Wincanton, has launched a shared distribution initiative to encourage collaboration between retailers and manufacturers by offering a national transport platform to share regional distribution centre warehousing and distribution routes to minimise empty running.
In practice, the network collaboration can also generate shared cost benefits for customers. For example, a supermarket and high-street retailer could benefit by using shared distribution centres and vehicles for similar delivery routes that experience different weekly peaks by having fewer drivers to pay, less property to lease and fewer vehicles to run. Wincanton recognises that by offering its retail and manufacturing customers the opportunity to share vehicles for similar delivery routes, it can significantly impact on environmental concerns. With calls for the freight and transport industry to step up efforts to reduce its impact on the environment, research still shows that 20 per cent of vehicles are running empty.
Richard Turner, chief executive, Freight Transport Association, said: “Road congestion is a massive problem for our industry, which means that we must make every effort to improve vehicle utilisation.”
