Report on Digital Procurement’s Role in Advancing Sustainable Development Goals within the Manufacturing Sector

Executive Summary

The United Kingdom’s manufacturing and industrial sector is navigating a complex economic landscape marked by inflation, supply chain volatility, and increasing regulatory pressures. In this context, digital procurement emerges as a critical tool not only for cost control and operational efficiency but also as a strategic enabler for achieving key United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This report analyses how digital platforms facilitate responsible production, foster innovation, and support economic stability, thereby aligning corporate objectives with global sustainability targets.

Current Challenges and the SDG Imperative

The manufacturing sector faces a confluence of challenges that directly impact its ability to contribute positively to sustainable development. These challenges include:

• Economic Instability: High inflation, rising labour costs, and contracting growth threaten the sector’s viability, impacting SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth).
• Supply Chain Disruptions: Geopolitical tensions and trade volatility undermine the creation of resilient infrastructure, a core component of SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure).
• Sustainability and Environmental Regulations: Increasing pressure to meet stringent environmental standards requires a fundamental shift in operational and procurement practices to support SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production).
• Fragmented Indirect Spending: A significant portion of expenditure (20-30%) is on indirect goods like MRO supplies, IT equipment, and office supplies. This spending is often decentralised and lacks oversight, making it difficult to align with sustainability objectives.

Digital Procurement as a Catalyst for Sustainable Development

Digital procurement platforms provide a centralised solution to address these challenges, offering a clear pathway to integrate sustainability into core business functions. The strategic adoption of these technologies directly supports several SDGs.

Achieving SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

Effective management of indirect spend is crucial for responsible production. Digital platforms contribute by:

1. Enhancing Transparency: Centralised purchasing provides comprehensive management information, allowing organisations to track spending patterns and make strategic decisions. This data is essential for identifying and eliminating wasteful consumption.
2. Promoting Sustainable Sourcing: These systems enable procurement teams to enforce policies that favour suppliers meeting specific sustainability criteria, such as local businesses or those with strong environmental credentials.
3. Optimising Resource Use: Access to analytics helps organisations understand buying patterns, anticipate demand, and optimise stock levels, reducing excess inventory and waste.

Fostering SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

The adoption of digital procurement is an act of innovation that builds more resilient and sustainable industrial operations.

• Building Supply Chain Resilience: Centralised platforms with trusted, rapid delivery networks (e.g., 24-48 hour windows) mitigate the impact of supply chain disruptions, ensuring operational continuity.
• Driving Digital Transformation: Integrating procurement platforms with existing enterprise software accelerates the adoption of advanced digital technologies throughout the organisation.
• Providing Data for Innovation: The analytical tools embedded in these platforms offer insights that can drive further innovation in resource management and operational efficiency.

Case Study in Practice: Eurofins Group and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals)

The partnership between Eurofins Group, a global leader in testing laboratories, and Amazon Business exemplifies the successful implementation of digital procurement to achieve sustainability and efficiency goals.

Key Outcomes of the Partnership

• Centralised Control: The collaboration provided Eurofins with a scalable solution to manage indirect spend across its decentralised structure of nearly 900 laboratories in 61 countries.
• Data-Driven Decision Making: According to Jason Mulligan, President of Eurofins US Food, the platform delivered essential data analytics on purchasing habits, enabling better spend management and contributing to both cost and time savings. This aligns with the principles of SDG 12.
• Enhanced Internal Adoption: Vineet Garg, Senior Director of Strategic Sourcing, noted that the platform’s wide product variety and competitive pricing drove adoption, embedding responsible procurement practices throughout the organisation and strengthening its contribution to SDG 8 and SDG 9.

Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

• The article directly addresses the economic health of the UK’s manufacturing and industrial sector, a significant component of the national economy. It highlights negative growth, stating the sector “contracted by 0.9 per cent in May 2025,” which impacts economic stability and employment. The solutions proposed, such as digital procurement, aim to improve business efficiency and resilience, thereby supporting sustained economic activity.

SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

• This goal is central to the article, which focuses on the challenges and modernization of the “manufacturing and industrial sector.” It emphasizes the “pressure to adopt advanced digital technologies” and the role of digital platforms in building “supply chain resilience.” The adoption of innovative procurement software is presented as a way to upgrade industrial processes and infrastructure.

SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

• The article extensively discusses sustainable production patterns by focusing on procurement. It highlights the need to control “indirect spend” to reduce waste and inefficiency. A key point is the ability of digital platforms to help companies “meet increasingly tough regulations in sustainability” and choose “suppliers that meet certain sustainability requirements,” directly promoting responsible corporate consumption.

What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

1. Target 8.2: Achieve higher levels of economic productivity through diversification, technological upgrading and innovation.
   • The article advocates for the “adopt[ion of] advanced digital technologies” and digital platforms to help firms “spend more efficiently.” This technological upgrading is presented as a direct path to increasing productivity and achieving “cost and time savings,” as demonstrated by the Eurofins case study.

SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

1. Target 9.4: By 2030, upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable, with increased resource-use efficiency and greater adoption of clean and environmentally sound technologies and industrial processes.
   • The article discusses the need for industries to “meet increasingly tough regulations in sustainability.” It proposes retrofitting procurement processes through digital platforms, which enables companies to track and manage their environmental impact by selecting sustainable suppliers and optimizing resource use.

SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

1. Target 12.2: By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources.
   • The article points to inefficient management of “indirect spend categories” like MRO supplies, office supplies, and cleaning products. By using digital platforms to “optimise stock levels” and gain insight into spending, companies can reduce wasteful, ad hoc purchasing, leading to more efficient use of material resources.
2. Target 12.7: Promote public procurement practices that are sustainable, in accordance with national policies and priorities.
   • While focused on the private sector, the principles are identical. The article explicitly mentions that digital tools help “demonstrate the impact spend is having on wider organisational goals, such as using local suppliers or those that meet certain sustainability requirements.” This aligns directly with the goal of implementing sustainable procurement practices.

Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

For Target 8.2 (Economic Productivity)

• Firm-level cost and time savings: The article explicitly states that Eurofins “experienced great success both in cost and time savings” after implementing a digital solution. This serves as a direct indicator of increased productivity at the company level.
• Sector-level economic growth: The article cites a government figure that the sector “contracted by 0.9 per cent.” An improvement or reversal of this trend would be a key indicator of progress towards economic health and productivity for the entire sector.

For Target 9.4 (Sustainable Industries)

• Adoption rate of digital procurement technologies: The article promotes the use of platforms like Amazon Business as a solution. The rate at which manufacturing firms adopt such technologies is an implied indicator of the industry’s modernization and retrofitting efforts.

For Target 12.7 (Sustainable Procurement)

• Percentage of spend with sustainable suppliers: The article implies this can be measured by stating that digital platforms allow companies to track spend with “suppliers that meet certain sustainability requirements.” This provides a quantifiable indicator of sustainable procurement.
• Centralization of indirect spend: The article contrasts unmanaged ad hoc purchases with a centralized platform. The percentage of a company’s indirect spend that is managed through such a system is an indicator of improved control, efficiency, and responsible consumption.
• Availability of spend analytics: The article highlights the value of “data analytics… showing not only what we were purchasing but how often.” The availability and use of such data is an indicator of a company’s capacity to make informed and sustainable procurement decisions.

SDGs, Targets and Indicators Table

Source: themanufacturer.com