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June 13, 2008 
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Can Cleaner Supply Chains Share the Love?
Could collaboration between companies with similar supply chain goals be the future of highly effective supply chains? A recent report certainly supports the idea, putting up some big numbers on how companies can reduce climate emissions and save big by cooperating with other businesses – even with competitors.
Sharing elements of your supply chain is nothing new - British electronics chain PC World, for example, is sharing delivery-truck space with a sister company, and it's worked quite well for them. But teaming up with your market rivals certainly is a concept that challenges conventional thinking. Does it really make sense? I have to say that most of my supply chain clients – and I work with some world-class supply chains - find it challenging just to develop collaborative working relationships with their own suppliers, let alone unrelated, businesses or competitors. I think we’d make more progress with better models for collaboration within a more traditional supply chain model. And I know its possible to achieve the kinds of improvements this reports suggest – for instance the 25% reduction in CO2 emissions – just by implementing more collaborative relationships that lead to significant levels of shared project work between customer and supplier. In an era of near $150 per barrel of oil, there is little doubt the opportunity exists to use energy cost and CO2 emissions as the foundation for building these relationships. That work – and the resulting improvements – are achievable now. And for most businesses, that type of collaboration would be a new and truly revolutionary supply chain model. ~Phil Berry, SLM Advisor What do you think? Post Your Comment Here! Also This Week... Verizon Asks Suppliers to Up IT Product Energy Efficiency 20% 
Verizon has established new energy-efficiency standards for the IT equipment it buys, requiring manufacturers to improve the energy performance of their products by an estimated 20%. Read more...
SoftLayer Slims Server Packaging by 80% 
SoftLayer, a datacenter services firm, has slimmed the packaging for its servers by 80% - a boon for shippers looking to pack more product into fewer trucks. Read more...
USPS Downshifts on Ethanol-Fueled Vehicles 
The U.S. Postal Service is rethinking its use of ethanol-fueled vehicles after an internal report found that the trucks decreased fuel efficiency 29%. Read more...
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What Did You Miss at Sustainable Brands '08? Solution Providers Jeff Salisbury on Reading Beyond the Label 
Ever wonder what’s in the adhesive that keeps the label stuck on your shampoo bottle? Jeff Salisbury does, too. His flexographic printing company, Label Impressions, is going the extra mile to find greener labelmaking materials and technologies. And, as he tells SLM, corporate clients including Williams-Sonoma and Clif Bar appreciate the effort. Read more...
Future Supply Chain 2016 
Companies must redesign their supply chains for maximum efficiency - and the best way to do that is to collaborate on infrastructure, according this forward-thinking study. The report presents a new supply chain model in which companies work together to improve environmental and social performance while cutting costs and ensuring an uninterrupted supply line. (Global Commerce Initiative and Capgemini) Download now...
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This work is licensed under a CreativeCommons License. Copyright Sustainable Life Media Inc. 2008
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