European Logistics Project of the Year: The winners are: E.LECLERC SOCAMIL and WITRON

19.12.2022
European Logistics Association (ELA) presents prestigious logistics award

Prestigious award for food retailer E.LECLERC Socamil and WITRON. In March 2022, the two companies already received the renowned French logistics award “Rois de la Supply Chain”. The success of the project partners now continues with winning the “European Logistics Association Award” in the category “Project of the Year”. The French-German project prevailed in the final against competitors from the Czech Republic, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland.

The ELA Award is considered the “Champions League” among international logistics awards for two reasons: It is awarded for an outstanding achievement in the field of “Logistics and Supply Chain Management”, and it can only be won by an applicant who has already secured a high-ranking logistics award in the home country. 
 

Won with a huge lead

Thus, on the evening of November 23, 2022, the champagne corks popped at the “Residence Palace” in Brussels when Christophe de Nays Candau, General Director of E.LECLERC Socamil and WITRON Authorized Signatory Claus Holm accepted the most important European Logistics Award. “With a huge lead”, said ELA President Paolo Bisogni, a jury of experts - composed of thirty top-ranking logistics professionals from retail, industry, services, consulting, and science - had selected the application of E.LECLERC Socamil and WTRON. 

The two companies were able to convince with the design and implementation of the fully automated omni-channel / multi-temperature distribution center in Castelnaudary - “end-to-end” integrated into the internal and external supply chain of the French food retailer. The facility supplies all distribution channels - hypermarkets, supermarkets, drives, as well as online customers - with more than 30,000 different items of the complete product range - dry, fresh, frozen. Here, WITRON’s OPM and FPM solutions pick up to 300,000 cases on a peak day. 

 
“Enormous customer benefit” convinces international jury

In his laudation for the ELA “European Project of the Year” award, Roman Stiftner, President of the European Shipper’s Council (ESC), highlighted the enormous customer benefits achieved with the project: High degree of automation as well as ergonomic work processes to compensate for the shortage of skilled workers, a delivery service with maximum quality for customers and stores, as well as comprehensive sustainability due to lower space requirement, less waste, optimal truck utilization, and CO2 reduction due to much more densely packed store pallets. For the first time ever, a technical innovation from WITRON was successfully implemented in the E.LECLERC Socamil project: The world debut FPM (Flow Picking Machinery) - a fully automated, stock-less “flow-through warehouse” for the full range of fresh and ultra-fresh items. 
 

Award is both a promise and a commitment

“We are very proud of the ELA “Logistics Project of the Year” award. It is a special award for all those who have worked on the project with high commitment on the part of E.LECLERC Socamil and WITRON. We were able to convince the international jury of experts with a variety of criteria that were successfully implemented - economically, ecologically, with the focus on customers and employees. Thus, the award is not only an honor, but at the same time a promise and a commitment - to our customers, our employees, and to the environment”, says E.LECLERC Manager Christophe de Nays Candau.
 

European Logistics Association (ELA)

The ELA is a federation of more than 30 national logistics associations covering most of Western and Central Europe and beyond. The members of the national logistics associations are professionals with logistics responsibility in industry, but also in various service sectors.