FROM “CHOOSING THE BEST SUPPLIER” → TO “CREATING THE BEST MARKET POSITION”
CONCLUSION: THE WINNER IS NOT THE COMPANY THAT BUYS GAS CHEAPEST. THE WINNER BUILDS THE SUPPLIER SYSTEM THAT CREATES THE HIGHEST CUSTOMER VALUE, CASH FLOW AND MARKET GROWTH.
10-STEP SYSTEM
| # | SYSTEM STEP | KEY QUESTION | RESULT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DEFINE THE MARKET | Where do we want to win? | Priority country, cluster, segment |
| 2 | DEFINE CUSTOMER VALUE | What does the customer really need? | Reliability, cost, productivity, sustainability |
| 3 | MAP SUPPLIERS | Who can deliver this value? | Qualified supplier universe |
| 4 | COMPARE TCO | What is the real delivered cost? | €/unit + logistics + inventory + risk + service |
| 5 | ASSESS SUPPLY SECURITY | Can the supplier deliver continuously? | Reliability and contingency score |
| 6 | SELECT #1 SUPPLIER SYSTEM | Which combination creates maximum value? | Strategic supplier decision |
| 7 | OPTIMIZE DELIVERY SYSTEM | How do we remove waste and working capital? | Replenishment + logistics + inventory optimization |
| 8 | CREATE CUSTOMER OFFER | How do we convert supply advantage into market value? | Differentiated Industrial Gas Value Offer |
| 9 | STRIKE THE MARKET | Where can we win first? | Top 3 accounts / clusters / applications |
| 10 | SCALE & COMPOUND | How do we replicate the winning model? | Recurring FCF + share growth + reusable IP |
THE CORE VALUE FLOW
MARKET SIGNAL
↓
CUSTOMER PROBLEM
↓
TCO REQUIREMENT
↓
SUPPLIER SELECTION
↓
SUPPLY + REPLENISHMENT OPTIMIZATION
↓
DIFFERENTIATED CUSTOMER VALUE OFFER
↓
TARGET ACCOUNT STRIKE
↓
VERIFIED CUSTOMER VALUE
↓
MARKET SHARE + FCF
↓
REPLICATE ACROSS DACH & CEE
SUPPLIER DECISION SCORE
I would evaluate each Industrial Gas supplier on six dimensions:
30% — TOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIP
Product + transport + tanks/cylinders + inventory + administration + losses.
20% — SUPPLY RELIABILITY
Plant network, backup capacity, logistics resilience, emergency response.
15% — REPLENISHMENT CAPABILITY
Telemetry, automatic replenishment, route optimization, stock reduction.
15% — CUSTOMER VALUE CREATION
Ability to improve customer productivity, quality, safety and process performance.
10% — COMMERCIAL FLEXIBILITY
Contracts, pricing structure, indexed pricing, volume flexibility.
10% — MARKET DEVELOPMENT POWER
Technical support, applications expertise, joint selling and expansion capability.
100% = SUPPLIER-TO-MARKET VALUE SCORE™
The supplier with the lowest €/m³ price does not automatically win. The supplier with the highest verified economic value delivered should win.
RapidKnowHow® MASTER CODE APPLICATION
SIGNAL
Industrial Gas markets are increasingly won through complete supply systems rather than commodity price alone.
PROBLEM
Traditional procurement separates supplier selection from customer and market development.
ONE DECISION
Choose suppliers according to their ability to create downstream market value—not simply purchase-price savings.
TOP 3 ACTIONS
- Rank suppliers using the Supplier-to-Market Value Score™.
- Build the optimized TCO + replenishment system with the winner.
- Convert that advantage into Top 3 targeted market-development offers.
MEASURABLE RESULT
LOWER TCO → HIGHER RELIABILITY → STRONGER CUSTOMER VALUE → MORE WINS → HIGHER FCF → COMPOUNDING MARKET POSITION
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