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PS&L has created an All Brands Synergy Team in order to identify duplicate efforts and cost saving opportunities amongst the different brands of Ford Motor Company. The PS&L directors from each Brand Partner, such as Mazda, Land Rover, Volvo and Jaguar have dedicated resources and budget dollars to implement synergy opportunities between brands. Packaging has been prioritized as one of the top 11 areas to produce significant internal efficiencies.

Packaging was segmented into 2 categories: Packaging for Transport and Brand Equity. Packaging for Transport includes topics such as system requirements related to Package Engineering as well as all functions of packaging that interact with logistics. The "Packaging for Transport" team is working towards initiatives such as a common packaging specification system, consolidation of packaging materials across brands in order to leverage purchases at lower costs, strengthening brand identity through brand labels and implementing security features into packaging in order to reduce counterfeiting world wide. Brand Equity topics include branding issues and the actual look of the packaging material. Brand Equity is heavily reliant upon decisions and strategies determined by the Business Development group.

The Packaging Team identified the regions and companies demonstrating best in class (BIC) practices within the five key packaging functions. Those representatives now lead specific Mini-Centers of Excellence and guide all team members toward BIC processes. The team segmentation has spread the synergy workload among the brand partners and has fostered cross-brand participation.

Brand Synergies reiterate the importance for Packaging Engineering to be in lockstep with the PS&L logistic drive for best in class. Concepts such as cross-brand shared distribution suggest large opportunities for Ford Motor Company. Packaging can help fulfill these logistics enhancements by participating in the planning phase. All "Packaging for Transport" initiatives are anticipated to be transparent to the Ford, Lincoln and Mercury dealer bodies. It has yet to be determined whether the appearance of packaging will change.

Learn more about the author of this article, April Billins, in this months "Who's Talking" article.