CHEP, the leading FMCG and retail end-to-end supply chain specialist, is celebrating a 40-year partnership with F. Duerr & Sons Ltd, the oldest family-owned jam manufacturer in England. Founded in 1881, Duerr’s is a Manchester-based business that produces jam, marmalade, peanut butter, honey and condiments. The business has worked with CHEP since 1979, when both companies were situated in the Trafford Park area of the city. While Duerr’s has since moved to bigger warehousing and manufacturing premises in Wythenshawe to accommodate its growth ambitions, its relationship with CHEP has continued to grow with it. A fundamental part of this close relationship has been the consistent communication CHEP has maintained with Duerr’s relationship manager, Dave Owen. As Dave - who this month left from the business after four decades in service - has been a constant for the majority of the partnership, CHEP has been able to truly understand their customer’s needs in order to add value. Commenting on the forty-year partnership, Dave said: “When I first started at F. Duerr, we were using white pallets to transport our goods. However, we soon found that these pallets were too weak, and we were losing a lot of product to damage. Once we formed a partnership with CHEP and started using their pooled pallets, they helped us to promote transport efficiency and damages soon became a thing of the past. “We’ve made a conscious effort to protect the environment and promote a sustainable logistics model during our extensive partnership with CHEP – and by using their pooling services over the last forty years, we’ve been able to reduce waste by 195,580kg, diminish emissions by 2,728,000kg and save 1,988,800dm3 of wood. Respectively, this equates to around 412 people’s daily waste, 62 truck trips around the world and 1,922 books saved. “We’ve built a strong relationship with the staff at CHEP and they’ve always been professional and helpful in what they do. I have no doubt that the relationship will continue to be successful for many years to come.” CHEP UK & Ireland, Vice-President and Country General Manager, Helen Lane, added: “This is an incredible achievement for the company and we’re very proud of the journey we’ve taken with Duerr’s to reach this milestone. CHEP’s business model is designed to grow and scale with our customers and as part of our forty-year relationship, we’ve worked closely with the team at Duerr’s to maximise supply chain efficiency, minimise empty-truck miles and increase sustainability with transport collaboration. “However, none of this would have been possible without the strong relationship we’ve built and maintained with the Duerr’s team. We’ll be sad to see Dave leave, but we’re committed to continuing the close relationship we have with Duerr’s and look forward to building more of its kind across the business.”