FEATURE Packaging & Logistics
The right logistical choice F
or every competitive brand operating in today’s rapid manufacturing market, creating a smooth and optimal supply
chain isn’t a simple task. From industries as diverse as chemicals, food manufacturing and automotive, there is massive pressure to deliver speed and volume without compromising on quality. However, the added challenge of a volatile stop-start economy – such as the one we see today – adds an extra layer of complexity. The key to reacting when business is less consistent is, of course, agility. But, when we are talking vast supply chains that rely on precise interconnectivity to lock complex processes into place, being agile can be a much bigger challenge. After all, many longer supply chains behave like trucks – great at speed and volume but can’t always react like sports cars. Add in the growing need for environmental sustainability and it can soon become a real balancing act.
In tough economic climates, businesses are quick to tighten the purse strings and cut back on investment, so while business consistency is yet to return to previous levels, players in the manufacturing sector instead need to look at optimising the lifespan of equipment, fi nding cost and effi ciency savings in the process and lessening the impact of lower- sales periods. One of the strongest commercial cases in boosting lifetime value of equipment is in intralogistics – the handling and storage equipment that keeps stock inventory
50 March 2022 | Automation
Jon Walkington, Sales Director, Retail & Systems Integrators at Schoeller Allibert UK, asks if smarter logistics can bring resilience back to a volatile economy
moving, in the right place, and, if done well, plays its part in transparency and sustainability, too. Containers, pallets and boxes tend to be an unsung hero of the supply chain as they’re less glamorous elements, but as every successful manufacturer will attest, they’re an absolutely central part of the process. Get them right and the commercial benefi ts are far-reaching; get them wrong and business simply don’t have a supply chain.
Materials matter With extending the lifespan of supply chain logistics equipment a top priority, where do brands begin? Currently, cardboard is still in use throughout many supply chains, and being paper-based has a more ‘sustainable’ perception at fi rst glance, although that doesn’t tell the whole story when we consider the short lifespan and energy used in its recovery.
Instead, plastic should be playing a much
more prominent role. As it has great lifetime value in the manufacturing supply chain – and great lifetime value is just the tip of the iceberg. Brands want to extract maximum value from their equipment, which means containers, dollies and pallets have to perform better and for longer. In a more volatile economy, the last thing businesses need is a linear and potentially wasteful intralogistics stream.
Pulling more value from equipment, no matter how “small” it may appear in the grand scheme of the supply chain, is imperative. Service life of equipment has an
enormous role to play in helping businesses to stabilise costs in volatile economies, and plastic is the most trusted way to achieve this. Pallets are a fantastic example – timber is a commonly utilised material in this role but in the rigours of modern warehouses and supply chains, many businesses are switching to durable plastic alternatives. Being hardier, they are replaced less often and, as such, bring more lifetime value to the table and represent one less cost outlay for brands.
Logistically right?
So, can the right logistical choice bring resilience in a more volatile business economy? Absolutely – and with Schoeller Allibert, it’s made simple. Built with safety, security and traceability at the forefront, our collection is manufactured from 100% UN-approved plastic, remaining high performance through its lifespan. Schoeller Allibert also off ers a unique recycling process,
which means that
all our recyclable containers and crates at the end of their service life can be recovered and remade into brand-new packaging. Our process is EFSA-approved, which means the remade packaging is food-contact approved, particularly important to the food manufacturing sector.
CONTACT:
Schoeller Allibert
www.schoellerallibert.com/uk
automationmagazine.co.uk
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