Wincanton: W² Labs

For over 100 years, Wincanton – now part of American global contract logistics company GXO – has entered new industry sectors, ventured into new geographies, broadened their services and used technology to manage the increasing pace and complexity of the supply chain. Innovation, therefore, is a part of their DNA.

As the largest UK logistics firm, providing solutions to some of the world’s most admired brands, Wincanton has always put innovation at the forefront of what they do. In 2017, Wincanton partnered with L Marks to launch W² Labs to encourage startups and emerging suppliers to pitch ideas for how digitisation can drive improvement across the supply chain for clients such as IKEA, Sainsbury’s, Asda, and Screwfix. The first five iterations discovered, developed and deployed a series of successful innovations into Wincanton and the logistics market, including empowering the returns process, wireless gloves, employee safety technology, and the creation and launch of the OneVast marketplace.

“The Labs process gives us a framework to strategically innovate in a way that is both low risk and well managed. I often describe it as our speedboat, able to explore new territories with agility and pace, before returning to the mothership with valuable insights”

Claire Charlton
Head of Open Innovation, Wincanton

Across the five years, L Marks’ Scouting Team promoted the Lab to over 3,000 businesses, making sure to target a diverse range of entrepreneurs, including those based in other countries or working in other sectors. Of the 556 applicants, 93 were invited to present their ideas at Pitch Day, with 30 businesses selected to join the programme. Collectively, they received 505 hours of mentoring from 116 different mentors and raised over £104 million in funding.

W² Labs aims to bring together top innovators to tackle industry challenges and create value for customers. They strive to position Wincanton as a tech-driven supply chain partner, delivering new products, services, and efficiency through innovations like robotics and asset optimisation. By fostering collaboration internally and with external partners, W² Labs drives new business growth. Selected participants receive mentorship, guidance, and access to live environments, with the goal of continuing partnerships post-programme.

Working internally and with the support of L Marks, the categories explored for the 5 iterations of this Lab were:

With a particularly international group of businesses, the remote element worked very well, even with an eight-hour time difference for some. The engagement shown by the Wincanton sponsors and mentors was fantastic and was remarked on by all the teams.

“We were very impressed at the seniority and level of engagement from the Wincanton management. In other programmes we have not had this level of commitment from some of the highest levels of management”

Luke Gotszling
Chief Executive Officer, Noam 

All the teams worked through their respective categories, demonstrating a coherent Proof of Concept and Proof of Value, delivering ongoing commercial outcomes for Wincanton and the participating startups.

RESULTS

THRIVEMAP

ThriveMap creates personalised work simulation assessments for the pre-hire process. These assessments capture key attributes to look for in new hires and translate them into realistic job scenarios for candidates to complete online. Once the assessment narrative has been agreed upon and tested, the solution integrates seamlessly with existing applicant tracking systems, providing fair and objective screening of candidates for their capability, commitment, and cultural fit. ThriveMap can also leverage data on hiring outcomes, such as retention and performance, to optimise assessments over time.

Wincanton identified ThriveMap as a valuable partner in enhancing its hiring process, recognising the strategic importance of efficient recruitment across its operations, from warehouse management to industrial sites. Given the scale and complexity of Wincanton’s business, ensuring a streamlined and cost-effective hiring process was critical, particularly as this phase of the program took place during the pandemic. ThriveMap’s expertise provided deeper insights into the challenges faced in recruitment, presenting an opportunity to optimise and improve hiring outcomes.

To modernise hiring practices, ThriveMap collaborated with Wincanton partner Screwfix to introduce ‘realistic job assessments’ as a replacement for traditional hiring methods. These assessments simulate a typical day in the role, enabling candidates to make more informed decisions. In a highly competitive labour market, where applicant drop-off rates had reached 40%, ThriveMap focused on saving time, improving new hire retention, and enhancing the overall quality of recruits. The project centred on three key areas: validating the assessment process to minimise the need for excessive screening and interviews, integrating ThriveMap’s solution with Wincanton’s existing recruitment software, and measuring success through tangible improvements and cost savings.

During the innovation lab, ThriveMap clearly defined its objectives and made substantial progress in streamlining Wincanton’s hiring process while reducing costs. Given that most employee turnover occurs within the first three months due to unmet job expectations, the new approach aimed to significantly reduce early attrition and improve hiring success. Recruitment timelines were dramatically shortened, shifting from Wincanton’s traditional 4–6 week hiring process to an industry-leading 24-hour “hire to start” turnaround. Additionally, ThriveMap leveraged data from the programme to track the percentage of successful versus unsuccessful hires, providing insights that would not have been available otherwise. By monitoring site-specific data on employee retention, the goal was to minimise undesirable turnover across multiple locations.

ThriveMap proposed an extended paid pilot to further evaluate forecasted improvements in new hire retention and post-hire performance. Recognising the commercial benefits, Wincanton agreed to a long-term partnership, leading to the rebranding and rollout of ThriveMap as the W² Recruiter tool. This solution has now been integrated across multiple customer contracts, spanning diverse sectors and functions, reinforcing Wincanton’s commitment to innovation in workforce management.

