Wolseley pioneers sustainable distribution
Wolseley UK is pioneering new ways of making distribution more sustainable. With a fleet of about 2,000 commercial vehicles, which transport materials and products from distribution centres to branches and customers around the country, Wolseley can make a significant environmental impact by reducing the amount of carbon dioxide emitted in the course of its business.
Wolseley has identified three key logistics initiatives that would provide a positive environmental impact:
Mileage reduction by Wolseley UK vehicles:
The distribution of plumbing and building materials within Wolseley has been done in the past by individual branch scheduling, whereby each branch would route and schedule its own vehicles. However, it was evident that many vehicles were under utilised, or running with small payloads, and more efficient route schedules could be used.
As a result, Wolseley introduced a ‘centralised transport hub’ in three trial locations. This process initially began with a full-scale pilot scheme conducted around Derby, where results demonstrated a reduction in both the number of vehicles needed, and the overall mileage taken to complete the same number of deliveries. The success of this pilot scheme meant that this initiative was rolled out to more areas.
Mileage reduction by Wolseley suppliers:
Wolseley offers the highest level of service to customers by providing a daily delivery to each branch from a distribution centre (DC). The business objective was to improve the utilization of the Wolseley trucks during deliveries. As a result, we adjusted our process where vehicles, having completed their deliveries to branches, would route to the nearest participating supplier and collect the Wolseley orders, whenever possible. This inevitably reduced the mileage for supplier vehicles needed to deliver to Wolseley’s distribution centres, as well as reducing the overall environmental impact of the supply chain.
Reductions in the environmental impact of vehicle operation:
Other initiatives have also been identified by the business to reduce the environmental impact. These have been successfully implemented. They include the use of Bio Diesel at our Ripon DC, a more environmentally friendly fuel than pure mineral based diesel. The use of Bio Diesel will also be extended to our other DC’s as it becomes commercially available in other areas.
