Varian Medical Systems Improves Medical Device Distribution Response Times

Varian Medical Systems, Inc., is the world’s leading manufacturer of medical devices that help millions of people around the world beat cancer and other serious medical conditions.

One of the greatest challenges for a company such as Varian that’s focused on saving lives is to provide world-class service at a reasonable cost. With a global footprint and life-saving mission, Varian needed to maintain a service parts distribution network to support its team of field engineers who repair equipment on-site at customer facilities. This network had to help improve response times and increase customer satisfaction worldwide. While the company was operating its own regional service parts distribution network, it was not cost effective to continue to maintain this physical infrastructure around the world.

Varian set out to find a logistics provider that could manage this function and achieve several ambitious objectives:

• Improve response times and increase customer service expectations globally.
• Provide ready access to accurate, usable data from distribution records, including serial number control.
• Maximize responsiveness when faced with fluctuations in demand or delivery speed.
• Manage anticipated changes in volume without increasing fixed costs.
• Maintain focus on providing continuous improvement in both performance and the technical infrastructure of fulfillment operations.