An inspector with Bakers Basco crates

Source: Bakers Basco

Bakers Basco has redeployed ‘significant’ manpower and resources to track down backlogs of equipment which have been diverted out of the supply chain.

The membership scheme, which was set up by five of the UK’s largest plant bakers and manages more than four million baskets and 500,000 dollies, is redistributing its national investigations team to visit 50% more locations of interest between October and December. The team will be focused on unsecured locations of interest that Bakers Basco already holds data on.

As a result, it expects to be in a much stronger position to identify and reclaim equipment which has been delayed, lost or stolen in a more time effective manner, it said.

“There’s a lot of disruption currently happening across the supply chain and we’re taking no chances,” said Bakers Basco general manager Paul Empson.

“By redeploying time and resource to the recovery of equipment and stepping up our efforts yet again, we can ensure the steady supply of bread and other baked goods across the UK, at the same time identifying any backlogs, locations of interest and illegal recyclers.”

The moves comes after Bakers Basco recently upgraded its GPS tracking technology – which now comes with 4G connectivity, improved signal range and ring alerts triggered based on location. This, it said, allows the investigations team to track assets more effectively.

It added that the use of these trackers has significantly reduced losses and improved recovery levels of missing equipment. Evidence gathered using GPS-equipped products has been instrumental in securing judgement in Bakers Basco’s favour in a number of court cases, the organisation said.