The benefits recorded by the business have considerable implications for many service industry operations following the continued rise in fuel prices in the UK. Paul Duggan, Greggs national logistics project manager, explained the recent improvements to Service Management.

He stated that a change of focus had resulted in the Multi Depot routing and scheduling system, supplied by Paragon, being used to much greater effect. The improvements to the Manchester operation had also been assisted by subscribing to Paragon’s training courses, described by Duggan as ‘not cheap but very beneficial’, helping him to see the potential benefits.

Greggs delivers its various sandwiches, savoury products and sweet lines to over 1100 of its stores in the UK and has a fleet of 250 vehicles. Following improved optimisation of the Manchester operation alone, the company has saved an estimated £200,000 by using eight fewer vehicles.

The savings resulted from a reassessment of the company’s delivery operation, resulting in its vehicles used on a double shift basis delivering fresh produce overnight and chilled and frozen products throughout the day.

The in-depth changes to the company’s operation involved negotiations with union officials and employees. There had been, Duggan explained, something of a ‘credibility gap’ to overcome from the workforce’s point of view, mainly due to the system being used sparingly over the previous two years.

‘We’re not just talking about a transport solution here,’ said Duggan. ‘We introduced new shifts and made some big changes to the business.’ He further explained that the increased efficiency has also enabled deliveries to be made earlier and allow the company’s stores to open in time to serve commuters as they leave for work.

Greggs is currently using its Manchester operation as a role model for three more of its 12 regional bakeries. It aims to complete this by the end of the year, with time savings in implementation made possible by copying its Mancunian example.

‘For us, distribution is a complex process,’ said Duggan. ‘We deliver everything that the shops sell, so our delivery patterns include frozen, chilled and ambient produce.

The solution is used to check both the efficiency of existing routes and also assess additional transport costs when new store locations are introduced.

Duggan, who stated that his operational background had helped him to understand the benefits as soon as the updated modelling of the system began, also explained that early discussions had begun concerning the possible purchase of the Paragon Fleet Controller solution. He estimated that the current project would take approximately two years to complete with the company’s current set up.