Food and beverage manufacturing remains buoyant

Posted November 2009

The UK food and non-alcoholic drink industry is one of the few sectors to have bucked the trend of falling exports. The Food and Drink Federation(this is an external link and will open in a new window) reported an increase of 10.2% to £4.82bn in the first six months of 2009. Exports of all UK goods were down 13.4% over the same period.

A manufacturing food and drink distribution facility

An intensely competitive sector

Investment in food manufacturing facilities is big business, with much consolidation in recent years through mergers and acquisitions. 2009 has seen a temporary dip in terms of capital spend, but maximising productivity and business efficiency remains a priority.

Key drivers include:

  • Creating additional volume within existing facilities
  • Rationalising manufacturing and distribution onto fewer sites
  • Working smarter with reduced infrastructure spend

The industry is maintaining integrity on the sustainability agenda
The CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme is a major focus and organisations are exploring:

  • energy management and efficiency
  • environmental management systems
  • manufacturing methods and design
  • procurement and the supply chain
  • waste management
  • distribution and logistics
  • social impacts of manufacturing

Warehousing, distribution and logistics

With logistics typically accounting for 10-15% of the final cost of finished goods, warehousing and distribution operations are an integral part of the product supply chain. An integrated transport approach is vital and companies are investigating:

  • intermodality
  • renewable fuels
  • journey frequency reduction
  • transport of maximum loads (40% of truck journeys are empty)
  • behaviour change.

Production installations play a critical role in overall corporate strategy
Complex inter-dependencies impact upon projects in this marketplace. Reviewing all areas from ‘first principles' will help companies interrogate their key business drivers, aligning these with current operational facilities, and exploring:

  • business ethos
  • strategies
  • operations
  • social and cultural drivers
  • production line capacity
  • future sales growth predictions
  • potential innovation
  • business continuity through construction
  • most appropriate warehousing solution
  • assessment of development options
  • impact of increased production on storage capacity and distribution
  • matching increased production with capacity of storage and distribution network
  • business maturity in order to understand in-house capability
  • level of external support required.

 


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