Wincanton seals boosted deal with Howdens

Supply chain specialist Wincanton has expanded and extended its partnership with trade kitchen supplier Howden Joinery Group.

Under the expanded three-year contract, Wincanton will oversee a new next-day depot replenishment service from Scotland Gateway, its centralised, shared-user supply chain regional hub, which opened in April 2023.

Wincanton will run a ‘through the night’ regional cross docking (XDC) operation for Howdens out of the site, enabling daily distribution services to its regional depots to improve stock replenishments and allow for a next-day service to trade customers. This operation will see 14 Wincanton vehicles serve nearly 90 Howdens depots across Scotland, including the Isle of Skye and Thurso in the Scottish Highlands.

The haulier said the use of XDCs will optimise the supply chain for Howdens, improving stock replenishment through regional hubs that supplement its depots’ core weekly replenishment with a next
day service. It added that this approach frees up more time and resources for Howdens to focus on sales
and service for its trade partners.

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The new, expanded contract builds on nearly a decade of collaboration between the two companies, which has seen Wincanton support Howdens’ sustained growth with transport and warehousing services.

Carl Hanson, Wincanton managing director for group transport, said: "“We are delighted to house Howdens Scottish cross-docking operation at our Scotland Gateway shared user hub.

"Our partnership is built on collaborative working and operational excellence, and we look forward to realising further supply chain efficiencies over the next three years.”

Steve Liddiard, Howdens logisitcs director, added: “The roll out of our XDC programme was completed earlier this year, with Wincanton finding a temporary solution in Scotland for our final XDC site.

"Wincanton’s ability to find a temporary solution and subsequently transfer the operation to a permanent facility at Scotland Gateway demonstrates agility and is a real example of our collaborative relationship.”