3m Critical Supply Chain Decisions

3M Makes Critical Supply Chain Decisions Using Expert Choice

Case study

Challenge Streamline critical supply chain decisions and make the process consistent worldwide. Introduced Expert Choice to Supply Chain teams to instill common practice that ensures better results. Dramatically increased speed to and quality of important supply chain and other business issues.

Action

Results

Challenge

Almost everyone knows 3M or its products. The 105-year-old company is a $21-billion technology giant with major brands like Post-It Notes® and Scotch Tape® on its roster as well as innovative products like multi-layer optical films that go into LCDs. There are six major business units with 40 independent divisions in the company, operating with hundreds of offices, plants and suppliers around the world. 3M also has a number of core technologies feeding into its different markets and crossing over business lines. Needless to say, its supply chain was a robust and complicated network. Critical supply chain decisions – like where to locate a plant or whether 3M should make or buy a product – were taking too much time. The Corporate office interacts with all the business units and sought a better way to make sense of how the technologies and business were interrelated. It was clear that 3M needed to disentangle the puzzle first. At the same time, there was a critical need to streamline the process and create efficiencies. As one would expect, there were always competing demands and factors that came into the decision process, including a complicated array of technologies and markets. The ultimate challenge became getting people to agree on what was important and moving forward with a specific plan.

found we more in common than we realized. “Wetool greatly had a lotthe amount of arguing. Now we disThe reduced cuss benefits and tradeoffs. It’s much easier to gain acceptance on final decisions.

”

Pierre J. LaMere Manager Supply Chain Strategy & Design 3M

1501 Lee...