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To alleviate surprises for our Strategic Business Relationship customers and stay ahead of the market, our internal procurement process is based on carefully selected, key manufacturers who are leaders and innovators in their core areas. We seek out manufacturers that have the capacity to handle our demand, the discipline to drive lowest total cost manufacturing and the financial strength to commit to research and development.
We have refined this process since the late 1970s and see it as one of the primary reasons why we consistently outperform our competition and satisfy our customers in the markets we serve. Through this process, our vendors know that we expect them to provide not only competitive, but innovative solutions, and a safe, reliable supply source for our customers.
When working with our alliance customers, we first start by determining which vendors they utilize consistently and the reasons they value those companies. We then work with those manufacturers that can best serve our alliance customers’ requirements, regardless of our preexisting relationships. We work to bring the vendor relationship up to the standards necessary in an alliance relationship.
We define these standards in our Memorandum of Understanding which we use as a tool to communicate and agree upon a set of standard philosophies and practices with our manufacturers before they will be considered a full alliance vendor.
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