Optimising Load Fill: A Best Practice Guide

About this Guide to Improving Load Utilisation

The Department for Transport (DfT), in their 2007 Report of Key Performance Indicators for Food and Drink Supply Chains, recorded average deck utilisation at 75%, height utilisation at 72% and weight utilisation at 55%.

This online resource has been created by the ECR UK Filling the Cube Subgroup to provide a practical support guide to help companies improve their utilisation at each stage of load build - pack, case, shipping unit and vehicle.

Working with representatives from leading retailers, manufacturers and logistics providers, the Subgroup developed this resource to challenge some of the traditional ways of looking at utilisation, and demonstrate some of the many ways that load fill can be increased. This will allow companies to:

• Increase load utilisation;
• Reduce road miles;
• Reduce cost;
• Enable truly sustainable supply chains.

How this resource will help

This online resource is designed to offer support in;

• Understanding where your opportunities lie in order to improve fill
• Understanding the constraints that may be limiting your ability to deliver improved load utilisation
• Accessing simple ‘top tips’ for improving fill at each stage of load build – pack, case, shipping unit, and vehicle
• Providing solutions to some of the common constraints that limit load fill
• Identifying the relevant complexity of the constraints, in terms of the impact and ease of overcoming them, allowing users to identify the most appropriate constraints to tackle

All of which are supported by case studies that demonstrate how other companies have already improved their load utilisation.

Acknowledgements

IGD and ECR UK would like to thank members of the ECR UK Filling the Cube Subgroup for their support and contribution in developing this guide.

Co-Chairs:

Sue McGeorge Head of Customer Supply Chain Services, Kimberly-Clark Ltd	Richard Parker Head of Primary Distribution, Somerfield Stores Ltd

Members:

Karen Wright Food and Drink Cluster Manager, Advantage West Midlands	Sharon Woodman-Clarke Collect Manager, Alliance Boots	Tom Rose Logistics Change Manager, Asda	Doug Martin Logistics Solution Manager, Brakes
Alex Fraser General Manager, CEVA	Debbie Read Corporate Responsibility Manager, Molson Brewing Company (UK)	Neal Ince General Manager M&S Primary, Gist Ltd	Ian Medd Third Party Transport Manager, Nestlé
David Wheatley General Manager, PepsiCo UK	Domenico Muscogiuri WE Logistics Leader, Procter & Gamble	Kevin Greenaway National Planning Manager, Sainsbury's	Mark McNamara Personal Care Distribution Operations Manager, Unilever UK Ltd
Rob Wright National Logistics Controller, United Biscuits	Chris Fenton General Manager, Wincanton