Tip Top Bakeries ANZ and National ICT Australia (NICTA) have been recognised for innovative software that reduces driving distances for delivery personnel .

The collaboration took out this year’s Smart Logistics Conference award for Excellence in Transport and Logistics, hosted by information and communications technology research organisation NICTA.

NICTA’s software – Cost to Serve Solution – was noted as having significantly improved Tip Top’s fresh bread network by optimising last mile logistics costs. Last mile logistics is known as being a notoriously difficult issue for businesses to manage, model and control. As Tip Top distributes from 100 centres to more than 20,000 customer locations, approximately 80 per cent of its transport costs relate to last mile logistics

NICTA operations director Lis Mannes said understanding the complex relationship between customer locations and delivery costs provided both companies with more control over their supply chain network.

“As a result, through better utilisation, we have been able to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and freight travelled,” Lis said.

“Judges were looking for solutions that streamlined operations and improvements in cost control in the transport of goods or people, locally or internationally and across transport modes.”