When it comes to maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), the needs of European manufacturers are multiple and complex.
Many of our largest customers have agreed framework contracts with us because they believe this is best way to fulfil those needs – last year we more than doubled the number of pan-European contract wins compared to 2018.
As the industry leader, we see how the needs both vary and align across sectors and production environments.
As you would expect, the desire for continuous improvement informs many of the conversations we have with prospective customers. From the international and multi-site manufacturers we see a high degree of consistency on this topic. Typically, these needs will be:
- Consolidation of MRO procurement
- Alignment to their footprint
- Digital solutions
- Reduction of the total cost of ownership
- The right product at the right time
Let’s take each of those needs in turn and look at why Rubix is uniquely positioned to address them.
Large-scale manufacturers want to consolidate MRO procurement. Why? Because dealing with one distributor significantly reduces the time and cost of buying mission critical products and services. Many of our customers previously relied on hundreds, and in some cases thousands, of smaller suppliers.
Moving to a single contract with Rubix simplifies the purchasing process and reduces the cost per transaction while improving the quality and breadth of advice available. That’s because Rubix is the only pan-European industrial distributor to carry every premium brand and a wide range of services across all MRO product categories. Our 8,500 makers and doers come armed with the technical expertise that our customers need to keep their plants up and running, and their businesses moving forwards.
Working with Rubix also helps to ensure manufacturers receive a consistent service across all their sites. That means they need a partner with a presence that matches their footprint.
We are present in 22 European markets. We have more than 700 branches and 300 of these are on our customers’ sites. We are close to our customers, wherever they need us, right across Europe.
As with anyone sourcing products or services, manufacturers want the process to be easy. Specifically, they want it to work with their existing procurement processes and systems. They expect to have full transparency of spending by defining which categories and services will be supplied, and agreeing, up-front, the service levels they will get and prices they will pay.
We have a range of digital procurement solutions that make the buying experience convenient and transparent, including industrial vending machines, personalised web shops and punchout systems.
Manufacturing businesses face an annual efficiency target. By definition, this is more challenging to achieve with each year that passes. Delivering cost savings and reducing the total cost of ownership will be high on the list of financial objectives for anyone involved in the production process.
Our track record for delivering customer cost savings speaks for itself. We are successful because of the technical expertise, specialist knowledge and extensive experience that we can bring to the production line. That’s what gives us the confidence to write cost savings targets in to the contracts we sign with our customers.
In support of those cost reduction targets, our customers want the right product at the right price delivered on time and in full.
As the largest player in the market, we have strong supplier partnerships in place and are making the most of our scale to the benefit of our customers. To be honest, that’s the least they can expect. Getting this right is our licence to take our value added services and solutions to our customers, demonstrating the extent of our technical expertise. Along with our pan-European network, that is what sets us apart from the competition.
In the business of industrial distribution, scale matters. By understanding the needs of our customers, we can make our scale count for the financial benefit of European manufacturing.
Emmanuella Renac
Key Account Relationship Director