Campus News

Lexmark Wins UK's Inaugural Supply Chain Innovation Award

LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 27, 2015)  The University of Kentucky's Gatton College of Business and Economics will present the inaugural Commonwealth Supply Chain Innovation Award to Lexmark International at the college’s 5th Annual Supply Chain Forum today, Friday, March 27, at The Grand Reserve in downtown Lexington. The award recognizes individuals and/or organizations that have demonstrated operational excellence in supply chain management as evidenced in a recently completed supply chain improvement project.

Lexmark’s supply chain team, working with logistics partner Kuehne + Nagel, one of the world’s leading third-party logistics companies, completed an “error-proofing” project that impressed the judges with their innovative approach to improving their custom mixed-pallet creation and shipping processes. Results included improved order accuracy to best-in-class levels and a reduction in the number and cost of customer claims by over 70 percent. The project reduced labor costs and delivered a return on investment of 250 percent in the first year.

Marty Canning, Lexmark executive vice president and president of Imaging Solutions and Services, said “This project is a great example of how Lexmark works alongside our customers every day to provide them the unique set of solutions and services that make their businesses more efficient. This award and the results achieved represent a win for both of us.”

The Commonwealth Supply Chain Innovation Award judging panel consists of practitioners, academics and consultants in the supply chain industry, appointed by the advisory board of the Gatton College Supply Chain Forum. The forum brings together approximately 200 corporate leaders, professors and students to share ideas about the latest supply chain issues. This year’s theme was "Digitization of Supply Chain."

“It’s an exciting time to be in the supply chain industry,” said David W. Blackwell, dean of the Gatton College. “It’s especially exciting this year to honor one of our local Lexington companies for their innovative work in the field. The supply chain work Lexmark International is doing will inform other companies about ways to enhance their own processes and not only improve their customer service, but their return on investment.”

As the Commonwealth Supply Chain Innovation Award recipient, Lexmark qualifies for future supply chain improvement project support from graduate students enrolled in the Gatton College’s one-year accelerated MBA program.

For more information on the award or the Forum visit: http://gatton.uky.edu/EEC/Content.asp?PageName=EECSupplyChainForum15, or contact: Lucy Tepper at lucy.tepper@uky.edu or 859-257-8746.

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MEDIA CONTACT: Carl Nathe, 859-257-3200; carl.nathe@uky.edu; Ann Mary Quarandillo, 859-257-0750; annmary.q@uky.edu.