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Companies that combine the "reduce, reuse, recycle" mantra with the supply chain wisdom of managing costs and stamping out inefficiencies are developing reverse supply chains that help the Earth, the customer, and the bottom line.

BEST-IN-CLASS REVERSE OPERATION

Electronics retail giant Best Buy has developed a similar solution to manage its repair parts reverse logistics through a partnership with Fidelitone, a Wauconda, Ill.-based 3PL. The solution -- a virtual parts returns process -- has helped Best Buy greatly reduce freight emissions and logistical carbon footprint, while cutting millions of dollars each year in freight costs and expediting its receipt of credit on parts returns.

"Best Buy's order management and intelligence system gives field technicians the tools they need to make effective decisions so they don't waste money and natural resources on shipping products unnecessarily," explains Josh Johnson, Fidelitone's president.

Thanks to technology developed as part of the virtual parts returns process, Best Buy's field technicians have the ability to determine immediately -- based on business rules set up by Best Buy -- whether a defective part is eligible for remanufacturing or is unusable.

A technician at a customer's house repairing a flat-screen TV, for example, can take the damaged PC board out of the TV, find out where the replacement part was sent from, and determine what to do with the damaged part. If the PC board can be repaired, the technician ships it out for remanufacturing; if it can be reused or has value for its components, the technician will return it to Fidelitone; and if the PC board is unusable, it is disposed of immediately.

Having access to this information at their fingertips allows technicians to save Best Buy from engaging in unnecessary -- and non-green -- transportation.

"Shipping a product back to our warehouse or to another warehouse or remanufacturer only to have it thrown away is a sustainability nightmare because it's an unneeded leg of freight," Johnson says. "Companies seeking to minimize environmental impact from their returns operations need to bring technology and processes together to create a more cost-effective and sustainable supply chain."

Achieving a cost-efficient, sustainable reverse supply chain is now a priority for many companies. To accomplish that goal, they are combining the green mantra of "reduce, reuse, recycle" with the age-old supply chain wisdom of managing costs and stamping out inefficiencies.

The result? The reverse supply chain has never looked greener, or more efficient.