May 29, 2008 - To stay competitive, companies must redesign their supply chains for maximum efficiency - and the best way to do that is to collaborate on infrastructure, according to a new study.

Future Supply Chain 2016, published by the Global Commerce Initiative and Capgemini, a consulting firm, 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.

"The coming years will see a new era for industry collaboration, which will become an important factor for future success," the report predicts. "In many cases, this will require companies to rethink their areas of competitive advantage. Some business areas that are now considered to be core differentiators may well become candidates for collaboration with competitors."

Why? Cooperation in the form of information sharing and collaborative warehousing and distribution can offer efficiencies that companies simply can't achieve on their own, the report finds.

The potential for savings is significant, according to the report, which estimates that its collaborative supply chain model could potentially reduce transport costs per pallet more than 30%, cut handling costs per pallet 20%, reduce lead time by 40%, and lower CO2 emissions per pallet 25%, while also improving on-shelf availability. (And those numbers don't include additional cost savings from greener buildings and more fuel-efficient fleets.)

Download the report and the supply chain model here.