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Pharma & Medicine Procurement Success Study

Professionalizing Subcontractor Sourcing

Opaque “sub-sub” structures and 2,500 daily runs created major logistics and insolvency risk. Direct contracts and a new billing model established stable supply chains and tangible savings.

Customer

Pharma & Medicine

100M - 500M Annual Turnover

100 - 500 Employees

The Challenge

A pharmaceutical wholesaler running 2,500 van routes daily across 25 sites was exposed to extreme risk from uncontrolled “sub-sub” contractor structures. High turnover among service providers, insolvency risk, and inconsistent delivery quality threatened the supply of sensitive medical products. In addition, the existing pricing structure lacked transparency and scalability.

Our Approach

We set up a comprehensive subcontractor sourcing (Subco Sourcing) project built on three pillars:

  1. Deep Market Research: Conducted a comprehensive market screening to identify and vet over 350 reliable subcontractors, consistently eliminating risky “sub-sub” layers.
  2. Structured Tendering: Ran three rounds of intensive tendering to establish fair yet competitive pricing.
  3. Frequency-Based Billing: Moved away from opaque flat-rate pricing to a modern, frequency-based billing model to ensure full cost control.

Results

€5M

in savings per year

Achieved total savings of 7% on €72M of addressed spend.

Reduced

supply chain risk

Stabilized the supply chain by professionalizing the partner base and securing direct contractual relationships.

Real-time

KPIs

Implemented a KPI check-up system to monitor delivery quality and communication stability in real time.

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