Industrial consumables rarely exceed a few per cent of purchasing value, but often account for half the order lines. It is therefore the category where administrative processing cost frequently exceeds the negotiation gain available on unit price.
Our approach here is different: we first reduce the number of references and suppliers. A technical equivalence analysis routinely takes eighty lubricant references down to about twenty, with no loss of performance, with an immediate effect on stock and on price through pooling.
Compliance remains an absolute prerequisite: a current safety data sheet in the language of the country of use, correct CLP classification, REACH registration of the supplier or its only representative. A product without a compliant SDS is an immediate finding in a safety audit.
Typical requirements
- Lubricants, cutting fluids and greases
- Adhesives, sealants and resins
- Industrial paints and coatings
- Detergents and hygiene products
- Abrasives and cutting tools
- MRO maintenance consumables
This sector, country by country
- Sourcing industrial consumables in FranceMany order lines, little value: the real gain is in cutting references.
- Sourcing industrial consumables in LuxembourgSmall volumes, low storage thresholds, and a safety sheet in two languages.
- Sourcing industrial consumables in the NetherlandsRotterdam: direct access to the producer, not the reseller.
- Sourcing industrial consumables in BelgiumAntwerp, the world’s second chemical cluster, two hours away.
