MUNICH, Germany, Nov. 24, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ADVA Optical Networking announced today that it has won one of QuEST Forum's two annual awards for sustainability. It achieved the accolade for improvements in every one of Quest Forum's 10 sustainability areas, which include resource management and the creation of a circular economy. Central to the award was ADVA Optical Networking's End-to-End Supply and Re-Use project, a revolutionary initiative that restructures logistics and improves product delivery. The innovative scheme streamlines processes by removing equipment from customer warehouses and delivering only what engineers need close to the installation site. This is already saving hundreds of tons of carbon emissions. QuEST Forum is a global association dedicated to promoting quality and sustainability and ADVA Optical Networking has begun sharing the details of its pioneering supply chain process at QuEST events across the world.
"ADVA Optical Networking is an excellent recipient for this inaugural award. They obviously developed a culture of continuous improvement in many areas and we're proud that we can recognize their success," said Fraser Pajak, CEO, QuEST Forum. "The idea of getting equipment closer to where it's needed might seem simple but the sheer amount of time, effort and carbon emissions it saves is extraordinary. This drives inventory out of warehouses, enables unused equipment to be repurposed and dramatically reduces overheads. What ADVA Optical Networking has achieved is something very powerful. Part of our value proposition at QuEST Forum is not only to set standards and benchmark against them, but to facilitate best practice sharing when someone "cracks the code" on making improvements. Our Global Sustainability Awards are a great way to highlight such achievements. QuEST Forum is a collaborative environment where service providers and suppliers work together to improve ICT. QuEST Forum views sustainability as a key aspect of the quality of products and services. Through our sustainability initiative, we provide the structure and model for companies to improve performance, reduce costs and win more business as a result."
Over the last two years, ADVA Optical Networking has driven enormous change in its sustainability program. This included developing its radical new logistics model. Its reinvention of the supply chain uses UPS Access PointsTM to deliver parcels to within a hundred meters of an installation site. This reduces travel time and removes the need to store inventory. The supplier is embedded in all stages of the logistical process for total flexibility and efficiency. Stock levels can be optimized and cancelled orders are no longer a costly problem. The results so far are impressive. Over the past year, ADVA Optical Networking has used the strategy in its work as a major equipment supplier for BT. As a result, it's estimated that BT will be able to cut inventory by 50% and eliminate 3,000 items from its depot, stock valued at £1.8 million. It will enable major reductions in engineer travel time and boost installations per day by around 30%. Overall, the initiative is expected to return three times its costs in terms of benefits to BT.
"QuEST selected us as winners because we're making a real difference in every way that matters. They also see that we've created a genuinely unique supply strategy. There's simply no one else in the world doing what we're doing," commented Christoph Glingener, CTO, ADVA Optical Networking. "The key element is that we now have complete control over every aspect of the supply process. That means our customers don't even have to think about managing inventory. What makes it possible is the platform we've developed to precisely track every item of equipment. It's an entirely new approach to organizing supply - a paradigm shift in the way we think about logistics. The initiative has already achieved phenomenal cost savings. But what really drives customers like BT is creating new ways to look after the world around us. That's why they like it so much. That's why QuEST chose to recognize it. And it's what convinces me that this is the future of sustainable logistics."
Read these slides for more details on ADVA Optical Networking's sustainability program: http://www.slideshare.net/ADVAOpticalNetworking/building-a-sustainable-future.
About ADVA Optical Networking
At ADVA Optical Networking we're creating new opportunities for tomorrow's networks, a new vision for a connected world. Our intelligent telecommunications hardware, software and services have been deployed by several hundred service providers and thousands of enterprises. Over the past twenty years, our innovative connectivity solutions have helped to drive our customers' networks forward, helped to drive their businesses to new levels of success. We forge close working relationships with all our customers. As your trusted partner we ensure that we're always ready to exceed your networking expectations. For more information on our products and our team, please visit us at: www.advaoptical.com.
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ADVA Optical Networking SE, Martinsried/Munich and Meiningen, Germany
www.advaoptical.com
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