Ricoh Europe SCM

For those who want to copy or print something at work, there is a good chance of coming into contact with a Ricoh machine. Our company is one of the largest market players in copiers and printers in the business market. Our machines are made in Asia. We have a total of 12 production locations across Japan, China, Vietnam and Thailand. Our European Distribution Center (EDC) in Bergen op Zoom is supplied from these production locations. Usually by sea freight, supplemented with air freight and rail transport from China. From our central supply chain location we ensure the delivery of our products within Europe, the Middle East and Africa. In fact, three different outbound flows take place. First of all there are the toner and service parts shipments. That is approximately 18,000 a day. With the help of parcel and in-night service, they go directly to the end users, dealers and our engineers. The second outbound flow consists of supplying machines and accessories to our customers and dealers. We do this via local carriers who provide the final mile and who can also perform “ green button ” installations. We provide transport from the EDC to those local hubs and we deliver to the dealers who also serve their customers. The third stream concerns the delivery to our satellite dc’s. Like the second stream, this concerns printers and copiers, but also toner and service parts that we fill first. Our satellite CDs are located in Italy, Spain, Sweden and the Czech Republic, among others. And from those countries we serve a large part of Europe. We determine and manage the stock in those countries ourselves, so that we can also make the best decisions about the stock, the duration and the costs. When a certain country is supplied from a Satellite DC, we ensure that approximately 85-95% of the orders is actually delivered from the satellite dc and the rest directly from the EDC Bergen op Zoom.

We try to focus as much as possible on intermodal transport by rail, especially in transport to our satellite dcs. We started doing that about 10 years ago. Previously, the focus was very strongly on speed and service. That focus has now shifted to price and sustainability. And rail is simply cheaper and more sustainable than road transport. The question is whether our customers are also willing to pay even more for sustainability in the long term. Not yet, but we do see a trend that more and more companies are realizing that something needs to change. In 2015, the so-called ‘ sustainable development goals ’ were defined by the United Nations. Ricoh has incorporated a number of these objectives into the policy plan for the coming years, including the climate objectives. This means that Ricoh will focus even more on sustainable transport solutions in the coming years, which we are also happy to monitor. That is why we are currently developing an emission tool, so that we can make emissions measurable. We also try to distribute as much as possible via our satellite dc’s.
Due to the time pressure, we cannot use intermodal solutions for direct deliveries from the EDC in Bergen op Zoom to customers and we are forced to use road transport. However, when distributing via our satellite dc, the stock is closer to the sales area and therefore has a shorter lead time. In addition, we obtain a economies of scale in transport to our satellite dc’s, because we can then stack the machines. This is in contrast to direct delivery from the EDC, where the machines are already configured. Because this process can be controlled as well as possible, we benefit from early information about the demand for our machines. The sooner we have the information available, the better we predict demand and the more we can use intermodal transport solutions via our satellite dcs. This requires a different way of thinking from our sellers in Europe. Instead of service and speed, they should start thinking in terms of price and sustainability. This is quite a challenge and requires a ‘ mental shift ’ within our organization. Our ambitions with regard to intermodal transport, on the other hand, also demand something from the rail sector. Although there is sufficient capacity, there is not enough backup. Is there an emergency on the track or a defect in a wagon? Provide a good backup so that the customer is affected as little as possible. A mental shift is therefore also required for the track. Moreover, it seems that there is not enough coordination internationally to solve problems on the track. This creates sub-optimization. Nevertheless, we see a lot of potential for the track. Especially at shorter distances we would like to make more use of the track. Why, for example, does there not be a direct shuttle to and from Paris? It would be nice if the rail sector also takes steps in this.