www.worldtradewt100.com/ipubs#alliance