A high-tech solution from Paragon Software Systems is providing significant mileage and travel cost savings for one of the UK’s largest agri-food businesses.
ABN, a division of the international diversified AB Agri group, has boosted efficiency of its logistics operation after implementing Paragon’s advanced routing and scheduling software. The Paragon solution integrates with ABN’s order processing software so that orders are instantly visible for optimising routing and scheduling of its entire fleet of specialised articulated trucks.
The centralised fully-automated Paragon Integrated Fleets solution has replaced manual planning, bringing tighter control and corporate-wide visibility to the organisation’s pig and poultry feeds business that is spread across nine UK mills. With extra screens at each mill, the system provides an ideal multi-site transport optimisation tool for improving complex scheduling requirements and improving asset utilisation and productivity.
“Paragon clearly offered the most flexible solution overall in meeting the demands of what is a highly complex and large scale manufacturing and distribution process. With the added benefit of offering additional screens for use in individual mills and Citrix access capabilities for more streamlined planning, Paragon was the obvious choice to meet our needs,” said Chris Barnes, Regional Logistics Manager, ABN.
Commenting on the success of the system, Barnes said: “This has enabled major business change at ABN, from previously local manual planning at each mill to centralised, automated planning. The increased control and central visibility offered by Paragon’s routing and scheduling software has delivered significant mileage and cost savings – through more efficient inter-working of previously separate fleets – at the same time meeting all our customers’ delivery demands.”
Barnes has been impressed by the results already achieved. “Our routing and scheduling system has to meet the demands of a dynamic and fluid customer base,” he said. “The Paragon system ensures we meet a wide range of delivery requirements, often at very short notice, at the same time taking account of such constraints as the need to use compartmented vehicles in order to avoid the risk of cross-contamination.”
