MMC Magazine

Mitsubishi Materials promptly and efficiently delivers more than 40,000 products to customers all around the world from five global logistics centres.

Unification of inventory management through a global network

Mitsubishi Materials sells products around the world, which makes it important for us to have logistic strategies that allow prompt delivery of our products at the lowest possible cost.

The work of the Logistics Division is classified into two major roles. One is “Design and Management,” which involves creating and executing customer-oriented strategies. The other is “System Development,” which is supporting the execution of these strategies.

In regard to design and management, we have established logistics centres at five locations around the world to realize an ideal product supply system. Specifically, in addition to the Global Distribution Centre (Narita, Japan), we have established the European Distribution Centre (The Netherlands), the North American Distribution Centre (Los Angeles, U.S.A.), the Asian Distribution Centre (Singapore) and the China Distribution Centre (Shanghai, China).

In regard to system development, we implemented our Zero Stockout Project in 2000, and have initiated a unique inventory system. The Logistics Division currently provides unified inventory management for individual logistics centres around the world to maintain the optimal balance of supply and demand.

We continue enhancing such approaches to seek an ever more efficient logistics system to satisfy our customers with prompt delivery. We also continue to optimize customer services through the use of different packaging for different regions, labeling and special product marking according to the needs of individual customers.

Building a supply chain that satisfies customer expectations

We are currently working on improving the efficiency and lowering the cost of the current logistics system, and developing our ability to predict changes in the environment regarding logistics services through oversight of the entire supply chain. We share, for example, real-time data among our five logistic centres to ensure the smoothest transfer of products and prevent long-term storage. In addition, we also strive to realize the most strategic supply chain possible through the efficient application of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA). It is important for us to not only manage the logistics of products manufactured and sold in individual regions, but also to respond effectively to the FTA, Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership Agreement (TPP), and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) to ensure the efficient transfer of inventories between neighboring countries. Furthermore, meeting customer needs requires that we effectively handle the number and management of customer lots as we reduce the time required for distribution. We need, therefore, to fully utilize cutting-edge IT. A great deal of information on orders, deliveries, and logistics, results in digitalized and accumulated data; however, the system is not yet perfect. We continue to work on establishing the ultimate supply chain system, a system that enables us to respond to the full range of changes through the visualization of necessary information in real-time.

Striving for customer-oriented logistics

While we prioritize quick delivery, we also focus on improving the entire supply chain through the implementation of the most advanced IT based on our desire to achieve the highest degree of customer satisfaction. Our goal is to realize an environment that enables the delivery of products to customers anytime, anywhere. Delivering better services to our customers requires that we gather information on a continuing basis. The key to the improvement of our services is sometimes hidden in our daily lives outside the industry. We look for hints, implement them without hesitation, and strive to accumulate experience that ensures future improvement make the system even more efficient.

We work in a great environment that allows us to use highly-advanced internet resources. Taking advantage of this, we focus on identifying information with the potential to drive service improvement, and establishing an optimal global network capable of delivering products to customers within 24 hours. This will make DIAEDGE the tool-of-choice for our customers.