GREEN BAY, Wis. — Schneider National has received the first-ever Innovator of the Year award from Kimberly-Clark. Schneider earned this award for its innovative thinking and the assistance it provided in pioneering a transportation management system for Kimberly-Clark.

Recognizing that carriers would be an excellent resource to help distinguish itself in the supply chain marketplace, Kimberly-Clark opened the doors to its carriers for new and inventive thinking in its transportation sector. Carriers submitted groundbreaking ideas to aid Kimberly-Clark in its mission to be indispensable to its customers. Schneider not only delivered but also helped drive retail sales during 2007, Kimberly-Clark officials said.

“The purpose of the Innovator of the Year award is to recognize the leading carrier who hauls freight for Kimberly-Clark and has stepped up and brought us new ways of thinking,” said Steve Harmon, vice-president of corporate transportation/supply chain management for Kimberly-Clark. “Schneider leads the way in developing and incorporating programs that help us service our customers. This award is a well-deserved win for Schneider and an even bigger win for our customers.”

Schneider’s award-winning thinking for Kimberly-Clark included developing a load convergence program, providing industry perspective for an economic value estimator, conducting a driver sensing survey and supplying project support for Kimberly-Clark’s transportation management system. The results encompass streamlined direct-to-store product delivery and quicker time to shelf, greater retailer understanding into the correlation between on-time delivery and customer sales, and firsthand insight for supply chain process improvements at the manufacturing level.

“It is an honour to receive Kimberly-Clark’s Innovator of the Year award,” said Steve Matheys, Schneider National executive vice-president of sales, marketing and customer service. “Working on these projects with Kimberly-Clark, and obtaining the results that we did, shows that Schneider delivers more than transportation, logistics and intermodal services; we deliver innovation that drives successful business results.”