Giving the Supply Chain an Energy Boost

For the past 30 years or so, there has been a coffee revolution. It seems that people are drinking more of it and that major cities have a Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks on every other street corner. Some take their coffee black and don't care where it comes from as long as it's hot and strong while others prefer an espresso drink that has more names and titles than a member of the British royal family. However we take our cup of joe, whether it's first thing in the morning or as an after-dinner drink that helps soothe after a long day, coffee is a daily part of many people's lives around the world.

Some coffee shops view their job as more than just providing a warm, caffeinated beverage - coffee is a way of life and a business that can constantly be improved. Starbucks Coffee Company, the long-standing Seattle chain that achieved nothing short of worldwide domination, has many thoughts about the coffee supply chain and constantly strives to make improvements for customers, employees and business associates.

Giving the supply chain an energy boost
The people at Starbucks may be the geniuses behind icy blended coffee drinks and those delicious little cake pops, but the company also has a plethora of innovators working tirelessly to make the long and convoluted supply chain a thing of the past. According to SupplyChainBrain, the coffee conglomerate will be making moves to satisfy one-day deliveries to many of its highly urban locations.

During the heat of the summer months it's not unheard of for various stores to run out of commodities such as lemonade or passion fruit iced teas. The one-day deliveries do pose an issue though even if the stores are stocked more often. Starbucks officials are concerned about the effect of traffic on these efforts as well as the amount of manpower the company would take to satisfy every location's specific needs throughout the day. The one-day delivery effort could result in drivers clogging up city traffic during peak hours just to make additional drop-offs.

Their solution? Driverless delivery vehicles. Many automobile companies are already working on driverless solutions though the Wall Street Daily detailed that the biggest obstacle will be getting everyone metaphorically on board the automated automobile movement. Starbucks is working closely with researchers to make this dream a reality cutting costs and saving time in the process.

Working together
Starbucks is known for taking care of its employees. Most recently it was in the news for providing every team member with 100 percent tuition to obtain a four-year bachelor's degree from Arizona State University noted the company's website. Little does the public know however that Starbucks is also a proponent of working with other businesses - competitors included - to provide the best service and products for all customers. SupplyChainBrain asserted that the coffee company is more interested in utilizing the resources of its associates rather than trying to put them out of business. Starbucks is a company that treats every employee like a partner in the enterprise and now it would appear that it is treating vendors suppliers and even competitors in the same manner.

In years past suppliers and even competitors in the same manner.

In years past Starbucks made the push for all-natural ingredients and Free Trade coffee and now it seems that the company is taking the supply chain by force and altering our perceptions of what it can do. In this fast-paced world Starbucks is changing the supply chain to follow suit. We all just might need a cup of coffee to keep up.

" Changing the supply chain, a cup of coffee at a time 5/26/2015 12:00:00 AM