sourcing

Alaris works on the premise that bottom line results begin with finding the right product, at the right price, at the right time.

Strategic Sourcing and Procurement has been a core service offering since we formed our company in 1990. In the early days, our sourcing clients were typically industrial product manufacturers with the primary objective of reducing the landed cost for their direct materials. Today, reducing direct material costs remains a central theme, but many clients have evolved their strategies to include indirect materials. They recognize that the value resulting from applying our strategic sourcing methodology to these lower cost but higher transaction level categories can also provide huge windfalls to earnings.

Our Private Equity clients represent an example of a sector that has clearly recognized the broad industry application for indirect material sourcing and the power of spend aggregation. Our Private Equity clients have applied our sourcing tools and techniques to reap significant EBITDA returns for their shareholders.

Our Strategic Sourcing methodology, tools, and experience have helped clients across a variety of industry sectors achieve significant cost reductions in many spend categories including:

• Near commodities (e.g., steel, resins, paper, chemicals)
• Direct manufacturing materials (e.g., packaging, motors, electrical components)
• Indirect/administrative goods and services (e.g., telecommunications, office supplies, small package freight)
• Transportation (e.g., truckload, less-than-truckload, ocean)

There are three primary phases in our sourcing process. Completing the Assessment (spend analysis in this case) is Phase 1. The spend analysis results in a detailed understanding of your category volumes, prices, specifications, service requirements, and the overall market dynamics related to each category. We quantify the savings opportunity, outline the value proposition and develop the work plan associated with, Phase 2, Implementation.

Throughout the Implementation phase, Alaris works side-by-side with our client teams to facilitate the sourcing process with our category expertise, 11-step methodology (provided below), and analytical tools. Our objective is to increase the speed to results and achieve the identified savings/project performance targets.

Phase 3 is Management. Our job is not complete until our client feels comfortable that new supplier agreements are implemented, compliance can be tracked, and the client team can manage and support the sourcing process.

The breadth and depth of our sourcing skills are illustrated in the following facts from the past five years:

• 40 distinct sourcing engagements
• 150 distinct categories sourced
• Over $6 billion in spend source, including $1 billion in transportation
• Over $440 million saved
• 25 different industry experiences
• 30,000 supplier profiles analyzed
• 230 company sites visited
• 1,300 supplier negotiations conducted