Grote Industries Names Southwire Canada its Supplier of the Year
December 14, 2018
Southwire Canada (SWC) has been named Supplier of the Year by Grote Industries, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of vehicle lighting and safety systems for boosting its supply chain performance, which has supported Grote Industries sales growth and helped improve the operational efficiency of their manufacturing process.
“We are thrilled to be recognized by Grote Industries for our efforts to be Canada’s number one supplier for electrical wire and cable,” said Maureen Russolo, VP, Customer Experience. “We look forward to building on recent momentum to create a stronger, more reliable supply chain for both companies.”
SWC has been Grote’s strategic partner for 29 years, providing a number of wiring solutions for the company’s advanced products in vehicle, trailer and battery cables.
In reworking Grote’s service model, Southwire introduced an enhanced Customer Experience strategy to improve overall service and product delivery which improved reporting and communication throughout the manufacturing and product delivery cycle to support Grote’s production and sales goals. The new resource alignment led to improved accuracy in supply chain forecasts and dramatically improved their On Time In Full (OTIF) delivery.
“SWC really listened to our needs as a customer,” said Kirk Batten, Controller for Grote Industries. “They demonstrated leadership and genuine interest in partnering with Grote. They have dramatically improved their level of service for all aspects of our business.”
This level of efficiency is especially important during the harsh winter months in the trucking industry. The availability of Grote branded products ready to ship from SWC stock points has increased sales to trucking customers with urgent, unplanned maintenance to their fleets to keep freight moving across North America. Enhanced communication between the two operations has enabled both companies to manage costs and increase revenue while providing superior service to Grote’s customers.
“We are growing very quickly, and I am thrilled to have SWC as a strategic partner in our growth,” said Batten. “I would highly recommend SWC to others in the industry.”
The ONE Southwire Customer Experience provides a strategic framework for continual process improvement across the entire supply chain and at each customer touchpoint.
