A Queensland sugar company has teamed up with Blackwoods on a digital solution for clothing orders - to sweet success! The collaboration has transformed how the company manages the ordering process, taking it from an error-prone paper system that soaked up hours of admin time to an automated solution The new system speeds up the ordering process with minimal manual input and chance of mistakes.
The manual system was a source of frustration - and waste. Employees could over-order and order the wrong items. Employees spent time filling in paper forms, chasing signatures and keeping track of clothing entitlements - a nearly impossible job with up to 700 employees on the books at the seasonal peak.
The company needed a digital system that employees could use without thinking, and handled all the time-consuming manual steps automatically in the background. They considered building a solution, but it was hard to get the seamless user experience they wanted. So the Senior Procurement Contracts Coordinator called Blackwoods to see what was available. Blackwoods had an established product ordering solution, and a combined team from both companies sat down to customise it.
The company’s Senior Procurement Contracts Coordinator says the team put serious effort into cutting complexity, so every employee right up to the CEO could place their own clothing orders in just a few steps.
“The whole experience was a pleasure. Nothing seemed to be too difficult, there was no fuss. The Blackwoods digital department was fantastic."
Rather than filling in a form, employees now log in to a branded digital portal that shows a personalised view of their entitlements, based on their role. Ordering only takes a couple of clicks. They can order clothing until their allocation is exhausted, and their entitlements reset automatically each year.
Orders run through the company’s trade credit account and are assigned a customised PO number, with POs generated for business units rather than product lines. The system sends an email confirmation when orders are placed. Employees don’t see pricing, and every detail from cost centres to item variants and branded embroidery is already pre-set.
There’s no data entry, and employees can’t exceed their entitlements or select inappropriate items. Onboarding new employees is smooth, supported by a customised registration form.
Along with 24/7 ordering, the benefits include:
The system launched on March 1, 2025. The company plans to review it after a year to quantify the savings. But the Senior Procurement Contracts Coordinator says the benefits are already clear.
“Timewise, it’s a massive saving.”
The business is no longer paying employees to complete forms and micro-manage each step of the process. Over-ordering has disappeared, and no one has to double-check entitlements.
What once took up to a week now takes moments - employees simply log in, choose the item and size, and hit submit.
“Overdues on clothing have reduced by 75%, the lag isn’t there. Everything has been sped up. The time it takes for the order to be picked, packed and get to embroidery has been cut by about two days,” he says. “We are not placing one purchase order for clothing or footwear, there’s no one filling in forms, there’s no one hassling their bosses sign them, there are no bosses forgetting to send them to us. They’re not even getting involved. It’s just part of the business now, and that’s a sign of success. No one is complaining, it’s just disappeared from everyone’s workflow.”
Employees are even choosing to order after hours – another benefit. Entitlements are fixed, but they can visit the local Blackwoods store to check sizes, and often order on their phone immediately.The system was a novelty in 2025, but he expects clothing and footwear use to actually drop in 2026.
Blackwoods Inventory Solutions Specialist Cale Hutchins says the deep engagement between the two companies was key to the project’s success.
“It’s been very successful. On their side, there’s much less transaction management of the data, and we can get their orders into our system faster with less erroneous data issues.”
Cale says the solution can be easily customised - the data changes, but the core infrastructure stays the same.
“Uniform management is a challenge for any company with a large workforce. This solution can be applied across industries, in mining, manufacturing, utilities and transport,” he says. “Rather than spending a significant amount of money developing software, employers use infrastructure we’ve already got, so there’s a low cost of entry to this solution.”
Blackwoods is proud to support Australian manufacturers with innovative digital systems designed to streamline operations and boost efficiency. As the country’s leading provider of industrial solutions, we’ve got everything you need to keep your production running smoothly. Talk to your local Blackwoods Account Manager about tailored digital systems and how they can help optimise your processes. Drive smarter manufacturing, because progress should never be left to chance.
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