As a category leader in hand hygiene, sustainability, and manufacturing, GOJO is committed to being a resilient, trusted supplier. The family enterprise has recently activated a new manufacturing and supply chain strategy that will meet customers’ needs even during periods of high demand. By adding more than 3 million square feet of supply chain capacity, GOJO is ready to deliver trusted hand hygiene and surface disinfecting solutions to end-users and distributors.
Increased Capacity
During the pandemic, GOJO invested millions of dollars in increasing manufacturing abilities. Now, with significant increases to production and warehousing, the family enterprise is more robust and capable in all areas of the supply chain.
“We believe the world will forever be changed by the COVID-19 pandemic and we see this translating to a sustained increase in awareness of the importance of safe and effective hygiene practices,” said GOJO President and CEO, Carey Jaros. “This will result in ongoing, heightened demand for our essential PURELL® skincare and surface solutions. Our responsibility to keep the world healthy and well has never been greater. Expanding our manufacturing infrastructure is one of the many ways we are responding as the market leader in these challenging times.”
GOJO accomplished this by increasing access to raw materials and component supplies through established suppliers. Additionally, new creative partnerships ensured GOJO would maintain a steady supply of essential raw materials, including domestically made bottles. As a result of these enhancements, bottle capacity has doubled compared to 2019.
Better Flexibility
To prepare for future surges, GOJO has ensured that product delivery and manufacturing operations can be scaled to full output without costly and reactive one-off solutions.
A partnership with Three Rivers Energy allowed GOJO to expand its Coshocton, Ohio, facility to produce ethanol the meets USP requirements from Ohio corn onsite. Locally sourced, high-grade ethanol will be used to make PURELL® Hand Sanitizer, Surface Spray, and Wipes products. This partnership increases the processing capability up to four times the 2019 capacity.
Having a dedicated source of ethanol will not only enable GOJO to meet current demand but will allow it to rapidly scale up production of PURELL® products whenever they are needed.
Improved Control
GOJO has also reduced dependencies to eliminate most typical supply risks and enable them to improve decision-making abilities in times of high demand.
By vertically integrating numerous facets of the supply chain within the U.S., GOJO is empowered to be more flexible and quickly adapt processes to meet changing customer needs. They now have control of critical components for the entire portfolio. Plus, new partnerships for component sourcing allow redundant supply capabilities for most raw materials, including ethanol, bottles, pumps, corrugate, and labels.
Additionally, investments in advanced logistics have expanded the integration of automation, digital processes, and production technology to drive increased efficiencies and reduce manufacturing lead times at plants.
Heightened Response
GOJO has developed and introduced strategies that provide transparent communication of order acknowledgments, tracking, return to stock status, and other critical product information.
This development started during the early stages of the pandemic when GOJO optimized its process for prioritizing orders and shipments. As demand reached record levels, the team focused on delivering critical supplies to frontline healthcare workers and first responders.
It was apparent that SKU consolidation would be necessary to maximize the ability to supply the market, which meant increased internal and external communication and collaboration. This early decision to focus on a “go-to” portfolio represented insights from GOJO’s pandemic preparedness plan, which was developed after the H1N1 outbreak. The insights learned from the supply challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic have positioned GOJO to serve its end-user and distribution partners in substantive ways.