OneVAST Warehouse

OneVAST Warehouse is a digital platform designed to optimise warehouse space utilisation by connecting businesses in need of storage with those that have excess capacity. This flexible and collaborative solution enables companies to access on-demand storage while allowing warehouse owners to monetise underutilised space. The platform offers a seamless experience where users can search for storage by location, size, duration, and required facilities, ensuring an efficient and transparent marketplace for warehousing solutions.

Wincanton first identified the opportunity to optimise warehouse, yard, and office space during their initial Innovation Lab. To tackle this, they partnered with StoreKat, a software platform specialising in space optimisation for storage and supply chain networks. Building on this foundation, Wincanton fully integrated OneVAST Warehouse as a standalone solution, independent of StoreKat. OneVASTWarehouse functions as a dynamic marketplace, enabling businesses to list available space for free, regardless of size or duration. Those seeking storage can effortlessly find suitable options and connect directly with providers. Beyond storage, the platform offers wraparound logistics services, including pick-and-pack operations, ensuring a flexible and scalable solution for modern supply chain demands.

OneVASTWarehouse remains at the core of Wincanton’s strategic offerings, seamlessly integrating into their logistics solutions. They have continued to expand their extensive network, now comprising over 900 warehousing partners, and are actively enhancing their data capabilities to match buyers and sellers with optimal storage opportunities. OneVAST Warehouse is focused on refining its flexible storage solutions, accommodating short, medium, and long-term requirements while catering to a diverse range of industries, including the defence sector. This initiative reinforces Wincanton’s commitment to providing innovative and scalable warehousing solutions that drive efficiency and resilience across supply chains.

ClearQuote

ClearQuote has developed an AI-powered vehicle inspection app that enables guided image capture and automatic damage detection. This innovative solution generates alerts for new damage and provides instant, accurate assessments without requiring manual inspections. Designed for use on smartphones and fixed video cameras, the app allows fleet managers and operators to monitor both new and pre-existing vehicle damage, offering enhanced oversight of fleet conditions.

ClearQuote joined the programme to test their solution with Wincanton’s fleet, aiming to validate the usability and accuracy of their application. Trials were conducted at three sites: the IKEA site in Dartford, focusing on vans, and the Sainsbury’s and Screwfix sites in Northampton and Stafford, respectively, focusing on heavy-goods vehicles (HGVs). For IKEA’s fleet, ClearQuote integrated its app into drivers’ existing devices, enabling efficient testing and feedback collection over a 10-week period. Drivers conducted over 8,000 inspections—far exceeding the target of 3,000—and provided valuable feedback on user experience, which ClearQuote used to refine the app. Notably, IKEA’s driver checklist was integrated into the app, further enhancing functionality.

At the Sainsbury’s and Screwfix sites, ClearQuote adapted its solution to accommodate HGVs—a new vehicle type for the platform. Initial site visits helped the team understand key damage areas for HGVs, enabling the development of tailored guided image and video capture workflows. ClearQuote also streamlined Sainsbury’s manual vehicle checklist by integrating it into the app. Over the course of the programme, 2,000 inspections were completed by 20+ drivers, surpassing the initial target of 1,200.

During the programme, ClearQuote demonstrated their solution to additional Wincanton teams and began commercial discussions with IKEA, which culminated in finalised contracts and supplier onboarding. ClearQuote also presented demos of their solutions to a number of Wincanton customers, leading to post-programme meetings with several of them to explore further opportunities.

SOTER ANALYTICS

Soter Analytics has developed the smallest and lightest portable device solution on the market that successfully identifies high-risk postures and reports on the ergonomics of a moving person. The device adapts to all body types and measures and monitors 10 at-risk movements in real time. It works independently of the phone in the workplace, providing real-time information to the individual through audio feedback and haptics. Its battery has a lifespan of 30 days without charging.

Soter Analytics was selected to join the Wincanton W² Labs programme in 2019, which focused on safety, as poor manual handling techniques remained the leading cause of reportable accidents across the logistics industry. With ergonomic injuries accounting for 33% of all workplace injuries and over 55% of injury costs, Wincanton aimed to explore innovative solutions to mitigate these risks. Soter’s wearable technology was trialled to help reduce the risk of musculoskeletal injuries among Wincanton colleagues working in warehouses.

Soter Analytics’ main objective was to deliver their wearable solution and 12-day programme to two different groups of Wincanton volunteers who regularly engage in high-risk activities. Two trials involving volunteers from different sectors and different types of manual handling ran in parallel.

Following Soter Analytics’ success in W², Wincanton expanded the trial of its wearable technology and artificial intelligence across various operations, yielding impressive results. The technology successfully monitored eight at-risk movements in real-time, reduced spine hazards per hour across Wincanton operations by 30%, and demonstrated self-learning capabilities, becoming self-aware after just five days.

At the end of the lab, it was decided that Soter would be deploying 20 units to one of Wincanton’s facilities with a history of manual handling challenges. Since then, Wincanton has utilised two solutions from Soter Analytics to reduce the risk of ergonomic injuries among colleagues. SoterSpine is focused on lifting activities, such as picking operations, while SoterShoulder is designed for pushing activities, such as roll cage movements and home deliveries. Today, Soter Analytics is used across eight operations at Wincanton and has delivered a 30% reduction in spine hazards per hour, reducing incidences of poor bending, back twisting, and repetitive movements for colleagues in the warehouse.