RESPONSIBLE SOURCING

Let’s continue our journey within the modules of The ID Factory platform.

After having explored the Operation Excellence module intended for the Operation department (click here if you missed it), today we will talk about the Responsible Sourcing module.

What is Responsible Sourcing?

In reference to environmental, social, and economic considerations, this section ensures that the origins and processes of purchased materials are known and accessible through various tools.
The Responsible Sourcing module is a powerful tool that enables organizations to monitor processes and product impacts from Tier 0 to Tier 4 of their supply chain. 

This module embodies our commitment to traceability and transparency, facilitated by a comprehensive mapping system. This system allows companies to gain real-time or retrospective visibility into the origins and genealogy of their products, ensuring a thorough understanding of every material component used

Keys features: 

Mapping: The Mapping feature constitutes a web portal that allows to:
• View material and/or finished product orders
• Map processes related to materials and finished products
• Monitor the identification of suppliers responsible for the mapped processes
• Collect data and documents related to material and/or finished product orders in a structured manner through a single and transparent channel.

Traceability Map: This feature provides a detailed traceability map, ensuring that every step in the supply chain is visible and verifiable.

Product Genealogy: Companies can access detailed genealogical data of their products, tracing each PO, and relative production processes and material components back to its source.

Impact Measurement: The module allows companies to measure the impact of their supply chain and products, aligning with sustainability goals and regulatory requirements. For companies with existing sustainability strategies, this area can be customized. Those without can rely on our integration with Ympact, defining a roadmap based on the 4sustainability framework.

Supplier Engagement

Supplier mapping in a supply chain involves a comprehensive process of qualification, focusing on their direct or indirect involvement. 

This initial phase of analysis marks the beginning of a more structured process of traceability and data collection.

When suppliers are directly involved, they are termed as ‘Verified Suppliers.‘ This direct involvement means they actively participate in the traceability and data collection processes. In contrast, when the involvement is indirect, suppliers are referred to as ‘Declared Suppliers.’

In a Verified Supply Chain, the involvement of suppliers is direct. They become active participants in the data collection and then in a traceability process. This direct approach enhances the accuracy and reliability of the supply chain data.

Our platform engages suppliers through various stages:
1- Customized onboarding of the tool
2- One to one sessions tailored to the purpose of traceability
3- Ongoing training and support

What information is collected after the onboarding of the suppliers?

Many brands, having control over their first-level suppliers, aspire to go further. They seek information about their second-level suppliers (sub-suppliers). In such cases, information is initially collected as Declared Information.

Suppliers can declare their sub-suppliers in various ways:
1. By Process: Creating a list of suppliers for each process
2. By Product: Defining whitch suppliers are involved for each product
3. By Order: Indicating suppliers involved in specific orders
4. By Delivery : in specific delivery

Our database, with over 80,000 qualified global fashion supply chain companies, allows brands to search and link their suppliers using the above parameters. If a supplier is not pre-listed, the information is compiled in collaboration with the brand.

MTM: Real-Time Visibility of Relationships Between Processes, Suppliers, and Materials

With verified or declared information about our suppliers, we can now define the rules for what information we want to collect and how.

MTM (Material Traceability Management) provides real-time visibility into the relationships between processes, suppliers, and materials.

The platform enables real-time access to specific information about materials ordered along the supply chain, the actors involved in each shipment, certifications, documents, processes, and more.

The information gathered serves multiple purposes:
• For Procurement: It supports sustainability efforts by managing detailed information on materials.
• For Compliance: It ensures that essential information is available and structured, for example, to meet labeling requirements in the context of regulations like AGEC.

To avoid duplicating existing processes and tools already in use by many companies, our platform integrates with the client’s operational ERP systems that issue orders. It digitizes how order confirmations and documentation linked to shipments are managed, importing them into our system and optimizing processes.

The impact assessment platform enables the supply chain impact’s measurements.

The mapping of suppliers involves collecting and organizing data related to suppliers and their associated sub-suppliers across various production processes and orders.

Data granularity:
• Style
• PO

– Suppliers’ document collection after production for compliance only.
– Document completeness monitoring and reporting, Report value chain & documents to authorities

Product Genealogy

retrospective visibility into the origins and genealogy of their products, ensuring a thorough understanding of every material component used.

Integration with Ympact

The system for measurable, collaborative fashion supply chains capable of reducing their impacts.

The Ympact platform measures the environmental and social impact of the fashion & luxury production chain. It is the IT solution developed for large-scale application of 4sustainability framework. Through a collaborative process between client and supplier, impact data are collected and verified to:

• improve each supplier’s performance on the six implementation pillars
• obtain primary data to support Sustainability Reporting, Green Claims e Digital
• ensure the truthfulness of the commitment and fight greenwashing 

Read the Achille Pinto case study : CLICK HERE

Do you want to discover more?