That’s what procurement must do at the cruise firm. The solution: planning and interdependence
It’s an exercise in complexity management, Carnival UK’s vice president, procurement and supply chain Sermet Baykaner tells SM at an event organised by the cruise company and the CIPS Southampton branch. The event was held on board the 19-deck P&O ship Ventura during the short eight-hour window when it was in port for guest changeover and loading of supplies.
With the ships sailing 365 days a year, the team has to provide for: 35,000 passengers and staff at any one time, hundreds of ports all over the world, a daily consumption of 100 tonnes of fruit and veg, and 100s of thousands of stock keeping units – from sugar cubes to an 18-metre propeller shaft. “It is like supplying a town and all its people, but without a network of roads and rail, just a procurement team,” Baykaner says.