NHS Supply Chain: Unipart Logistics are proud winners at this year’s Supply Chain Excellence Awards

The award recognises the successful opening of a new state-of-the-art facility, NHS Supply Chain Suffolk Park near Bury St Edmunds. This is part of an ambitious transformation and growth strategy designed to deliver benefits and savings back to the NHS, whilst ensuring supply chain resilience during an unprecedented year.

Spanning 147,000 square feet of space, twice that of the existing Bury St Edmunds site, the Suffolk Park regional distribution centre represents a significant investment in the NHS Supply Chain as it gears up for further growth.

The award reflects the agility and innovation that NHS Supply Chain: Logistics deployed to design, build and open the site in May 2020, against the backdrop of the global Covid-19 pandemic. Key to the build was Unipart’s use of digital tools, including Digital Twin deployment, and Augmented and Virtual Reality, which allowed modelling for the new site to take place remotely, without the need for unnecessary travel and in a Covid-Secure manner.

The judges said: “Unipart has had to play a key role in keeping the NHS supplied during one of the most difficult times we’ve ever faced as a country.”

Chris Holmes, Supply Chain Director, NHS Supply Chain said: “I would like to thank all the teams that have been involved with this project for all their hard work and dedication to getting this new site opened on time as planned. This is a significant milestone in our transformation journey which aims to continuously improve our service offering for our customers.”

Claire Walters, Chief Commercial Officer, Unipart Logistics said: “It is an honour to be recognised for this award after Covid-19 brought us all unparalleled challenges this year. I would like to thank the whole team for their tireless dedication, and our customer NHS Supply Chain for their partnership and support. Opening the new Bury site early and using the full range of our digital products demonstrated true flexibility, and ensured the team really delivered for the NHS.”