The Anglo-Dutch firm has over 250 manufacturing sites and is expanding aggressively, mainly in developing and emerging markets, to support its ambitious growth agenda, and expects the emerging markets to drive around 70-75 per cent of its growth in the long term.
The Alliance will be managed out of Singapore and will provide engineering services for Unilever’s manufacturing sites around the world.
Reinforcing management capabilities
“This is about reinforcing our technical management capabilities with one of the best engineering companies in the world. It is another example of Unilever building a new business model focused on long-term sustainable value creation and not only in opportunistic short term cost savings,” explained Unilever’s chief supply chain officer, Pier Luigi Sigismondi.
“We will work as a team to ensure the sustainable growth model will benefit all, focused on our aim to Design once and Deploy everywhere.”
Additionally, within Unilever’s aggressive capital expansion programme, the company says the Alliance has been forged to make improvements in project delivery, addressing all aspects of cost, speed to market, operations and sustainability.
Socially responsible approach
“Jacobs welcomes this challenge and appreciates Unilever’s proactive, socially responsible approach to business. We look forward to partnering with Unilever and contributing to their sustainable growth for many years to come,” commented Jacobs CEO Craig Martin.
The Alliance will help Unilever, who has recently had its Alberto Culver acquisition confirmed, implement operating cost reductions, drive co-innovation, and implement the harmonization and cross-category standardisation of designs.
It will also be responsible for working with Unilever’s supply chain teams to support increased speed to market and develop engineering designs that reduce carbon, water and waste footprints across its manufacturing sites, aligning with the company’s sustainability plan announced at the end of last year.