Insights from Vancouver Startup Week
Recently our Co-Founder and CEO Mike Allan attended Vancouver Startup Week in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, where he had the opportunity to build and foster connections among fellow entrepreneurs, investors, and leaders, within the startup community.
Key Takeaways:
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Routeique CEO and co-founder Mike Allan was invited to speak at Vancouver Startup Week about supply chain sustainability.
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Some of the largest challenges facing supply chain sustainability involve a lack of visibility and insight into your supply chain data.
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Routeique provides cutting-edge data monitoring technology to help supply chain companies stay ahead of their waste issues and improve their sustainability.
Mike was invited to speak on a panel titled “Can My Startup Be Sustainable AND Grow?”. Other speakers included Jessica Regan, CEO of FoodMesh. Kirk Moir, CEO of Crush Dynamics. Julie Dickson, Food Industry Influencer. Ron Cuthbertson, CEO of DVNet.co, and Bill McGraw, President of FactorChain.
Mike’s focus during the panel was to discuss sustainability in the food supply chain and how Routeique can enhance and create sustainability and improve the impact supply chains can have on the environment.
Sustainability as Cisterns
Routeique offers cutting-edge insight that helps you find that perfect balance, so you can be as optimal in your allocation as possible without becoming unprofitable. An analogy that Mike used was the supply chain is much like a cistern:
“Basically, the problem is that you have a number of storage containers (cisterns) that each have different capacities, and flow rates both in and out. The problem usually involves seeing which one(s) will fill or overflow first. The idea is to think of the water as an analogy for the flow of physical products.
Routeique uses machine learning algorithms to regulate the flow of product through a variety of warehouses and storage locations, making sure that no facility overflows, receives product they don't have room to store, or is left empty (and unable to fulfill orders).
So we're trying to match capacity with demand and making sure we don't oversupply the capacity (have too much on-hand to store), or undersupply the demand (not have enough stock to fill the inbound orders.”
Minimize over Salvage
Many other speakers discussed expiry and what occurs downstream when food becomes unsellable. Mike mentioned that rather than focus on the end of the stream, why not focus on minimizing that waste in the first place? Wasted food can be salvageable for many reasons, but the cost of waste over time can be very impactful financially, so it's important to keep ahead.
By using Routeique’s top-of-the-line data-capturing technology, you can achieve unparalleled insight into your supply chain to use that data to eliminate waste and garner more sustainable results.
Shortages
Another topic discussed was shortages, especially during the recent COVID-19 pandemic. It was highlighted that there was often not a supply issue but rather a transportation issue. Plenty of items were in shipping containers, but things could not get to where they needed to due to the shortage of workers and shipping hubs being shut down.
Sustainability and You
Sustainability is something that affects us all. Embracing supply chain sustainability is not just a responsibility but also an opportunity for businesses to positively impact the environment, society, and their long-term success. Companies can optimize their operations, reduce waste, and build resilience in an ever-evolving industry by adopting innovative strategies, collaborating with their peers, and leveraging technology.
It's been a busy month for Routeique, to learn more check out these other blogs:
Routeique at Amii's Upper Bound
Routeique and Amii Answer Viewer Questions in ICON-IQ Webinar
