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科赴上海：引领数字化转型和价值链智能的灯塔 - 2024年01月01日
Kenvue Shanghai: lighthouse pioneering digital transformation and value chain intelligence
In the realm of manufacturing excellence, a select few stand as beacons of innovation, setting new standards in the evolving landscape of industrial prowess. Among these luminaries, Kenvue Shanghai emerges as a shining testament to digital transformation and value chain intelligence, securing a coveted position on the prestigious "Lighthouse Network" list by the World Economic Forum (WEF).
Kenvue Shanghai
The concept of Lighthouses originated from the WEF's ambition to spotlight manufacturing entities and end-to-end value chains that epitomize cutting-edge advancements in the industry. These lighthouses serve as paragons of high standards, using the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) advanced technologies and approaches to drive growth, improve resilience and deliver environmental sustainability.
Pioneering excellence in the digital manufacturing sphere
Kenvue Shanghai's ascension to this esteemed roster is a testament to their commitment to harnessing over 25 4IR technologies in response to the escalating demands of e-commerce and the ever-evolving needs from Chinese consumers.
Their strategic integration of these innovations, including big data analytics on social media, digital twins, additive manufacturing and Machine Learning across its end-to-end value chain, has significantly bolstered success rates in new product launches, slashed operational costs, and remarkably truncated the time required for product changeovers.
For Kenvue Shanghai, the implement of the technologies resulted in a 50-percent reduction in new product introduction lead times, a 1.3-times improvement in forecast accuracy and 99.8-percent on-time-in-full deliveries within 48 hours. This enabled the e-commerce business to double from 30 percent to 60 percent of overall business.
The digitalization of Kenvue's supply chain is being carried out under the guidance of the "Smart Operation" strategic framework as the digital transformation is one of Kenvue's key global strategies, said Alex Yan, Kenvue China End-to-End Supply Chain Lead.
"For Kenvue Shanghai, joining the 'Global Lighthouse Network' can deepen the exchange of advanced 4IR technologies between Kenvue and other members within the network. It allows leveraging the platform to share cutting-edge technological best practices," he said.
A glimpse into Kenvue's value chain mastery
Kenvue Shanghai stands out for five distinctive technologies utilized to revolutionize its value chain: advanced demand forecasting through machine learning, new production development optimized by big data, digital twin, smart agile manufacturing enabled by technologies such as Augmented Reality, and precise stock forecast via predictive and touchless replenishment tools.
Leveraging advanced big data processing, the company efficiently extracts consumer insights from vast datasets from China's social media and e-commerce platforms such as Douyin, Tmall and JD.com, drastically reducing product ideation time by 50 percent and enhancing new product launch success rates by 33 percent - a notable achievement in China's rapidly evolving EC channel, especially in the fast-moving consumer goods sector.
Additionally, Kenvue's predictive and touchless digital replenishment tool can automatically collect and process high volumes of daily data to generate replenishment suggestions across 236,000 SKUxStore combinations within just five minutes. This unparalleled system automates the collection and handling of massive data volumes, efficiently forecasting inventory needs in real time.
The inception of Listerine® Sakura & Peach Mouthwash, serves as a testament to Kenvue's digital prowess in advancing product development. Fueled by data insights, Kenvue swiftly identified a rising demand for alcohol-free, fruit-flavored mouthwashes through translating consumer needs into innovative, well-received products. The company also streamlined collaboration with important resellers and leveraged inventory management systems to ensure real-time stock updates and swift restocking.
Listerine® Sakura & Peach Mouthwash
Digitalization is the key to enhancing supply chain resilience and flexibility. For Kenvue, additive manufacturing has shaped a more adaptable supply chain by offering rapid prototyping, cost-effective customization, and small-batch production. Building a data ecosystem has enabled the enterprise to shift from passively responding to risks to proactively detecting them based on algorithms generated from big data. The ongoing enhancement in supply chain process automation ensures the stability of productivity and the supply chain during any fluctuations in demand events.
"Kenvue Shanghai will continuously deepen the level of digitization at each node in the demand and supply chains, then connect these nodes to further enhance the operational synergy between the demand and supply chains. We aim to provide excellent consumer experiences at the demand end while creating flexible and reliable competitive advantages at the supply end, both of which drive each other," said Yan.
Kenvue's journey in China
Formerly the Consumer Health division of Johnson & Johnson, Kenvue is the proprietor of consumer health brands such as Motrin®, Tylenol®, Rhinocort®, Dabao®, Listerine® and Aveeno®. In China, its business spans across multiple fields including self care, skin health and beauty, and essential health since the 1980s.
Kenvue China
The company has one R&D center, four plants and 10 logistic hubs in China, with more than 90 percent of products manufactured in the local market. The company has announced that it will invest 110 million yuan (about $15.2 million) to expand their manufacturing capacity and upgrade production facilities to bring more high-quality products to Chinese consumers, reported Xinhua News Agency on November 20.
"Through the 'Global Lighthouse Network,' Kenvue showcased its pioneering and scaling of the 4IR advanced technologies, significantly lifting organization capability, and shifting to new ways of working. This also confirms that advanced technologies enable the end-to-end value chain transformation toward world-class agility, efficiency, and resilience. I believe this will resonate with other companies within the industry to accelerate the wave of 4IR transformation together," said Yan.
Source: Global Times
