Unilever gets its logistics greener with PTV Route Optimiser
Unilever, a multinational consumer goods company, owns over 400 brands and operates in more than 190 countries. Its branch in Italy has recently embarked on an effort to make its logistics operations more sustainable – choosing to do so with PTV Route Optimiser software.
PTV Route Optimiser is a routing and scheduling tool for logistics operations. The software considers all truck attributes and restrictions, including environmental aspects such as emissions.
Optimising huge operations
“PTV Route Optimiser allows us to combine optimisation of transportation and distribution with reduction of consumption and waste", says Giuseppe Galantuomo, Logistics Director of Unilever Italy.
One of the biggest challenges for Unilever Italia is the huge scale of its distribution operations. Andrea Trosino, the company’s Transport & Stock Deployment Leader, tells: “Over the years, distribution has become more complicated due to narrow time windows for loading and unloading at depots. That creates bottlenecks and dramatically lengthens stop times of vehicles and drivers”.
To improve service times and its use of resources, Unilever Italia needed to optimise the synergy between the planning and the execution of its logistics operations. PTV Route Optimiser answers this need.
According to Francesco Lo Chiatto, Sales & Project Manager at PTV Group: "PTV Route Optimiser integrates functions that were previously done manually or with other tools. It supports Unilever Italia in planning complex transport and distribution activities”.
Simplification of processes
“We started with an operational pilot project in one of our warehouses, while also analysing the project in a strategic environment”, says Fabio Consorte, Logistics Network Manager of Unilever Italia, “We use PTV Route Optimiser to simulate possible scenarios and to formulate more effective future strategies".
His colleague Andrea Trosino adds: "From the go-live to today, the benefits in planning and optimisation of transport have been many. The first benefit is a general simplification of logistics processes. In addition, we estimate that PTV Route Optimiser brings positive results in terms of costs, around 15% reduction in emissions, clear improvement in the use of the fleet, reduction in delays – and in general an increase in the quality of the service.”
He added: “PTV Route Optimiser collects and harmonizes data and information from other systems and makes the entire process more efficient. We can also benefit from business intelligence, which is essential for us to have full control of the business".
