ModusLink Reduces Cost of Customer Packaging by $350,000

May 17, 2016 | By Business Wire News

WALTHAM, Mass.

ModusLink Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary ofModusLinkGlobal Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: MLNK), a global, omni-channel technology and fulfillment provider, today unveiled its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Report for the Fiscal Year 2015. The report encompasses a variety of business areas, including environmental performance, employees and processes and outlines ModusLink’s commitment to further developing and sustaining socially and environmentally responsible supply chain solutions for clients across the globe.

“At ModusLink, we’re committed to sustainability as a hallmark of the value added services we provide to our customers,” said Michael Mortson, Executive Vice President and Chief of Operations at ModusLink. “Our customers look to us to help them find ways to minimize their carbon footprint and present their products in a socially responsible and conscientious manner. Therefore, we instill a culture of sustainability – encompassing environmental performance, social awareness and sound governance – from the inside out, starting within our own organization.”

Company Highlights
As a member of the Electronics Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC), an international organization dedicated to sustainability performance in the electronics industry, ModusLink is committed to continuously improving the quality and efficiency of operations. The EICC standards, which are complementary and reinforce ISO 14001 environmental guidelines, the UN Global Compact and other international sustainability-related performance standards, represent ModusLink’s commitment to act responsibly in its day-to-day operations.

As of the end of FY2015, 17 out of 23 ModusLink solution centers are ISO 14001 certified;
The company received a Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) score of 91, up over 30 points from FY2014;
EMC named ModusLink the winner of the fourth annual Blue Sky Supplier Sustainability Award, given to the supplier that demonstrates significant efforts in sustainability reporting and the improvement of social and environmental responsibility;
Since 2013, ModusLink’s overall greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have fallen by 30 percent;
ModusLink is an active member of a number of sustainability organizations, including the Sustainable Packaging Coalition, the International Molded Fiber Association, the Southeast Recycling Development Council and various paperboard and fine paper conversion associations.

Global Process Excellence
ModusLink’s management team made it a strategic priority to identify and propagate effective, “lean” processes and initiatives throughout the organization to promote efficient use of materials and reduce waste. This “Global Process Excellence” effort includes cross-regional teams and a roadmap to introduce standardized processes by identifying best processes at individual sites.

For example, the ModusLink Netherlands facility developed and utilized Business-to-Consumer (B2C) processes that were recognized as being best-in-class and have, as a result, been deployed at additional ModusLink sites across the globe. This standardization increases the competitiveness and sustainability of sites by eliminating waste in the supply chain (i.e. through “lean” programs) and optimizing resource utilization such as labor and materials. In one site, inventory turns – a key metric for logistics providers – increased 250 percent, from 6 to 15, and the facility is on track to increase this important metric by another 33 percent this year.

Impact on Stakeholders
ModusLink’s partnership with clients now extends deep into the realm of sustainability, as clients’ customers are interested in working with companies that share their values regarding sustainability. Therefore, ModusLink develops creative solutions, including packaging and processes, that reflect the ethics and the image that clients wish to project to their customers. With a team of skilled packaging engineers, opportunities to reduce packaging or incorporate renewable or recyclable materials can be identified and implemented where feasible.

For one major electronics firm, ModusLink was recently challenged to identify ways to reduce GHG emissions and redesign product packaging using sustainable materials. At the same time, the customer sought to increase the efficiency of loading pallets of its products and reduce shipping, freight and logistics costs. ModusLink’s team of engineers conducted an in-depth supply chain analysis to determine the most effective sustainable approach. By analyzing the amount of GHG emissions resulting from various packaging types, then redesigning the product packaging used for hard drives, circuit boards, keyboards and other components, the customer was able to realize savings of more than $350,000 in packaging materials, with 74,000 cubic feet removed from packaging and 88,000 pounds of packaging eliminated.

In another case, a global consumer electronics firm was facing intensely increased price pressures for its flash memory devices and at the same time was facing increasing logistics costs due to its expansion plans. In order to address the rising costs, the company worked with ModusLink to reduce the packaging material costs and increase the logistics efficiency of the packaging. Ultimately, ModusLink was able to help them cut paper, fiber and plastic use by 50 percent, reduce shipping costs by 45 percent and increase pallet density by 157 percent, on average.

Workforce Management
A key component of ModusLink’s sustainability mission is to nurture a corporate culture with high ethical standards. All employees must acknowledge receipt and understanding of the ModusLink Code of Conduct which outlines the behavior expected from directors, officers and employees. Living by these values every day helps ModusLink create a positive work environment that is focused on clients, excellence, leadership, integrity and teamwork.

ModusLink is committed to providing a safe and motivating workplace for all employees. Maintaining a culture that values health and safety education, as well as skill development, is critical to reducing the potential for accidents and keeping incident rates low, while increasing employee satisfaction. ModusLink regularly reviews employee training and development needs to ensure the workforce is equipped with the know-how they need to reach their full potential. These educational courses cover topics such as health and safety practices, ethical conduct, security awareness and instruction on job-specific skills. ModusLink also deploys an online learning platform which gives employees access to online resources and e-learning courses.

The Fiscal Year 2015 ModusLink Corporate Social Responsibility report was recently reviewed and approved by the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI.) The GRI is a network-based organization that produces a comprehensive sustainability reporting framework that is widely used around the world.

To download the full ModusLink Corporate Social Responsibility Report, please visit: https://www.moduslink.com/about/corporate-social-responsibility/.

For more information on how ModusLink helps companies develop and sustain efficient supply chain operations, please visit: https://www.moduslink.com/solutions/.

About ModusLink Global Solutions
ModusLink Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of ModusLink Global Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: MLNK), is a global, omni-channel technology and fulfillment provider that gives clients real-time visibility into their end-to-end supply and demand chain operations, with expertise and facilities worldwide to manage forward and reverse logistics. The company’s operations are supported by more than 25 sites across North America, Europe and the Asia/Pacific region. For more information, please visit www.moduslink.com and www.valueunchained.com, the blog for supply chain professionals.

ModusLink, ModusLink Global Solutions, and the ModusLink Logo are trademarks of ModusLink Corporation.All other company names and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.