APC 2012 Annual Report Download - page 34

2012 REGISTRATION DOCUMENT SCHNEIDER ELECTRIC32
OVERVIEW OF THEGROUP’S STRATEGY, MARKETS AND BUSINESSES
1ORGANISATIONAL SIMPLICITY ANDEFFICIENCY
5.3 Worldwide redeployment of production and supply chain resources
Schneider Electric has more than 250plants and 100distribution
centers around the world for whom customer satisfaction is the
top priority.
While working constantly to improve occupational health and safety
and environmental protection, Schneider Electric’s manufacturing
policy aims to fulfi ll four key objectives, in order of priority:
1) achieve a level of quality and service that meets or exceeds
customer expectations;
2) obtain cost competitive products while continuing to deliver
strong and consistent productivity;
3) develop system speed and effi ciency and limit production sites’
risk exposure (currency parity, geopolitical risks and changes
incost factors);
4) optimize capital employed in manufacturing operations.
A number of the production facilities and distribution centers are
dedicated to the global market. The other units are located as
close as possible to their end markets. Although design and/or
aesthetic features may be adapted to meet local requirements,
Schneider Electric standardizes key components as much as
possible. This global/local approach helps Schneider Electric
maximize economies of scale and optimize profi tability and
service quality.
Drawing on its global scope, Schneider Electric has re-balanced
and optimized its manufacturing and supply chain resources.
In Western Europe, the United States, Japan and Australia,
adaptation plans continued to be deployed with a focus on
specializing production and supply chain units and reducing the
number of sites.
Continuous improvement on a global scale
At the same time, an industrial excellence program called
Schneider Production System (SPS) has been rolled out in all
plants to substantially and continuously improve service quality
and productivity. The program also takes environmental criteria
into account. Based on a lean manufacturing approach, SPS
is supported by the extension of Six Sigma and Quality and
Value Analysis programs across the Group. By deploying these
optimization methods globally and sharing best practices, the
Group intends to lift the operational performance of all its plants to
the same high standard.
Schneider Electric’s plants and products comply with increasingly
extensive and stringent European regulations and with international
standards governing environmental protection in all host countries.
In many cases, the Group anticipates future standards. In1992,
Schneider Electric defi ned a formal environmental policy, which was
revised in2004 to take account of changes both inside and outside
the Group. This policy is designed to improve production processes,
promote eco-design, integrate customer expectations into the
Group’s environmental protection approach and raise awareness
among all employees and partners about environmental protection
and energy effi ciency. In order to limit risks related to the environment
generally, the Group has implemented an ISO 14001-compliant
process to continuously improve the environmental performance of
its plants and supply chain centers.
Schneider Electric has implemented a policy to systematically
identify and reduce its industrial risk in order to secure maximum
service to its customers and to minimize any impact of disaster,
whether it is internal in nature (fi re) or external (natural disasters).
This policy relies on local actions to remove the risks identifi ed
following audits led by an external fi rm of recognized insurers, as
well an action plan for the continuity of production. If, after corrective
actions the risk remains too high, then the activity is repeated in
another Schneider Electric site.
The segmented response to customer needs
In2012, Schneider Electric launched the “Tailored Supply Chain”
program as part of the Connect company program, with the aim to
better align the supply chain set-up with the needs and behaviors of
each customer segment (distributors, partners, panel builders,etc.).
Six initiatives were defi ned to support the transformation of the
supply chain:
•purchasing: step up purchasing to drive proactive planning of
procurement;
•footprint optimization: manage critical component’s footprint to
improve lead-time to customers ;
•supply chain flow redesign: reduce lead-time through
optimization of plant and distribution center footprint and fl ow
design ;
•transportation rationalization: increase partnerships with
selected carriers to improve customer service;
•industrial planning: b uild best-in-class planning process by
customer segment;
•IT capability: a lign information systems strategy with this
segmentation.
This approach required a more dynamic industrial strategy around
how we serve our clients, how to confi gure our products, equipment
and services for our customers and how to deliver to those
customers, while at the same time, simplifying the way we work and
therefore focus on creating value for our customers by streamlining
our decision-making processes and organizationalstructure.
This led to the announcement of a new Industrial Organization
for2013, operating around eight regions (Europe, CIS, China, India,
Pacifi c, Asia, North America, South America) which groups all of
Schneider Electric Industrial activities together in these geographies.
In addition, this also led to the verticalisation of all Purchasing
activities to simplify and unify its contact with Suppliers.