Joint project designed to reduce damaged goods, refused deliveries in CPG supply chain
Miami Beach, FL — July 28, 2004 — Consumer packaged goods (CPG) giant Proctor & Gamble and solution provider Universal Solutions International (USI) have been awarded the 2004 Unsaleables Innovation Award for a joint project designed to reduce damaged goods and refused deliveries in the CPG supply chain.
The Joint Industry Unsaleables Steering Committee presented the award at its 2004 Unsaleables Conference, held last week in Miami. The annual conference focuses on "operational" and supply chain efforts to reduce damages in consumer packaged goods. These efforts include packaging design and quality, transportation and shipping, handling, date labeling among others.
Universal Solutions received the award during the conference and subsequently delivered a presentation on the company's innovation to a group of more than 200 manufacturers, retailers and vendors during the general session.
Entrants for the award were asked to submit a document describing an innovative project that produced quantifiable improvements in unsaleables management within the manufacturing or retail environment.
USI's case study focused on a program developed in collaboration with Procter & Gamble called Load Stabilization/Stretch Wrap University. The program was designed to address problems associated with inaccurate equipment setting, improper film selection and application of stretch wrap to eliminate in-transit moving, and shifting of loads during shipment resulting in significant damage and refused deliveries.
USI hosted training programs at P&G locations in the United States and in Europe. Results of the program included a 50 percent reduction in internal P&G quality incidents since the implementation of Load Stabilization/Stretch Wrap University, as well as a 10-15 percent increase in load retention with the implementation of the new stretch wrap standards.
Other results included a 20 percent decrease in stretch film usage due to increased pre-stretch levels, 20 additional unit load wraps per roll of stretch film and a significant reduction in film changes, previously the primary source of system downtime for P&G, resulting in increased uptime and throughput.
These results translate into several million dollars worth of savings from reduction in damages for P&G, according to USI.
"USI is honored to receive the Unsaleables Innovation Award," said Peter A. Westermann, president and CEO of the Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Universal Solutions. "It has been our privilege to work with The Procter & Gamble Co. for the past 15 years. Their continual commitment to deliver quality product has provided us with significant opportunities to develop innovative programs and services that address issues related to damages and unsaleables throughout the supply chain."
Universal Solutions was formed in 1989 as the nation's first manufacturer agent for processing and accounting of unsaleable and returned products.
The Unsaleables Conference is sponsored by Grocery Manufacturers of America, the Food Marketing Institute, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores and the Consumer Healthcare Products Association.
