Mole Valley Farmers
Mole Valley Farmers Cost Saving Review
Mole Valley Farmers describes itself as a ‘cost saving farmers co-operative’. Since its early days in the 1960s it has supported the farming community in the south-west of England by supplying a range of animal feeds and other products. Today, through its nine retail stores in the south west and nineteen SCATS Countrystores across southern England it provides farmers and other customers with a wide range of products including agricultural supplies, clothing, garden supplies, tools and domestic goods. The retail side of the business is developing further afield with a thriving internet sales website.
Over the years the company has invested in five animal feed mills used to supply to its customer base in bulk and bag. This is supported by an ‘in-house’ and contractor operated transport fleet of rigid, articulated and rigid with drawbar trailer delivery vehicles.
The agricultural division of the business has been experiencing substantial pressures upon raw material and energy costs. Even in this tough economic environment the business has strived to expand its product and service offering in a wider geographical area and deliver value to the farming community.
As part of the company’s ongoing focus upon cost, Davies & Robson was invited to undertake a full review of transport activities within the agricultural and retail business. Davies & Robson utilised its strategic modelling capability, operational experience and ‘best practice’ knowledge in other sectors to challenge and analyse current operational methods.
Although the Mole Valley agricultural transport operation was efficient and the operations team was clearly satisfying customer service requirements, Davies & Robson was able to identify opportunities to further reduce the cost of delivery. These included, for example, product sourcing, allocation of fleet to depots, vehicle specification, delivery schedules and fuel management. Davies & Robson was also able to recommend strategies to accommodate future changes and growth in the retail business that would ensure continued operating efficiency and customer service satisfaction in a demanding retail environment.
Andrew Chapple from Mole Valley Farmers commented “The Company found this review extremely valuable in confirming the current transport effectiveness and providing a fresh pair of eyes as to further opportunities for cost reduction and accommodating the growth in our retail business, so that we can continue to provide cost savings to our customers”.
www.molevalleyfarmers.com
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