Sustainable Packaging
Our journey with a leading media and entertainment company began in 2004 as a fulfilment operation providing delivery of their set top boxes to its national workforce of field engineers. Today, the UK provides a wide range of services to this company, including forward and reverse logistics for set top boxes and broadband routers, recycling services and fleet management supporting approximately 3500 engineers.
We fulfil orders from a large number of engineers for parts, accessories and tools from its integrated NDC at our distribution and repair centre in Nuneaton, operated on a WMS platform and fully integrated into the company’s systems via our proprietary integration tool. The flexible solution means that the engineers can order on demand anything from their stock list of c800 SKU’s ranging from set top boxes, to dishes, to cable to boots and safety equipment, and if ordered before 2pm, will have it in their lock box for collection before 7:30am the following day.
98% engineers receive their equipment and stock overnight through one of 14,000 pick-up points nationwide. We work with an international software and supply chain management company for secure pick up solutions. Where an engineer is unable to access a pick up location, they receive items direct to their home. The supply management system is integrated into our WMS enabling full track and trace of all orders.
We dispatched c.520,000 items to the company’s field engineers every month including; 157,000 set top boxes and 5000 routers. 60,000 items a week are dispatched direct to customer.
Sustainability Approach
As a responsible business partner at the heart of a leading media and entertainment company’s supply chain – we process over 2270 tonnes of engineer returns per annum. Each year, around one million tv streaming boxes are upgraded or replaced, creating a significant challenge when it comes to sustainable disposal. We are a key component of the company’s commitment to environmental sustainability and work hard to reduce the impact of their supply chain, creating a shared environmental commitment with key initiatives:
- Zero landfill solutions on returns – since 2012 UL is proud to have prevented 100% engineer waste reaching landfill by delivering recycling and reuse solutions
- By closely integrating repair operations with inbound logistics, UL took more than 610 tonnes of CO2 out of the company’s annual distribution emissions
- Zero plastic is used on any product or any packaging, down to paper tape
- Providing innovative and commercial focused re-sale and re-use solutions.
All waste returns – an average of 800 bags daily – are recycled, in line with the company’s 0% landfill policy. Upon receipt at our distribution centre in Baginton, the waste is segregated into 23 separate streams to minimise the impact upon on the environment and maximise the commercial return from these waste materials.
We recycled 2270 tonnes of ‘waste’ for the company last year, and we are able to recycle a portfolio of over 16,000 of their product lines.
