Supply Chain Procurement Policy

This policy encompasses our approach to our supply chain and procurement and should be read in conjunction with our other policies available at https://www.boxxe.com/general-terms-and-policies.  They include our Environment Policy, Health, Safety & Welfare Policy, and Supplier Code of Conduct.

This policy has been developed to promote procurement of more sustainable solutions, products and materials wherever reasonably possible as well as the development of sustainable business relationships.

Below are some of our supply chain and procurement principles and goals:

Prequalification and Approval

We will prequalify and assess suppliers and subcontractors to ensure they are appropriately accredited and certified to supply goods and/or services to us. 

We will assess suppliers and subcontractors to ensure they meet the requirements of our safety, quality and environmental standards and agree to adhere to the principles set out in our policies. 

We will seek to minimise the amount of repetition and duplication within our own prequalification process. 

We will seek to ensure that all relationships with suppliers and subcontractors are fair and honest. We will seek to further this goal by conducting quarterly review meetings with primary and secondary suppliers. 

We will only use suppliers who comply with all UK employment, human rights, anti-discrimination, equality, modern slavery and anti-bribery legislation. 

We will integrate the principles and goals of this policy through our procedures, and by providing ongoing training and guidance to our procurement team. 

If we have concerns about a chosen supplier’s procurement practices, we will seek to work with them to agree a remediation plan, where feasible. 

Sustainable & Localised Procurement

As part of our commitment to sustainability, we aim to reduce our impact on the environment, stimulate the local economy and support local communities through all our activities. We strive to procure sustainable, ethical and responsibly sourced materials, goods and services.  

We are committed to increasing the proportion of goods and services that are sourced locally without compromising on cost, quality or safety and to increase the quantity and quality of jobs created in the local area. 

We will, where possible, procure goods, products and services from suppliers who are no more than 60 miles from our office in the centre of York to reduce carbon emissions and our impact on the planet. This also includes a ‘local first’ stance, which means placing local businesses at the forefront of our commercial preferability. 

We will support local small businesses who traditionally find it hard to get involved with the larger suppliers. 

We will always aim to preferably purchase from suppliers who also have a commitment to sustainability, and invest in local environmental and social development. 

We will actively seek to recruit minority owned businesses into our supplier mix and sponsors, where possible. 

We will upskill our people to understand what local sourcing means and ensure they are empowered to make local decisions when ordering and purchasing. 

We will annually produce and asses our preferred supplier list to support local inclusion and investment. 

We will give preference to procuring products which are able to demonstrate compliance with a recognised responsible sourcing scheme.  

We will (where we have control) promote, specify and procure materials and products that can be reused or recovered at their end of use. 

We will consider the energy efficiency of plant, equipment and materials and promote those items with the greatest energy efficiency. 

We seek to ensure that whatever service or material we are purchasing, it will be legal, ethical and in accordance with our customer’s requirements and our Suppliers Code of Conduct. 

Environmentally Preferrable Purchasing 

We are committed to environmental sustainability. 

We will strive to balance environmental and fiscal responsibilities in making green purchasing decisions. 

We will promote the purchase of products internally with the highest percent of recycled content available, provided the products meet acceptable use and performance standards. 

More details on our commitment to environmental sustainability can be found in our Environmentally Preferrable Purchasing Policy accessible at https://www.boxxe.com/general-terms-and-policies (which forms part of this policy).

Counterfeit Goods

boxxe is committed to upholding the highest standards of quality and ethical business practices, we believe in a culture of transparency, accountability, and vigilance, reinforcing our position as a trusted partner to our customers, suppliers, and stakeholders. 

Our supplier selection process is designed to ensure that we work only with Tier 1 suppliers or reputable distributors who share our commitment to quality, authenticity, and ethical business practices. In order to do so, boxxe has a robust supplier onboarding process which assesses supply chain vulnerabilities, credibility and reliability of our suppliers through due diligence, and requiring goods to be subject to stringent quality control measures, including testing and verification of materials and products. boxxe conducts periodic internal and external audits to evaluate the efficiency of our risk management controls. 

Our customers have the right to return any goods identified as counterfeit and boxxe’s assurance that they will be destroyed. We implement suitable disposal methods for counterfeit products to ensure they do not re-enter the market  

boxxe also utilises identification and traceability information, such as serial numbers, to track products throughout the supply chain.  

Further, boxxe is committed to ensuring that its supply chains remain free from conflict materials. We strictly prohibit the use of any materials sourced from regions associated with armed conflict, human rights abuses, or environmental exploitation. Suppliers are required to confirm they have thorough due diligence and verification procedures to trace the origins of all materials, promoting transparency and accountability throughout our supply network. We collaborate only with suppliers who share our commitment to ethical practices and who adhere to international standards, promoting peace and sustainability within our global supply chain.

Fair Payment

We will continue to adhere to fair payment, paying suppliers within the terms of our agreement.

We have signed up to the Prompt Payment Code administered by the Office of the Small Business Commissioner on behalf of BEIS and as such will endeavour to undertake all payment activities in line with the guidance set out in the code.

Pricing

We seek to ensure that all pricing negotiations are conducted in an open and transparent way by utilising cost plus modelling for core products and via a tender process conducted on an annual basis, where feasible.

KPIs

We actively review operational and financial KPIs to ensure our suppliers deliver to the commercial and service expectations that our customers expect to receive from us. 

Implementation & Review

This policy applies to all parts of our business.  All employees responsible for procurement of any sort within our business will take a proactive role in implementing this policy.

This policy will be reviewed by us on an annual basis and as and when necessary to reflect changes in legislation.

_{Last reviewed:  November 2023}