The ‘Lean Gold’ validation from S A Partners has been made to recognise organisational transformation and continuous improvement in the Greenyard Fresh UK business. The award recognises the commitment of the Greenyard Fresh UK teams and acknowledges the exemplary performance of the organisation and their unique way of working.
Greenyard Fresh UK have been working with industry renowned S A Partners, specialists in supporting business change for five years.
The link with S A Partners started with an initiative from one of Greenyard’s core customers and led to previous ‘continuous improvement’ awards, a stepping-stone to this accolade.
Mark Spurdens, Supply Chain & Operations Director and sponsor of the Enterprise Excellence team said: “Realising the benefits this process brings to our supply chain (Customers, Suppliers and Colleagues), we were committed to attaining validation of the work to date and our continued strive for perfection in everything we do.”
The business changes have supported a ‘customer first’ service throughout the supply chain. It has provided the skills to enable Greenyard’s team to apply their technical expertise, eliminate waste, mitigate risk and take the utmost care of the fresh produce they process.
Jeff Williams, S A Partners, Account Director conducted the final validation and said after the award was confirmed: “It has been an absolute pleasure to work with such a dedicated team of people. The Improvement journey hasn’t always been easy; however, the passion and motivation of the team has been inspirational to observe. Lean Gold is one of our highest accolades and I am incredibly proud to present it to Greenyard Fresh UK and look forward to supporting them on their Lean Platinum (Enterprise Excellence) journey.”
During the same period Greenyard Fresh UK invested over £2M in the ripening, warehousing and packing facilities. The state-of-the-art ripening facilities enable the team to ripen right down to case level with multiple varieties in the same chamber. Greenyard are using a system of heat, humidity and ethylene and CO2 management (the first in Europe) which optimises the evenness and speed of ripening. This bespoke system was created in a partnership between the Greenyard ripening team and cross refrigeration drawing upon expertise from across the Greenyard’s global ripening footprint.
Bill Mathieson, Greenyard Fresh Managing Director says: “Culturally and operationally we have been on a journey to change the very DNA of the business. Working with S A Partners has supported us to unlock the business potential and make a positive impact to every aspect of the way we work. It’s so important to have a modern packhouse facility and be lean, adaptable and transparent in everything we do. The focus of the team has been on embedding a customer first mindset and approach to ensure with our fantastic growers to deliver them high quality produce. This is a tremendous milestone and the good news is we believe we have further opportunities to improve.”
For more information please contact:
Sue Richards: srichards@greenyardfresh.co.uk
Hazel Laking: hlaking@greenyardfresh.co.uk