NFT is responsible for the distribution of Greencore’s pre-prepared sandwiches to the award-winning food-to-go UK multiple retailer, M&S.
High volume, time critical productsAs one of the UK’s largest chilled sandwich manufacturers and with the contract accounting for 60% of M&S sandwich volume, Greencore has ambitious production targets to produce on average 250,000 units daily for delivery to depot. The challengeIt’s a prestigious contract that also presents a significant logistical challenge: to provide a cost-effective and reliable method of collecting and delivering substantial volumes of time-critical sandwiches on the same day, often within a 12-hour window. With such high-volume turnover, Greencore has a tight daily operational schedule which means it relies on a logistics partner that has the vehicle availability and systems capability to support its requirements.
NFT developed an innovative solution in order to provide Greencore with the most cost-effective way of delivering to depot, through the design and introduction of its new custom-built, chilled double-deck trailers. Each chilled double deck trailer is capable of handling 33% more sandwiches on each journey. The benefitsGreencore benefits from a more cost effective way to deliver its made-to order sandwich range to M&S on a daily basis, as the larger trailers mean that Greencore is able to despatch product more quickly, freeing up space in its holding area. The double-deck trailers have enabled Greencore to reduce its food miles per sandwich delivered by over 30% – that’s over 500,000 miles per year saved – equivalent to 631 tonnes of CO2. The savings in food miles are also aligned with both improving Greencore’s carbon footprint and in helping M&S meet its climate change commitment, Plan A.
“NFT stood out as the logical choice to handle our distribution. With really short life products and a short lead ordering profile, it’s essential that we have a logistics partner who can consistently deliver the freshest products in a time critical environment.”Logistics Manager,Greencore