At Baxter, “supply chain” refers to the organization and activities that plan and coordinate product inputs from tens of thousands of suppliers worldwide to Baxter manufacturing operations, develop schedules to meet forecasted demand and then inventory and distribute finished products to customers in more than 100 countries. The company relies on this supply chain to securely deliver the right products to the right places at the right time.
Baxter addresses a variety of sustainability issues throughout its supply chain:
- Managing Supplier Performance – Establishing Baxter’s expectations for and ensuring supplier commitment to sustainability;
- Supplier Diversity – Maintaining a supplier base that reflects the diversity of Baxter’s markets and the communities in which the company operates;
- Greening the Supply Chain – Promoting practices that enhance supplier environmental performance;
- Product Transport and Packaging – Optimizing logistics and improving packaging to minimize related environmental impacts (included in Product Responsibility section); and
- Customers – Working to ensure patient safety, meeting customer and patient needs, and decreasing environmental impacts and cost through e-commerce.
