Caps hold line on knee prices.

When materials managers try to shave costs off of the supply chain, pricing receives the most attention. However, those who also tackle the distribution system and embark on the difficult task of logistics planning could cut an additional 15% from the costs of bringing supplies from manufacturers to end users, industry studies indicate. No one says the task is easy, least of all Larry Dooley, logistics guru at Novation in Irving, TX. Novation is the group purchasing organization (GPO) that VHA, also in Irving, shares with partner University HealthSystem Consortium (UHC) in Oak Brook, IL. As vice president of contract and program services for Novation, Dooley has tried to help VHA and UHC hospitals review and streamline their logistics.