Each year, Modern’s Productivity Achievement Awards honor those companies that made outstanding operational improvements through materials handling systems and related information systems.

Our editorial team selects finalists from among the monthly system reports Modern published in the previous year. A panel of industry experts then reviews the finalists in each category, selects a winner and explains their thoughts on what set each winning company apart.

Finalists in the Manufacturing and Warehousing/Distribution categories are recognized for their ability to provide outstanding customer service, quickly respond to changing business conditions, deliver orders that meet customer requirements, and improve operations. The Innovation category recognizes a company that successfully employed a solution that defies convention.

In addition to achievements in productivity throughput or efficiency, winners were also judged on how projects inside the four walls enable or complement the broader business objectives of the company.

This year’s Productivity Achievement Awards judges:

Norm Saenz, managing director at St. Onge Co.
Jim Tompkins, chairman and CEO of supply chain consulting and implementation firm Tompkins International
Julie Niederhoff, associate professor of marketing and supply chain management in the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University.

The judges were split this year, but noted the radical transformations of each finalist. The winners illustrate how significant adversity can be overcome with strategic planning and targeted, future-proof investment.

2019 Productivity Achievement Award Winners

Warehouse/Distribution Award:

Luxottica

“System Report: Luxottica keeps it simple”

Manufacturing Award:

Trinchero Family Estates

“Trinchero Family Estates: Pallet handling in the vineyard”

Innovation Award:

DHL

“NextGen Supply Chain at DHL”

For the full text of the honorable mentions read “Year in Review: 2018 System Reports.”