DATE: 28th January 2008
Business Direct, the leading In-Night and Specialist innovative logistics solutions provider, is using its new high-speed, through-the-night, inbound Continental European air service to add value and improve the efficiency for its new Client Jungheinrich. Jungheinrich, who offer the most comprehensive range of materials handling solutions and services available from one source in the UK, now benefit from same night and next day parts delivery service to its UK customers and service engineers. Business Direct has signed a four year, valuable contract with Jungheinrich, to provide a seamless, flexible and cost effective Continental Europe – UK delivery solution. Service Parts and materials can be ordered up to 14.30pm local UK time by Jungheinrich clients. These are then picked at Jungheinrich's European Parts Distribution centre in Lahr in Southern Germany up until 17.00hrs local. Business Direct GmbH collects all the UK bound consignments directly from Lahr and then, utilising its dedicated 'airbridge' out of Frankfurt, ships these directly into Coventry Airport for arrival same evening. 
Image 1: Business Directs vehicles with Jungheinrichs materials handling at Business Directs premises in Rugby UK
Once the freight has arrived into the UK, Business Direct injects the consignments into its extensive UK depot and delivery network, guaranteeing that the product is available to Jungheinrich's 500 strong service engineers' team by 7 am next morning.
Jungheinrich chose Business Direct as its preferred delivery partner because Business Direct was the only company to offer an effective 'in-boot' through the night delivery solution, backed up with the flexibility of ParcelXchanges 'drop boxes' and other dedicated pick up and drop off points. This UK network is complemented by a fully supported German operation, thus offering a total one stop solution for Jungheinrich. As a consequence Jungheinrich has been able to optimise the costs and efficiency of its supply chain and enhance the service to its field engineers.
Business Direct also utilises a full track and trace capability which, linked in with Jungheinrich's SAP system, has enabled a 95% first time availability parts pick together with a delivery accuracy in excess of 99% to the UK field service engineers. In addition, Jungheinrich has full visibility of every spare part ordered from the UK - from the point of order, via the warehouse through to the final customer delivery point.
Business Direct's high-speed inbound Continental European air service has also enabled Jungheinrich to maximise the uptime of its equipment for all its UK customers.
The other major advantage to Jungheinrich of Business Direct's Continental European through-the-night air service is that it has helped them to eliminate the need to hold buffer stocks of parts in the UK, consequently significantly reducing locally held inventory, warehousing and distribution costs, without compromising extremely high customer service levels to the end customer.
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Image 2: Business Direct and Jungheinrich contract signing. |
Business Direct provides Jungheinrich's service engineers with a seamless, effective and traceable returns service. The engineer simply leaves the part to be returned at the designated normal delivery point with a special returns label attached to it. Business Direct's unique barcode number on the label enables it to uplift these consignments via the UK national delivery and depot network and Continental European 'airbridge'. Consignments are returned back to Jungheinrich's European Distribution centre in Lahr quickly and efficiently.
"We chose Business Direct because they offered a flexible, cost effective delivery solution backed up by full track and trace capability. They are very professional in their approach and by forming a partnership we are confident that when issues arise we can work together to resolve them" commented Roger Stevens, Head of Supply Chain, Jungheinrich UK.
"Business Direct's unique selling proposition (USP) with the Continental European high-speed inbound service is that we can tailor-make it to meet the exact needs of a particular customer, in this case Jungheinrich, and add significant value to their operation," commented Paul Carvell, Chief Executive Business Direct Group. "We can back this up with a high quality infrastructure and reputation for service excellence in the UK. We are delighted that Jungheinrich is one of the first company's to take advantage and benefit from this major new development in our business."
For Further Information: Roger Stevens, Head of Supply Chain Jungheinrich UK Ltd E: roger.stevens@jungheinrich.co.uk Alan Doxey, UK & European Development Director Business Direct Group plc M: +44 (0) 7793802890 E: Alan.Doxey@bdpx.com www.jungheinrich.co.uk | For Media Enquiries: Rachel Parry, Marketing Executive Business Direct Group plc T: +44 (0) 1788 821235 E: Rachel.Parry@bdpx.com Alison Brindley, Head of Marketing Business Direct Group plc M: +44 (0) 7962 649629 E: Alison.Brindley@bdpx.com www.bdpx.com |
About Business Direct Group plc
Business Direct Group is divided into three separate but complimentary divisions.
In-night division, which incorporates Parcel change, intelligent locker distribution system, and an in-boot service, where deliveries from as far a field as continental Europe are made through the night to engineers vehicles.
In addition to traditional same-day and next-day courier activities and warehousing facilities, Specialist division also provides time-specific two-man retail delivery solutions and technical plug and play services.
Finally, Business Direct has realised the unlimited potential of the ParcelXchange solution and formed a Global Licensing division to market this unique product on a worldwide basis.
The Jungheinrich Group of Hamburg celebrated its Golden Jubilee in 2003 (1953 -2003). In contrast to the USA, the new efficiencies offered by materials handling techniques were only adopted by European industry after the Second World War. A prime mover behind this development was Dr-Ing. Friedrich Jungheinrich who established a small workshop in northern Germany in 1953 to explore the potential benefits offered by modern handling innovations.
From those humble beginnings employing just 30 staff and achieving a first year turnover of DM 2.5m (£1m), the Group, with its headquarters remaining in Hamburg, has developed to become the number 1 supplier of warehousing technology in Europe, has five manufacturing plants, sales and service companies in 30 countries, dealer distribution networks all over the world including Australia, South Africa and China and has an international workforce of over 9000 employees.
Early days in Britain
With considerable foresight, Jungheinrich's founder was the first industrial truck manufacturer who, in addition to branches throughout Germany, also began to develop a network of European subsidiaries. In Britain, Jungheinrich UK Ltd's history goes back to December, 1966 - the year when England won the World Cup, Mary Quant launched the mini skirt and the Beatles hit the charts with 'Eleanor Rigby'! Initially registered as Jungheinrich (GB) Ltd, the fledgling company opened its first offices in Knowsley Street, Cheetham Hill, not far from Strangeways Prison in central Manchester! This was not the most auspicious address in the city particularly as the premises consisted of three very scruffy and vandalised offices that had been left vacant for two years. The initial team of five employees - armed with a single portable typewriter were soon hard at work and achieved a first year turnover of £50,000. Today, 37 years later, Jungheinrich UK Ltd boasts a workforce of over 1000 employees and a turnover of £140 million.
Jungheinrich UK today
The UK headquarters are based in Milton Keynes. This lies at the hub of six strategically sited Customer Service Centres in Scotland (Cumbernauld), the North West (Warrington), the North East (Sheffield), The Midlands (Birmingham), the South West (Bristol) and in the South East (Milton Keynes). Jungheinrich UK now offers the most comprehensive range of materials handling solutions and services available from a single source.
Jungheinrich has always led the field in electric warehouse trucks, setting new standards in internal logistics with a wide range of innovative developments. Principal amongst these was the launch in 1956 of the first reach truck with its retractable mast, a major step forward in increasing space utilisation in palletised warehouses and a field in which Jungheinrich remains a world leader. Subsequent growth both organically and by acquisition - principally the purchase of Steinbock and Boss in 1994 with their emphasis on ic-engine forklifts - has seen the Group's portfolio increase to today's line-up which ranges from simple hand pallet trucks through all types of lift trucks (powered pallet trucks/stackers, counterbalance forklifts in both electric and ic-engine versions, reach trucks, order pickers, high rack stackers/order pickers) and on to the advanced systems supplied by the company's Projects Division.
