nd$.$

And that$$s not all. While standard

delivery time is three weeks, the

$70-$year$-$old privately held company offers a premium service that guarantees

shipment of urgently needed products

within two days across North America.

$$That makes the supply chain $$ my

job $$ very challenging because I can$$t

stock $100$ per cent of everything that

any customer might order,$$ says Kelly

Singleton, Price$$s purchasing manager.

$$We have many variations of products and offerings to suit each of our

customer$$s unique requirements. The

goal is always to deliver the perfect

order while providing exceptional

customer service.$$

That pride and confidence reflects

how far supply chain management

has progressed at Price. In less than a

decade, it has evolved from a narrow

purchasingfunction to one that touches

many other parts of the company, such

as receiving, shipping and inventory

control.

$$We began working as a cohesive

team,$$ she says. $$We had conversations that we$$d never had before.$$

Ms$.$ Singleton recalls that when the

company hired its first supply chain

manager, she came in and said that

Price$$s BHAG $($big hairy audacious goal$)$

would be cost savings of $$2\mathrm{.}5-$million

over a two$-$year period.

$$We all looked at her and thought:

$$You$$re crazy! That$$s never going to

happen.$$

As things turned out, the target was

reached well before the second year

was over and was far exceeded by the

end of that period.

Price had previously done most

of its business with a limited pool of

preferred suppliers. The new supply

chain manager introduced competitive

requests for proposals $($RFPs$),$ requiring

its suppliers to improve their overall

value proposition.

The company also began inviting

suppliers on plant tours, resulting in

many more ideas for improvement.

One pointed out that Price was ordering boxes of filters stacked two high,

while other customers packaged them

three high.

$$The freight savings on that alone

were phenomenal, because we were

no longer shipping air,$$ Ms$.$ Singleton

notes.

Another valuable innovation has

been supplier reviews, including key

performance indicators.

$$We$$re now checking their performance and holding them accountable,

something we$$d never done before,$$

she adds.

The review process has the extra

advantage of bringing together experts

from various parts of the company, such

as engineering, accounting, inventory

control and production. The teams

discuss issues ranging from suppliers$$

technical support and capacity for

growth, to the adequacy of their shipping documents.

Such initiatives have raised the profile of supply management within the

company. The team reports to the vice

president of operations, Paul Remillard,

and has added a director of strategic

partnerships who has a direct line to

Price$$s president, Joe Cyr$.$

Ms$.$ Singleton has two words of advice

for other companies seeking to expand

their supply$-$management expertise:

$$ Invest in training and education:

$$You$$re not going to get staff to be

innovative, forward$-$thinking and

strategic if they don$$t have the education.$$

$$ Hire the right people: $$Once you find

them, you better hang on to them

because they can make or break your

supply chain.$$

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