DuluxGroup’s annual awards allow the Group to recognise service excellence among its 7000 suppliers. Within nine service categories, DuluxGroup’s suppliers are evaluated against a range of complex criteria including Account & Relationship Management, Innovation, DIFOT, Customer Service, Supply and Quality.

Pact Group subsidiary Viscount won the Supplier of the Year award for the Group’s Dulux business division and also the overall Supplier of the Year Award for developing an anti-skinning solution that avoided increasing manufacturing complexity, impeding performance or increasing costs. Skinning is a result of the hardening of the top service of the paint and is prevalent when utilising both metal and plastic paint pails. Viscount worked with Dulux for over 18-months to develop an anti-skinning innovation that involved modifying the pail to incorporate ribs down the vertical wall section and a grid pattern on the inside lid. The result was a pail with less surface area for paint to string or seal while retaining the integrity of the product.

DuluxGroup’s Supplier of the Year for their Selleys’ brand was also awarded to Pact Group subsidiary Viscount. Viscount is the supplier of Selleys’ sleeved cartridges using a fully automated application process. This decoration technique enables Selleys to occupy a premium brand position in their market. Over a 12-month period, Viscount and Selleys worked collaboratively and transparently, to approve a new supplier of sleeves that would significantly improve the operational process. This approach has resulted in increased production output for Viscount, improved marketing aesthetics for Selleys and most importantly, allowed Viscount to pass a commercial saving to Selleys.

Pact Group subsidiary VIP was awarded the Yates Supplier of the Year award for 2014. This award demonstrates how working collaboratively between our internal businesses can achieve great results for our customers. Rebecca Wailes DuluxGroup’s Procurement Category Manager – Packaging said, “VIP were able to provide Yates with a complete solution to an existing product issue. This award acknowledges the lengths the technical teams at VIP went to, to understand the market and our end consumers’ needs. This also allowed Yates to free up internal resources to work on other opportunities”.

Ian Griffith, DuluxGroup’s Head of Procurement acknowledged Pact Group’s outstanding effort, “Well done on the performance of all of your division as well as the Pact group overall. We have all been impressed at the level of commitment and innovation that you’ve been able to provide”.

Brian Cridland, Managing Director and CEO of Pact Group said, “One of Pact Group’s core values is to walk in our customers shoes to serve them better. When we receive accolades for service excellence from long-term blue chip partners such as DuluxGroup, we feel immensely proud”.