Improving Processes and Collaboration: United Drug’s Lean Transformation

United Drug is advancing its transformation journey with a renewed focus on Lean excellence. Through structured process improvement and team-driven innovation, the company is building a more agile, efficient, and connected organization. 

In partnership with the Kaizen Institute, United Drug launched a Value Stream Analysis (VSA) initiative – the first phase of its broader Lean transformation. The VSA served as a diagnostic foundation, bringing together people from across departments to take a fresh look at how workflows through the organization.  

Over a series of collaborative workshops, teams stepped back from their day-to-day operations to: 

• Map end-to-end warehouse and logistics processes to gain a clear view of how value moves through the business. 

• Identify bottlenecks, inefficiencies, and sources of waste that limit productivity and service performance. 

• Challenge existing routines and uncover simple, sustainable ways to improve them. 

• Prioritize improvement initiatives with the greatest potential for long-term operational impact. 

The sessions fostered a strong sense of openness, collaboration, and shared accountability. Employees at all levels – from warehouse operators to managers – contributed ideas and took ownership of the outcomes.  

This inclusive approach has strengthened understanding of how each role contributes to the company’s purpose: delivering the right product, in the right quantity, at the right time. 

By the end of the VSA, United Drug teams had not only mapped a more efficient future state but also sparked a lasting culture of continuous improvement. The results speak for themselves – productivity in key processes has tripled, while A-Frame exceptions have dropped from 10% to 6.5%. 

United Drug’s VSA journey is setting the stage for sustainable transformation, building leaner processes, stronger teams, and a more agile operation for the future.