The Power of WEBFLEET and Maxoptra Route Scheduling
Discover how Natures Menu found a winning combination of WEBFLEET and Maxoptra.
Solutions Provided:
The Background
Founded in 1981 as a small family business called Anglian Meat Products, Natures Menu began producing Biologically Appropriate Raw Foods (BARF) for pets. Initially Natures Menu was selling a limited range to breeders, with products prepared and packed by hand.
Over time and with encouragement from existing clients, the product range gradually increased and the selection of meats sourced from local specialists encompassed Irish beef, Lincolnshire rabbit and Welsh lamb.
A Great British Brand
Today, Natures Menu is Europe’s leading expert on raw and natural dog and cat food offering a huge range of complete and balanced meals as well as the traditional minces that founded the business nearly forty years ago.
With sales of natural pet food growing by nearly 30% last year the Norfolk-based Crufts sponsor is about to open a brand new £14m manufacturing plant to deal with increasing demand and to deliver new innovation to the market.
The Challenge
In 2012 the company was at a critical point in its growth. Operating between 15 and 20 vehicles from its headquarters in rural Norfolk the daily planning of deliveries was being done manually – using a map and pins.
The realisation dawned that if recent growth was to be sustainable and repeatable, automation of the daily delivery planning was essential. Having completed an extensive review of available routing and scheduling solutions Natures Menu concluded that Maxoptra was the best and most effective solution available.
“At the time we selected Maxoptra, it was technically the best and the most cost effective solution on offer, and, in our opinion, continues to be so,” Chris Warden, Operations Manager”
The Solution
Having completed an extensive review of available routing and scheduling solutions Natures Menu concluded that Maxoptra was the best and most effective solution available.
Natures Menu has now been using the Maxoptra cloud-based delivery routing and scheduling solution for more than five years, during which time the company has grown exponentially and has seen a fourfold increase in the size of its delivery fleet.
How It Works
Easy to use, affordable and highly customisable, the Maxoptra routing and scheduling system helps companies to do more business with the same resources at a lower operational cost. Having an open API makes it an ideal complement to any telematics, WMS and CRM solution.
As a subscription-based SaaS solution, Maxoptra is accessible 24/7 from any web browser worldwide; meaning every new release of functionality is immediately available to subscribers with no additional charge or upgrade cost.
The Benefits
Natures Menu has now been using the Maxoptra cloud-based delivery routing and scheduling solution for more than five years, during which time the company has grown exponentially and has seen a fourfold increase in the size of its delivery fleet.
The company now makes around 150,000 temperature controlled deliveries per-annum operating around 60 vehicles in the UK, from four different depots, making, on average, a delivery every minute.
Each day orders are automatically exported from the company’s Enterprise software into Maxoptra, where intelligent route planning and
optimisation features are used to auto-plan around 600 deliveries to retailers and consumers’ home addresses.
“The daily planning of B2B and B2C deliveries would be very difficult without Maxoptra.”
About FLEETSense
Based in Dereham, West Norfolk, FLEETSense works with clients nationwide.
At FLEETSense we will work with you to:
Call us on 0345 459 4998, or email info@fleetsense.co.uk to find out how we can find a telematic solution for your fleet and business.
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